Pampanga - Languages - http://maxpages.com/pampanga/erniet32

In a message dated 1/21/2005 10:12:47 AM Pacific Standard Time, boyette@emirates.net.ae writes:

Manyad ku pung pemisu para gamitan ya iting mesulat a history ning

Joas's history of Pampanga is very brief and did not even touch on the Philippine Revolution. For a more thorough history, though still incomplete, here is what I lifted from Kong Ernie's website at http://maxpages.com/fairytale/pampanga
It is also found in the book he has recently published, entitled "My Trip To Wonderland : The Divine Fairy Tale".

The setting is the province of Pampanga and a part of the province of Tarlac which are a part of the vast central plain of Luzon, the rice granary of the Philippines. The area also abounds with sugar cane plantations - making it truly wealthy. Drained by the Rio Grande de Pampanga that has its deltas in the south facing Manila Bay, the place at the time of the Spanish conquest was a progressive region both in agriculture and in trade. It is said that when the Spanish conquistadores while in Manila heard about the kingdom of Pampanga, they lost no time going on an exploration to that part of their newly found land. What they saw amazed and impressed them: verdant fields planted to rice and other crop, and civilized people whose friendship they quickly won -- a friendship that would last for well over three centuries. On top of that, the people already had a system of writing, engaged in trade with China, Siam and Japan, and had among them a few that had skill in the art of cannon-making.

Pampanga is rich in history and in legends. Being a part of the allied kingdoms under Rajah Soliman of Manila when Legaspi and his men arrived, it always dispatched re-enforcement forces from Macabebe and the surrounding area there whenever the capital was invaded. Thus, when the Spaniards took control of Manila, they were the people of that town led by their "datu" (chief) Tarik Soliman, also known as Bambalito, who came by boats all the way to Bangkusay to rescue Soliman and his city from the invaders. Unfortunately, however, despite the use of cannons made by their famous "cabalen" (compatriot), Panday Pira, and despite putting up a fierce fight, they were defeated. Soon afterwards, the whole united alliance fell into the hands of the Spaniards. For the first time in their lives, they found themselves under foreign domination. Manila was established as the capital and Pampanga was the first to be politically organized as a province. In fact, Manila and Pampanga formed the nucleus of the newly-established colony, with the rest of the discovered lands, including the earlier settlements in the south, relegated to mere outposts. That was in the year 1571. Pampanga's territory then extended beyond its present borders, even beyond the Caraballo Mountains in the north, well beyond where its language was spoken.

The people of Pampanga, as well as those of southern Tarlac, the province to its north, are called Pampanguenos or Pampangans. With the help of the ancestors of this indigenous group which composed the great bulk of the Spanish army stationed there, Spain was able to unite the archipelago under one military government. For unlike in the previous settlements they had where they failed to establish a stronghold on account of the tribes there being divided, here, on account of the unity found among the natives, they found a cohesive region large enough to use as a core. It was a dream-come-true. When referring to Spanish soldiers then, there was this saying, "three Pampangans plus one Spaniard, equals four Spaniards". They even had an elite regiment within the army composed of Pampangans alone. One Spanish official praised them in a letter to the King, calling them "the Castilians of their race". Like all the other civilized Filipinos, the Pampangans readily embraced Christianity with nary a bit of resistance. In fact, the first Filipino to join the Society of Jesus was a Pampangan named Martin Sancho who became a Jesuit in 1593 and got to visit Rome and study for sometime in Murcia and Toledo.

