Amigos

Tomorrow, we celebrate the 6th commemoration of the Philippine-Spanish Friendship Day and the 109th anniversary of the Siege of Baler.

The Siege of Baler is the last and one of the most significant stories of the Philippine war of independence against Spain, which took place in my home town Baler, Aurora. This story is also the basis of the movie Los Ultimos de Filipinas which popularized the song Yo te dire, now a Spanish classic comparable to our immortal kundiman Dahil Sa'yo.

It was a memorable event that ended the Philippine war of liberation that lasted more than three centuries.

In 1899, fifty four Spanish soldiers held out in the stone church of Baler. This was to be the last garrison of the Spanish empire not only in the Philippines but in all the rest of their overseas colonies.

The soldiers began occupying the church in June 27, 1898, or 15 days after the proclamation of Philippine independence. It was unknown to them that while they were there, the war had already ended. Despite efforts to tell them so, the soldiers, who, for love of country and call of duty, remained at their post for 11 long and weary months.

It was only when President Emilio Aguinaldo issued a presidential decree – lauding their heroism, allowing them safe passage and decreeing that they be treated by the Filipinos as friends – that they finally came out after 337 days, with only 33 soldiers surviving starvation, disease and death.

As the Baler Church door opened on June 2, 1899, the trumpet of surrender was sounded and the Filipinos who laid siege to the church shouted “Amigos, amigos” as the surviving Spanish soldiers walked out into the churchyard.

It was a benevolent gesture of reconciliation between two countries that fought a long and bitter war.

This was the inspiration for RA 9187, which I authored and principally sponsored in the Senate. It sets June 30 of every year – the day that President Aguinaldo issued a decree honoring the valor of the Spanish soldiers and the magnanimity of the Filipino soldiers – as a day to remember and celebrate the shared history and friendship between the two nations of Spain and the Philippines.

The Siege of Baler, and the Philippine-Spanish Friendship Day which we commemorate every year, celebrates the timeless values of magnanimity, courage, love of country and forbearance in times of great difficulty.