CHAPTER 18:

The Campaign For Independence

The Wood-Forbes Mission

Fact-finding commission sent to the Philippines by newly

elected U.S president Warren Harding in March 1921,

which concluded that Filipinos were not ready for
independence from the United States.
In 1931, Woodrow Wilson had appointed the liberal Francis

B. Harrison was convinced that the best method of

preparing Filipinos for independence was to give them as
wide a latitude as possible in managing their internal
affairs. Passage of the Jones Act in 1916, which announced
the U,.S intention of granting Philippine independence,
encouraged Harrison in his policy of replacing Americans
in the Philippines civil service with Filipinos.

The Wood-Forbes Mission

Republicans in the United States argued that Harrisons

policy of Filipinization was premature and that the

takeover of jobs by Filipinos resulted only in a marked
deterioration of services. To support disposition, Harding
sent out Gen. Leonard Wood and W. Cameron Forbes.
The two reported in Oct. 1921. That the islands were not
preferred for independence and that many educated
Filipinos wish to remain under the American tutelage.

News of the Wood- Forbes report was received with anger

in the Philippines. Wood, who served as a governor

general for the next 6 years, though an honest and
efficient administrator, remained highly unpopular with
Filipinos.

Wood Becomes Governor

LEONARD WOOD

is a chief of staff of the United States Army.

Military Governor of the Cuba and Governor
General of the Philippines.

He fought in Cuba during the Spanish-American

war.

Leonard Wood

President Harding wanted General Wood

to be the next governor-general of the

Philippines. Wood was reluctant to accept
the position at first but was later
persuaded to take on the task of
governing the country.
Leonard Wood antagonized Manuel L.

Quezon and Sergio Osmea, the two most

powerful political leaders.

Manuel L. Quezon
President of the Senate Assembly
President of the Commonwealth

Sergio S. Osmea
Speaker of the First Philippine Assembly

1921- Collectives
Nationalista Party- Political leadership should be

exercised collectively, that no one person

should dictate policies but instead all should
participate in their formulation.
Unipersonalistas- leadership should be
exercised by one person, not by group.
1922- election on the issue between Osme a

and Quezon was clarified.

Quezon group (colectivistas) won more seats

than Osmeas group.

1925
Democrata Party, Third Party was successfully

challenge both colectivistas and

unipersonalistas

The Cabinet Crisis

Jones Law- Strong opposition from the Filipino

political leaders.
Wood deviated from Harrisons policy of giving
Filipino greater participation in the government.
1923
Manuel L . Quezon became the most prominent

political leader of the Filipinos who had a quarrel

with the governor (Wood)
American detective in Manila Police Department
(by the name RAY CONLEY)- the cause of quarrel

Manila Mayor Ramon Fernandez- suspended

Conley for allegedly accepting bribes and

committing acts of immorality.
Secretary of the Interior , Jose P. Laurelapproved the suspension. He wants Conley to
be investigated administratively as well as
Wood wants Conley be brought to trail.

Jose P. Laurel

 Conley was found not guilty so Wood ordered

Laurel to reinstate Conley in his position and pay

him back wages covering the period of his
suspension.
Conley retired and got his retirement pay .
Quezon took advantage to Conley case so they

attack Wood and branded him as anti- Filipino.

They accused Wood of interfering even the
smallest detail of governance in order curtail the
rights of Filipinos.

Filipino members of the cabinet and that

members of Council of state resigned.

Mass resignation- Cabinet Crisis

Other Conflicts with Wood

Board of Control Case
One of the causes of the conflicts between

Wood and the Filipino Leaders.

Composed of the governor-general, the Senate

President, and the Speaker of the House.

It manage the affairs of government

corporations.
It is abolished by Wood

Veto Power
Another source of conflict between Wood and the

Filipino political leaders.

Quezon and Osmea accused Wood of exercising his

Veto power without any restriction.

Wood was accused as anti- Filipino and against the

interest of the Filipino people.