For more than three centuries the Pampangans served as either soldiers or mercenaries to the Spanish government in the Philippines. They were sent to Mindanao to fight against the Moros. They were sent to various parts of the colony to either fight or ward off foreign invaders such as Chinese, Portuguese and Dutch. It was this fighting spirit inherent in Pampanguenos that earned them the trust and praises of the governor-general and the king of Spain. It was what gave rise to their being stereotyped and which associated them with the quotation, "Qng leon o tigre e cu tatacut, queca pa?" (If I don't fear either the lion or the tiger, who the hell are you that I would be afraid of?) Their service was so invaluable that in 1662, the governor, impressed with their victory over the Chinese and suppressing their revolts, proclaimed their leader, Francisco Laxamana, commander-in-chief of Fort Santiago for 24 hours - the greatest military honor ever bequeathed by the Spaniards to a Filipino. And there was also Don Guillermo Palaot, a master of camp, who received high honors for joining a Spanish expedition and helping assault the Dutch in the Moluccas in 1606. After many attempts over a period of forty years to drive away the Dutch and which cost them a lot of lives, the Pampangans were able to finally do so in 1648 - a victory which even to this day is still celebrated every October in Pampanga and in Manila in the form of a fiesta called "La Naval". It is said that they owed the triumphant outcome to the Nuestra Senora del Rosario (Our Lady of the Rosary) to whom they prayed and who, they believed, interceded on their behalf.

When the British occupied Manila in 1762, the capital of the Philippines was temporarily transferred to Bacolor, Pampanga. Jose Manalastas, the Fearless, who led his fellow Pampangans in fighting them as well as in suppressing Filipino revolts in the north, figured prominently and was hailed by acting Gov. Simon de Anda for his feats. Fortunately, the British left on their own two years later following a treaty between Spain and England.

All throughout the Spanish regime, the Pampangans were the most favored among all ethnic groups in the islands. Those who served in the army were awarded with "encomiendas" (granted land) in other parts of the colony and oftentimes even appointed as "cabezas" or heads in the villages they were assigned. Despite this special treatment however, there were still times when there was discontent among them and they revolted. In 1660, for instance, Francisco Maniago, the master-of-camp of the forces in Spanish service led a revolt complaining about unfair labor among other grievances. It was one of the few successful revolts during that century, the rebels having been fairly granted with much of their demands. The Spanish governor was reprimanded by the King then, pointing out to him that the Pampangans rendered the greatest service to Spain and should not be given such unfair treatment. This feeling was carried over to those of succeeding administrations who feared a revolt of the Pampangans the most, such people being well known for their bravery in combat. But it was not just this character of his that apprehended the colonial power. It was the fact that they were trained as soldiers in their own forts, and what could be more formidable as enemies than the very ones that they had trained?

This fear came into play in 1898 when many Pampangans defected from the Spanish army to join their brother Pampangans in the battlefield. Among them was my own grandfather, Lucio Turla, who lost no time registering with the Katipunan, the revolutionary group under Andres Bonifacio. Many Pampangans were already with this secret society for sometime then, the most well-known of whom was the up and coming dramatist named Aurelio Tolentino. Early on, in 1891, Jose Rizal, a mason and a reform movement leader who would later be executed by the Spaniards, visited the province to secretly campaign for a nationalistic cause. Pampanga was among the first to join the revolution and among the eight placed under martial law by the governor-general for instigating a revolution, and as such it is now represented by one of the eight rays of the sun in the Philippine flag. With many Pampangans in the Spanish army defecting, the latter became so greatly weakened that the Filipino revolutionary forces started to experience victory after victory. For in a way, the key to the downfall of Spain in the Philippines seemed to have been the Pampangans' defection from the army it had served for 328 years, what with the consequential debilitation of foreign hold as a result. When the Pampangans under Gen. Maximino Hizon did rise up in arms, it took them only about a month (from June 3 to July 1, 1898) to defeat and get rid of the Spaniards from their province.

Unfortunately, the defeat of the Spaniards did not mark the end of Filipino struggle for independence. With the outbreak of the global Spanish-American War, American soldiers were sent to take the Philippines, being a Spanish colony. After a short time the U.S. bought the islands from Spain and took over as colonists. This triggered the Philippine-American War. Filipinos, however, were of no match to the Americans who were equipped with better weapons. Soon, they found themselves fighting as guerillas. Their leader, Emilio Aguinaldo, was eventually captured by the Americans with the help of Macabebe scouts - remnants of the Spanish army that had earlier surrendered but conveniently rehired by the new regime. This gave rise to the Macabebes being branded as "dugung aso" (dog-blooded) on account of such canine devotion. But turncoats they were not, as no less than Aguinaldo himself said that they were not his own men. It was straight from the horse's mouth. Only those who owed him loyalty could be branded as traitors, and so there was actually no betrayal. Macabebes, for all we know, were exemplars when it came to loyalty. It is said that when one of them barked, all the others followed suit, and they attacked the enemy like a pack of wolves.

