Sounds of the enormous count of combat shoes, shaky hands, pale faces, and weakening feet filled the whole city. Darkness occupied the air as it became quiet with terrified eyes seen peeking in each houses that they passed. In delible scars are still painted under stones where bones are still bleeding. Silent tears in their hearts make the loudest noise. Patriotism prevails despite hands being chained. Fighting until the last bone falls.
Every 9th of April, the Philippines commemorates those first fallen heroes who fought against the Japanese invaders. Day of Valor (Araw ng Kagitingan) is the day when we remember the bravery and patriotism of Filipino soldiers, together with the American soldiers, led by the commander Major General Edward P King Jr., more than 76,000 starving and disease-ridden soldiers, both American and Filipino soldiers were surrendered under the Japanese troops. On April 9, 1942, captives were forced to endure a 140-kilometer walk from Bataan to Capas, Tarlac, where Camp O’Donnell was located. Thousands of soldiers died in the middle of the march due to famine, heat prostration, and untreated wounds. This march is now known as Bataan Death March because of the high count of brutal deaths along the road at the hands of Japanese troops. Historians believed that only 54,000 soldiers survived until the destination and were imprisoned in Camp O’Donnell in Tarlac. The soldier prisoners were forced to march for 6 days with only one meal of rice during the entire journey.
On the 11th anniversary of the fall of Bataan, in 1953, Late President Elpidio Quirino signed Proclamation no. 381, s. 1953, declaring April 9, 1953, as a holiday, in commemoration of Bataan Day. In the said proclamation, he described the Fall of Bataan as a symbolization of “enduring ties of affection, friendship, and cooperation that bind the Philippines and the United States”. The commemoration for Late President Elpidio Quirino was a “fitting homage to the unparalleled heroism of Filipino and American forces who, despite overwhelming odds, fought side by side to the last in their stubborn defense of freedom and democracy”. The following year, Late President Ramon Magsaysay signed Proclamation no. 11, s. 1954, declaring April 9, 1954, as a special public holiday as it commemorates the 12th anniversary of the Fall of Bataan, he again signed another proclamation declaring Bataan Day as a special public holiday under Proclamation no.140, s. 1955. The proclamation encouraged Filipinos, as well as Americans residing in the country, to “a one-minute silence at 4:30 o’clock in the afternoon of that day, and to hold appropriate rites in honor of the heroic defenders of Bataan.”.
In 1961, the House of Representatives passed a law declaring the 9th of April every year as “Bataan Day”, a legal holiday. Republic Act No. 3022 followed Late President Magsaysay’s proclamation to call for one-minute silence at 4:30 in the afternoon to hold “appropriate rites in honor of the heroic defenders of Bataan and their parents, wives, and/or widows.”. After 26 years, the Late President Corazon Aquino, the name of the said holiday was revised and renamed to “Araw ng Kagitingan (Bataan and Corregidor Day)” under Executive Order No. 203 s. 1987. April 9th was then changed from being a legal holiday to simply a regular holiday. In 2007, Former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo amended Republic Act No. 9492, s. 2007, in the creation of moveable holidays, a policy known as Holiday Economics, declared Araw ng Kagitingan (Bataan and Corregidor Day) to be commemorated either on April 9 or the nearest Monday. The administration of Late President Benigno S. Aquino III returned the commemoration of the Fall of Bataan every 9th of April in each year.
This year, as we commemorate the 81st anniversary of Bataan Day, President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., declared Proclamation no. 90, s. 2022. He stated, "There is a need to adjust these holidays pursuant to the principle of holiday economics wherein a longer weekend will help encourage domestic travel and increase tourism expenditures in the country.". Malacañang released a new list of regular and special non-working holidays last November 16, 2022, adjusting some dates, following the holiday economics that was previously implemented by Former President Arroyo. Marcos declared Araw ng Kagitingan to be commemorated on April 10, the nearest Monday, considering that the 9th of April falls on Sunday.
The Day of Valor was a national observance of silence in order to pay commemoration to the victims of the Bataan Death March, as well as to their families. It was one of the darkest days for these people as well as for the country they defended against the Japanese troops during World War II. Bataan Day is also remembered in the United States. On April 8, 1954, US Congress passed a joint resolution, declaring April 9, 1954, the 12th anniversary of the fall of Bataan. On April 8, 1987, U.S. Late President Ronald Reagan, declared April 9. 1987 as “National Former POW (Prisoner of War) Recognition Day,” by the virtue of Senate Joint Resolution 47. President Joe Biden continued the tradition, declaring April 9th each year as a recognition day of POW. Maywood, Illinois, a small suburb in western Chicago, commemorates Bataan Day every second Sunday of September. In Honolulu, Hawaii, they annually commemorate the Sacrifices of the Fall of Bataan and Corregidor at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific at Punchbowl, Honolulu, Hawaii every year.
These troops fought until their last strength even if they are unsure if they’ll be able to get victory. They sacrificed their lives and their supposedly days with their families to defend the country against the invaders. Their last breaths must have been hard as they see the darkness in each eye of the people they are protecting. Their bravery in midst of uncertainty led our present to a free, democratic, and livable country. Their feet fell for us to be able to stand on our own. Their heartbeats stopped to make our hearts live. Their courage in the middle of darkness made the present colorful as it can be.
Illustration by Jannah Quilao & Renz Matthew Ybamit
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