1927
The conflict with Wood ended only with his death.

Independence Mission

1919- first parliamentary mission was sent to U.S during

the administration of Woodrow Wilson. Lead by Manuel

Quezon
April 1922- second parliamentary mission was present

on Washington lead by Osmena and Quezon. Like the

first mission, the second mission achieved nothing.
In the succeeding years, particularly in 1922-1928 and

1930, the Philippine independence missions were a

failure.
In 1930, an Independence Congress met in Manila and

passed a resolution favoring the early grant of

Indepence to the Philippines.

The Osmea- Roxas Mission

It is called the Os-Rox Mission. It wasinstructed

by the Legislature to work for the early grant
of the Philippine independence.They are the
three American groups that were favorable to
Philippine Independence. They were the
American Farm Group, American Labor
leaders. And the isolationist.

Hare- Hawes Cutting Law

The HareHawesCutting Act was the first

US law passed for the decolonization of the

Philippines. It was the result of the Os-Rox
Mission led by Sergio Osmea and Manuel
Roxas .
Become an cat that states that the end of a

ten- year period, to be named as the

Commonwealth Period. Philippine
independence will be granted.

When Quezon was informed about the

passage of the Hare-Hawes- Cutting Law, he

thought that it was not a good law. He was
therefore obliged to work against the approval
by the Legislature.
He worked hard for the law to be rejected by

the Philippine Legislature. Quezon reorganized

the Legislature so as to weed out the
supporters of the Hare-Hawes-Cutting Law,
who also happened to be the suppoters of
Osmea and Roxas.

Late in 1933, Quezon realized that the chances of

having a better law passed were nil. Faced with

embarrassment, Quezon worked with Milliard
Tydings and Representative John McDuffie to have
the Hare-Hawes-Cutting Law reenacted with
practically little change.
Tydings- McDuffie Act- signed by President

Roosevelt on March 24, 1934 with one revision:

the retention of naval reservations and fueling
stations instead of the retention of military and
other reservations.

Framing the Constitutions

The Tydings-McDuffie Act provided for the

framing of a constitution for the

Commonwealth government.
July 10, 1934- election the constitutional

convection.
July 30, 1934- the Constitutional Convection

was inagurated with Claro M. Recto, as a

scholar, lawyer, poet, and parliamentarian, as
president.

Claro M. Recto

 February 8, 1935 , the convection approved

the Constitution.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt, after reading

the Constitution and seeing that there were

no objectionable provisions included,
approved it on March 23, 1935.
May 14, 1935 , the Filipino people approved

the constitution in the plebiscite.

June 16, 1935 , an election was held. Quezon

and Osmea ran in the sam ticket and won as

the president, respectively.
Nov. 15, 1935 , the Commonwealth was

inagurated in front of the Legislative Building

in Manila.

Women Suffrage
The issue concerning wommen suffrage in the

Philippines was settled in a special plebiscite

held on April 30, 1937. Ninety percent of
voters were in favor of the measure. In
compliance with the 1935 Constitution, the
National Assembly passed a law which
extended right of suffrage to women.
1902- Clemencia Lopez appealed for the

Philippine independence while studying in the

U.S

Pensionadas- U.S scholars

By 1920s and 1930s a number of womenhad become

teachers, doctors, nurses, social workers, and other

professionals.
La Gota de Leche Led by Concepcion Felix
La Asociacin Feminista Filipina- formed with

Concepcion Felix, Paz Mendoza Guazon, Rosa Sevilla

Alvero, Sofia de Veyra, Natividad de Almeda, Pilar
Hidalgo.

In 1906, La Concolacin Feminista Ilonga by

Pura Villanueva Kalaw was established to fight

for womens right to vote and to run for public
office.

Schools they founded and managed:

1900- Instituto de Mujeres
1907- Centro Escolar de Senorita
1919- Philippine Womens College

September 15, 1937 Women Suffrage law

was finally signed by President Quezon after

15 decades of steadfast struggle with
substantial gains.

Thank you
https://www.facebook.com/claudine.castro1

@claudineeeeeeee
@claudineeeeeeeeee

Prepared by:

Claudine B. Castro
Jessica S. Tagalog