When World War II broke out and the Japanese invaded the Philippines, Pampanga again played an important role. With the Fall of Bataan in 1942, the infamous Death March followed. American and Filipino POWs were forced to march through the province, and from its capital, brought by box cars to Camp O'Donnel in Capas, Tarlac which had been converted into a concentration camp. Chief Justice Jose Abad Santos who was appointed care-taker by President Quezon before the latter left for Australia with Gen. MacArthur, was the greatest casualty during the Japanese Occupation. For being steadfast in his refusal to collaborate with the enemy, he was eventually executed by a Japanese firing squad. Unlike the other martyrs before him who had no way of escaping, he could have easily saved himself had he wanted to but chose death rather than help the enemy - contrary to what many of his colleagues in the fallen government did. He was truly an exemplar of courage and his love for his country transcended his love for his own life. Shortly before his execution, he had said to his son, "Do not cry for me, Pepito. Show these people that you are brave. Remember, not everybody is given this chance. This is an opportunity to die for one's country." It is said that after the execution was carried out, the Japanese commander in charge went back to the hut were Abad Santos' son was, held him by the shoulder and sadly said, "Your father died a glorious death."

It was in the town of Mabalacat, located northwest of Mt. Arayat, where the Japanese imperial army trained its so-called "kamikaze" pilots. These pilots went on suicide missions using their planes as bombs by crash-diving on American aircraft carriers. It is said that in the final ten months of the war, over seven thousand kamikazes flew to their deaths and over 100 U.S. ships were sunk. A monument has been built there recently by the Japanese to serve as a historical landmark.

The Japanese occupation brought out the heroism on many Filipinos especially in Pampanga which was the cradle of the Huk guerrilla movement. Luis M. Taruc organized the resistance group and with him were such stalwarts as Commander Silvestre Liwanag, alias Linda Bie, and Commander Casto Alejandrino. A place called White Rock on Mt. Arayat served as the bastion of their operation. There were also some members of the distaff side who rose into prominence, chief among them of whom were Remedios Gomez, alias Commander Liwaysay, and Felipa Culala, alias Commander Dayang-Dayang. It is said that the latter had a masculine physique and could be mistaken for a man. She was responsible for the killing of over fifty Japanese soldiers and some 60 constabulary guards or militias working for the Japanese. Once, she led an assault on the municipal building of Candaba and liberated some of her followers that had been detained there for sometime. I've heard that even to this day, Dayang-Dayang is still a household name to her cabalens in Candaba for her exploits during the war.

After the war, the Huks were not given due recognition by both the U.S. and Philippine governments, and they took to the hills once again and became outlaws that espoused communism, as well as the ideals on socialism and agrarian reform started by socialist leader Pedro Abad Santos during the 1930s. They were almost able to overthrow the government of the new republic at the height of their power in the early fifties. Agrarian unrest went on after the decline of the Huk movement soon after the death of Commander Alibasbas and the surrender of Commander Sumulong during the late sixties. Bernabe Buscayno of Capas, alias Commander Dante, led the new radical group that took over and which quickly spread throughout the islands. As of today, this dissidence is still very much alive although it is now nationwide in scope and is no longer concentrated in the area that used to be called Huklandia.

There was a time when the province of Pampanga was at the peak of glory. That was in the early sixties when the state and the church in the Philippines were both headed by Pampangans. Diosdado Macapagal was then the president of the republic and Rufino Santos was the country's cardinal, and the first one at that. And there was Luis Taruc of San Luis, who, although already then in prison, was the founder and supreme head of the outlaw Hukbalahap group that advocated Maoism. For that, Nick Joaquin, who later became a national artist for literature, aptly described the province as a land of paradoxes.

