THE new chief of
the Philippine
National Police,
General Edgardo
Aglipay, wants
to clean up the
tattered image
of the PNP, by
rounding up the
miscreants and
scalawags, and
reforming the
service, to
regain public
respect, which I
heartily
endorse.
Unfortunately,
part of his
plan, according
to his statement
and press
interviews, is
exile them, for
retraining, to
Corregidor
Island.
While it is true
that the name
Corregidor
itself implies a
correctional
institutions,
which indeed it
was during the
Spanish era,
today it is the
principal
tourist
attraction near
enough to Manila
to be visited in
a one-day trip,
by swift, clean
boats of
Sun Cruises and
other lines.
Since the
non-profit
Corregidor
Foundation,
dedicated to the
maintenance of
this historic
site, was
created 20 years
ago we have
fought long and
hard to get
sufficient
appropriations
and help to turn
it into a major
historical
monument
dedicated to
peace. Our
visitors, who
number 56,000
already this
year, include
Americans,
Japanese (many
of whose
relatives
perished on
Corregidor when
it was retaken
by American and
Filipino forces
in 1945), and
fellow
Filipinos. We
have special
weekend tours,
at lower prices
for local
visitors and
students.
Corregidor reeks
of military
history, most
notably when
General
MacArthur and
his family,
along with
President Quezon
and his family,
fled to
Corregidor as
the Japanese
forces were
entering Manila.
Later, the
Quezons were
spirited off the
island fortress,
by submarine,
under orders
from President
Franklin D.
Roosevelt, taken
to America,
where,
hospitalized for
tuberculosis,
President Quezon
died at the TB
center at
Saranac Lake,
New York,
without ever
being able to
return to his
beloved
Philippines.
There are many
war memorials to
visit on
Corregidor
Island, remnants
of military
barracks, a WW
II museum, and a
sound and light
show, equal to
anything one
finds in Europe,
within the
Malinta Tunnel.
If the visitor
has time, there
is both a
well-appointed
35-room inn and
cheaper cottage
accommodation
available to
spend the night.
There is the US
war memorial
which all ships
and planes view
as they enter
Manila Bay.
There is the
Japanese peace
garden. The
island itself
has been
declared an
island of "peace
valor and
international
understanding."
Knowledgeable
tour guides are
available to
spell the
fascinating and
dramatic history
of Corregidor
(which guards
the entrance to
Manila Bay) to
visitors from
other lands and
to local
students.
In short,
Corregidor is an
island devoted
to international
peace. It is not
a reform school
for misfits to
receive moral
and cultural
retraining. Such
a presence on
this historic
and hallowed
ground would be
a sacrilege.
As president of
the Corregidor
Foundation,
devoted to the
preservation of
this
internationally
famous war
memorial, I urge
the new chief of
the Philippine
National Police
to rethink his
plan for dumping
his miscreants
on Corregidor
Island. Surely
there are other,
less historic
and more
isolated sites
in the
Philippines to
locate his
police reform
school.
Beth Day Romulo
The
Author is a
well-known
journalist and
writer. She is the
widow of the late
General Carlos
Romulo, who was
Foreign Minister of
the Philippines for
many years, and
intimately connected
with the history of
Corregidor. Though
her skill, talent
and personality she
has become a notable
and widely regarded
personality in her
own right.
The opinions expressed herein are the opinions of the
author, and inclusion in CURRENT AFFAIRS does not constitute
endorsement.
Those persons having strong views should visit the CT&N FORUM.
While it is true
that the name
Corregidor
itself implies a
correctional
institutions,
which indeed it
was during the
Spanish era,
today it is the
principal
tourist
attraction near
enough to Manila
to be visited in
a one-day trip,
by swift, clean
boats of
Sun Cruises and
other lines.
Since the
non-profit
Corregidor
Foundation,
dedicated to the
maintenance of
this historic
site, was
created 20 years
ago we have
fought long and
hard to get
sufficient
appropriations
and help to turn
it into a major
historical
monument
dedicated to
peace. Our
visitors, who
number 56,000
already this
year, include
Americans,
Japanese (many
of whose
relatives
perished on
Corregidor when
it was retaken
by American and
Filipino forces
in 1945), and
fellow
Filipinos. We
have special
weekend tours,
at lower prices
for local
visitors and
students.
Corregidor reeks
of military
history, most
notably when
General
MacArthur and
his family,
along with
President Quezon
and his family,
fled to
Corregidor as
the Japanese
forces were
entering Manila.
Later, the
Quezons were
spirited off the
island fortress,
by submarine,
under orders
from President
Franklin D.
Roosevelt, taken
to America,
where,
hospitalized for
tuberculosis,
President Quezon
died at the TB
center at
Saranac Lake,
New York,
without ever
being able to
return to his
beloved
Philippines.
