Ramon Magsaysay: A Political Biography. by Jose V.

Abueva
Review by: Grant K. Goodman
The Journal of Asian Studies, Vol. 32, No. 4 (Aug., 1973), pp. 758-759
Published by: Association for Asian Studies
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2052877 .
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758 JOURNAL OF ASIAN STUDIES
methodological non-legalapproaches. Consid- an imposedmalaise,therecovery fromwhich
eringtheextensive publishedliteraturein Phil- seems nowherein the offing.The other
ippinepolitical,sociological,and anthropolog- factor,which is particularly seriousfor the
ical scholarship particularlyafterWorldWar academicreader,is thatthe497 pagescontain
II, a bookthatdeals withsucha vastsubject nota singleannotated reference to thesource
as human libertycould have utilizedthese of any of theinformation withwhichsucha
sourcesand put the historical and legal data book is naturallyreplete.Nor is thereany
and analysisin thebroadercontextof Philip- appendedbibliography, thoughthereis in the
pine social science.For example,a detailed "Preface"an unspecified reference byProfessor
explanationand analysisof Americanlegal Abuevato a totalof over420 interviews with
innovations and thetraditional Philippinere- personswhoknewMagsaysay. This historian's
sponsesto such innovations resulting in syn- frustration
was compounded bythevastnum-
cretic institutions and values could have berof supposedremarks, statements, conversa-
enhancedBernas'book.Althoughhis tableof tionsand eveninnermost thoughts whichap-
legal cases look impressive, he has failedto pearin quotation marksbutwhichareentirely
some extentto tap some significant sources undocumented.
suchas themassiveand authoritative volume Yet in fairness
to Professor Abuevaand rec-
on constitutional revisionand reformby the ognizingall of the pressures he must have
Law CenteroftheUniversity ofthePhilippines beenunderin hisown societyin dealingwith
and theconsiderable amountof literature pub- a figurelike Magsaysay, I believethathe has
lishedrecently by legal scholarslike Dr. Sal- done a verygood job of capturing the char-
vadorAranetaand attorney Perfecto V. Fer- acterof this most intriguing Filipino.The
nandez,amongothers.The bookis marredby author'srecognition of the trulyremarkable
typographical errorsin many pages. The leadershipqualitiesof Magsaysayon the one
author should have eithersummarizedor hand and of his numerousand oftenpuerile
translated manyquotationsfromSpanishto humanfailings on theotheris impressive and
Englishforthebenefit ofnon-Spanish readers. informative.Moreover, foran American reader
This reviewer'snegativecommentsare, in 1973, surroundedby self-flagellating refer-
however, minorcomparedto thegeneralpio- ences to the "disaster"of the "neo-colonial"
neering, and timelycontribution
significant of role of the UnitedStatesin SoutheastAsia,
Dr. JoaquinBernas,S.J.to the complexsub- thestorytoldhereof Magsaysay's deeplyheld
ject of liberty. devotionto the UnitedStatesis
post-colonial
MARIO D. ZAMORA moving.Clearlycriticsnow, like
particularly
EasternMontanaCollegeand the theirpredecessors,tendto findthisaspectof
University of thePhilippines Magsaysay's characterhighlysuspectand have
beenespeciallyharshin theirjudgments ofthe
Ramon Magsaysay:A Political Biography.BY influence on Magsaysay of thenMajorEdward
JOSEV. ABUEVA.Manila: SolidaridadPub- Lansdale.Perhapswhatthesecritics, in their
lishingHouse, 1971. 497 PP. Illustrations. eagernessto propoundnew "devil theories,"
$io.5o. (Distributed by the Cellar Book havefailedto understand was the"success"of
Shop, Detroit). theUnitedStatesin fostering through educa-
It is unfortunatelyrarethatone can sayabout tion,paternalism or whatever, a generation
a book subtitled"A Political Biography"that (Magsaysay's)of Filipinosintensely respectful
it is trulyfun to read. This is such a book. ofand loyalto theoncemother country. Thus,
The joy of readingit mustnevertheless be tem- to thecreditof Professor Abueva,Magsaysay's
pered by two totallyunrelatedfactors.One is oftenemotionally reiterated commitment tothe
that much of the pleasure of the volume de- UnitedStatesis madeto seemwhollynatural
rives from the very special, very volatile and in thelightof his prewareducation, wartime
veryexcitingnatureof the Philippinepolitical guerillaexperience and postwaranti-Commu-
game; yetone reads thisbook with the knowl- nistleadership.
edge that forthe presentthe unique and once What was the man Magsaysay reallylike?
vital Philippinebody politic is sufferingfrom According to ProfessorAbueva,he was "rug-

