1st in the US: California high school curriculum to include WWII in PH
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CORREGIDOR
Corregidor was the site of some of the most intense battles of the WW II. It is a rock formation about 4.0 miles long which lies two miles and seven miles, respectively, from the shores of the provinces of Bataan and Cavite. Corregidor, was renamed by the Americans as Fort Mills, divides the mouth of Manila Bay into two channels, called earlier by the Spaniards as Boca Chica (Small Channel) and Boca Grande (Large Channel). From the air, Corregidor resembles a tadpole with its head thrusting into the South China Sea, and its body and tail curling east and south back into Manila Bay. But behind the story Corregidor of WW II is a much older legend that surrounds the island.
The Legend of Corregidor
Several centuries ago in Spain a young nobleman fell in love with a beautiful young girl, also of noble stock, and she with him. They both decided to marry. But when the young man asked permission to marry his love, his father refused to grant permission. The father told his son that the girl he was in love with had been betrothed to his elder brother.
Terribly disappointed, the young man told his father that his only alternatives were to travel abroad either as a priest/missionary of God or as a soldier of the King. The young man chose to become a friar. He was subsequently was assigned to the remote missions in the Pacific known as the Philippines, named after King Philip, the King of Spain.
The young lady, in turn, when she found out that she could not marry the love of her life, told her parents that she would choose convent life and become a nun, rather than marrying someone else who she did not love. As fate would have it, this young nun was also assigned to the missions in the Philippines.
Now, the young friar was subsequently assigned to be the father confessor of the convent of nuns in Manila where the young nun was. Through the confessional, the young couple rediscovered each other and their love for one another. And they both decided to flee the religious life, and elope.
One night, the young man came on a horse to the convent with a carabao in tow. His lady love boarded the carabao, and surreptitiously the couple fled on horse and carabao from the convent and Manila, to the southwest of Manila, hoping to find refuge in the outlying provinces in that area.
The act of the couple was under the laws of that era considered a crime. And the authority tasked to implement religious discipline, called the Corregir, ordered his troops to chase after the fleeing couple and to apprehend them dead or alive. The young lovers were caught, and killed by the troops in the province of Bataan, in a place now called Mariveles named after the young woman, Maria Veles.
Within sight of Mariveles, Bataan are five islands located a distance from one another. The largest island, Corregidor, is named after the Corregir, the authority who ordered his troops to pursue the young couple. Two islands are called Isla de Fraille or El Fraille, after the young priest, and Isla de Monja or La Monja, after the young nun. The last two islands are called Isla de Caballo and Isla de Carabao after the horse and the carabao that the young lovers rode on when they met their fate. The five islands have been so named since the Spanish times of Philippine history.
This is the legend of Corregidor. Fact or fiction?
(Contributed by RAFAEL E. EVANGELISTA, 11 April 2016)
CORREGIDOR - Of the five islands at the entrance to Manila Bay, Corregidor is the largest. It is a rock formation about 4.0 miles long which lies two miles and seven miles, respectively, from the shores of the provinces of Bataan and Cavite. Corregidor, was renamed by the Americans as Fort Mills, divides the mouth of Manila Bay into two channels, called earlier by the Spaniards as Boca Chica (Small Channel) and Boca Grande (Large Channel). From the air, Corregidor resembles a tadpole with its head thrusting into the South China Sea, and its body and tail curling east and south back into Manila Bay.
EL CABALLO – Is located on the South Channel and about 2.6 miles east of Corregidor. Caballo Island is also referred to as Fort Hughes.
LA MONJA – is also known as "The Nun." La Monja is a tiny islet 3.6 miles west of Corregidor. It is located on the North Channel and is about halfway between Corregidor and the Bataan shore.
EL FRAILE – is another islet and is also known as Fort Drum. It is about 6.5 miles south-southeast from Corregidor. A thick concrete casemate was constructed around it to create an impregnable fortress. It was made to look like a concrete battleship thrusting its bow into the China Sea. Two massive 14-inch twin-gun turrets, one above the other, were set up in its front as well as four 6-inch rifles at its rear.
EL CARABAO - is only a few hundred yards from the shores of the province of Cavite, is located about 8.2 miles south of Corregidor. Out of its hard rock American engineers blasted and converted it into a fortified island which was later called Fort Frank.
