Stephenson:Neal:Cryptonomicon:30:the real Philippines. Randy pays no attention to it(Alan Sinder)

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This is the Cryptonomicon page for the Republic of the Philippines

Stephensonia

Old street scene depicting
typhoon warnings Neal Stephenson's Hacker Tourist travels documented in Mother Earth Mother Board took him to this island nation. It is one of the principal locations in Cryptonomicon. And the Spratlys would be ideal for the fictional Kinakuta. *Avi rattles off canned justifications: office space is much cheaper in Intramuros. Government ministries are closer. Makati, the gleaming new business district, is too isolated from the real Philippines. Randy pays no attention to it.

"You want to work out of Intramuros because it was systematically annihilated, and because you're obsessed with the Holocaust," Randy finally says, quietly and without rancor.

"Yeah. So?" Avi says.**

It is this systematic destruction that likely fascinates Avi -- and he may have family who escaped the Inquisition as Hidden Jews by moving to the Philippines. Ferdinand and Isabella appointed Tomas de Torquemada in 1481 to investigate and punish conversos -- Jews and Moors (Muslims) who claimed to have "converted" to Catholicism but continued to practice their "former" religion in secret. Some disguised Jews had even been ordained as priests and even bishops. Detractors also called converted Jews Marranos, a pejorative word that can also be translated "pigs". The authority of the Inquisition reached only Christians, not Jews or Muslims, but since 1492, every Jew in the Kings' states had been baptised (New Christians) or expelled. If they carried on with Jewish religion, they were sinful relapses ("fallen again").*

Quote:

"During the months of June, July, August and part of September, the west and south winds blow, which they call vendavales, bringing such rains and storms that the fields are all flooded and they are forced to have little boats to go from one place to another" -- Gemelli Careri

Authored entries

The Philippines

The Republic of the Philippines P is an island nation consisting of an archipelago of 7,109 islands lying in the tropical western Pacific Ocean about 100 kilometers southeast of mainland Asia. The country is the only predominantly Catholic nation in Asia and one of the most westernized. Spain and the United States, who have both colonized the country, have been the two biggest influences on Philippine culture—a unique a blend of Asia and the West.

Republika ng Pilipinas|


125px-Philippines_flag_large.png	Philippine_coat-of-arms.png
(In Detail)	(In Detail)

The Philippines used to be the most developed country in Asia following World War II, but has lagged behind other countries because of poor economic growth and a widespread perception of corruption. Currently, the country enjoys a moderate economic growth, buoyed by remittances by its large overseas Filipino workforce and increased investments due to a fast-developing Information Technology industry and cheap labor in other sectors. The country's major problems are a significant Muslim separatist movement in Mindanao and the ongoing problem of corruption in the government.

The Philippine Islands lie between 116° 40' and 126° and 34' E. longtitude, and 4° 40' and 21° 10' N. latitude. It is bordered on the east by the Philippine Sea, on the west by the South China Sea, and on the south by the Celebes Sea. To the south are found the Moluccas and Celebes in Indonesia, to the southwest is the Malaysian part of Borneo, to the east at 7.5° N. latitude, on the eastern side of the Philippine Sea is Palau and directly north is Taiwan.

History of the Philippines

The Philippines had been home to a greatly diverse population, trading with China and the Indonesian archipelago for many centuries when the first Europeans arrived, led by Ferdinand Magellan, in 1521. The Spanish claimed and colonized the islands and named it after Philip II. Catholicism was forcibly introduced into the islands, although unsuccessfully in Mindanao, while trade was mostly with New Spain (Mexico) across the Pacific.

The country opened up during the 19th century with the rise of a Filipino middle class whose sons studied in Europe and enlightened Filipinos through the Propaganda Movement to the injustices of the Spanish colonial government. José Rizal, the most famous propagandist, was arrested and executed in 1896 by the Spanish government for acts of subversion. Soon after, the Philippine Revolution broke out, pioneered by the Katipunan, a secret revolutionary society founded by Andres Bonifacio and later led by Emilio Aguinaldo. The revolution nearly succeeded in ousting the Spanish by 1898.

That year Spain and the United States fought the Spanish-American War, after which Spain sold the Philippine Islands to the United States. The Filipinos had by then declared independence and the subsequent assertion of American control led to the Philippine-American War that ended in 1913. Independence was finally granted in 1946, after the Japanese had occupied the islands during World War II. The following period was marred by post-war problems; civil unrest during the unpopular dictatorship of Ferdinand Marcos, ousted in 1986; and later, an increasing problem of Muslim separatists in Mindanao.

