ON JUNE 12, 1898, the Philippines declared its independence from Spain in Kawit, Cavite.
Ambrosio Rianzares Bautista, Emilio Aguinaldo's war counselor and special delegate, read the Acta de la proclamación de independencia del pueblo Filipino (Act of the Proclamation of Independence of the Filipino People) declaring the Philippines' independence.
"We do hereby proclaim and declare solemnly in the name and by authority of the people of these Philippine Islands, that they are and have the right to be free and independent," the declaration states.
It added, "That they have ceased to have any allegiance to the Crown of Spain; that all political ties between them are and should be completely severed and annulled; and that, like other free and independent States, they enjoy the full power to make War and Peace, conclude commercial treaties, enter into alliances, regulate commerce, and do all other acts and things which an Independent State has a right to do.”
Since 1898, the Philippines not only struggled to be independent from Spain. In the last 121 years, the country struggle to be independent from other foreign nations and even a dictator.
While we may be an independent nation, Filipinos continue to struggle for freedom from some sort of bondage. Filipinos are struggling to love freely, some our struggling to express free, and others struggle to be free from financial woes.
As a nation, we continue to struggle for freedom from corrupt officials, struggle to free what is ours from others, and struggle to free fellowmen from proverty, among the other problems we face today.
As a nation, seemingly divided geographically and political ideals, we cannot be free from our struggles if continue to fight amongst ourselves. The government must cultivate an environment where people of different backgrounds will be able to work to improve the lives of fellow Filipinos and the state of the Philippines.
The Filipinos became one when they declared independence on June 12, 1898. We can declare independence from our struggles as a nation if only we can work together. Easier said than done but it is something that we should do.