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Linked Heroes and Lives Linked to Us by Heroism
It is the veteran, the soldier, the policeman, not the preacher, who have given us freedom of religion.
It is the veteran, the soldier, the policeman, not the reporter, who have given us freedom of the press.
It is the veteran, the soldier, the policeman, not the poet, who have given us freedom of speech.
It is the veteran, the soldier, the policeman, not the activist, who have given us the freedom to assemble.
It is the veteran, the soldier, the policeman, not the lawyer, who have given us the right to a fair trial.
It is the veteran, the soldier, the policeman, not the politician, who defend our right to vote.
It is the veteran, the soldier, the policeman, not the doctor, who assure our right to live.
It is the veteran, the soldier, the policeman, not the businessman, who guarantee our right to earn a living.
It is the veteran, the soldier, the policeman who salute the Flag.
It is the veteran, the soldier, the policeman who serve under the Flag.
It is the veteran, the soldier, the policeman who lay down their lives for the Flag.
It is the men in uniform who bear upon their backs all that we aspire for in the cause of freedom and democracy.
Our lives are inextricably linked to theirs, as their lives are linked to each other.
It is the men in uniform who we salute today beneath Heaven, over and above all.
Statement of the Defenders of Bataan & Corregidor (DBC), 3 Feb 2015, (paraphrasing a statement of an unknown poet)
It is the veteran, the soldier, the policeman, not the reporter, who have given us freedom of the press.
It is the veteran, the soldier, the policeman, not the poet, who have given us freedom of speech.
It is the veteran, the soldier, the policeman, not the activist, who have given us the freedom to assemble.
It is the veteran, the soldier, the policeman, not the lawyer, who have given us the right to a fair trial.
It is the veteran, the soldier, the policeman, not the politician, who defend our right to vote.
It is the veteran, the soldier, the policeman, not the doctor, who assure our right to live.
It is the veteran, the soldier, the policeman, not the businessman, who guarantee our right to earn a living.
It is the veteran, the soldier, the policeman who salute the Flag.
It is the veteran, the soldier, the policeman who serve under the Flag.
It is the veteran, the soldier, the policeman who lay down their lives for the Flag.
It is the men in uniform who bear upon their backs all that we aspire for in the cause of freedom and democracy.
Our lives are inextricably linked to theirs, as their lives are linked to each other.
It is the men in uniform who we salute today beneath Heaven, over and above all.
Statement of the Defenders of Bataan & Corregidor (DBC), 3 Feb 2015, (paraphrasing a statement of an unknown poet)
"WHAT OUR COLONIAL MASTERS THOUGHT OF US DURING THE TIME OF DEWEY"
Filipino WWII veterans to receive additional U.S. benefits
An additional U.S. benefit to eligible Filipino World War II (WWII) veterans is included among the many provisions of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 passed by the U.S. Congress and signed into law February 17, 2009 by U.S. President Barack Obama.
These new benefits further reflect the United States’ great respect for the bravery and service of Philippine WWII veterans and for their partnership with the U.S. military in defending freedom. Furthermore, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 formally recognizes the service of Filipino WWII veterans as active military service in the Armed Forces for purposes of this law.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 authorizes one-time lump-sum payments to all eligible Filipino WW II veterans. Those veterans with U.S. citizenship will receive a one-time lump-sum payment of $15,000. Non-U.S. citizens will receive a one-time lump-sum payment of $9,000. This is an additional benefit for those eligible and qualified WWII veterans. It will not change or affect other benefits an individual may be receiving.
Working to quickly implement this new benefit for these honored WWII veterans, the United States Embassy, through its United States Department of Veterans Affairs Manila Regional Office will administer these benefit payments.
Further instructions on how to apply will be posted on the U.S. Embassy website at http://manila.usembassy.gov. Veterans can also inquire at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Manila Regional Office located at the U.S. Embassy. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Manila Regional Office will also be conducting extensive outreach, within and outside of Manila, to the many Filipino WW II veterans throughout the Philippines to ensure all those entitled receive the benefits they deserve as soon as possible.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Manila Regional Office pays approximately $15 million per month in monetary benefits to veterans residing in the Philippines. Some $8 million of this goes to Filipino WWII veterans or their survivors each month, totaling nearly $100 million per year for Filipino beneficiaries. This new lump sum benefit will result in approximately $120 million in payments to eligible Filipino WW II veterans residing in the Philippines.