Politics of the Philippines

National Government: The government of the Philippines, loosely patterned after the American system, is organized as a representative republic, with the president functioning as both head of state and government, as well as being the commander-in-chief of the armed forces. The president is elected by popular vote to a term of 6 years, during which he or she appoints and presides over the cabinet.

The bicameral Philippine legislature, the Congress, consists of the Senate and the House of Representatives; members of both are elected by popular vote. There are 24 senators serving 6 years in the Senate while the House of Representatives consists of no more than 250 congressmen each serving 3-year terms.

The judiciary branch of the government is headed by the Supreme Court, which has a Chief Justice as its head and 14 Associate Justices, all appointed by the president.

International Relations: The Philippines is a prominent member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), being one of the founding members. The nation is also an active participant of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), a member of the Group of 24 and one of the 51 founding members of the United Nations on October 24, 1945.

Regions and Provinces

Local Government: The Philippines is divided into a hierarchy of local government units (LGUs) with the province as the primary unit. As of 2002, there are 79 provinces in the country. Provinces are further subdivided into cities and municipalities, which are in turn, composed of barangays. The barangay is the smallest local government unit.

All provinces are grouped into 17 regions for administrative convenience. Most government offices establish regional offices to serve the constituent provinces. The regions themselves do not possess a separate local government, with the exception of the Muslim Mindanao and Cordillera regions, which are autonomous.

See the articles on the regions and provinces to see a larger map showing the locations of the regions and provinces.

Regions

Ilocos Region (Region I)
Cagayan Valley (Region II)
Central Luzon (Region III)
CALABARZON (Region IV-A) ¹
MIMAROPA (Region IV-B) ¹
Bicol Region (Region V)
Western Visayas (Region VI)
Central Visayas (Region VII)
Eastern Visayas (Region VIII)
Zamboanga Peninsula (Region IX)
Northern Mindanao (Region X)
Davao Region (Region XI)
SOCCSKSARGEN (Region XII) ¹
Caraga (Region XIII)
Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)
Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR)
National Capital Region (NCR) ( Metro Manila )

¹ Names are capitalised because they are acronyms , containing the names of the constituent provinces or cities (see Acronyms in the Philippines ).

Geography of the Philippines

The Philippines constitute an archipelago of 7,107 islands with a total land area of approximately 300,000 km². The islands are commonly divided into three groups: Luzon (Regions I to V + NCR & CAR), Visayas (VI to VIII), and Mindanao (IX to XIII + ARMM). The busy port of Manila, on Luzon, is the country's capital and second-largest city after Quezon City.

The local climate is hot, humid, and tropical. The average yearly temperature is around 26.5° Celsius. Filipinos generally recognise three seasons: Tag-init or Tag-araw (the hot season or summer from March to May), Tag-ulan (the rainy season from June to November), and Tag-lamig (the cold season from December to February).

Most of the mountainous islands used to be covered in tropical rainforests and are volcanic in origin. The highest point is Mount Apo on Mindanao at 2,954 m. Many volcanoes in the country, such as Mount Pinatubo, are active. The country is also astride the typhoon belt of the Western Pacific and is struck by about 19 typhoons per year.

Economy of the Philippines

In 1998 the Philippine economy - a mixture of agriculture, light industry, and supporting services - deteriorated as a result of spillover from the Asian financial crisis and poor weather conditions. Growth fell to 0.6% in 1998 from 5% in 1997, but recovered to about 3% in 1999 and 4% in 2000. The government has promised to continue its economic reforms to help the Philippines match the pace of development in the newly industrialised countries of East Asia.

The strategy includes improving infrastructure, overhauling the tax system to bolster government revenues, furthering deregulation and privatisation of the economy, and increasing trade integration with the region. Prospects for the future depend heavily on the economic performance of the two major trading partners, the United States and Japan.

Demographics of the Philippines

The people of the Philippines are called Filipinos. They live a culture that is a blend of Asian, Islamic, and Western cultures. Over 95% of the population is ethnically Malay, descendants of immigrants from the Indonesian archipelago, and the most significant ethnic minority group are the Chinese, who have played an important role in commerce since the 9th century. Mestizos form a tiny but economically and politically important minority. Small forest tribes live in the more remote areas of Mindanao.

The vast majority of the people are Christians (Catholic 83%, Protestant 9%) and most were converted and Westernised to varying degrees during nearly 400 years of Western rule. A large Muslim minority (5%) exists predominantly on the island of Mindanao and Buddhism and other faiths make up the remainder.

