History & the Philippine-American War: A Colonial Hero, an Anti-Colonial Hero, & Plaza-Naming

THIS week, December 19 to be specific, is the 110th anniversary of the death of Henry Ware Lawton, an American general after whom a landmark plaza in Manila, Philippines was named--Plaza Lawton.

As a young girl, I didn't exactly remember the place or its precise spot in Manila but my parents seemed to frequently mention it. My papa, in particular, made more than occasional references to "Lawton" or "Plaza Lawton," either as a destination, landmark or jeepney (public transport) route.

During my college years, I gave the etymology of the plaza some thought but didn't exactly bother to do real research. Back then, I just presumed that "Lawton" must be another of the numerous vestiges of pathetic (what else could it be?) colonial heritage. Lawton must be some American official who served in the Philippines. Perhaps a governor-general, military officer, or commissioner of some entity during the era of United States occupation of its former Southeast Asian colony.

As it turned out, I was partly correct. Plaza Lawton was named after Henry Ware Lawton, an American military general who did serve in the Philippines--but not exactly during the colonial era. Maj. Gen. Lawton served as a valiant, celebrated, determined agent-officer of American imperialistic expansion during the subjugation proper--the official (translation: US military viewpoint) duration of the Philippine-American hostilities. He would not be part of the American colonial era when the colonized natives had already been "pacified," which came some three or ten years later--depending on whose side is talking.

It's interesting to note that the name "Geronimo" was destined to play an important part of his military record--of Lawton's fame and death. Lawton was to be the bane of the Apache American Indian tribe and its leader Geronimo during the Geronimo Campaign of 1886.*

More than a later, during yet another mission of subjugation (US translation: pacification)--this time thousands of miles of land and ocean waters away from American soil--he would face another Geronimo in the person of Filipino general (US translation: "insurgent" leader) Licerio Geronimo. 


Lawton's Military Exploits

Gen. Henry Ware Lawton is said to be one of the most celebrated American wartime heroes of his time. He was so respected and admired such that Fort Lawton in Washington and the city of Lawton in Oklahoma were named after him. He was "boy hero" of the American Civil War, earning the Medal of Honor for his leadership of a skirmish attack at Atlanta, Georgia.

Lawton is best remembered, however, for his pursuit of the near-mythical figure that was Geronimo and his American Indian band.  While Lawton was not actually able to capture Geronimo, his relentless search operations that included the use of Apache "scouts" (translation: Indian traitors) are credited for the Indian leader's eventual surrender to the US Army.

Promotions came easy for him after the 1886 Geronimo Campaign, rising to become brigadier general of volunteers during his stint in Cuba and later, as Major General. His military exploits covering four decades--the Civil War, American Indian Wars, Spanish-American War, and Philippine-American War--supposedly approached the level of fantastic such that his life has been a popular subject of contemporary journalism. While he is now faulted for certain flawed judgments during the war against the Spaniards and in Cuba, his trademark traits--dogged determination and fearlessness came in handy for the US missions.


Filipino-American War

The Philippine-American War was set in the context of the Filipino revolutionary energies being part-spent during the Revolution against Spanish colonial rule and of the voracious, newfound US appetite for imperial possessions in the Pacific (apart from Puerto Rico). The US had prevailed in the Spanish-American War, resulting to the December 1898 Treaty of Paris that, among other things, "ceded" the Philippines to the US for $20 million.

For a long time, the US military refused to admit to the fact of the Philippine-American War, referring to it merely as "insurrection." Apparently, the denial was designed to belittle the claims of groups in America which were opposed to the annexation of the Philippines.

At that time, the American public was becoming divided over the morality and wisdom of President William McKinley’s policy of colonization. The Anti-Imperialist League was formed and business baron Andrew Carnegie even offered $20 million to buy back the independence of the Filipinos, but was promptly rejected.

Under a Republican administration, the emerging international power that was the US wanted its people to believe that the acquisition of the Southeast Asian archipelago was not by deliberate design but merely an accidental consequence of the Paris accord. To rationalize his imperialistic plans for the islands, McKinley even went to the extent of claiming he heard the “voice of God” in a dream or something, leading to his decision that there was "nothing left for us to do but to take them all, to educate the Filipinos, and uplift and Christianize them."

The denial apparently also arose from the need of the US military to be in accord with the acquisition-via-Spanish-sale-of-the-Southeast-Asian-archipelago official policy for the Philippines. The Fil-Am War denial precludes a rather important point behind the outcome of the Spanish-American War--that the Filipino revolutionaries actually helped the US defeat Spain. This is a fact acknowledged no less by Senator William Jennings Bryan:

There can be no doubt that we accepted and utilized the services of the Filipinos [in the war against Spain], and that when we did so we had full knowledge that they were fighting for their own independence, and I submit that history furnishes no example of turpitude baser than ours if we now substitute our yoke for the Spanish yoke.