These new benefits further reflect the United States’ great respect for the bravery and service of Philippine WWII veterans and for their partnership with the U.S. military in defending freedom. Furthermore, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 formally recognizes the service of Filipino WWII veterans as active military service in the Armed Forces for purposes of this law.
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 authorizes one-time lump-sum payments to all eligible Filipino WW II veterans. Those veterans with U.S. citizenship will receive a one-time lump-sum payment of $15,000. Non-U.S. citizens will receive a one-time lump-sum payment of $9,000. This is an additional benefit for those eligible and qualified WWII veterans. It will not change or affect other benefits an individual may be receiving.
Working to quickly implement this new benefit for these honored WWII veterans, the United States Embassy, through its United States Department of Veterans Affairs Manila Regional Office will administer these benefit payments.
Further instructions on how to apply will be posted on the U.S. Embassy website at http://manila.usembassy.gov. Veterans can also inquire at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Manila Regional Office located at the U.S. Embassy. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Manila Regional Office will also be conducting extensive outreach, within and outside of Manila, to the many Filipino WW II veterans throughout the Philippines to ensure all those entitled receive the benefits they deserve as soon as possible.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Manila Regional Office pays approximately $15 million per month in monetary benefits to veterans residing in the Philippines. Some $8 million of this goes to Filipino WWII veterans or their survivors each month, totaling nearly $100 million per year for Filipino beneficiaries. This new lump sum benefit will result in approximately $120 million in payments to eligible Filipino WW II veterans residing in the Philippines.
Heroes: The Legacy of Example
(Remarks of Rene B. Azurin at the Sunset Ceremony of the Philippine Veterans’ Week – Libingan ng mga Bayani, April 11,2009)
In a place like this, a libingan ng mga bayani, it is appropriate to speak of heroes. At the same time, it is difficult to speak of them because one is always acutely aware that one’s words can never do justice to their deeds. This is what worries me, as I stand here today in front of the surviving heroes of Bataan and Corregidor, men I have always held in awe and reverence for their unparalleled courage, endurance, determination, and patriotism.
The 19th century British writer and statesmen Benjamin Disraeli said that ‘the legacy of heroes is the memory of . . . a great example.”
Even if I have never been able to live up to my fathers example, I have always been inspired by it. Like all the sons and daughter of the Defenders of Bataan and Corregidor, my father Jesus C. Azurin, is my hero. When the war broke out, he was in his internship at the University of the Philippines College of Medicine and he joined the Army of the 1st Battalion of the 1st Regular Ionfantry Division of the USAFFE. He was on Bataan, like you, and endured the horrors of the infamous Death March and incarceration at Capas where, like you, he suffered through malaria and starvation. After he was released, he joined the guerillas under Volckman and Blackburne and was picked by the kempetai while buying rice and other supplies in Aparri. He was then beaten for two weeks with a latigo made of fine strips of bamboo to make him confess. The one thing that kept him from admitting and ending the pain was, he told us, the certain knowledge that all those who broke down and confessed to being aguerilla were immediately beheaded. To the end of his days, my father’s back bore the marks of the vicious whip.
Anyway, after the war, he continued to serve the nation, choosing the public health service, instead of the more lucrative private practice, because he believed that working to raise the health condition of very single Filipino was more important than a more comfortable living treating those who coild pay their way anyway. He pioneered in community-based health action and – as Minister of Health later – created a public health delivery system that the World Health Organization cited, when it awarded him the prestigious Sasakawa Prize, as the model for Third World countries.
I am certain that there are thousands of such stories and I hope that the project of the sons and daughters of the defenders of Bataan and Corregidor to collect all and publish and disseminate these stories – through books, websites, and other media – will finally be completed. We – as a nation – need this. We need to remember the example of our heroes. We need to be reminded of what heroism is. Especially in days like now, when leaders who have been gifted with government power seem focused only on self-aggrandizement and the perpetuation of their personal fiefdoms and appear to have forgotten completely the meaning of public service and love of country. This is our collective tragedy.
I have taken my children to the site of the Capas Memorial where I showed them the name of their grandfather – and those of 4 other Azurins, his cousins – on the “Wall of Heroes” and told them a little bit of their own history.
