Joan Balmes

La Liga Filipina

(The Philippine League)

Ambrosio Agustin dela Bonifacio Deodato

Salvador Rosa Arevalo Arellano
(President) (Fiscal) (Treasurer) (Secretary)
La

Liga Filipina

A progressive organization founded and created by Dr. Jose Rizal in the Philippines in the house of
Doroteo Ongjunco at Ilaya Street, Tondo, Manila in July 3, 1892.

Rizal thought of organizing the league when he was at Hongkong. With the help of Jose Ma. Basa, he
wrote the constitution of the league, some of the known members were Andres Bonifacio. Deodato
Arellano, and Apolinario Mabini.

Some Facts about the league

 It was derived from the La Solidaridad and the Propaganda movement.

 The purpose of this league is to build a new group sought to involve the people directly in the
reform movement.
 It had no intention of rising up in arms against the government
 The league was to be sort of mutual aid and self-help society dispensing scholarship funds and
legal aid, loaning capital and setting up cooperatives
 And the Spanish authorities realized that the league was becoming a threat to their occupation,
so they arrested Rizal on July 6, 1892 that resulted to his deportation to Dapitan.
 At first the LA Liga was quit active. Bonifacio in particular exerted great efforts to organize
chapters in various districts of Manila. A few months later, however, the Supreme Council of La
liga dissolved the society.
The reformist leader found out that most of the popular councils which Bonifacio had organized
were no longer willing to send funds to Madrid propagandist because, like Bonifacio, they had
become convinced that peaceful agitation for reforms was futile.
 Afraid that the more radical rank and file members might capture the organization and unwilling
to involve themselves in an enterprise which would surely invite reprisals from the authorities,
the leaders of the Liga opted for dissolution.
The Liga membership spilt into two group: the conservaties formed the Cuerpo de
Compromisarios which pledge to continue supporting the La Solidad while the radicals led by
Bonifacio devoted themselves to a new and secret society, the Katipunan.

Joanne Arpia

Why was it organized?

To protect the Filipino people, to avoid Spanish abuse, and, most importantly, to bring the Filipino
people together also to put a stop to the Filipinos' mistreatment of Spaniards po, because Andres
Bonifacio, one of the founders, tried to include the people directly in the reform effort.

That's why, Rizal hopes that the formation of the La Liga Filipina will put an end to the oppressive
Spanish domination.

The Aims of the League

To unite the whole archipelago into one vigorous and homogenous organization,

Mutual protection in every want and necessity,

Defense against all violence and injustice,

Encouragement of instruction, agriculture, and commerce and study and application of reforms.

My first perception ko po of the league was that it was a kind of mutual assistance and identity
organization that can distribute scholarship grants and established cooperatives because Jose Rizal po
worked very hard to ensure that the organization was peaceful, but Spanish authorities, on the other
hand, thought it was dangerous.

Why the Propaganda Movement Failed

The propaganda movement's reform efforts were unsuccessful. Because none of the demands were met
by the colonial government and Spain was dealing with a number of internal issues at the time, which
might explain why the mother nation did not respond to the Filipinos' requests. The friars, on the other
hand, were at the top of their authority and were even more arrogant in their exhibition of it and they
didn't have the time or the inclination to listen to the people's voices.
Many reformists had strong feelings for their nation, but they were unable to maintain a cohesive front.
Because they were mostly upper-middle-class, they had to be cautious in order to protect their riches
and other personal interests. Apart from a lack of finances, personal disagreements and petty quarrels
were also an impediment to the movement's success. Finally, except for Jose Rizal, the organization
lacked a strong and compelling leader.