Lawton in the Philippines

Gen. Lawton was among the Civil War and American Indian war veterans assigned to secure US expansionist interest in the Philippines. He headed the 3,850-strong First Division consisting of two maneuver brigades, each of which was further composed of four or so battalions. He was responsible for the capture of the Filipino stronghold in Santa Cruz (April 9-10, 1899); Paete (April 12, 1899); and Zapote (June 13, 1899) in the war's second largest battle.

Tactics-wise, he was credited with the use and development of the indigenous Philippine scouts (translation: Filipino "Macabebe," etc. traitors) to contain the Filipino revolutionaries--who were fighting guerilla warfare in their own territory. The use of indigenous foot soldier scouts against their fellow natives who were resisting American domination is a crucial lesson learned by Lawton during the Indian Wars.

Unfortunately for Lawton, however, he was destined to become the most important American casualty of that turn-of-the-century war of colonial subjugation. On the morning of December 19, 1899, the American general led an assault termed the Battle of San Mateo in Montalban (now Rizal Province). The assault aimed to permanently cut the communication lines of the Filipino forces in the southern and northern portions of Luzon island.

The American general was boldly pacing the firing line on the San Mateo River’s west bank almost unmindful of the warnings given him by his soldiers when a bullet of a sharpshooting Filipino revolutionary pierced through his chest. Lawton died instantly. The US military's biggest single loss in the war.

Gen. Geronimo

Responsible for his death was the guerilla troop Tiradores de la Muerte (Marksmen of Death), which was ironically led by another "Geronimo"--Gen. Licerio Geronimo. The exact spot of the conflict, or at least part of it, is now within the jurisdiction of Quezon City in Metro Manila. A marker commemorating the Battle of San Mateo, which can be found at Brgy. Bagong Silangan, when translated into English reads:

On this spot on the morning of December 19, 1899 occurred a historic battle during the Filipino-American War between the forces of Licerio Geronimo, Division General of the Revolutionary Army of Rizal together with his band of marksmen called Tiradores de la Muerte and American forces led by Commanding General Henry W. Lawton that consisted of battalions from the 29th Infantry, 27th Infantry, and a cavalry and foot squadron from the 11th Cavalry. Killed during this battle faced by the forces of General Geronimo was General Lawton, one of the highest ranking American military officials during the Filipino-American War.

Who was the Filipino "Geronimo"? Gen. Geronimo was among the most valiant Filipino generals in the Philippine-American War. According to a National Historical Institute article:

Geronimo joined the Katipunan when [Andres] Bonifacio established a chapter in Montalban. When revolution [against Spain] broke out in 1896, Geronimo went to Balintawak on request of Bonifacio. On August 30 that same year, he was with the group that attacked San Juan del Monte...

“General Cerio” as he was fondly called became popular among the revolutionists because of his skills in combat. He triumphantly defended his post from the Spaniards and augmented ammunitions and supplies of the revolutionists by ambushing Spanish carts...

When the Philippine-American War broke out, Geronimo defended Marikina. He helped build trenches and reorganized the Filipino troops in San Juan and Mandaluyong. Antonio Luna appointed him commanding general of the third military zone with operations in Manila and Rizal...

Geronimo was a great disturbance to the Americans for his damaging guerrilla tactics against them. In July 1900, General Trias named him jefe superior [Chief Commader] of the joint forces of the second and third zones of Manila. In August, he took command of the district of Morong.

Gen. Geronimo continued to fight the American imperialists for over a year after his troops killed the highest-ranking American casualty of the war. Subsequently, however, he caved in to the pressures wrought by America military might and a double-faced "pacification campaign" (translation: at times, ruthless scorched-earth tactics were used). On March 29, 2001, the valiant Gen. Geronimo surrendered to the colonizers. He even became a Philippine Constabulary inspector and, later, officer.


US Colonial Propaganda 

Within two years, however, the noted Filipino veteran of the Revolution and the Philippine-American War would be dismissed from the colonial-era Philippine Constabulary, supposedly on grounds of gambling. At this point, a student of history may wonder whether gambling was indeed the only reason behind Geronimo's dismissal. After all, his guerilla troop was responsible for the killing of heroic-to-the-Americans-but-fallen-colonizing-agent-to-the-Filipinos Gen. Lawton.

By any measure, Geronimo's association with the death of an American general presented an embarrassment for a (emerging) world power claiming that the inhabitants of its colonial possession were not waging, or in no position to wage, any war. Moreover, Gen. Geronimo demolished no less an illustrious American military hero whose persona the colonial government would forcibly inculcate into the Filipino psyche by naming an important Manila plaza after him, Plaza Lawton.