A total of one hundred seventy-two native languages and dialects are spoken, all belonging to the Austronesian linguistic family. Foreign languages spoken include English, Chinese (Mandarin and Hokkien), Arabic (especially among the Muslim population), and Spanish (with its local creole, Chavacano).

Since 1939, in an effort to develop national unity, the government has promoted the use of the official national language, Filipino, which is based on Tagalog. Filipino is taught in all schools and is gaining acceptance, particularly as a second language for a diverse population. English is seen as the second official language and is used extensively in government, education and commerce.

Laubach Literacy (Think Enoch Root)

Dr. Frank C. Laubach (1884 -1970) was a Christian Evangelical missionary and mystic known as "The Apostle to the Illiterates." In 1935, while working at a remote location in the Philippines, he developed the "Each One Teach One" literacy program, which has been used to teach about 60 million people to read in their own language. He was deeply concerned about poverty, injustice and illiteracy, and considered them a barrier to peace in the world. In 1955, he founded Laubach Literacy and Mission Fund, now called Laubach Literacy. During his latter years of his life, traveled all over the world speaking on topics of literacy and world peace. He was author of a number of devotional writings and works on literacy.

The Philippine American War

Origins of the War

In December 1898, the U.S. purchased the Philippines from Spain at the Treaty of Paris for the sum of 20 million United States dollars, after the U.S. defeated Spain in the Spanish-American War. The U.S. government made plans to make the Philippines an American colony. However, the Filipinos, fighting for their independence from Spain since 1896, had already declared their independence on June 12. On August 14, 11,000 ground troops were sent to occupy the Philippines. Emilio Aguinaldo, on January 1, 1899, was declared the first President. He later organized a Congress at Malolos, Bulacan to draft a constitution.

The start of the War

Tensions between the Filipinos and the American soldiers on the islands existed because of the conflicting movements for independence and colonization, aggravated by the feelings of betrayal on the part of the Filipinos by their former allies, the Americans. Hostilities started on February 4, 1899 when an American soldier shot a Filipino soldier who was crossing a bridge into American-occupied territory in San Juan del Monte. Historians recognize this incident to be the start of the war. US President William McKinley later told reporters, "that the insurgents had attacked Manila" to justify a U.S. war on the Filipinos.

The administration of US President McKinley subsequently declared Aguinaldo to be an "outlaw bandit". However, no formal declaration of war was ever issued. Two reasons have been given for this. One is that calling the war the Philippine Insurrection made it appear to be a rebellion against a lawful government, when, in fact, the only part of the Philippines under American control was Manila. The other was to enable the American government to avoid liablility to claims by veterans of the action.

American Escalation

A large American military force (126,000 soldiers) was needed to occupy the country, and would be regularly engaged in war against Filipino rebels for another decade. Also, Macabebe Filipinos were recruited by the United States Army.

By the end of February, the Americans had prevailed in the struggle for Manila, and the Philippine Army of Liberation was forced to retreat north. Hard-fought American victories followed at Quingua (April), Zapote Bridge (June), and Tirad Pass (December). With the June assassination of General Antonio Luna and the death of Brigadier General Gregorio del Pilar at Tirad Pass, the Filipinos' ability to fight a conventional war was rapidly diminishing. As of 1900, therefore, Aguinaldo ordered his army to engage in guerilla warfare, a means of operation which better suited them and made American occupation of the archipelago all the more difficult over the next few years. Subsequent American defeats at Mabitac and Balangiga were not, however, sufficient to turn the tide of the struggle.

In March 1901, Aguinaldo was captured by the Macabebe Scouts, under the command of Brigadier General Frederick Funston in Palanan, Isabela. On July 4, 1902 President Theodore Roosevelt declared the war was over. The Americans gradually succeeded in taking control of urban and coastal areas by the end of 1903. In 1907, Macario Sacay, one of the last remaining Filipino generals fighting against the Americans, was captured and hanged.

While some measures to allow partial self-government were implemented earlier, the guerrilla war did not subside until 1913 when US President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed a change in policy that would, after a transitional period, grant the Philippines full independence. In the south, Muslim Filipinos resisted until 1916the so-called Moro rebellion. The fierceness of the resistance forced the American development and deployment of the Colt .45 pistol, which had a large enough caliber round to knock back a charging rebel.

