Freedom at Last (January 30, 1945)

The Philippines was the last major conquest of Japan in the Pacific.[i]The guerrillas contributed greatly to the liberation of the Philippines. [ii]

All throughout the province today, the memory of that period remains. Its legacy to the generations of Filipinos who have lived and breathed freedom since the end of the Second World War is described in a marker that stands till today at the entrance to Bataan:

“The little mountainous peninsula of Bataan saved democracy and the whole world from the evil hands of the devil” – From a radio broadcast of US President Franklin D. Roosevelt, January 5, 1945.”[iii]

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[i] Alberto S. Abeleda Jr., The Nation in Focus, St. Bernadette Publishing House Corporation, 2007, p. 124

[ii] Alberto S. Abeleda Jr., The Nation in Focus, St. Bernadette Publishing House Corporation, 2007, p. 123

[iii] Fr. Wilfredo C. Paguio, Bataan Land of Valor, People of Peace, Jardi Press, 1997, p. 106

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Posted in: democracy,guerrilla,legacy,liberation,world war II,WWII

Behind The Enemy Lines (January 28, 1945)

The fall of Bataan and Corregidor in 1942 ended the organized Fil_american resistance to the Japanese invasion. But the resistance to the Japanese continued in the form of guerrilla warfare waged by former Filipino soldiers and a few Americans who did not surrender to the Japanese. The ranks of the guerrillas were strengthened when released Filipino prisoners of war, Filipino civilians who wanted to take revenge on the Japanese for their cruelty, and patriotic young men and women joined them.[i]

The guerrilla movement included many high-ranking officials of the Japanese-sponsored government who passed on vital information to the guerrillas about Japanese military plans and activities.[ii]

U.S. submarines supplied the guerrillas with arms and ammunition, communications equipment, food and medical supplies.[iii]

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[i] Alberto S. Abeleda Jr., The Nation in Focus, St. Bernadette Publishing House Corporation, 2007, p. 123

[ii] Alberto S. Abeleda Jr., The Nation in Focus, St. Bernadette Publishing House Corporation, 2007, p. 123

[iii] Alberto S. Abeleda Jr., The Nation in Focus, St. Bernadette Publishing House Corporation, 2007, p. 123

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Posted in: corregidor,guerrilla,invasion,surrender,world war II,WWII