Lawton's Views of the Philippine-American War

Gen. Lawton, in his stint during the Phil-Am War and in his death while in action, was to be surrounded with, or involved in, propaganda issues relating to the military conflict in the Philippines. For one, in a conversation with a reporter-friend over his non-promotion to the rank of Regular Army officer, he expressed his apprehensions over the possible consequence of his public pronouncement of the need for 100,000 US troops in the Philippines.

Another would be a controversial letter--published only after his death--in which he seemed to downgrade Filipino resistance and military capability.  In the letter he wrote before his death to former ambassador to Siam (Thailand) John Barrett, Lawton supposedly stated that “If I am shot by a Filipino bullet, it might as well come from one of my own men, because I know from observation, confirmed by captured prisoners, that the continuance of fighting is chiefly due to reports that are sent out from America.”

Lawton's assessment of the need for such a large number of troops to neutralize the conflict in the new "acquisition," by itself, provided evidence that America was at war, particularly given that the Philippines is much smaller compared to the US. The reference to the military establishment/Washington possibly being displeased by such a public statement pointed to a propaganda policy of keeping the war realities from reaching the American people, but which he might have violated.

As for the letter to the ambassador, it was apparently crafted in response to the Anti-Imperialist League's criticisms of the annexation of the Philippines. It certainly appeared incongruent with his publicly stated view that the containment of Filipino resistance needed 100,000 US troops.

Moreover the Barrett letter seemed to squarely conflict with the contents of a formal correspondence also attributed to him. In that other letter, Lawton was all praises for the resolve of the Filipino soldiers: 

Taking into account the disadvantages they have to fight against in terms of arms, equipment and military discipline, without artillery, short of ammunition, powder inferior, shells reloaded until they are defective, they are the bravest men I have ever seen...

His admiration for the under-equipped soldiers must surely not have been directed at the traitorous indigenous scouts that they were arming. Clearly, the Filipino soldiers earned Lawton's respect--and, apparently, the recognition that they were fighting a valiant war for freedom.


Phil-Am War as Historical Reality 

Credit: http://www.filipiniana.net

The United States combined tactics of pacification and social improvement with brutal military strikes. Aguinaldo was captured in 1901, and then in 1902 President Roosevelt officially declared an end to the conflict. However a Filipino-American War continued on until 1915. In years to come, Americans remained divided over the nation’s actions and imperial ambitions.

Military historian John M. Gates notes how the US forces became atrocious as they increasingly became frustrated in their missions. He writes that "The more frustrating the campaign became, the more frequently the Americans crossed the line separating the harsh reprisals sanctioned by General Order 100 from such crimes of war as torture and wanton destruction."

Clearly, why the US soldiers reached frustration level reflected the war intensity level that the Filipino patriots gave them in the turn-of-the-century conflict. Commenting on the casualty figures of the Philippine-American War (his count being actually very conservative compared to American author Gore Vidal's), Gates writes: "This war about which one hears so little was not a minor skirmish."


Plaza Lawton Place-Naming

Despite his having been killed by a Filipino bullet, however, the US colonial government was to have the temerity to name a plaza in the capital, Manila, after the fallen American general. Actually, "Plaza Lawton" was probably expected, given that imperialist periods always reflect the viewpoints of the dominant state.

During the early American era, colonial policy included an education (or miseducation?) policy of Americanizing the Filipino psyche. Under the so-called 1908 pensionado program, young Filipinos sent to the mother country for education became "sellers of American institutions and way of life" upon their return back home. Similarly, the introduced educational system in the Philippines taught the natives American presidents and figures, government system, etc.

More visible was the pattern of naming streets and places after American governor-generals, military officials, important American who served in the islands, etc. Thus, today's Roxas Blvd. in Metro Manila was formerly named after Commodore Dewey who demolished the Spanish naval forces during the Battle of Manila Bay; A.H. Lacson St. in Sampaloc, Manila used to be named after Gov.-Gen. William Forbes. Burnham Park in Baguio City was named after American architect Daniel Burnham. Taft Avenue in Manila has also retained the name taken after the country's first American civil governor, William Howard Taft (later became US president).

Plaza Lawton was not the only case of propaganda/Americanization type of place naming instituted by the colonial government. Streets built right after the Fil-Am War in Malate were named after US states that sent volunteer soldiers to fight the Filipino army (later renamed after the patriots who played key roles in the First Philippine Republic).

From Lawton to Katipunan founder Bonifacio

In the early 1900s, Plaza Lawton became an important part of the so-called Burnham Plan for the capital city. The plaza fronts the facade of the Manila Central Post Office, a neo-classical but beautiful structure that still stands today (rebuilt after World War II). While it appears lost in the present time, it simply looked so grand during the early part of the 20th century. The plaza itself, without today's numerous jeepneys, cars, and development clutters, was a pleasant sight to behold.