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BOOK REVIEWS 759
ged,charismatic, homespun"(270), overflow- In FebruaryI969, Philippines'PresidentMar-
ing with "friendlinessand sympathy" (63), cos createda PopulationCommissionto make
characterizedby "sincerity,
responsivenessand recommendationson how the countrymight
concernforthehumblecitizen"(3II). He is deal with its rapid rate of populationgrowth.
alsodescribedas havingan "unsophisticated at- The Commission'sfindingswere reportedjust
titude"(igi) and yetas being"paternalistic"after the elections and were followed by a
(i6i) and instinctivelyfeelingthatthe Fili- presidentialannouncementfor an active nat-
pinos"takewillingly,and withrelief, to some ional program of family planning. Thus in
formof authoritarianism" (318). This "man followingits Asian neighbors,the Philippines
of thepeople"(270) was "a man of action,a became one of the firstCatholic countriesto
pragmatist,an improviser" (176) as wellas a announcea nationalpolicyforfertility control.
"perennial'eagerbeaver,'a man in perpetual Pressuresforsuch a decisionhad been build-
motion"(i66). Congenitally impatient, the ing up for more than a decade. First demog-
"restlessly energetic"(171) Magsaysaywas justi- raphers and social scientistsand then an in-
fiablyknown forhis "intensemobility"(i86), creasingnumberof "modernist"clergyargued
his "impulsive personalityand kinetic be- for fertilitycontrol on grounds of national
havior" (171). He was "quick to blame and economicgoals and individualhealthand free-
equally quick to praise" (I70) and veryoften dom. When President Marcos joined world
"exploded" ( I 85) in "sudden fits of anger" leaders in signing a declarationfor popula-
(I86). Magsaysay'stemperis referredto vari- tion controlin I967, it appeared thatthe Phil-
ouslyby ProfessorAbueva as "irritable"(300), ippines would soon make a decision for
"volatile" (3O8) and "fabled" (302). The Pres- national fertilitycontrol at that time. The
ident's"sensitivity to criticism"(i86) resulted promulgationof Humanae Vitae in i968 ap-
in "outbursts" (3I9) and "temperamental pears to have blockedthe movement,however.
blasts" (325) filled with "assortedexpletives" Against the impactof Humanae Vitae, two
(32 I ). separateforcesemerged.One was the external
When he died in that fatefulairplane crash tidal wave of funds from AID, which had
on March I7, I957, Ramon Magsaysay was only recentlygot into the businessof promot-
at the heightof his political career,so likely ing fertilitycontrol programs. As much of
to sweep to reelectionthat it even seemed he Latin Americademonstrates, however,theAID
might do so unopposed. Nevertheless,in a tidal wave mighthave been of littleavail had
remarkablyperceptivecoda to this fascinating it not been for powerfuldevelopmentswithin
book ProfessorAbueva writeson Magsaysay: the Philippines.It is these developmentsthat
It was no surprisethat,in retrospect he seemed are clearly and effectively portrayedby the
a differentpersonto differentpeople: sincere,one volume edited by Father Gorospe.
recalls,insincereanothersays; manipulative, one The collection opens in Part I with four
judges, manipulable, another concludes; self- originalarticleson the demographicand social
possessed,one admires,insecure,anotherbemoans.
Only the more discerningsaw that behind the
situation.Dr. MercedesConcepcion, the Phil-
inconsistencies,
actualor apparent,was a man who ippines' leading demographer,presentsan ex-
was still awed by his own political success,a tensivelydocumented statementof the high
man who, while calculatinghis steps,could not social costsof the currenthigh rate of popula-
by himselfmeasurethe swiftnessof the current tion growth. In two articles,ProfessorMary
acrosswhich he had placed his steppingstones.
(46I) Hollensteinerprovidesa microsociological com-
GRAN1 K. GOODMAN plement to Concepcion's macroanalysis.The
Universityof Kansas Philippinefamilyhas become sufficiently mod-
ernized (achievementorientedand universalis-
Responsible Parenthood in the Philippines. tic) to rendermodern familyplanning easily
EDITED BY VITALIANO R. GOROSPE. Manila: accepted. Dr. Frank Lynch and Perla Makil
Ateneo University Publications Office, use data from a recent survey to show that
I970. XXiii. 268 pp. Appendixes. $5.50. Catholicismis no obstacleto the acceptanceof
(Distributedby the Cellar Bookshop,De- familyplanningin Philippinefamilies.In this
troit). survey,Catholic religiosity
appears as an index

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