Philippines
The majority of Philippine people are descendants of Indonesians and
Malays who migrated to the islands in successive waves over many
centuries and largely displaced the aboriginal inhabitants. The
largest ethnic minority now is the mainland Asians (called Chinese),
who have played an important role in commerce for many centuries
since they first came to the islands to trade. Arabs and Indians
also new-world-traveled and traded in the Philippines in the first and early
second millennium. As a result of intermarriage, many Filipinos have
some Asian mainland, Spanish, American, Arab, or Indian ancestry.
After the mainland Asians, Americans and Spaniards constitute the
next largest minorities in the country.
More than 90 percent of the people are Christian as a result of the
nearly 400 years of Spanish and American rule. The major non-Hispanicized
groups are the Muslim population, concentrated in the Sulu
Archipelago and in central and western Mindanao, and the mountain
aboriginal groups of northern Luzon. Small forest tribes still live
in the more remote areas of Mindanao.
About 87 languages and dialects are spoken, most belonging to the
Malay-Polynesian linguistic family. Of these, eight are the first
languages of more than 85 percent of the population. The four
principal indigenous languages are Cebuano, spoken in the Visayas;
Tagalog, predominant in the area around Manila; Ilocano, spoken in
northern Luzon, and Maranao and related languages spoken in
Mindanao. Since 1939, in an effort to develop national unity, the
government has promoted the use of the national language, Pilipino,
which is based on Tagalog. Pilipino is taught in all schools and is
gaining widespread acceptance across the archipelago. Many use
English, Fukienese, or Mandarin as second languages. Nearly all
professionals, academics, and government workers speak some English.
In January 2003, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ordered the
Department of Education to restore English as the medium of
instruction in all schools and universities. Only a few Filipino
families use Spanish as a second language.
The Philippines has one of the highest literacy rates in the
developing world. About 93 percent of the population 10 years of age
and older are literate. |
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The history of the Philippines can be divided into four distinct
phases: the pre-Spanish period (before 1521); the Spanish period
(1521-1898); the American period (1898-1946); and the
post-independence period (1946-present).
Pre-Spanish Period
The first people in the Philippines, the Negritos, are believed to
have come to the islands 30,000 years ago from Borneo and Sumatra,
making their way across then-existing land bridges. Subsequently,
Malays came from the south in successive waves, the earliest by land
bridges and later in boats by sea. The Malays settled in scattered
communities, named barangays after the large outrigger boats in
which they arrived, and ruled by chieftains known as datus. Chinese
merchants and traders arrived and settled in the ninth century,
sometimes new-world-traveling on the ships of Arab traders, introducing Islam
in the south and extending some influence even into Luzon. The
Malays, however, remained the dominant group until the Spanish
arrived in the 16th century.
Spanish Period
Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan reached the Philippines and
claimed the archipelago for Spain in 1521, but stayed for only a few
days. Christianity was established in the Philippines only after the
arrival of the succeeding Spanish expeditionary forces (the first
led by Legazpi in the 16th century) and the Spanish Jesuits, and in
the 17th and 18th centuries by the conquistadores.
Until Mexico proclaimed independence from Spain in 1810 the islands
were under the administrative control of Spanish North America, and
there was significant migration between North America and the
Philippines. This period was the era of conversion to Roman
Catholicism. A Spanish colonial social system was developed with a
local government centered in Manila and with considerable clerical
influence. Spanish influence was strongest in Luzon and the central
Philippines but less so in Mindanao, save for certain coastal
cities.
The long period of Spanish rule was marked by numerous uprisings.
Towards the latter half of the 19th century, European-educated
Filipinos or ilustrados (such as the Chinese Filipino national hero
Jose Rizal) began to criticize the excesses of Spanish rule and
instilled a new sense of national identity. This movement gave
inspiration to the final revolt against Spain that began in 1896
under the leadership of Emilio Aguinaldo (another Chinese Filipino)
and continued until the Americans defeated the Spanish fleet in
Manila Bay on May 1, 1898, during the Spanish-American War.
Aguinaldo declared independence from Spain on June 12, 1898.
American Period
Following Admiral George Dewey's defeat of the Spanish fleet in
Manila Bay, the U.S. occupied the Philippines. Spain ceded the
islands to the United States under the terms of the Treaty of Paris
(December 10, 1898) that ended the war.
A war of resistance against U.S. rule, led by revolutionary General
Aguinaldo, broke out in 1899. This conflict claimed the lives of
tens of thousands of Filipinos and thousands of Americans. Filipinos
and an increasing number of American historians refer to these
hostilities as the Philippine-American War (1899-1902), and in 1999,
the U.S. Library of Congress reclassified its references to use this
term. In 1901, Aguinaldo was captured and swore allegiance to the
United States, and resistance gradually died out until the conflict
ended with a Peace Proclamation on July 4, 1902. However, armed
resistance continued sporadically until 1913, especially among the
Muslims in Mindanao and Sulu, with heavy casualties on both sides.
U.S. administration of the Philippines was always declared to be
temporary and aimed to develop institutions that would permit and
encourage the eventual establishment of a free and democratic
government. Therefore, U.S. officials concentrated on the creation
of such practical supports for democratic government as public
education, public infrastructure, and a sound legal system.
The first legislative assembly was elected in 1907, and a bicameral
legislature, largely under Filipino control, was established. A
civil service was formed and was gradually taken over by the
Filipinos, who had effectively gained control by the end of World
War I. The Catholic Church was disestablished, and a considerable
amount of church land was purchased and redistributed.