... to Plaza Geronimo?

Plaza Lawton in Manila has been renamed Liwasang Bonifacio in the 1970s in honor of the Father of Philippine Revolution, Andres Bonifacio. While I am a Bonifacio partisan, I believe it would have been more appropriate and historically colorful (translation: capitalize on the historical irony) to rename the place as Plaza Geronimo.

Would it not be more fitting and historically meaningful to rename the plaza christened after the highest ranking imperialist military leader killed during the Filipino-American war to the (sur)name of the Filipino general responsible for the wartime feat? If only the Philippine government was probably not so sensitive to what its former colonial master would feel, naming that part of Manila "Plaza Geronimo" would actually constitute a logical choice. 

Actually a street in Manila is already named after Gen. Geronimo--his birthplace in Brgy. Sampaloc.
However, from the viewpoint of Philippine memory, it simply sounds more symbolic to change Plaza Lawton to the name of the nemesis of the fallen American general. Such an ironic name change will highlight the great, valiant struggle that ill-equipped Philippine eagle soldiers put up with against the colonizing American bald eagle forces.

To put it bluntly but honestly, Lawton was Geronimo's prized Filipino-American War trophy. America's biggest loss was the Philippines’s biggest prey catch. No matter that the killing of Lawton ultimately proved to be more of a fleeting victory, a consolation prize amidst the eventual US subjugation of the whole islands. From Plaza Lawton to Plaza Geronimo--a symbolic, if ironic, historical, anti-colonial sweet revenge.


Plaza Geronimo?????

Then again, maybe Gen. Geronimo does not deserve that accolade. After all, he surrendered to the American forces some 15 months after his guerilla force wondrously killed Gen. Lawton. I mean, real heroes fight to death, right?

In fairness to Gen. Cerio, as he was actually fondly called, his surrender came in the context of the successive captures or surrenders of other revolutionary leaders which, in turn, was apparently the effect of the cowardly stance of Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo, the President of the newly proclaimed (translation: fledging) Philippine Republic.

Captured in Palanan, Isabela on March 23, 1901, Aguinaldo did not fight to his death and, instead, swore allegiance to the enemy flag apparently so his life would be spared. His capture and subsequent oath of fealty to the new colonial master, the United States, gradually had the effect of breaking the back of Filipino freedom fighters. A number of other military leaders tried to continue the resistance but amidst the bloody, even ruthless military component of the  "Pacification Campaign" of the emerging world power, Gen. Geronimo and the rest of those who remained fighting probably saw little hope of victory.


Lawton from an Objective View

Still, the fact is that there was a Filipino-American WAR, which meant that the valiant Filipino guerillas who launched a revolution against colonial Spain continued to fight in the war against the new and militarily more superior colonizing army of the US. Still, the fact is that Gen. Henry W. Lawton, celebrated American hero, was felled by a Filipino, a Filipino bullet.

Really. The phrase attributed to him, "If I am shot by a Filipino bullet, it might was well be from one of my own men," came only in Gen. Lawton's wildest dreams. Or, speculatively perhaps, was a propaganda concoction of the US military to try to disprove the Anti-Imperialist League's criticisms of "voice of God"-in- "Benevolent Assimilation" policy of President William McKinley.


Gen. Lawton. White American hero. Conqueror of American Indians. Trophy of Filipino Gen. Geronimo. Plaza Lawton. Change what you know.


Note:
*Some accounts state that Lawton either captured Geronimo; others claim the Apache leader surrendered—either to Lawton or another US military official.

__________

Photo Credits:

Sumaquel Macky Hosalla (photo of Gen. Licerio)

http://philippineamericanwar.webs.com/

http://www.pbase.com/dni

http://americanhistory.si.edu/Militaryhistory/printablesection.asp?id=7

Filipiniana.net

http://www.filipinoforum.net/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=5439

http://www.history.army.mil/armyhistory/AH63(W).pdf

http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=275221&page=42

http://www.flickr.com/photos/johntewell/3712218494/

http://manila-photos.blogspot.com/2009_05_01_archive.html

http://www.wikipedia.com

References:

Andrew Carnegie: Rags to Riches Timeline. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/carnegie/timeline/timeline2.html

Battle of Paye. http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Battle-of-Paye

Brookes, Philip. The Philippine Scouts: A Case Study in the Use of Indigenous Soldiers, Northern Luzon, the Philippine Islands, 1899. http://handle.dtic.mil/100.2/ADA138032

Cruz, Romeo V. America's Colonial Desk and the Philippines: 1898-1934. Quezon City: University of the Philippines Press, 1974. pp. 85-90.

