0% found this document useful (0 votes)
450 views7 pages

Jose P. Laurel: The Unrecognized Filipino Servant

José Paciano Laurel served as president of the Philippines during the Japanese occupation in World War II and was considered a "puppet" of the Japanese, though later evidence showed he worked to limit Japanese control and protect Filipinos; after the war he was charged with treason but granted amnesty, and as a senator passed laws protecting Filipino rights against foreign powers.

Uploaded by

JOMARIE MACALLA
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
0% found this document useful (0 votes)
450 views7 pages

Jose P. Laurel: The Unrecognized Filipino Servant

José Paciano Laurel served as president of the Philippines during the Japanese occupation in World War II and was considered a "puppet" of the Japanese, though later evidence showed he worked to limit Japanese control and protect Filipinos; after the war he was charged with treason but granted amnesty, and as a senator passed laws protecting Filipino rights against foreign powers.

Uploaded by

JOMARIE MACALLA
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 7

JOSE P.

LAUREL: THE UNRECOGNIZED FILIPINO SERVANT

José Paciano Laurel is a Filipino lawyer, politician, and jurist. He was the president of the

Philippines during the Japanese occupation in the country (1943-1945) in the time of World

War II. After the Japanese bombed the Pearl Harbor in Hawaii, followed by the Japanese attack

in the Philippines, current president Manuel Quezon escaped the island. However, Laurel

stayed and offered his services to the Japanese, which made him controversial. He was

famously considered as the puppet of the Japanese while his governance was considered and

titled as the “Puppet Government.” After the war, he immediately stepped down from the

presidency. Laurel was charged with treason and was given an amnesty by Manuel Roxas in

1948.

 Is President Laurel a traitor or a hero?

The Japanese occupation in the Philippines was one of the most brutal wars in the country.

Nevertheless, Jose Laurel still accepted the position for presidency of the Second Philippine

Republic after Quezon escaped. With this kind of action, Laurel was courageous and brave to

lead the Philippines in the middle of a war. However, Filipinos considered Laurel’s governance

as the “Puppet Government” because his association and close relationship to Japanese was

mistaken. He was entitled as the puppet of the Japanese due to these reasons. However, on the

other side of the story, the real cause of Laurel’s relationship with the Japanese is that he is

making agreements and negotiations with them to avoid further bloodshed. People were
blinded and thought that Laurel was betraying the country and only want power. Therefore, he

was imprisoned after the war with treason cases where he wrote his war memoirs.

It is in his war memoirs, which he wrote while he was imprisoned in Japan, that truth

was revealed about the reasons behind his every action during the World War II. Laurel had no

choice but to lead and preside the Philippines after Quezon left the country. He was able to

control the Japanese domination over other aspects instead of military matters, which is usual

and normal for military conquests. Moreover, Laurel imposed an all-Filipino troop inside the

Malacañang Palace, and that Japanese of any status should not be inside. There are also some

claims that Laurel even sneaked and hid rebels inside the palace to keep them safe. Laurel was

also ordered by Japanese Premier Hideki Tojo to declare war against US and Britain, but he

refused to do such action because the Filipinos would not approve it. He was able to hold this

order for one year but when returning allies dropped bombs in the Philippines, Laurel was

pressured by General Yamashita and had no choice but to declare war against US and Britain.

However, he still thought the sake of the Filipinos because he forbids any conscription of

Filipinos into the Japanese army.

When Laurel was inside the Bilibid, he wanted to be free just like any other prisoners for

an important reason. He wanted the court to give him a bail and be temporarily free for him to

defend himself and collate evidences to prove his innocence. Laurel was confident that he can

defend himself even though his friends offered him legal help. Then, the court let him bail

₱50,00 for temporary freedom. While he was outside, he gathered evidences and documents to

use in his trials. In January 28, Roxas gave him amnesty which he was against since he was not

able to fully defend himself.


Laurel was not given a chance to defend himself enough in the court. However, he

showed to the people, through his actions, that he is innocent and all his past actions during the

Japanese occupation was for the good of all Filipinos that time. While bailed, he attended

forums and interviews where he shared his opinion towards the Bell Trade Act and Parity

Rights. Laurel was against these, he believes that Americans only want to have control over the

Philippine economy and our natural resources. With this, we can see his opposition to the

Americans and corruption. During his hearing, he stated that “Asians should follow Asian code

of morals, not western.” Furthermore, his actions during the Japanese occupation were either

forced or he saw that Filipinos will benefit from it. When he was given amnesty, he ran against

Quirino for president in 1949 but he lost. This election, however, was the dirtiest election in the

Philippine history. In 1951, Laurel ran for the senator position and won first place. He passed

the Laurel-Langley Act which is an agreement against the Bell Trade Act and Parity Rights. This

act was signed in 1954 and was able to bring back the Filipino rights. Laurel was consistent and

stood his ground in protecting the rights of the Filipinos, even during the Japanese occupation.

