Editor’s Note:
As we commemorate the anniversary of the Philippine-American War, it is but fitting that we print an account of that war by an eminent scholar of Philippine history and revolution. Professor Scalice has written extensively on the Philippines especially the Communist Party of the Philippines. Here he untangles the bloody history of that war that has been sanitized by the victors.
On the bones of the Filipino dead, Washington built its showcase of democracy in Asia
Joseph Scalice
Today, February 4, is the 123rd anniversary of a great crime. On February 4 1899, American forces launched a bloody war of conquest in the Philippines crushing the fledgling democratic republic built out of a revolution against Spanish colonialism.
The Filipino forces, many barefoot and poorly armed, fought with immense courage. Motivated by political ideals and the desire to be free, they cited the American declaration of independence — that all men are created equal — and they were shot down by US troops.
It was a lopsided struggle. US forces were armed with Krag bolt-action rifle, Filipino troops often only with bolos. The trenches of the Filipino forces were scenes of slaughter. The corpses of the valiant defenders of the republic were left to rot.
The Filipino forces turned to guerrilla struggle and the Americans to the counter-insurgency tools of torture, the reconcentration of large populations, and the execution of prisoners.
American troops administered the “water cure” on Filipino soldiers and members of the civilian population, forcing prisoners to drink gallons of water and then trampling on them. Many prisoners died from the torture of burst innards.
General Jacob Smith ordered his troops in the province of Samar to “kill everyone over ten. … I want you to kill and burn, the more you kill and burn the more you will please me … make Samar a howling wilderness.”
The US Army burned villages to the ground. The reconcentrated population had no access to sanitation and tens of thousands died of typhoid, dysentery, beriberi, and malaria.
The US War Department censored press despatches, keeping the American public in the dark. The US population learned of the reality of the conduct of the war from letters sent home by soldiers.
The American forces routinely called the Filipinos “n*ggers” and “g*gus,” racial slurs calculated to strip away the humanity of the people they murdered and supressed.
Mark Twain, the most eloquent voice in America in opposition to the bloody conquest, rewrote the Battle Hymn of the Republic in the spirit of Imperialism: “As Christ died to make men holy, let men die to make us rich. Our god is marching on.”
It was a uniquely American war, dealing death, mayhem and catastrophe on the population in the name of “human rights” and “democracy.” Mass murder and imperialist plunder were committed with protestations of the noblest intentions.
The war set the stage for the 20th century, a century of unstinting imperialist bloodshed and American hegemony decked out in the doodads of democracy. The g*gus of the Philippines became the g**ks of Vietnam, caught in the sights of imperialism.
200,000 Filipino dead
At least 200,000 Filipinos were killed. The actual number is perhaps much higher. On the bones of the Filipino dead, Washington built its showcase of democracy in Asia.
Today is the anniversary of the launching of this crime. But it is also a day to honor the courageous men and women who defended their freedom in the face of overwhelming odds.
Gregorio del Pilar, barely 24 years old, who died commanding the forces guarding Tirad Pass. His 60 soldiers held the pass against 500 American soldiers for five hours. They were killed, nearly to a man, and del Pilar’s corpse was stripped and left to rot in the sun.
Apolinario Mabini, the son of a peasant family, paralyzed from the waist down by polio, who drew up the liberal democratic principles of the Republic. He was exiled to Guam when he was captured and refused to swear loyalty to the Americans.
Macario Sakay, who fought long into the twentieth century, refusing to surrender long after the Philippine elite had made their peace with the Americans. The Americans tricked him, arrested him during peace negotiations, and hanged him as a bandit in 1907.
It is the victors that write history. Taft Avenue runs through Manila, and the rich reside in Forbes Park. The US president and ambassador will invariably speak, in tones of condescension, of the countries’ historic ties. They are ties that were forged with bloodshed.
About Joseph Scalice
Joseph Scalice is a historian of the Philippines and Southeast Asia Revolutionary Movements .https://josephscalice.com
A Visiting Fellow, Southeast Asia Centre, London School of Economics and Political Science, he was former Postdoctoral Researcher, School of Humanities, Nanyang Technological University in Singapore.
His recent book, The Drama of Dictatorship: Martial Law and the Communist Parties of the Philippines (Cornell University Press, 2023), analyzes the period leading up to the declaration of martial law by Ferdinand Marcos in 1972 and uncovers the prominent role played by two Communist Parties, the PKP and the CPP. His other book, The Drama of Dictatorship is the first scholarly account of the social explosions on the eve of martial law and the political machinations that culminated in the death of democracy.