Delehanty, Randolph. War & Dissent: The U.S. in the Philippines, 1898-1915. http://www.presidio.gov/NR/rdonlyres/8AD33B62-6F88-4173-BC51-9D19232234DB/0/WD_DeeperIntoExhibit.pdf

Documents on Imperialism. http://www2.bc.edu/~weiler/imperialismdocs.htm

Dumindin, Arnaldo. Philippine-American War, 1899-1902. http://www.freewebs.com/philippineamericanwar/thewarrages1899.htm

Lawton, Major General Henry W. A. http://www.huachuca.army.mil/sites/History/PDFS/fhheroes.pdf

Licerio I. Geronimo (1855-1924): Freedom Fighter. http://www.nhi.gov.ph//index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=244

McClintock, Michael. 2002. Instruments of Statecraft: U.S. Guerilla Warfare, Counterinsurgency, and Counterterrorism, 1940-1990: An Un-American Way of War. http://www.statecraft.org/chapter18.html

Old Street Names of Manila. http://traveleronfoot.wordpress.com/2008/07/10/old-street-names-of-manila/

Ossad, Steven. Henry Ware Lawton. "Army History." Winter 2007. pp. 4-25. http://www.history.army.mil/armyhistory/AH63(W).pdf

Overseas expansion of the United States. (2009, December 16). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 16:29, December 19, 2009, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Overseas_expansion_of_the_United_States&oldid=332060778

Spanish American War. http://americanhistory.si.edu/Militaryhistory/printable/section.asp?id=7

The Philippines. University of San Diego. http://history.sandiego.edu/gen/for/diplo/phil.html

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FURTHER READING:

Lookback to the Fil-Am War: Democrat William Jennings Bryan's view of American imperialist designs on the Philippines

Obama's 'strategic interests' call to SE Asia's notoriously corrupt leader

It's all over the news. Proudly propagated by the PR, nay, propaganda, machinery of Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. United States President Barack H. Obama called Arroyo last March 14, 2009 to discuss the critical importance of the two countries' "bilateral relationship and... strategic interests," specifically the Visiting Forces Agreement that spells a mutual defense understanding. The call has long been sought after by Malacanang. Finally, after dodging her huge efforts to speak or meet with and use him for political photo-op her not once, not twice, but thrice, Obama decided to end the hide-and-seek game he played with Arroyo, the leader perceived to be the "Most Corrupt Philippine President" in history.

Obama is the 44th US President who campaigned on a mantra of "Hope, Change." He had successfully bested Hillary Clinton, the first viable female president in American history for the Democratic presidential nomination. He then went on to soundly defeat his Republican opponent for the presidency, John McCain, in the November 2008 polls.

In his inauguration speech, Obama indicated a foreign policy seemingly inimical to those leaders "who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent ...on the wrong side of history." His counterpart, Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, was sworn in as the 14th Philippine President at about the same time as his predecessor George W. Bush. Arroyo took office following the paraconstitutional change of power afforded by the EDSA II "People Power" of 2001, which was described by international media and analysts as the "opportunist coalition of church, business elite and left,"' and as "mob rule or mob rule as a cover for a well-planned coup."

From practically Day 1 of Arroyo's administration, she has been besieged by an almost endless litany of illegitimacy and corruption issues. Scandals after scandals have hounded her. To name just some: the IMPSA power plant deal; "Hello Garci?" wiretapping expose of cheating in the 2004 presidential polls; bribery of congressmen and governors at Malacanang; the Bolante fertilizer scam; the kangaroo court "guilty" verdict on the Estrada plunder case; and the abrogated NBN-ZTE deal. The latest, divulged only in January this year, is the collusion between roads project contractor and First Gentleman Mike Arroyo, alleged in a report made by no less than the World Bank.

No wonder that in October 2007, surveyed Filipinos expressed their perception that Arroyo is the "Most Corrupt President in Philippine History." Malacanang's current occupant has faced a number of unsuccessful challenges, including four successive impeachment complaints, two or three military mutinies, and a rectifying "People Power" exercise, EDSA 3, which sought to restore the presidency of the deposed but democratically elected Joseph Estrada early on in her term. Only in February, 2009, ten military groups of retired and active servicemen paid an advertisement declaring their support behind a brigadier general on court martial trial for the February 2006 uprising.

Jetset Stalking of Obama

Arroyo had gone on an aggressive seeking of the opportunity to meet up and try forging close relations (translation 2: stalking) with Obama as early as June 2008 when he was yet the presumed Democratic presidential nominee--apparently to ensure the political support of Bush's successor to her precarious presidency.

