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KASPIL2

TAKE HOME FINAL EXAM


Based on the events of the past, what do you consider to be the core issues of the Philippines as a
nation? How have these issues affected us?
You will be graded on the basis of evidence of original thought, thorough discussion and use of
historical evidence to support assertions.
Guidelines:
1. Write your name and section
2. Maximum of 1 page on short bond paper.
3. Style: Single Spaced, Font 11, Times New Roman.
4. Deadline: December 12, History Dept., 3rd Floor Faculty Center
5. Late papers: Automatic 10 points deduction per day.
6. Failure to observe the guidelines: automatic failure.
Mohammad, Putri Shanen J KASPIL2, A53 December 12, 2016
The Philippines considering its rich history has resulted in a culture of a diverse mix and has
resulted in numerous outcomes in both negative and positive aspects. From the unfavorable part of history
of the Filipinos, there are issues that arise from both sides of time, the present and the past; and there are
some problems that even go back since the Spanish colonization era and from the previous Marcos
administration that are still evident until today. Most of the problems in the Philippines are revolving around
the government of the Philippines. For instance, the dependency of the Philippines with the United States
of America; or signs of the presence neocolonialism are still present. To a certain extent, these issues have
changed the way the Philippines operates its government, due to the number of disadvantages it has brought
about.
In 1944, after the Philippines has suffered both an economically and financially devastating
decrease in both sectors from the aftermath of the war, the battered state of the Philippines had gained
independence from a colonial withdrawal from the United States. Previously before the Philippines was
granted separation from the United States, the nation was a part of the United States that had been operating
on its own Commonwealth wherein its citizens desired not to be part of another colony, but rather to
proclaim freedom as an independent nation of its own. Similar to how the Philippines represented a student
and the US was the teacher, the US was helping the Philippines to develop their government through
democracy; this was also one of the reasons why the Philippines’ Commonwealth is similar to the US. This
is where the start of the dependency of the Philippines had initially occurred. Despite that the Philippines
had gained independence from the US, it did not however make the Philippines anymore independent. The
US and the Philippines made agreements that hindered the Philippines to become independent and instead
developed a sense of reliability towards the US. In the present, the country is still relying on the assistance
of the US for support. In terms of national security, the Philippines does not attempt to intimidate the
opposition but rather calls on the US for backup immediately. How the Philippines responded to situations
like that is not a trait of a country that is independent shows.
Around the time when the Philippines and the United States made agreements, which the US
referred to as “supervising” the Philippines since the Filipinos were new to democracy, a phenomena arose
called neocolonialism. Neocolonialism is defined as the usage of economic, political, cultural or other
means to enforce pressure to gain control and/or influence to other countries, this usually occurs with former
dependencies in this case the Philippines is one. Not only did this jeopardize the initial purpose of the
Philippines being an independent nation, but also it jeopardized the sense of identity and nationalism within
the masses and the elite however the two parties involved have different responses regarding the phenomena.
It is a fact that the United States has provided the Philippines with the economic and financial aid when it
needed it the most, yet it has pushed the Philippines to be in a disadvantageous position until today. The
cultural, economic and military agreements that have been made by the United States and the Philippines
had made it a hindrance for the Philippines to practice sovereignty which is ironic because sovereignty was
one of the reasons that the Philippine government at that time made the Treaty of Manila. The signs of
neocolonialism that are still seen today do more harm than good to a country that takes pride in nationalism
like the Philippines. It makes a country that was once a former dependent become a dependent again
unconsciously, and makes the country vulnerable to colonial mentality regardless if they are part of a colony
or not, that could result to the loss of the sense of nationalism and identity.
These issues have caused several negative outcomes that has affected both the political and
nationalistic state of the citizens of the Philippines. If the Philippines will continue to depend on the United
States for support, the Philippines will never acquire freedom and independency; furthermore, the
nationalistic trait that Filipinos take pride in will continue to decrease until the Filipinos will become
inferior towards their own nation. Problems that arise from events in history like these are some of the core
issues in the Philippines that have taken decades to solve and have not been solved today. Therefore, it is
necessary to understand our history and learn from it in order to decrease chances of issues like these to
arise.

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