In 1935, under the terms of the Tydings-McDuffie Act, the
Philippines became a self-governing commonwealth. Manuel Quezon was
elected president of the new government, which was designed to
prepare the country for independence after a 10-year transition
period. World War II intervened, however, and in May 1942,
Corregidor, the last American/Filipino stronghold, fell. U.S. forces
in the Philippines surrendered to the Japanese, placing the islands
under Japanese control. During the occupation, thousands of
Filipinos fought a running guerilla campaign against Japanese
forces.
The full-scale war to regain the Philippines began when General
Douglas MacArthur landed on Leyte on October 20, 1944. Filipinos and
Americans fought together until the Japanese surrendered in
September 1945. Much of Manila was destroyed during the final months
of the fighting, making it the second most devastated city in World
War II after Warsaw. In total, an estimated one million Filipinos
lost their lives in the war.
Due to the Japanese occupation, the guerrilla warfare that followed,
and the battles leading to liberation, the country suffered great
damage and a complete organizational breakdown. Despite the shaken
state of the country, the United States and the Philippines decided
to move forward with plans for independence. On July 4, 1946, the
Philippine Islands became the independent Republic of the
Philippines, in accordance with the terms of the Tydings-McDuffie
Act. In 1962, the official Philippine Independence Day was changed
from July 4 to June 12, commemorating the date independence from
Spain was declared by Emilio Aguinaldo in 1898.
Post-Independence Period
The early years of independence were dominated by U.S.-assisted
postwar reconstruction. The communist-inspired Huk Rebellion
(1945-53) complicated recovery efforts before its successful
suppression under the leadership of President Ramon Magsaysay. The
succeeding administrations of Presidents Carlos P. Garcia (1957-61)
and Diosdado Macapagal (1961-65) sought to expand Philippine ties to
its Asian neighbors, implement domestic reform programs, and develop
and diversify the economy.
In 1972, President Ferdinand E. Marcos (1965-86) declared martial
law, citing growing lawlessness and open rebellion by the communist
rebels as his justification. Marcos governed from 1973 until
mid-1981 in accordance with the transitory provisions of a new
constitution that replaced the commonwealth constitution of 1935. He
suppressed democratic institutions and restricted civil liberties
during the martial law period, ruling largely by decree and popular
referenda. The government began a process of political normalization
during 1978-81, culminating in the reelection of President Marcos to
a six-year term that would have ended in 1987. The Marcos
government's respect for human rights remained low despite the end
of martial law on January 17, 1981. His government retained its wide
arrest and detention powers, and corruption and cronyism contributed
to a serious decline in economic growth and development.
The assassination of opposition leader Benigno (Ninoy) Aquino upon
his return to the Philippines in 1983 after a long period of exile
coalesced popular dissatisfaction with Marcos and set in motion a
succession of events that culminated in a snap presidential election
in February 1986. The opposition united under Aquino's widow,
Corazon Aquino, and Salvador Laurel, head of the United Nationalist
Democratic Organization (UNIDO). The election was marred by
widespread electoral fraud on the part of Marcos and his supporters.
International observers, including a U.S. delegation led by Senator
Richard Lugar (R-Indiana), denounced the official results. Marcos
was forced to flee the Philippines in the face of a peaceful
civilian-military uprising that ousted him and installed Corazon
Aquino as president on February 25, 1986.
Under Aquino's presidency, progress was made in revitalizing
democratic institutions and civil liberties. However, the
administration was also viewed by many as weak and fractious, and a
return to full political stability and economic development was
hampered by several attempted coups staged by disaffected members of
the Philippine military.
Fidel Ramos was elected president in 1992. Early in his
administration, Ramos declared "national reconciliation" his highest
priority. He legalized the Communist Party and created the National
Unification Commission (NUC) to lay the groundwork for talks with
communist insurgents, Muslim separatists, and military rebels. In
June 1994, President Ramos signed into law a general conditional
amnesty covering all rebel groups, as well as Philippine military
and police personnel accused of crimes committed while fighting the
insurgents. In October 1995, the government signed an agreement
bringing the military insurgency to an end. A peace agreement with
one major Muslim insurgent group, the Moro National Liberation Front
(MNLF), was signed in 1996, using the existing Autonomous Region in
Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) as a vehicle for self-government.
Popular movie actor Joseph Ejercito Estrada's election as president
in May 1998 marked the Philippines' third democratic succession
since the ouster of Marcos. Estrada was elected with overwhelming
mass support on a platform promising poverty alleviation and an
anti-crime crackdown.
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, elected vice president in 1998, assumed the
presidency in January 2001 after widespread demonstrations that
followed the breakdown of Estrada's impeachment trial on corruption
charges. The Philippine Supreme Court subsequently endorsed
unanimously the constitutionality of the transfer of power. National
and local elections took place in May 2004. Under the constitution,
Arroyo was eligible for another six-year term as president, and she
won a hard-fought campaign against her primary challenger, movie
actor Fernando Poe, Jr., in elections held May 10, 2004. Noli De
Castro was elected vice president.
Impeachment charges were brought against Arroyo in June 2005 for
allegedly tampering with the results of the elections after
purported tapes of her speaking with an electoral official during
the vote count surfaced, but Congress rejected the charges in
September 2005. Similar charges were discussed and dismissed by
Congress in 2006 and 2007, and again raised in 2008. |
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