Her first attempt came via an expensive, 10-day, non-state visit to the US in the midst of the American presidential electoral process, but which failed to obtain even a glimpse of his charismatic presence. The next stalking came in November when she went again to the US on the pretext of attending a UN-sponsored "interfaith dialogue," even as she futilely chased Obama all the way to his Chicago hometown. The third time, in January this year, she suddenly diverted to Washington, DC, instead of flying home after attending the Davos World Economic Forum, just to be in the National Prayer Breakfast graced by Obama. Despite spending millions of the Filipinos' money, despite literally going out of her way, and despite breaking basic rules of protocol and even self-respect, Arroyo was humiliated the third time big time, as she failed to get any face time with Obama. Not even a word acknowledging her presence before the forum crowd of some 4,000 guests.

The costs of Arroyo's desperation-level jetsetting to stalk Obama have been very high for the Philippines. The June 2008 junket, the largest in the country's history, was enjoyed by no less than 60 solons and 10 cabinet officials. It went on despite the battering that Typhoon Fengshen inflicted on a considerable part of the Philippines. The third time proved too much, as not a few took notice and assailed her for 'wasting public funds chasing Obama.'

US interests in the South China Sea

This author has been pleasantly amused by Obama's initial refusal to be used by Arroyo or be associated with her corrupt government early on, but is history smart enough to know that that it was only a matter of time before he starts dealing with her. For some three months, he managed to keep the controversial Philippine President at bay, and project a clean-as-promised image to the world. Less anyone forget, however, Obama is duty bound to uphold "US interests" first and foremost.

After all, in a period following the expulsion of the US bases by the Philippine Senate in 1991, America has needed to exert greater efforts to steer Manila's policies in line with Washington's strategic and economic interests in its former colony. From the time America colonized the Philippines at the turn of the 20th century until about the time of Ferdinand Marcos, Manila was a virtual pawn of superpower Washington.

"Special" Fil-Am Friendship, sealed by the CIA

The US and the Philippines have historically enjoyed a longstanding "special friendship." It supposedly began on a spiritual plane, on the night of October 24, 1898 when US President William McKinley arrived at the decision to colonize the Philippine Islands after the "voice of God" told him "to take them all, to educate the Filipinos, and uplift and Christianize them."

Rightists embrace the US as an ally, while the leftists brand America a neo-imperialist that has continued to exploit its former colony even during the post-World War Independence period. Particularly during the time when the US still had its military bases, and the Central Intelligence Agency had its SE Asian main station/regional headquarters in Manila, Philippine presidents were de facto obliged to toe the American line--or risks severe consequences. During a Cold War period when clandestine CIA operations were marked by intervention, deception, psychological warfare, instigations of military coup d'état and even the assassinations of foreign political leaders such as Chile's Salvador Allende (contained in the 1975 Church Committee Report of the US congressional investigations), the price of displeasing Uncle Sam was tough. Nationalist Filipino Senator Claro M. Recto, who ran for president during the November 12, 1957 Philippine elections, paid the price with having to endure a bag of dirty tricks propaganda, and later, with his life. For having actively opposed the military presence of the US in his country, his presidential campaign was immorally and deviously sabotaged by the CIA.

This agency-apparatus of US imperialism ran foul operations that included the distribution of holed condoms sealed in packages labeled with "Courtesy of Claro M. Recto--the People's Friend." During a more conservative era, just the condom themselves would have repulsed Filipinos, and having them holes would have been seen as most obscene. The CIA work on Recto apparently did not end there. On October 2, 1960, Recto 'mysteriously' died of heart attack in Rome, Italy while on a cultural mission on the way to Spain. Before he died, Recto was visited by "two Caucasians" donned in business suits. The possible involvement of the CIA in his death came to light following the subsequent release of US government documents revealing that CIA Chief of Station Ralph Lovett and US Ambassador to the Philippines Admiral Raymond Spruance had discussed the murder of Recto with a vial of poison.

On the "bright" side, Filipino leaders who kowtowed to the former colonial master and espoused the American line were well rewarded. The successful presidential campaign of Ramon Magsaysay in November 1953 was largely helped by CIA operatives David Sternberg who posed as a foreign correspondent for the Boston-based Christian Science Monitor, and New York lawyer and Republican Gabriel Kaplan. Under Magsaysay's term, a high-level US committee report found out how "American policy in Southeast Asia was most effectively represented in the Philippines, where any expanded program of Western influence may best be launched."

The Call over High Seas

Day 0 - Saturday (HK GMT) March 14, 2009 Obama calls Arroyo

Day 1 - Sunday (HK GMT), March 15, 2009 Malacanang proudly propagates news of the call

But deal with her Obama has begun. The call to Arroyo last March 14 was described by the drumbeaters of an ecstatic Malacanang as a "surprise" communication. After playing elusive for months, what issue of US interest could have possibly prompted Obama to finally make contact with the notoriously corrupt SE Asian leader?

