More than half a century after the last commander of the Japanese forces in the Philippines was hanged for war crimes committed during World War 2, Lt. Gen. Tomoyuki Yamashita’s name has been co-opted to explain the fever driving many Filipinos and foreigners to search for the war loot he was supposed to have hidden.
The Yamashita treasure, allegedly seized by the Japanese army from all over the Far East, still bedevils the present despite a checkered past of treasure-hunting false leads, transgressions, even deaths.
Last May 2-4, Sun.Star Cebu ran a three-part special report seeking to explain what drives the obsessive hunt for treasure, as well as resolve the bigger controversy regarding its legitimacy and contribution to heritage preservation.
Endangered hunters
Faith and commitment to the Yamashita hoard may bond the members of Treasure Hunters Association of the Philippines Inc. (Thapi) but it’s also ranged against skeptics, critics and antagonists who either believe it’s all a con game or experienced losing money in such a venture.
“I want to earn back people’s trust and faith in treasure hunting,” Pastor Yosores admits to Sun.Star’s Karlon N. Rama in his May 2 special report on “Gold diggers.” Yosores is the regional director for Thapi in Central Visayas.
Yosores contends that past hunters were either duped by dishonest helpers and partners or did not use the “proper method” involving “Lava,” which stands for living witness, authenticated map, visible signs and accurate detector.
He admits though that the organization still has to reach out to hundreds of independent diggers.
Raiders and blackguards
It is difficult to monitor and regulate treasure hunters, many of whom violate laws out of ignorance and malice.
Cherry T. Lim’s May 3 special report details the state’s intricate system of requirements, permits and arrangements regarding the ownership of found treasures and artifacts of cultural and historical value.
But it is not just a desire to avoid red tape but greed to possess or sell antiques for high prices that drives many to evade the radar of authorities. Jujemay G. Awit’s May 3 feature tracks the past and ongoing looting of churches for relics, as well as unauthorized digging for buried treasure.
Church officials blame “unfounded” rumors “without historical basis” as the cause behind the diggings. But a task force comprising members of the church and the Philippine National Police was formed to solve the rampant robberies of icons and priceless appendages from 2002 to 2004.
Collecting with conscience
Police and heritage officials point out that the problem of artifact theft should not only involve law enforcement but communal responsibility.
The May 4 special report of Mayette Q. Tabada points out institutional museums and private collectors can discourage the looting of archeological sites and illegal trade in antiques by first ascertaining the provenance of an artifact before its purchase, as well as cooperating with the National Museum of the Philippines in undertaking excavations for scholarly purposes.
In turn, private curators challenge the National Museum to prove its credibility and capacity to store, care, protect and account for the cultural and historical treasures in its keeping. Given museums’ public-service function of supporting academic study and public education, all stakeholders must share in the responsibility to preserve the past.
