Prelim Output: Readings in Philippine History

HOLY ANGEL UNIVERSITY

History and Disinformation

Group Members: SBA | Group 2 | A-115

Members:
Bonilla, Abigail
Fernando, Christine B.
Gatus, Ariadne Daphne Blaire S.
Pascual, Janine Kyla C.

Subject Professor: Sir Alex Obillo Suyat.

Prelim Output: Readings in Philippine History

I. Introduction

Historical Disinformation

Our country, Philippines, is undeniably one of the countries that has a lot of events

that occurred within its history. Its greatness is shared throughout the generation on which

many premises arise along with it. Disinformation is an act of sharing important information

that is relevant yet unreliable, as it aims to spread false claim and wrong data to deceive

people.

In this output, we have gathered documents that contains historical misinformation

using (3) three online platforms, specifically: Facebook, Twitter, and Tiktok. These platforms

are some of the big social media places that has a great effect on the knowledge and

understanding of people. Users can easily manipulate or fool anyone with just a tap on their

posts. Many netizens are using these platforms not just for entertainment but also for

acquiring important datas. However, the bad side of it, not all of these data or content

containing information were all accurate and reliable.

Prelim Output: Readings in Philippine History

The three content we have collected were the claims that:

I. Posted on Tiktok: Gen. Emilip Aguinaldo was the first to wave the Philippine

Flag in Kawit, Cavite on June 12, 1898. However, it was not really him who

waved our flag first, it was actually Ambrosio Rianzares Bautista y Altamira,

on which the link to prove that this claim is a misinformation will be provided

on the reference list.

II. Posted on Facebook: “If you google 1894 Philippine History and you will

find Aguinaldo and Juanponce Enrile together in one photo.” To prove that

this claim is false, here are some primary sources which will also be added to

the reference list.

III. Posted on Twitter: “TODAY IN HISTORY: 15 March 1900 – Spain departs

from the Philippines in accordance to the Treaty of Paris.”

Prelim Output: Readings in Philippine History

II. Explanation of the claim that the content contains misinformation about our

History

On this document, we will on specifiy one false claim, which is the content posted on

Twitter platform. It was shared to netizens that the date when the Spain departed from our

country is on March 15, 1900. However, with (3) three primary sources, it was proven that it

happened at the date of December 10, 1898. The information we have gathered from these

primary sources will be explained as briefly and generalized as the context we would want to

debunk is very specific as well. There has been a war which was declared by the United

States against Spain in April 25, 1898, on which the sinking of the battleship Maine in

Havana harbor on February 15, 1898 also followed. The war then ended as the Treaty of Paris

was signed on December 10, 1898, which was the day that tha Spaniards lost control of our

country and its land. The United States took over the remains of its overseas empire, and

there them began the United States’ era of colonization.

According to Britannica, the war between the Filipino revolutionaries and United

States that happened at the duration of the years, 1899 to 1902, it has been seen as a

continuation of the fight of Philippine Revolution against the ruling of Spaniards, as we are

screaming and fighting for our freedom. With the help of our National Hero, Jose Rizal, and

his noble writings, we were able to gain movement to independence.

Manila fell after a bloodless battle that happened. Whereas Spanish Gov. Fermín

Jáudenes arraged a surrender secretly. The Treaty of Paris (1898) which was skgned by the

representatives or the Spaniards was a sign that the Spanish colonization endedand they

transferred their power of ruling our land to theAmericans or the United States. This transfer

Prelim Output: Readings in Philippine History

of sovereignty has caused confusion and conflict as not all recognized this. Since the

Americans controlled and had the possession of the City, the rest of it was controlled by the

Filipino insurgents. At this time there were leadersof the Philippine Republic called the

nascent, and they did not recognized the United State sovereignty over the islands. These

nascent were of control of the entire archipelago that time.

III. Conclusion

People may say that, it’s just a date there’s no big deal about it and no one really

cares when it happened, it doesn’t change our life today. Yet, for us, it does, as we firmly

believe that an error or misinformation about these dates on when they had occurred is an

ignorance to our historical background and its lessons that we, Filipinos, must be

knowledgeable of. Even though it’s “just” a date that leads people to false information, it

may cause confusion to others who would want to know more about it. Negligence to this is

allowing our future and generation to continuously commit acts that are illegal and it allows

our fellow Filipinos to be used to spreading flase claim, not just about our history, but in a

broader context. Claims like this shouldn’t be believed easily, we must always first consider

fact-checking as these examples are just some of the many disinformation thtat are posted and

shared anywhere. Youth nowadays will not be eager and willing to seek for the truth and to be

wise when it comes to possessing learnings and believing them. We must not be “easy to

fool”, truth is we seek, right decisions will then be made, and it outlines the future we will

have to see as brighter as we can imagine. It can motivate us and help us avoid the same

mistake again and again. Our History is just as important as today. As we always say, if there

is no History, there will never be a present. So let’s all try our best to respect these events

with regards to our history, so we can understand and dig deeper of what we have, today.

Prelim Output: Readings in Philippine History

REFERENCES

The (3) three primary documents we have analyzed and utilized:

- Slack, E. (2014, June 30) Philippine under Spanish Rule, 1571-1898. Oxford

Bibliographies.

- World of 1898. (2022)

- Britannica, T. Editors of Encyclopedia (2023, May 12). Philippine-Spanish

War. Encyclopedia Britannica

LINKS FOR SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS AND DOCUMENTS

https://www.tiktok.com/@learnwithreymund/video/7240665008479227141?_r=1&_t=8ezi9WDULu3

https://www.gmanetwork.com/news/lifestyle/artandculture/834627/who-waved-the-philippine-flag-in-june-12-
1898-it-s-not-emilio-aguinaldo/story/

https://twitter.com/AFPMuseum/status/841861592937570304?t=xVhAArx7H-oJG0pvf5N_sQ&s=07

https://www.britannica.com/event/Philippine-American-War

https://guides.loc.gov/world-of-1898

Prelim Output: Readings in Philippine History