Opposition to the War

Some Americans, notably Mark Twain and, Andrew Carnegie strongly objected to the annexation of the Philippines. Other Americans mistakenly thought that the Philippines wanted to become part of the United States. Anti-imperialist movements claimed that the United States had betrayed its lofty goals of the Spanish-American War by becoming a colonial power, merely replacing Spain in the Philippines. As news of atrocities committed in subduing the Philippines arrived in the Unites States, support for the war flagged.

Consequences

During the war, 4,234 American soldiers were killed and 2,818 were wounded. Philippine military deaths are estimated at 20,000 while civilian deaths numbered in 250,000 to 1,000,000 Filipinos. U.S. attacks into the countryside often included scorched earth campaigns where entire villages were burned and destroyed, torture (water cure) and the concentration of civilians into "protected zones". Many of these civilian casualties resulted from disease and famine. Reports of the execution of U.S. soldiers taken prisoner by the Filipinos led to disproportionate reprisals by American forces. Many American officers and soldiers called war a "nigger killing business".

During the U.S. occupation, English was declared the official language, although the languages of the Philippine people were Spanish, Visayan, Tagalog, Ilocano and other native languages. Six hundred American teachers were imported aboard the U.S.S. Thomas. Also, the Catholic Church was disestablished, and a considerable amount of church land was purchased and redistributed.

In 1914, Dean C. Worcester, U.S. Secretary of the Interior for the Philippines (1901-1913) described "the regime of civilization and improvement which started with American occupation and resulted in developing naked savages into cultivated and educated men."

Modern Worries

Drugs

The island exports locally-produced marijuana and hashish to East Asia, the US, and other Western markets; serves as a transit point for heroin and crystal methamphetamine.

HEAP: What happened in Intramuros in WWII

In September of 1940, Germany, Italy, and Japan had allied under the Tripartite Pact. In July of 1940, the US banned the shipment of aviation gasoline, to Japan, and by 1941, shipments of scrap iron, steel, gasoline, and other materials had practically ceased. Meanwhile, American economic support to China began to increase.

In April of 1941, Japan and the USSR signed a neutrality pact and Japan increased pressure on the French and Dutch colonies, in Southeast Asia, to cooperate in economic matters. On July 22, 1941, Japanese forces occupied the naval and air bases of southern Indochina. The Philippines were almost completely surrounded.

US Army Chief of Staff General George C. Marshall states, "Adequate reinforcements for the Philippines, at this time, would have left the United States in a position of great peril, should there be a break in the defense of Great Britain."

The Japanese Conquest and World War II (1941-1945): Philippines during World War II: The invasion by Japan began in December of 1941. As the Japanese forced advanced, Manila was declared an open city to prevent it from destruction, meanwhile, the government was moved to Corregidor.
War Propaganda

In March of 1942 U.S. General Douglas MacArthur and President Quezon fled the country. The cruelty of the Japanese military occupation of the Philippines is legendary. Guerilla units harassed the Japanese when they could, and on Luzon native resistance was strong enough that the Japanese never did get control of a large part of the island. Corregidor is an island in the Philippines' Manila Bay. The island is shaped like a tadpole, with its tail running eastward. It is doubtful that this island measures even 14 km² in area. Along with Caballo, which lies 2 km south of the "tail's" tip, this island partially blocks the entrance to Manila Bay, and thus forming a northern and southern entrance.

Corregidor was the location of Fort Mills housing US Major General George F. Moore's headquarters for the Philippine Department's Harbor Defenses of Manila and Subic Bays. This was one of the locations at which, under the National Defense Act of 1935, coastal artillery training was conducted. During World War II on March 11, 1942, General Douglas MacArthur abandoned Corregidor in front of advancing Japanese troops who forced a surrender of the remaining American and Filipino forces on May 6.

Atrocity Killings Were Battle Orders

Captured Japanese documents bearing dates between last Dec. 23, 1944 and Feb. 14, 1945 strongly suggested today that wholesale atrocities on civilians in Manila were the result of orders issued to the Nipponese garrison. The atrocities were not, the reports indicated, the work of isolated groups of Japanese who took matters into their own hands, although at the time a good many of them so appeared. Included in the documentary reports of Japanese slaughter of helpless civilians in the downtown battlefield were Nipponese documents and orders captured by soldiers of the U.S. Army's 14th Corps, some of them mimeographed and bound.[1]

