Philippine flag symbolizes freedom, unity

source: mb.com.ph

MANILA, Philippines — Two weeks before our country celebrates its independence, Filipinos once again commemorate the events that led to our long-sought freedom 113 years ago beginning with the hoisting of our national flag.

But through the years, has the meaning of hoisting the symbol of our nation’s independence still live in us?

For a vendor at the country’s historical Rizal Park in Manila, placing the national flag in front of her store is not just a yearly practice but a symbol of her respect for the Philippines’ coveted symbol of independence.

“Simbolo ito ng paggalang at pagmamahal sa ating bansa na tayo ay proud,na tayo ay Pilipino (This is a symbol of respect and love for our country, of demonstrating that we are proud to be a Filipino),” said Gemma Lauriol, who has been a vendor at the Rizal Park for seven years now.

Despite the display of flags lined along the pathways of the park, the number of flag vendors, who ignore the scorching heat of the sun just to earn a living, are gradually diminishing.

A government employee, who requested not to be named, expressed disappointment that this is happening.

“This is saddening because more and more people are beginning to patronize posters and photos of famous artists to be displayed in their houses than admiring what the Philippine flag symbolizes,” he said.

Signed by former President Ferdinand E. Marcos, Presidential Proclamation No. 374 states that May 28 will be celebrated in commemoration of the first hoisting of the national flag during the battle at Alapan in Imus, Cavite, against Spanish colonizers.

The national flag is considered as the country’s priceless legacy of the 1896 Revolution.

As described by the late General Emilio F. Aguinaldo, the Philippine National Flag, bearing three colors, three stars, and a sun in 1898, he said the red symbolizes the Filipino’s bravery, blue as the loftiness of the Filipinos’ struggle for freedom, and the white symbolizes Filipinos’ capacity to govern themselves.

The three five-pointed stars symbolize the three major geographical subdivisions of the Philippine archipelago, namely Luzon, the Visayas, and Mindanao.

While the eight rays of the sun symbolize the eight provinces declared by the colonial government in a state of war, namely, Manila, Bulacan, Pampanga, Morong, Laguna, Batangas, Nueva Ecija, and Cavite.

Marcela Mariño Agoncillo, maker of our national flag, added that the white equilateral triangle symbolizes the Katipunan and the general outline was adopted from the Cuban revolutionary flag.

With the onset of technology, some facebook users believed that the national flag should always be upheld.

Lhourde Anthony stated that giving importance to our national flag is a symbol of self-respect and of being a true Filipino.

For Milat Manuel Maquilan, the national flag is a symbol of the country’s identity, while Charie Lai said that the national flag is a symbol of unity among Filipinos.

Troy Nano also added that the Philippine flag is an inspiration for him to continue loving the country and his fellowmen. It also gives him hope that the country has a bright future.

While Napoleon Tauyan Jr. believes that the national flag, especially when displayed with Filipinos gaining international acclaim, symbolizes that the country is gradually getting worldwide attention.

He also added that being proud of our national flag is also paying respect to our national heroes who fought for our freedom.

On Saturday, we begin our accolade to the people who made our country what it is today.

To cite the memorandum circular released by the Department of the Interior and Local Government, which urges us to display the Philippine flag in every home, government buildings, schools, universities, hospitals, public places, restaurants, hotels, department stores, malls, banks, and thoroughfares/roads, let us hoist the one symbol that makes us proud to be Filipinos – our national flag.

Meanwhile, Malacañang said on Friday that the inverted flag posted in the Office of the President’s website was an “honest mistake,” as it also assured that measures are being undertaken to prevent the occurrence of a similar incident in the future.

Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Herminio “Sonny” Coloma Jr. said the employee responsible for uploading the inverted flag already admitted the mistake, and that there is no need to create a big issue out of it.

“It was immediately reported kasi ang ginagawa niya almost immediately after he uploaded, na-realize naman niya na mali, tinanggal na muna niya (It was immediately reported because he immediately realized the mistake after he uploaded it and he removed it),” he said. “I will just take the responsibility.”

“I’m satisfied with the explanation. It was an honest mistake that was committed in good faith,” he said.

However, Coloma did not disclose the name of the employee responsible for the incident but said that measures are already being undertaken to address the issue.

“Our remedial measure is to tighten the editing to make sure that it won’t happen again,” he said. “It was immediately noticed, immediately rectified, immediately removed, immediately reported. And then we’re adopting tighter editing and clarificatory measure.”

Malacañang had earlier urged the display of the national flag from May 28 to June 12, dubbed the “Philippine Flag Days” in commemoration of the forthcoming Independence Day celebration on June 12.

The website of the Office of the President showed the Philippine flag in war mode for a few minutes Friday, wherein red was on top instead of blue.

source: mb.com.ph