From Four Nodes of History: The Human Rights Challenge in the Philippine Security Sector
Spanish revolution (who held great influence in the Spanish
bureaucracy and army), monarchists were able to return to
power in Spain. The return of repressive measures in the Philippines triggered the launching of the first national revolution in the Philippines. The launch hit a snag, however, when
the fireworks in a Sampaloc fiesta were mistaken by those in
the Cavite naval yard as a signal for the start of a coordinated
uprising in Manila and Cavite.
Spanish liberals that included Miguel Morayta. Many of
these exiles continued with their liberal advocacies, tying
up with the Masonic Lodges in Europe. Many of them remain faceless and nameless.
The suppression of the uprising which became localized and
known as the Cavite Mutiny and its aftermath, the execution
of the popular priests Gomez, Burgos and Zamora, paved the
way for national consciousness to seep in.
Morayta recruited Marcelo H. del Pilar and many Filipino students who formed the core of the Propaganda Movement.
Del Pilar became the leader of Filipino ilustrados in Spain.
The 1896 Revolution
1.
How did educated Filipinos
(Ilustrados) organize and prepare for
another libertarian revolution?
After the Cavite Mutiny, many liberals were exiled to the
Marianas and far away islands. After serving their terms,
they established themselves in Hong Kong, Japan, Spain
and London. Antonio Ma. Regidor had managed to escape
and based himself in England where he coordinated with
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Filipino émigrés and students who went to Spain were systematically introduced to libertarian ideas and recruited to
Free Masonry through the efforts of Morayta and Regidor.
Before he left the Philippines in 1888, del Pilar organized
a little known secessionist organization called El Cinco. It
is believed that the group included del Pilar’s most trusted
political allies: his brother-in-law Deodato Arellano (who
would become the first President of the Katipunan) and
former classmates Mariano Ponce (member of the Hong
Kong revolutionary junta, who headed the 3 arms landing
attempts from Japan during the resumption of the Philippine Revolution in 1898, and 2 attempts during the Philippine-American War), Pedro Serrano Laktaw (who headed
the organization of Masonic Lodges in the Philippines) and
Apolinario Mabini (who became the key adviser and headed the Aguinaldo revolutionary cabinet).