The answer is found in the high waters of the Asia and Pacific region. The Philippines is a strategic pawn in the high stakes power game the US plays amidst its decreasing might in Asia-Pacific. The main challenge comes from China, now the world's largest economy and an emerging global power. Two weeks before, Washington and Beijing had a spat over the interception by five Chinese vessels of the unarmed USNS Impeccable that was conducting surveillance operations in a disputed part of the South China Sea. The Philippines itself is in a territorial dispute with China over the inclusion of some islands in the Spratlys in the former's Archipelagic Baselines Law.

Philippine Sovereignty & Convicted Rapist US Marine Daniel Smith

According to Arroyo's Press Secretary, Obama called to reaffirm the alliance of US with the Philippines and the commitment to the VFA "which remains critical to the bilateral relationship and our strategic interests".

The scrape with China, which came two weeks before the call to Arroyo, presumably impressed on the new US President the urgency to ensure that the US mutual defense agreement with the Philippines be maintained-at practically all costs.

The VFA, which became effective in 1999, has actually been a controversial agreement among Filipinos since the beginning because of provisions that apply US jurisdiction over its military personnel accused of, or found to, have engaged in crimes unless they are of "particular" significance to the Philippines. Critics call it an affront to the sovereign integrity and independence of the Philippines. Calls for its review and scrapping intensified following the 2005 arrest of Marine Lance Corporal Daniel Smith for the rape of a Filipina tagged as "Nicole" in Subic, site of a former US military base.

Wikipedia writes that: “Throughout the trial, the issue of U.S. vs. Philippine custody on the accused U.S. Marines was the focus of street demonstrations and protests by political groups and women's rights advocates, and it was a hot news item in the Philippine press.” The Makati Regional Trial court sentenced him with reclusion perpetua on December 4, 2006, making Smith the first American serviceman convicted of rape under Philippine jurisdiction. The Subic rape case would continue to be the rallying crux of nationalist and anti-American protest actions against the VFA.

VFA Jurisdiction Issue of US Soldiers Involved in Crimes

For much of the trial and post-conviction, Smith was under the custody of the US Embassy, following the agreement made between the Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary and the US Ambassador to the Philippines in December 2007. The US earlier canceled the yearly Balikatan joint military exercises during the time Smith was in Philippine custody.

A lower court ruled to assert the power of the Philippine over US troops in the country, but amidst the disagreement with the judicial and executive branches, left the issue of custody with the government to decide. The camp of “Nicole” later filed an indirect motion of contempt against the transfer of Smith to the US embassy, and also questioned the constitutionality of the VFA. The Supreme Court declared the VFA constitutional and ruled the Philippine government should forthwith negotiate with US representatives on the appropriate detention facilities under Philippine authorities, in accordance with the VFA.

The Supreme Court ruling, however, failed to appease the nationalist sentiments against, and the leftist protests over, Smith's continued detention at the US embassy. The controversy has served to catalyze serious calls for the abrogation of the RP-US Visiting Forces Agreement.

Obama's Call and US Covert Hand

As much as Obama's call came as a "surprise" to Malacanang, the Filipino public was surprised mega-time with the subsequent news that Smith's rape victim, "Nicole," has terminated the services of her lawyer and has gone to live in the US-of all countries. The development came within only three days of Obama's call, no matter that Malacanang earlier denied that the case of LCpl. Smith was not discussed with Arroyo.

Day 2 - Monday, March 16, 2009 (HK GMT) Malacanang denies that the case of Lcpl.Smith was discussed in the conversation by Arroyo & Obama

Day 3 - Tuesday, March 17, 2009 (HK GMT)
The mother of "Nicole," gives notice terminating services of Subic rape case attorney;
Informs counsel that Nicole is already in the US "for good"; Nicole's media statement vaguely complains of the state of justice in the Philippines

Speculations are now rife that the US government, with help from the Philippine government, has pressured "Nicole" into migrating "for good" in order to take the heat off from VFA. Officially, Smith's rape victim received P100,000 in moral and exemplary damages. Filipino Senator Jamby Madrigal says that the offer must have been irresistible. The US Embassy will not comment, but it seems the US visa is part of the deal because according to Justice Secretary Raul Gonzales what she had filed for earlier was for an Italian visa.

The press statement released by "Nicole" and expressing disappointment over the Philippine justice system, thus, becomes disconcerting because common sense tells that if it is justice she really seeks, she should not have chosen to reside in the country of her attacker. It simply does not make sense how she could trust the very government that has refused to turn over her rapist, LCpl. Smith, to the jurisdiction of the Philippine justice system. The fact is that Nicole has already won the case in terms of proving that she has been raped--with the comforting help of thousands of, although definitely not all, Filipinos who believed in her story and wished for her court victory. She not only got Smith convicted, but, as well, won the custody issue, even if only for a brief period.

