‘If this was jargon of resistance, why not erect Lapulapu’s monument on Pag-asa Island of the Kalayaan island group in the West Philippine Sea?’
PRESIDENTIAL discourse circa 17 March 2022: “I was very happy to see a statue of Lapu-Lapu because you know, for the longest time, the Bisaya didn’t have their own hero. Well, there’s Dagohoy but if you ask the police who Dagohoy is, they’ll just say…That’s what they call a holdupper, that’s their lingo. I feel sorry for the tough kid from Bohol. And Lapu-Lapu–ah no, I do not mean to offend anybody, but you know ang–consider the sentiments of the Filipinos.” [Speech of Rodrigo Roa Duterte during the Inauguration of the New Leyte Provincial Government Complex]
If this was jargon of resistance, why not erect Lapulapu’s monument on Pag-asa Island of the Kalayaan island group in the West Philippine Sea? The memorial to the victor of Kadaugan sa Mactan on the poblacion (administrative center) of the Kalayaan municipality of Palawan province of the Republic of the Philippines should be an unmistakable signal to wannabe superpowers prowling the high seas. Especially given repeated intrusions. The latest: “The Department of Foreign Affairs, through Acting Undersecretary Ma. Theresa P. Lazaro, summoned Chinese Ambassador Huang Xilian over the People’s Liberation Army — Navy’s (PLAN’s) illegal incursion in the Sulu Sea.
“From 29 January to 01 February 2022, a PLAN Electronic Reconnaissance Ship (Dongdiao-class) with bow number 792 entered Philippine waters without permission, reaching the waters of Palawan’s Cuyo Group of Islands and Apo Island in Mindoro. The Philippine Navy vessel BRP Antonio Luna (FF-151) challenged PLAN 792, which alleged that it was exercising innocent passage. Its movements, however, did not follow a track that can be considered as continuous and expeditious, lingering in the Sulu Sea for three days. PLAN 792 also continued its activities in Philippine waters despite being repeatedly directed by the BRP Antonio Luna to leave Philippine waters immediately.
“As a country that abides by its international commitments, the Philippines recognizes the right of innocent passage in accordance with Article 52 of the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). However, the actions of PLAN 792 did not constitute innocent passage and violated Philippine sovereignty. Lazaro demanded that China respect Philippine territory and maritime jurisdiction, and to comply with its obligations under international law, particularly UNCLOS, and direct its vessels to desist from entering Philippine waters uninvited and without permission.” [https://dfa.gov.ph/dfa-news/statements-and-advisoriesupdate/30231-statement-dfa-summons-chinese-ambassador-for-pla-navy-vessel-s-illegal-intrusion-and-lingering-presence-in-philippine-archipelagic-waters]
Chief executive discourse circa 21 March 2022: “And if by unfortunate chance, talagang maipit si Putin at tusukin niya ‘yung pula na butones, ah wala na. Then my thinking is ‘pag mag ganoon ‘yan, ang China will invade. Pero sa intelligence briefing, tatamaan talaga tayo…Now, what was my reason na bakit unrestricted? Kasi ‘pag ayaw mo’t sa hindi, talagang pipilitin ng Amerikano. Brusko ‘yang Amerikano eh. So mag-landing nang mag-landing ‘yan ng…Hindi lang natin makita ‘yung nuclear. If the long-range bombers are…So baka pinindot na kanina eh dito sa South China Sea, it will reach us–our jurisdiction in seven minutes iyong hypersonic ano nila. So kasali tayo diyan kasi ano. Let us not kid each other. Nandito ‘yung Amerika. The reason I said why I gave the orders to our military is to allow them unrestricted para matapos na. Huwag lang sana ‘yung China.” [Duterte during the ceremonial signing of the Public Service Act and presentation of various enacted laws at the Rizal Hall, Malacañan Palace, Manila]
Hypersonic? “Russia recently unveiled a weapon called the Kinzhal, said to reach Mach 10 under its own power, and another that is boosted by a rocket to an astonishing Mach 27. China showed off a rocket-boosted hypersonic glide vehicle (HGV) of its own, the Dongfeng-17, in a recent military parade.” Beijing “sees hypersonic weapons (as well as cyberwarfare and electromagnetic pulse strikes) as an ‘assassin’s mace’…If tensions were to spike over Taiwan or the South China Sea, for instance, China might be tempted to launch preemptive strikes with conventional hypersonic weapons that could cripple U.S. forces in the Pacific Ocean…Australia is collaborating with the United States on a Mach 8 HGV, and India with Russia on a Mach 7 HCM. France intends to field an HCM by 2022, and Japan is aiming for an HGV in 2026.” [https://www.science.org/content/article/national-pride-stake-russia-china-united-states-race-build-hypersonic-weapons]
Welcome to the arms race! “The US Navy and US Army completed another major milestone with the Conventional Prompt Strike (CPS) and Long Range Hypersonic Weapon (LRHW) programs’ industry team in the third consecutive successful solid rocket motor (SRM) test…The I Corps’ 5th Battalion, 3rd Field Artillery Regiment, 17th Field Artillery Brigade, at JBLM is now equipped with the nation’s first prototype hypersonic system.” [https://www.lockheedmartin.com/en-us/capabilities/hypersonics.html?_ga=2.178029990.2066515789. 1647923833-1941008090. 1647923833]
Relevant? Anything else? How about fake news? Japanese style. In wartime: “Radio Tokyo announced today that President Quezon died, a victim of American brutality. The press is silent about the matter, rendering the veracity of the news suspicious. A few days ago, the same radio station announced the sinking of the Queen Mary, the largest British merchant vessel, south of the Atlantic with ten thousand soldiers aboard. The news was not picked up by either radio or press networks. It was consequently dismissed as a propaganda canard. Could it be the same about the death of Quezon? We are waiting.” [Diary of Juan Labrador, O.P., March 22, 1942] A day after that diary entry, Manuel L. Quezon’s physician noted:
“Shortly after the alarm was sounded Mr. Crawford the manager of Del Monte Pineapple Corporation rushed into the house occupied by the President and his family and took them away, on the grounds that the camp was dangerous…He took them to his house which he built 5 kilometers away from the camp…Later I spoke with the President and he reiterated what he had told Soriano. ” [Diary of Basilio J. Valdes, March 23, 1942]
The Commonwealth Chief was very much alive. “In World War II, Winston Churchill made his now famous statement: ‘In wartime, truth is so precious that she should always be attended by a bodyguard of lies’.” [https://www.archives.gov/iwg/research-papers/weitzman-remarks-june-1999.html]
