The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) has released a new design of the P1,000 bill, which replaces our three World War II heroes with the Philippine eagle. The redesign hasn’t been without differing opinions, though, as some have pointed out that it shouldn’t be at the expense of honoring our history.
Others, however, supported the removal of the heroes from the banknote, with some going as far as to call the heroes denigrating terms such as “fascists”.
Image credit: Teodoro Kalaw IV
Lawyer Teodoro Kalaw IV, whose great grandfather is Teodoro Kalaw, clarified the martyrdom of Vicente Lim, Josefa Llanes Escoda, and Jose Abad Santos, whose faces have been featured on the P1,000 bill, against accusations that they were fascists.
In a Facebook post including the screenshot of a post from Marnie Tonson that called the three “fascists”, Kalaw reiterated how the three executed martyrs all played significant roles in the Philippines’ resistance against Japanese forces in World War II.
Jose Abad Santos’s statue in Pampanga
Image credit: Judgefloro
The 5th Chief Justice of the Philippines, Abad Santos paid for his life when he declined to cooperate with the Japanese government. “The invading Japanese sought to compel Abad Santos to sell out his country by becoming part of the Japanese puppet regime. He chose death before dishonor,” Kalaw explained.
Portrait of Lim, Lim’s letter to Manuel Quezon
Image credit: Wikimedia Commons, Teodoro Kalaw IV
Decorated general Lim was captured by the Japanese when he was being evacuated to an US submarine in 1944. He underwent a trial and was subsequently executed in the Bilibid Prison alongside other Filipinos. In Lim’s letter to former President Quezon, posted by Kalaw, his martyrdom was reflected in his last sentence.
“You may rest assured that we will continue to fight as long as there is one man left in this command,” Lim wrote.
Image credit: Rutgers School of Social Work
Escoda, who founded the Girl Scouts of the Philippines, was also executed because of her refusal to surrender to the Japanese. “Escoda spent most of the Japanese Occupation actively aiding underground guerrilla activities, until a Makapili ratted on her so she ended up being tortured and executed by the Japanese. They never found her body,” Kalaw recounted.
Image credit: Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas
The Philippine eagle fronts the new P1,000 bill.
BSP redesigned the new banknote with the approval of the National Historical Commission of the Philippines, according to BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno. It’s part of the set of bills made up of polymer that will be released in 2022.
Removing the faces of important icons such as Vicente Lim, Josefa Llanes Escoda, and Jose Abad Santos on banknotes indeed will prompt divisive opinions. After all, these people sacrificed their lives for the greater good.
We hope that the BSP can further clarify the significance of the new P1,000 bill, featuring our Philippine eagle.
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Cover image adapted from: Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas/Wikimedia Commons,Teodoro Kalaw IV
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