09/04/2025
๐๐ซ๐๐ฐ ๐ง๐ ๐๐๐ ๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐๐ง: ๐๐๐ฅ๐จ๐ซ ๐ข๐ง ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐
๐๐๐ ๐จ๐ ๐
๐จ๐ซ๐ ๐จ๐ญ๐ญ๐๐ง ๐๐๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐ข๐๐
Every April 9, we pause. We offer flowers, raise flags, and speak solemn words in memory of the Day of Valor โ Araw ng Kagitingan โ a date that, for many, is just a red mark on the calendar. But for those who still remember the dust of Bataan and the blood that stained Filipino soil, this day should mean much more.
Weโre told to honor the Filipino soldiers who stood their ground in the Battle of Bataan in 1942. They fought while hungry, wounded, and abandoned. They were forced to walk the 100-kilometer Death March โ not in glory, but in agony. Only after their suffering came the label: HEROES.
We say they were brave. And they were!
But what about today?
What about the courage of the Maranao farmers who defend their ancestral lands in the face of forced relocation and broken promises? What about the displaced residents of Marawi who, even after years, still live in limbo while their homes remain in ruins and the โrehabilitationโ remains a press release?
Araw ng Kagitingan is not just about looking back. It must push us to look around. Valor didnโt end in 1942. It lives in those who keep going, not with guns, but with truth, service, and resistance in a country that often chooses comfort over conscience.
The tragedy of Bataan wasnโt just in the surrender.
The real betrayal isnโt that we forgot their sacrifice, itโs that we turned it into ritual. We remember their names in ceremonies, yet forget the weight of their suffering. We praise their courage in speeches, but let the same injustices they fought against rot in silence. Valor has become a performance, neat, convenient, and stripped of the discomfort it should bring.
Yes, the betrayal is quiet, but itโs loud in its impact. Itโs the shrug when a student is harassed for activism. Itโs the silence when injustices unfold just outside our classrooms. Itโs the apathy we mistake for peace.
So this Araw ng Kagitingan, donโt just remember โ reflect.
What kind of country turns its back on the very people who carry it forward?
Because maybe the question isnโt whether Filipinos still have valor.
Maybe the real question is: Does the Philippines still deserve it?
CTTO: Writer | Ricardo Lumacad Jr.
Lay-out | Miernys Leah Puod, Aisha Bagul & Abdul Jabbar Hadji Nasser