Day 4 - Tuesday, March 18, 2009 (HK GMT)

- "Nicole" "recants" thru an affidavit
- First post-conviction recantation in Philippine history - Virtually absolves Smith of rape; assumes her share of responsibility for the sexual act

If Day 3 brought surprise with the news of the rape victim's migration, Day 4's retraction news stunned the Filipino public. After four years of fighting for justice in her case, going against the US military, winning a conviction of life against Smith, and winning a lower court order denying Smith's request to be put under the custody of the US Embassy, "Nicole" recants and suggests that what she had with Smith could have been consensual sex. After Judge Pozon believed her story, disbelieved and convicted Smith, based on forensic findings of contusions, presence of sperm DNA, and blood on her private parts, on witnesses who saw her crying after being dumped somewhere in Subic, she now says she is bothered by her conscience as Daniel Smith could have really been innocent of rape? All these within only three days of the Obama call.

Sorry, but the running script sounds unbelievable, especially since this author saw the media news interview of the van driver who witnessed the rape of Nicole soon after it happened in 2005. The account, which seemed spontaneously given and done under no duress, pretty much substantiates the forensic evidence in the Subic rape case.

Amidst the dynamics of Philippine historical subservience to its former colonizer, the timings of the Chinese interception of USNV Impeccable, of Obama's call, and the sudden, surprising migration of "Nicole," along with the implausible media statements and recantations she supposedly signed, it's hard not to connect the VFA and Uncle Sam to the development and not suspect that a settlement has been arranged.

A number of Philippine lawmakers believe the recantation/migration was a US handiwork, with a party-list solon saying that Nicole is the scapegoat in the scheme to save the RP-US Visiting Forces Agreement from possible abrogation due to the sovereignty issues her rape case have given rise to. 2004 vice-presidential candidate Sen. Loren Legarda expressed concern that "While America keeps its processes intact and its soldiers protected, [Filipino] morality as a nation is trampled upon... justice system spat on,”

While this author understands the practical compromises necessitated by the realities of geopolitics, what is sickening about this Nicole-VFA-Smith settlement is that it puts Filipinas, as well as accusations of rape, in a bad light, both within the Philippines and outside. Marine LCpl. Daniel Smith is a convicted rapist, judiciously tried by a court of law. Pressuring, or enticing, his victim into absolving him and incriminating herself in the process present pretty serious judicial and societal ramifications .

For one, given the persisting machismo thinking among Filipinos, the high-profile case could also lead people not to consider rape cases more seriously. The development may also reinforce the belief that the rape of drunken women is justified.

Lawyer Katrina Legarda, who has handled prominent rape and other women's issue cases, believes it is a setback because judges may now think twice before handing "guilty" verdicts. The retraction, if true, could add to the negative perceptions of Filipinas: perhaps as objects of rape who can be later bought, or as liars who use sex in extortion.

'Hope, Change' in Foreign Policies Or False Hope?

If the US of A is agog to keep the Subic rape case out of the way of the Visiting Forces Agreement, can't just they ask the stalking Arroyo to pardon Smith of the crime of rape? Perhaps, Smith should be told to muster all sincerity there is in him and then publicly apologize with Nicole for the crime of rape. That should appease many Filipinos enough, particularly since he's generally taken as a handsome, gentle-looking guy. Of course, under such a scenario,the US visa offer to Nicole should stay, whether she takes it or not under 'normal' Malacanang and US pressures.

Then again, who knows what exactly Obama discussed with Arroyo, aside from his staff at the White House and the Defense Department, of course? If the "Hope, Change" electoral mantra is to be (gullibly?) used as the metric of assessing and predicting the 44th US President's foreign relations track, he could very well have faulted Arroyo for her corruption record and her power grab twice over. Perhaps, there was really no mention of the rape case of Smith whatsoever. Another and not-so-bad a scenario would be Obama actually having discussed the Subic rape case, but having promised to make the RP-US Visiting Forces Agreement less one-sided by including rape in the crimes to fall under Philippine jurisdiction.

Hope it's not wishful thinking. Or isn't it? Calling on your campaign promise of "Change," Your Excellency Brother Barack Obama.

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References:

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Photo Credits:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_McKinley
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramon_Magsaysay
http://melbourne.indymedia.org/news/2007/01/136254.php
http://midfield.wordpress.com/2009/03/07/rp-us-relations-in-a-changed-world-the-vfa-in-ferment/
http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/asiapacific/features/article_1413163.php/Arroyo_US_trip_draws_flak_in_storm-battered_Philippines
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090310/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/us_china_incident
http://feudart.com/2008/05/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raymond_Spruanceet
http://ph.news.yahoo.com/star/20090317/tph-nicole-p100000-541dfb4.htmlpe.htm
http://www.allposters.com/-sp/Barack-Obama-Hope-Change-Posters_i4471293_.htm

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