In addition, reports stated that Laurel pushed the use of Filipino language and established

‘Bigasang Bayan’, a food agency (GMA, 2021).

Dr. Jose Laurel was famous for being a Japanese collaborator, traitor, and president who

betrayed his people. However, Laurel was more than all these labels. He always thinks about

the sake and safety of Filipino people ever since the Japanese Occupation until he became a

senator. Laurel is not in the side of Japanese nor Americans, but he has always been in the side

of the Filipinos ever since the World War II and after it. According to Ricardo Jose (2021), the

Japanese could not control Laurel and that the textbooks claiming that he led a puppet
government is an injustice. He is the only president of the Second Republic of the Philippines,

and he is the only person who served in all three branches of the government successfully.

Throughout Laurel’s legacy as a politician, he never left the Philippines and never failed to

protect the Filipinos. Despite the false accusation he faced, he stood still and continued serving

the country with honor and authority. Dr. Jose Laurel has never been a traitor to our country,

hence he is a hero and a model to all other public servants in the present and future Philippine

government.

 Do you think it is justified that President Manuel Roxas gave him an Amnesty?

After World War II, Philippines started recovering from different war effects such as

destructions, deaths, etc. while Jose P. Laurel was a prisoner in Japan. In July 1946, Laurel was

ordered to go back to the Philippines where he was charged with treason and imprisoned in

Bilibid, along with other public officials who were also charged with the same case. In

September of the same year, the court let him bail ₱50,000 for temporary freedom. With this

freedom, he was able to speak out for himself and was even put in conflict with the current

government that time. Laurel was also waiting for his trials, and he was confident that he can

defend himself, but there were no trials that happened. On January 28, 1948, Manuel Roxas

granted amnesty to people with treason case with regards to WWII, including Laurel. However,

Laurel was against this proclamation.

Jose Laurel was given an amnesty and was able to have his freedom, which he wanted in

the first place. However, it is not justified that he became free due to the amnesty. Yes, he was

granted freedom, but this freedom was not something that he can be proud of. Laurel was not
given trials, which is part of the usual process for prisoners before treated as guilty or not. With

this, he was not able to present evidences and prove himself and his innocence to the people.

Amnesty is defined as the sovereign act of forgetting past acts of people who have been guilty

of crimes. Therefore, the government made Laurel look like a guilty even though he was not

able to go through trials.

Although Laurel was not able to defend himself and prove that his service was all for the

benefit of the Filipinos, he was able to show his good intentions for the country after the

amnesty was given. Laurel was able to sit in certain political positions where he was able to

pass acts that aims to provide better opportunity and rights to the Filipino people, such as the

Laurel-Langley Act. He was able to prove that he is a “Pro-Filipino” with his actions and proved

indirectly his innocence during his presidency.


References

Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia. (2019, August 13). amnesty. Encyclopedia Britannica.

https://www.britannica.com/topic/amnesty

Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopaedia. (2021, November 2). José P. Laurel. Encyclopedia

Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Jose-P-Laurel

Dionela, D.I. (2019, November 2019). Why Jose P. Laurel Deserves More Credit. SAGISAG.

https://www.sagisag.com/article/773/history/why-jose-p-laurel-should-be-given-more-

credit

PJS History | The Philippines-Japan Society. (2018). Philippinesjapansociety.com

https://philippinesjapansociety.com/pjs-history/

Puppet or patriot? The legacy of Jose P. Laurel. (2021, November 8). GMA News Online.

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/topstories/nation/812517/puppet-or-patriot-the-

legacy-of-jose-p-laurel/story/

Samonte, M.G. (2017, April 1). Dr. Jose P. Laurel was never too late the hero. The Manila

Times. https://www.manilatimes.net/2017/04/01/opinion/columnists/topanalysis/dr-jose-

p-laurel-never-late-hero-2/320313
Reflections

Member #1: Edra, Brenna Christine E.

You might also like