Mac Tiu: a nation that does not know its history has nowhere to go
DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 20 August) – “Ang bayan na hindi alam ang kasyasayan walang patutunguhan. Ang nasud nga wala nasayod sa iyang kasaysayan walay padulngan. A nation that does not know its history has nowhere to go,” Dr. Macario Tiu, author of “Davao: Reconstructing History through Text and Memory” told members of the Davao Historical Society and young students on Thursday.
The multi-awarded Tiu, currently the Director of the University Publication Office of the Ateneo de Davao University, talked about the second edition of his book, an expanded version of the book published in 2005 that won the National Book Award for history, at the Throwback Thursday Conversations at the Rodgen Inn. The second edition, published in 2021, has 180 additional pages.
On the chapter on Heroes, Tiu said his definition of hero is “anybody nga nag fight for freedom.” In colonial history, “kinsa nagsukol sa Kastila, Amerkano, hero ka masking unsa tribo nimo” (those who fought the Spaniards, Americans are heroes whatever your tribe may be).
He spoke of Datu Mangulayon and how from the American point of view he was a “murderer” for having killed Lt. Francis Bolton, the first district Governor of Davao, and another American, Benjamin Christian, in 1906.
“Ngano man si Bolton landgrabber man sya nganong gi-honor sa bridge?” (Why is Bolton, a landgrabber, honored with a bridge named after him?).
Mangulayon, accompanied by other datu and bagani (warrior) from the Manobo and Tagakaolo who opposed the increasing encroachment of Americans on their ancestral lands and conscript them as slaves in abaca plantations, killed Bolton and Christian on June 6, 1906.
Tiu said that in chronicling history, the “Spanish text and American text, dangerous kaayo na sila” (are very dangerous) because the Spanish writer writes it from Spanish eyes for the Spaniards, so in the writing, the achievements of the Spaniards are glorified and the subject people are downgraded as barbarians. He cited as example the case of Datu Mangulayon who from the American point of view was a murderer but from the Filipino point of view, assassinated the American landgrabber.
Tiu, also author of “Davao 1890-1910: Conquest and Resistance in the Garden of the Gods,” said he hopes the younger Dabawyenos know that “atong hero (our hero) is somebody who fights for the people,” not foreigners like Bolton who grabbed lands.
Tiu said the heroes of the martial law period are also in the book although he noted that the martial law period is “contested narrative na sya karon kay nakadaog na pud si Marcos” (contested narrative now because Marcos won again).
“It’s a contested narrative nga wala pa sya naresolve (that has not been resolved). It is a continuing narrative as to how you look at martial law,” he said.
Tiu was among those who were arrested, detained and tortured during martial law.
Among the heroes he cited during that “period of repression” is Nanay Soling or Soledad Roa Duterte, mother of former Mayor and President Rodrigo Duterte, who was among the leaders of the Yellow Friday movement.
“Pati si Nanay Soling, ako nang hero si Nanay Soling. Pati si Digong (Rodrigo Duterte) sabi man ni Digong nga ‘dark years of martial law,’ apil na siya” (Nanay Soling is my hero. Even Digong who referred to the dark years of martial law, he is included). According to my view. Kung naa moy laing (If you have another) narrative, you write your own narrative,” he said.
“That is how history is done because contest na siya. This is a field of contest, market of ideas, contest na siya,” Tiu said, adding that he always tells his students that the endpoint of studying history is “to know where we are going.”
He said the bottomline is “kinahangan matanggal poverty sa Philippines” (poverty should be eliminated).
He noted that the Philippines’ poverty incidence of 30% has been there for so long. He said Indonesia’s is 11%, Vietnam’s is 7% while the Philippines is till at 26%.
The Philippine Statistics Authority says poverty incidence among the population increased to 23.7 percent during the first half of 2021 from 21.1 percent in the same period of 2018. This translates to 3.9 million more Filipinos living in poverty.
“Ano man ang endpoint ng history? Mag struggle, ta mag-unite ta, bahala ta magsinumbagay in other areas pero ang endpoint ana, tanggalon gyud ang poverty” (What is the endopoint of history? We struggle, we unite, never mind if we fight in other areas but the endpoint is, eliminate poverty) because “ang bayan na hindi alam ang kasyasayan walang patutunguhan. Ang nasud nga wala nasayod sa iyang kasaysayan walay padulngan. A nation that does not know its history has nowhere to go,” said Tiu, a four-time Palanca awardee
Tiu’s book has five chapters. Chapter 1 is on Davao’s Historical Highlights, Chapter 2 on The Tribes of Davao, Chapter 3 on The Settlers of Davao, Chapter 4 on The Heroes of Davao (pages 274 to 366, pages 321 until 366 on the anti-martial law heroes) and Chapter 5 on The Myths and Legends of Davao. (Carolyn O. Arguillas / MindaNews)
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