Japanese Interregnum
Forces in Luzon took up their
 1941
 Before the World War II, Philippines
was a colony of the United States of
America.
 Being under the influence of
America Philippine had a dramatic
change in terms of infrastructure,
institutions and industry.
 Military Preparations
 On July 26, 1941, the United
States Army Forces in the Far
East (USAFFE), General Douglas
McArthur, was put in command
of the new organization and in
charge in preparing the defense
plan.
 War Breaks Out
 On June 1942, Hitler abruptly
invaded Soviet Russia.
 On July 1941, Japan took over
southern trench of China.
 On December 8,1941, Japan
launch a surprise attack at Pearl
Harbor, the US Navy Base
located at Hawaii.
 On December 10, 1941, the
Japanese 14th Army, under
Lieutenant General Masaharu
Homma declared initial success
landings at Gonzaga (Cagayan)
and at Vigan and two days later
at Lagaspi.
 On December 22,1941, Homma
launched his Main Attack at
Ligayen Gulf.
 Manila, repeatedly bombed, was
declared an “Open City” in order to
prevent civilian casualties and all
Military Personnel were cleared.
 On January 1, 1942, all USAFFE
positions on the Abucay-Moron Line
in Bataan.
 On January 2, 1942, Japanese
occupied Manila.
 The Japanese launch their attacks
on the East Side of Abucay but
failed to break the 41st Division
commanded by Gen. Vicente Lim.
 On the Western Side of Mauban,
Japanese broke through the defense
line, resulting to retreating
backwards in both Mauban and
Abucay.
 Guam, Wake Island, Malaya and
Singapore was conquered by
Japanese.
 Japanese resorted to propaganda to
break the spirits of the Filipinos and
turn them against the Americans.
 The US Government did not send
reinforcement that was requested
but rather they took the supply and
focuses on winning the war in
Europe first.
 Pres. Marcos, frustrated on the
American’s decision proposed that
Philippine will be immediately
independent and neutral and order
Japanese and American out of the
country.
 On March 11, 1942, Gen. McArthur
was ordered to Australia command
what was then assumed to be a
force forming for the relief of the
Philippines. And turning over the
Philippine command to General
Jonathan Wainwright.
 On April 3, 1942 Japanese launch
their final offence together with the
 newly arrived reinforcement at Mt.
Samat.And by nightfall of the 6th,
the situation was hopeless.
 On April 9, 1942, the Bataan
Forces surrender to the Japanese.
 April 1942
 The Bataan Death March was a
forced march of 75,000 American
and Filipino prisoners of war
captured by the Japanese from
the Bataan peninsula to prison
camps at Capas and Cabanatuan
in April of 1942. Only about
54,000 men survived the 140
kilometer march.
 Mainly starting in Mariveles, on
the southern tip of the Bataan
Peninsula, on April 9, 1942, the
prisoners were force-marched
north to San Fernando and then
taken by rail in cramped and
unsanitary boxcars farther north
to Capas. From there they walked
an additional 7 miles (11 km) to
Camp O’Donnell, a former
Philippine army training centre
used by the Japanese military to
intern Filipino and American
prisoners. During the main
march—which lasted 5 to 10
days.
 On May 5,1942, the final assault
was launched by Homma’s force.
And on May 6 Corregidor surrender.
The terms forced on Gen.
Wainwright by the victors included
the surrender of all remaining
military forces in the Philippines.
 Bill of Rights
The people were stripped of the
hard-won rights of modern
democracies ;
 The right of individuals not to be
deprived of life
 Liberty
 Property without due process of law
 Freedom of Speech
 Right to elect public officials
 The right to presumption of
innocence until proven guilty
 On January 3, 1942, a day after
Manila became an occupied city,
General Mashima Homma, issued a
proclamation announcing the end of
American occupation and the
imposition of martial law in the
country.
 Jorge B. Vargas, who was then the
mayor of greater Manila before the
Japanese occupation of the city, had
been instructed by President
Quezon and Gen. MacArthur to
cooperate with the enemy.
 Kempetai
Military police that arrests and
executes people who resists
Japanese forces.
 “Kura”
Most dreaded Japanese word. It
means two things depending upon the
hand movement. Inward wave of the
hand means “Come Here”, while
outward wave of the hand means
“Scram!” or “Dismiss!”
 Printing or distributing anti-
Japanese leaflets became
punishable by death. The
government limited the publication.
The following are the allowed
publications:
 Taliba
o a daily periodical tabloid
newspaper of Manila
published in the Tagalog
dialect.
o had a libel cade due to Jose
Corazon de Jesus, also known
as Huseng Batute, column
“Manila Life” having a heading
“Amerikanang Aswang” in
March 3,1921
 La Vanguardia
o Established in 1910 by Don
Martin Ocampo
o A perodical catering Spanish-
language readers
o Was the descendant of El
Renacimiento, a newspaper
edited by Teodoro M. Kalaw
 Tribune
o Edited by the young Carlos P.
Romulo
o Joe Bautista was its editor during
the Japanese Interregnum
o Caters English Readers
o Focused only on the important
events
 Liwayway
o It contains Tagalog serialized novels,
short stories, poetry, serialized
comics, essays, news features,
entertainment news and articles,
and many others.
o Its sister publications
are Bannawag, Bisaya Magasin,
and Hiligaynon.
 On January 14, 1942, Colonel
Murosawa, head of the Religious
Section of the Japanese Army,
issued a Declaration of Christian in
the Philippines in which he
expressed the view of the Japanese
army to assure freedom of religion.
 Japanese Premier Hideki Tojo said
on January 21,1942 before the
Japanese Diet that the Philippines
would be granted independence
provided it recognizes Japan’s
Program of establishing “The
Philippines for the Filipinos” as a
member of the Greatest East Asia
Co-Prosperity Sphere.
 Mickey Mouse Money
the government issued fiat
money known as the Japanese
government-issued Philippine fiat
peso or Japanese peso
Considered worthless that is was
called Mickey Mouse Money or Play
money.
 On December 2,1942, the
Japanese Military Administration
announced that political parties had
been dissolved “of their own free
will”.
 The Kapisan sa Paglingkod sa
Bagong Pilipinas (KALIBAPI), a
non-political organization, was
established
 Farmers from Pampanga banded
together and created local brigades
for their protection.
 Luis Taruc, Juan Feleo , Castro
Alejandrino and other leaders held
a meeting in February 1942 in
Cabiao Nueva Ecija. They agreed to
fight the Japanese as a unified
guerrilla army.
 They agreed to call their
organization “Hukbo ng Bayan
Laban sa mga Hapon” or
HUKBALAHAP. Taruc was chosen
to be the leader of the group and the
 members were simply known as
Huks.
 HUKBALAHAP was known the
largest guerrilla organization with
30,000 guerrilla that is mostly
located at Luzon.
 On October 20, 1944 General
MacArthur discharged his promise
to return to the Philippines.
 On January 9, 1945 the Americans
landed unopposed at the Lingayen
Gulf on Luzon and closed on Manila.
 From February 3 to 23, its
liberation took almost a month.
When at last the fighting ended in
the old Spanish citadel of
Intramuros, Manila was in ruins.