Trinidad, Sara Jaz D.G.

March 23,
2023
BA Language and Literature
202200675

HIST1 Activity 2:
Kasama. Kalaban. Kaisahan.

Having read the required books and attended several educational discussions outside
of class hours, it is observed that so much of the ills that currently exist in our contemporary
society can be traced back to the history of the Spanish colonization. The way in which I
understand the definition and practice of colonialism is that it involves the act of domination
of a foreign state, with the goal of obtaining partial or full political, economical, and cultural
control on a sovereign nation. I pattern my understanding from the previous discussions,
readings, and additional research. Colonialism was the process of acquiring and gaining
power for economical, political, and religious benefits—much like the well known phrase: for
God, gold, and glory. Colonialism, experienced by pre-colonial natives, was the abuse of
power those in high positions had in order to be rewarded and-or profit from the labor of
pre-colonial peasants, the tactics of dividing and conquering to create a separation between a
collective, and the watching in both woe and anger, as they lost their land to aggressive
landowners.

Despite being such a well known phrase related to Spanish colonization, there is a
common misconception that the sole reasons why the Spanish decided to colonize the islands
were for the 3Gs (God, gold, glory). The goals of Spanish colonialism in the Philippine
islands were to use it as a trading hub for the Chinese and Spice Island (Southeast Asia)
markets for economic profit. It was mercantilism that led to the invasion of the Philippine
islands by the Spaniards—for economical purposes so that they could expand their
commercial market. This then led to the introduction of the concept of private ownership and
the feudal mode of production, where farmers or agriculturists have been dispossessed of
their land and drawn into the market economy as producers of surplus crops (Sobritchea,
1981).

This landlord-tenant relationship developed during this time remained unchanged,

even until the post-colonial period (Guerrero, 1972). Although the foundation of feudalism
had already existed prior to the arrival of Spanish colonialists, land was considered a
communal resource. As Sobritchea puts it: certain elements of village democracy balanced
the powers of the datus vis-a-vis the rights and privileges of his dependents (Sobritchea,
1981). The concept of a feudal mode of production gave way to the current conditions we see
today, most evident in the Philippine countryside. Indigenous Filipinos also lost their land to
encomiendas, where Spanish warlords were given absolute control over the workers within
the boundaries of the encomiendas, and forced them to work up to 12 hours a day (Miura,
2016). This exploitation of labor and inequitable treatment to “owning” their ancestral land
led to Filipino peasants taking arms in the year 1745.

Undoubtedly, the Spanish colonization has contributed, in both beneficial and

unfavorable manners, greatly to the state of the pre-colonial Philippines before, and even up
until now. Yet, somewhere in between those years of grief, struggle and ire, I find that there is
a valuable outcome of this. More so a salute of admiration and gratitude for their gallantry,
skill, and devotion to the Philippines and its people.

To me, its most significant contribution (although arguable if it is right to give credit
to this) was its bringing about the Kataastaasang, Kagalanggalangan Katipunan ng mga
Anak ng Bayan (KKK) and the power of language with fellowship. More specifically, I would
like to focus on the prefix “ka-” in this section of my essay. According to Rainier Ibana, the
prefix ka is not of negation, but a testament to our infinite capacity for inclusion. It captures a
“world perspective” that is only shared by Tagalog speakers, it captivates various kinds and
degrees of solidarity that omits colonial meaning-making. The prefix ka played a role during
the Philippine Revolution in the development of Filipino society and identity; even now, it is
used by today’s protesters and revolutionary movements as a titular prefix on their comrades
and sympathizers—Ka JoMa, Ka Roger, and many more (Ibana, 2009). Furthermore,
revolutionaries asserted their fundamental right to enjoy their freedom and liberty, and not
just as a reaction to the oppressive conditions brought upon them by colonizers (Ibana, 2009).

Kasama, kamag-anak, kaaway, kaisahan. And though we still struggle to fight for our
freedom today, when we look back at the Philippine revolution, we look back on the
Katipuneros that remind us of the national destiny they fought for. From the occupation of
Spain, all the way leading up to the Philippine revolution, it inspires us and reminds us of
what we truly are as people who live and speak the language of fellowship, of collective.
References:

Guerrero, Amado. 1972. Philippine Society and Revolution. Quezon City. Bandilang Pula
Publications, p. 93.

Ibana, Rainier. 2009. Grafting Philosophy to the Tagalog Prefix Ka. Kritikal Kultura.

Kohn, Margaret and Kavita Reddy. 2006. Colonialism. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy,
Spring 2023 Edition, https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/colonialism/. Accessed April
11, 2023.

Miura, Atsushi. 2016. Appropriation and Re-appropriation of Lands since the 16th Century in
Bohol Philippines. Saitama University Cyber Repository of Academic Resources.

Sobritchea, Carolyn. 1981. “The Philippine Peasantry of the Early Colonial Period.”
Philippine
Sociological Review 29, (1/4): 17–23. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/23898417.
Accessed April 11, 2023.