The pattern of atrocities as described in the affidavit reports is so similar as to indicate strongly they were by general order to all Japanese troops. Everyone was considered an enemy guerilla fighter and treated accordingly. The lucky in the Intramuras merely starved to death locked in their homes. Others were bayonetted and then burned alive in a degrading manner considered economic saving ammo for combat.
These Filipino soldiers would be sent from
Brisbane, Australia to the Philippines
by submarine, prior to the invasion

Outline of Phillipino Military History of WWII

Simultaneous attacks on Pearl Harbor, Manila, rest of Southeast Asia
Scattering of the populace
Retreat to Cordillera Administrative Region
Fall of Bataan
Bataan Death March
100 000 prisoners
Torture to gain information
Retreat of US military to the Cordillera
- We Remained COL Russell Volckmann
The Japanese search for collaborators with the guerilla s
Island-hopping across the Pacific
Preparation of elements of the US Army, Military Intelligence Division (3000 men) in Brisbane Australia
Invasion was preceded by submarine operations, Military Intelligence secret missions, rendevous with sailboats in open waters
- Some veterans of these operations still live today 2003
US Link up with the US/Filipino guerillas (their khaki uniforms were a mass of stitches); fatigues were not government-issue before WWII
Invasion from the south
Lingayen Gulf invasion
Freeing of the populace
Bombardment of Manila
Rescue of POW 's near Cabanatuan, Luzon by US Army Ranger s, Ghost Soldiers by Hampton Sides
- Some Filipinos built an airfield with their bare hands
Last stand of the Japanese in Luzon
Defeat of the Japanese in Mindanao

He Returned

Finally in October of 1944 McArthur had gathered enough additional troops and supplies to begin the retaking of the Philippines, landing with Sergio Osmena who had assumed the Presidency after Quezon's death.

Battle of Leyte

The Battle of Leyte Gulf, was a World War II engagement between October 23 and October 26, 1944. It was the largest air-sea battle in history. The US Third Fleet under Admiral William Halsey was protecting the landings of Allied forces at Leyte in the Phillipines. The Japanese plan was to lure the Third Fleet away to the North using an apparently vulnerable force of aircraft carriers, and then to attack the landing forces with two attack forces sailing from the West. The diversion was successful, yet one of the Japanese attack forces was driven off by a force of six old battleships, five raised from the bottom of Pearl Harbor.

The other attack force fell on a group of escort carriers, designed for anti-submarine warfare, and escorting destroyers. Massively outgunned the carriers fought back, and the Japanse withdrew. Meanwhile Halsey's carriers had inflicted heavy damage on the decoy force. Four carriers were destroyed. When added to the three battleships and nineteen smaller ships it represented a quarter of the Japanese losses so far.

The Battle of Leyte Gulf saw the first use of Kamikaze aircraft by the Japanese. Having defended the landing force against the air and naval challenge, the way was opened for the reconquest of Leyte by the land forces under the command of General Douglas MacArthur. Under the protection of massed naval forces General Walter Krueger 's United States Sixth Army and supporting forces made amphibious landings on the east coast and, after heavy fighting, were able to secure the island. The US Army suffered over 3,500 casualties, the defending Japanese more than 55,000.

The battles entailed long fierce fighting; some of the Japanese continued to fight until the official surrender of the Empire of Japan on September 2, 1945. The final Japanese soilder to surrender was Hiroo Onoda, in 1974. Over a million Filipinos had been killed in the war, and many towns and cities, including Manila, were left in ruins.

External Links

Mother Earth Mother Board
Communications in the Philippines
History of the Philippines
Military of the Philippines
Military history of the Philippines
Transportation in the Philippines
Foreign relations of the Philippines
Constitution of the Philippines
Holidays in Philippines
Music of the Philippines
Culture of the Philippines
List of Philippine-related topics
Asian Theatre of World War II
www.gov.ph - Government portal
www.op.gov.ph - Office of the President
www.senate.gov.ph - Senate
www.congress.gov.ph - House of Representatives
www.supremecourt.gov.ph - Supreme Court
www.comelec.gov.ph - Commission on Elections
Philippine Daily Inquirer and GMA News
ABS-CBN News
Philippine Star
The Manila Bulletin Online
The Manila Times Online
Sun Star Network Online
The Daily Tribune Online
Malaya Online
Today Online
Kabayan Online
Detailed description of the battle of Leyte from Battleship.org
Yehey.com - Most popular Philippine portal
Tanikalang Ginto - Philippine links directory
1. War Atrocities

Stephenson:Neal:Cryptonomicon:30:the real Philippines. Randy pays no attention to it (Alan Sinder)