The news of Rizal's capture and execution on July 7, 1892, soon reached Filipinos through the newspapers. Due to this, some Filipinos decided to gather in a home on Azcarraga Street and form a covert organization they named the Kataastaasan, Kagalanggalangang na Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan—KKK, Katipunan, or Supreme and Venerable Association of the Sons of the People. It filled the hole created by the demand for peaceful reforms, which sadly went unanswered. It is a revolutionary society from the Philippines whose goal was to overthrow the Spanish government and free the country. Society's objectives are to uphold the idea of self-reliance and to protect the weak and the destitute. In order to achieve independence, the Philippines must also be cut off from Spain. They were also advised to support the families of sick coworkers. Society would cover the cost of the funeral in the event of death. In simple words, this society seeks to teach and encourage people to be more like themselves, to be true Filipinos, with a heart and compassion towards others.
For me, the Katipunan served as a wake-up call to fight for our independence. There were about 4,000 pioneer members when they began. However, it increased by up to 400,000 after it was found, a sign that it has sparked Filipino nationalism. It is truly amazing that by one event—Rizal’s death, Filipinos actually managed to provide a quick and brave solution to come together and fight for themselves. This is the true power of patriotism—the love for our country is what binds us all together. It is magical in every sense.
But after 130 years when Katipunan was founded, did we really gain and learn something from it? Do we, Filipinos, possess those qualities that people from the past have? The sad and terrible thing in today’s generation is that politicians' main objective is to profit themselves so they can immigrate to wealthy western nations rather than to better our lives; a result of the colonial mindset. Due to being ignorant of our own culture and continuing to ignore it; the rich and able can buy their selves second citizenship to other countries, unlearn every culture that we have as if it's a disease, and strip off even our language. Is this the fruit of our ancestors’ sacrifices? Does the country deserve this kind of people? Do we live to our full potential as Filipinos?
Our predecessors fought and died to overthrow an oppressive government and to defend our sovereignty yet here we are, having double standards in implementing the laws. We became our enemies; divided by power, wealth, and prestige. Some Filipinos will accept bribes for short-term relief—may be due to the hell-hole poverty they are in or for whatever personal reason, but this will only result in electing thieves, falsifiers, and murderers with a long-term effect of putting the country and their selves deeper into the rabbit hole. We may have overthrown a lot of foreign captors that tried to tie us down but on the other hand, we were so willing to give our ties to our abusive fellowmen. Foreign or not, as long as it shows an unjust exercise of authority, we should not hesitate to shout our voices as we should be against oppression nor consent to being oppressed.
This is just the prevailing atmosphere and not meant as an insult; I know plenty of folks who are not like these.
As someone who’s coming from a young generation, it saddens me to realize that we’re not doing enough to better our situation; help each other, to lift our own country, and be able to live with pride and confidence because we are from the Philippines. This is a serious matter as we must redeem ourselves, enliven the dying spirit, fight, and win the fight.
Simply put, we are misusing our nationalism which is why it is falling. There are just a few who actually make significant contributions to this nation. Aside from resiliency as our strength, we must embrace our other qualities such as integrity and accountability, and use them to elevate our fellow Filipinos by electing noble leaders and being good leaders. This will not only reconcile our dying culture, but other quarters will follow—uplift the economy, instills national values among the populace, and brings unity to the nation.
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