The American poet Stanely Kunitz wrote, “ Old myths, old gods, old heroes have never died. They are only sleeping at the bottom of our mind, waiting for our call. We have need for them. They represent the wisdom of our race. “
When thinking of the defenders of Bataan and Corregidor, one cannot help but think in terms of such noble qualities as gallantry and perseverance and self-sacrifice. Then one cannot help but lament the apparent absence of those virtues today. These are certainly not present in our country’s political leaders who have debased the concept of public service and act as if it is simply the most expedient way to personal wealth. To me, our leaders today shame the memory of you who fought and bled and died on Bataan and Corregidor.
This called the “Sunset Ceremony” not, I hope, because this nation is in the sunset of its history. Nonetheless, if we forget our heroes, if we forget your great example, then it may well be our sunset and darkness will fall soon on the future of our children and the generations after. We the sons and daughters of heroes, should not let this happen. We must rouse our heroes from the bottoms of our minds. Our heroes represent not just the wisdom of our race, but its very soul. We must make sure that this nation does not forget.
In a place like this, a libingan ng mga bayani, it is appropriate to speak of heroes. At the same time, it is difficult to speak of them because one is always acutely aware that one’s words can never do justice to their deeds. This is what worries me, as I stand here today in front of the surviving heroes of Bataan and Corregidor, men I have always held in awe and reverence for their unparalleled courage, endurance, determination, and patriotism.
The 19th century British writer and statesmen Benjamin Disraeli said that ‘the legacy of heroes is the memory of . . . a great example.”
Even if I have never been able to live up to my fathers example, I have always been inspired by it. Like all the sons and daughter of the Defenders of Bataan and Corregidor, my father Jesus C. Azurin, is my hero. When the war broke out, he was in his internship at the University of the Philippines College of Medicine and he joined the Army of the 1st Battalion of the 1st Regular Ionfantry Division of the USAFFE. He was on Bataan, like you, and endured the horrors of the infamous Death March and incarceration at Capas where, like you, he suffered through malaria and starvation. After he was released, he joined the guerillas under Volckman and Blackburne and was picked by the kempetai while buying rice and other supplies in Aparri. He was then beaten for two weeks with a latigo made of fine strips of bamboo to make him confess. The one thing that kept him from admitting and ending the pain was, he told us, the certain knowledge that all those who broke down and confessed to being aguerilla were immediately beheaded. To the end of his days, my father’s back bore the marks of the vicious whip.
Anyway, after the war, he continued to serve the nation, choosing the public health service, instead of the more lucrative private practice, because he believed that working to raise the health condition of very single Filipino was more important than a more comfortable living treating those who coild pay their way anyway. He pioneered in community-based health action and – as Minister of Health later – created a public health delivery system that the World Health Organization cited, when it awarded him the prestigious Sasakawa Prize, as the model for Third World countries.
I am certain that there are thousands of such stories and I hope that the project of the sons and daughters of the defenders of Bataan and Corregidor to collect all and publish and disseminate these stories – through books, websites, and other media – will finally be completed. We – as a nation – need this. We need to remember the example of our heroes. We need to be reminded of what heroism is. Especially in days like now, when leaders who have been gifted with government power seem focused only on self-aggrandizement and the perpetuation of their personal fiefdoms and appear to have forgotten completely the meaning of public service and love of country. This is our collective tragedy.
I have taken my children to the site of the Capas Memorial where I showed them the name of their grandfather – and those of 4 other Azurins, his cousins – on the “Wall of Heroes” and told them a little bit of their own history.
The American poet Stanely Kunitz wrote, “ Old myths, old gods, old heroes have never died. They are only sleeping at the bottom of our mind, waiting for our call. We have need for them. They represent the wisdom of our race. “
When thinking of the defenders of Bataan and Corregidor, one cannot help but think in terms of such noble qualities as gallantry and perseverance and self-sacrifice. Then one cannot help but lament the apparent absence of those virtues today. These are certainly not present in our country’s political leaders who have debased the concept of public service and act as if it is simply the most expedient way to personal wealth. To me, our leaders today shame the memory of you who fought and bled and died on Bataan and Corregidor.
This called the “Sunset Ceremony” not, I hope, because this nation is in the sunset of its history. Nonetheless, if we forget our heroes, if we forget your great example, then it may well be our sunset and darkness will fall soon on the future of our children and the generations after. We the sons and daughters of heroes, should not let this happen. We must rouse our heroes from the bottoms of our minds. Our heroes represent not just the wisdom of our race, but its very soul. We must make sure that this nation does not forget.