The Tomb of the Unknown Heroes in the Philippines

Discordant Notes

The Tomb of the Unknown Heroes in the Philippines

Arturo P. Garcia

One question that almost surprised me but I was able to answer during our lobby in the US Congress is one from the staff members from the representative from Riverside. She asked me why I became active in the struggle for the Filipino Veterans. But before that she asked me if I was a veteran.

I almost smiled because my age shows. Some people always ask me, especially college students if I was veteran. I always say I am so young to be a veteran because I was born after the war.

My bonding with my grandfather and my father is the answer to that. My grandfather and my father when I was in grade school, if they have spare time, always visit the Tomb of the Unknown Soldiers at Fort Santiago during the early 1960’s.

And they always bring me with them on those visit. Those visit bonded all of us together and instilled in me the deep sense of patriotism and love of country.

My grandfather had bad memories of the Fort. Fort Santiago was the inner fort bastion inside the walled city of Manila during the 333 years of Spanish colonial rule and the 48 years rule of the Americans in the Philippines. It was there where he was tortured when he was arrested during the Japanese occupation. He will always point out the place where he was imprisoned and tortured. The dungeons of Fort Santiago.

And we will always end up in front of the Tomb where we always start. It was at the center of fort Santiago, in front of the gate of the old fort that became my favorite hiding and place where I meditate.

It was also the headquarters of the US Army in the Philippines from August 13, 1898 to July 1941 and the USAFFE from July 1941 to January 2, 1942 until it was relocated to the Malinta Tunnel in Corregidor from January 3, 1942 to May 6, 1942 when the USAFFE surrendered to the Japanese during WWII.

The Tomb of the Unknown Soldiers was a simple tomb dedicated to all Filipino soldiers who fought during the Second World War. It was dedicated to all soldiers who were remained unidentified and who remained nameless, buried in nameless graves all over the country, those whose bodies were never found and were never given a decent burial during the war.

What distinguished it from other tombs that it has a light or an eternal flame that is never extinguished. This is a symbol of the nation’s eternal gratitude and also to symbolize their sacrifices and bravery for the people and the nation.

The light is inside a small lamp that protects the flame from all elements of nature—water, wind, air and others.  It is located on top of the tomb. Its simplicity evokes the simplicity of the courage and the character of our nation.

I always known that the tomb was there. Until one day when I was in college, I was dumbfounded that the tomb was not there anymore. It was transferred to the newly built national heroes cemetery called the “Libingan ng mga Bayani” in Fort Bonifacio in Rizal.

The Libingan was constructed side by side with the American War Memorial Cemetery in the Philippines. That is where the more than 17,000 American war dead from the combat in the Philippines and New Guinea are buried. It is also the largest American War cemetery outside of the United States.

If for the better, it was one of those good copycat that the Philippines learned from the US.

It became a habit of mine to take a walk to the Fort after walking through the newly renovated Rizal Park, the new name of Luneta, where Dr. Jose Rizal and hundreds of Filipinos met their martyrdom during the Philippine Revolution of 1896.

The government decided to renovate Fort Santiago and maybe somebody thought that the tomb is an obstacle to the beautification of the Rizal Shrine in Fort Santiago for it occupied the center.  It was placed in the center of the Libingan and in its place, a monument with three pillars were made for the tomb.

In its place, a marker was made that explains that the Fort was the exact place of the palisades of the city  made by Rajah Soliman, the ruler of Manila when it was conquered by the Spanish forces of General Legazpi, Captains De Goite and Salcedo in 1571.

I always hold that Fort Santiago was the most proper and fitting place for the Tomb of unknown Heroes for so many nameless Filipino martyrs met their death in Fort Santiago in the course of the 333 years of Spanish Colonialism and the Japanese Occupation from 1941-1944.

But the Fort was almost in shambles after the Americans destroyed it during the liberation of Manila during the early months of 1945. It has to be rebuilt for so many years until the Ramos administration completed it in time for the centennial of the Philippine Revolution in 1996.

I kept quiet for the Tomb was placed in a cemetery of the Republic. For it is the center piece of the whole cemetery for heroes. I rationalized that that maybe the reason they relocated the Tomb to that place.

I have questioned the government relocation of markers, destruction of historical places and other seemingly disrespect for history and heritage. But on this matter I gave them the benefit of the doubt.

The only question is if the dictator Marcos will be buried in that place, maybe the Tomb must be relocated elsewhere for it will desecrate the memories of the real nameless heroes if the dictator will be rested besides them.

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