But it was not just in government, religion and activism where the province excelled. Its role in other various fields including entertainment, business, literature, art, education, sports, military careers and beauty pageants are also worth mentioning. Rogelio dela Rosa, for instance, was at one time the king of Philippine movies and he later became a senator, along with furniture magnate, Gil Puyat, who rose to become president of the senate. Gen. Pelagio Cruz became a chief of staff of the armed forces. Cristina Galang once reigned as Miss Philippines, and Melanie Marquez, an actress, used to reign as Miss International. Efren "Bata" Reyes became a world champion in billiards. Vidal A. Tan was a president of the University of the Philippines, and Manuel Carreon, a director of the bureau of private schools. Vicente Manansala was a national artist in painting. Bienvenido Santos was a novelist and one of the top Filipino writers in English. The list just goes on and on.

When martial law was imposed in the country and the incumbent president turned dictator, the Pampangans added another feather to their cap. The 1983 assassination at the airport of their "cabalen" (compatriot), Benigno Aquino Jr. of Tarlac province, who was then returning home from exile in the U.S. to provide hope to the Filipinos agitating to remove a dictatorship, triggered mass protests which culminated in Philippine history's most dramatic moments. It started with Ninoy Aquino's funeral procession which, with about 2 million mourners, was most probably the largest in world history. It culminated with his widow's running opposite Marcos for the presidency in a snap election and which was allegedly rigged to make the latter win. This precipitated more protests and prodded practically everybody to take to the streets. It was called EDSA revolution and was boosted by what was popularly referred to as People Power. Thousands of people joined in the rally and blocked the entrance to the fort where renegade military officers, including the then future president, Fidel Ramos, were holed in and seeking protection from the masses. People were seen offering snacks to those who were there including the soldiers whose tanks were blocked by the awesome multitude. There was even one who was holding the image of the Virgin Mary before a stalled tank. Its day-to-day happenings that were updated every hour and shown on television around the world made it a landmark event. In the end, the Marcos dictatorship was toppled with almost no bloodshed at all, and Corazon Aquino, the hero's widow, was proclaimed president.

A second revolution propelled by People Power II took place in January of 2001. It again chose EDSA highway in Manila for its venue. This time the complaint was the alleged corruption of the incumbent president and the failure of Congress to impeach him. Though much less dramatic than EDSA I, it was nevertheless another victory for the people. Vice President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo, a daughter of a former president and whose hometown is Lubao, Pampanga, was installed as President. Three years later, she got her own mandate in an election where she beat her foremost rival for the presidency by over a million votes.

The province, despite its glorious past, also had its ups and downs. Tragedy struck this heartland on June 15, 1991 when nature wreaked havoc and devastation to both the land and the people. While a typhoon was raging, nearby Mt. Pinatubo, dormant for six centuries, blew its top and unleashed its fury. Its eruption was of such enormous magnitude that it caused an earthquake that was felt for miles and miles around. The ash that it spewed quickly turned to mud on account of the downpour that exacerbated the situation. People in all affected areas that encompassed the whole province had to evacuate to higher ground. The town of Bacolor, where the oldest trade school was, suffered the most. Its church, one of the oldest in the country, was almost half-buried by ten feet of sludge.

In the aftermath the toll exacted by the catastrophic occurrence reached billions of pesos. But it was just the beginning of a decade of suffering on the part of the people there, many of which had to be placed in resettlement areas. This was because of the loose "lahar" that came down the slopes of the volcano year after year during the rainy season. It built up on riverbeds and causing them to overflow their banks that in turn precipitated floods that always took long to subside. Lack of funds prevented the government from dredging the rivers and their tributaries often enough. It was just terrible. Because of this, Clark Air Force Base, the largest U.S. military installation outside the U.S. mainland, was promptly abandoned after 90 years, and nearby Subic Naval Base closed down too a few months later.

Today, these former U.S. bases are "economic and freeport zones" that have attracted many investors from all over the world and are flourishing. And as to the province itself, it has been back on its feet for sometime now and is once again a garden of paradise to many.

Mt. Pinatubo in nearby Zambales and Mt. Arayat in the northern part of the province....

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