Explain each of the following.
Criteria for National Heroes: Executive Order No. 75, 1953
The notion of recognizing heroes began at 1900 when Philippine Commission approved Act No. 137 combining the Morong and Manila were known as Province of Rizal. For giving the honor for Dr. Jose Rizal from then on, some heroes commemorated everywhere in the country.
During the presidency of Ferdinand Marcos, he tasked the NHC to come up with the criteria for national hero. After many years then President Fidel V. Ramos on March 28, 1993 issued Executive Order No.75 means to study and recommend the proclamation of National Heroes. After a series of through discussions the commission came up with new criteria comprising 10 points or standards:
1. The extent of person's sacrifices for the welfare of the country.
2. The motiveandmethod employed in the attainment of the ideal.
3. The moral character of the person concerned.
4. The influence of the person concerned on his age/generation and/or the succeeding ones.
5. Heroes are those who have a concept of nation and thereafter aspire and struggle for the nation's freedom.
6. Heroes are those who define and contribute to a system of life of freedom and order for a nation.
7. Heroes are those who contribute the quality of life and destiny of a nation.
8. A hero is a part of people's expression.
9. A hero thinks of the future especially the future generations.
10. The choice of a hero involves not only the recounting of an episode or events in history but also the entire process that made this particular person as hero.
After two years of lingering debates and deliberations, the National Heroes Committee recommended the following figures as national heroes: Jose Rizal, Andres Bonifacio, Apolinario Mabini, Marcelo H. Del Pilar, Emilio Aguinaldo, Melchora Aquino, Juan Luna, Gabriela Silang, Sultan Dipatuan Kudarat
Neither Pres. Fidel V. Ramos nor any member of the administration acted on the committee’s recommendation.
Selection and Proclamation of National Heroes and Laws Honoring Filipino Historical Figures– stated that this was probably because this might trigger a flood of request for proclamations and the proclamations can trigger bitter debates involving historical controversies about the heroes.
There is no law, executive order or proclamation has been officially enacted or issued proclaiming Rizal or any other Filipino historical figures as a national hero. Thus, there were laws enacted and proclamations issued honoring some names because of their substantial roles in the process of nation-building and contributions to history.
Even Rizal was not officially proclaimed as a national hero; nonetheless, he was given an implicit recognition as his day of execution, December 30 has been made a national holiday.
Aside from him, Andres Bonifacio’s day of birth, November 30 has also been declared a national holiday, too.
In spite of the absence of any official proclamation, these historical figures remain admired and revered for their role in the Philippine history.
Historians said that heroes should not be legislated. Their appreciation should be better left to academics.
Rizal holds the status of being a universally-acclaimed Philippine national hero, partially as a tribute to the sustained veneration or acclamation of the people as acknowledgment of his contribution to the major social transformations that took place in the Philippines.
- The notion of recognizing heroes began in 1900 when Act No. 137 combined the Morong and Manila provinces and named them the Province of Rizal, in honor of Dr. Jose Rizal. This led to the commemoration of heroes throughout the country.
- President Ferdinand Marcos tasked the NHC to come up with criteria for national heroes. In 1993, President Fidel V. Ramos issued Executive Order No. 75 to study and recommend the proclamation of National Heroes. The commission developed 10 criteria including sacrifice, motive, moral character, influence, concept of nation, contribution to freedom and order, contribution to quality of life and destiny, being a part of people's expression, concern for future generations, and the entire process that made them a hero.
- The National Heroes Committee recommended figures such as Jose Rizal, Andres Bonifacio, Apolinario Mabini, Marcelo H. Del Pilar, Emilio Aguinaldo, Melchora Aquino, Juan Luna, Gabriela Silang, and Sultan Dipatuan Kudarat as national heroes.
- No action was taken on the committee's recommendations, possibly to avoid controversy and a flood of requests for proclamations.
- There is no official law, executive order, or proclamation proclaiming Rizal or any other Filipino historical figures as national heroes. However, laws and proclamations have been enacted to honor individuals for their contributions to nation-building and history.
- Rizal and Bonifacio have been implicitly recognized as national heroes, as their respective birth and execution dates have been declared national holidays.
- The absence of an official proclamation does not diminish the admiration and reverence these historical figures hold in Philippine history.
- Historians argue that heroes should not be legislated and that their appreciation should be left to academics.
- Rizal is universally acclaimed as a Philippine national hero due to his contributions to significant social transformations in the Philippines.