Arguably the most history-conscious president, Ferdinand Marcos attempted to rein in how he will be remembered as a historical figure. He did this mainly through propaganda and the commissioning of a definitive Philippine history book to be published under his name ( very on-brand ). He hired the best and the brightest historians, and the result: the Tadhana project. Only three tomes came out of the envisioned book set. But it still begs to be asked: what happens when people in power with vested...
Jul 23, 2021•17 min•Season 3Ep. 11
The Jabidah Massacre is a historical controversy that ignited the country's most intractable conflict. But what is it, and did it really happen? How did it spark the independence movement in Mindanao, and why does this event remain contested until today? Let's unpack all these and more in another episode of PODKAS. Visit our website, www.podkas.org , for more information on the show and other good stuff.
Jul 16, 2021•19 min•Season 3Ep. 10
In this episode, we look at three portraits of Filipinos during World War II: Jose P. Laurel, the "puppet" president of the Second Philippine Republic, Capt. Nieves Fernandez, a teacher-turned-guerrilla leader, and Ferdinand E. Marcos, the "most decorated Filipino hero of the war," at least according to him. One of these three is not like the other: which explains how the terrain of heroism during the war isn't as clear-cut as it seems. If you want more of PODKAS, visit our website: www.podkas.o...
Jul 09, 2021•17 min•Season 3Ep. 9
We have been taught that we have colonialism to thank for who we are today. Christianity, a major religion in the country, was a Spanish legacy, while democracy is a government system we inherited from the United States. Many history textbooks speak of these colonial legacies, but somehow gloss over the violence and abuse that colonial systems brought the country and its indigenous populations. In this episode, we assess how colonialism is viewed in society today, and how we should see it in the...
Jul 02, 2021•23 min•Season 3Ep. 8
There were a lot of news breakers this month, but in this episode, we talk about Duterte and the International Criminal Court, the continuing COVID-19 pandemic in the Philippines, Netflix's Trese, and the sudden passing of former president Noynoy Aquino. Handholding us in the legalese behind the issue of Duterte and the ICC, among others, is lawyer and lecturer Ross Tugade. Join us in this very engaging and fruitful episode, and let us look back. We're midway 2021, so hang on tight! For more POD...
Jun 29, 2021•59 min•Ep. 6
A discussion on the quintessential character of Filipino politics would be remiss if it did not start with the true populist original, Manuel Luis Quezon. He was so legendary a politician that he has a city and a province named after him, among others. Who is Quezon, and how do we characterize his politics? Where did he stand in arguably the most critical issue of his time: independence from the United States? Check out this episode to find out. For more PODKAS, visit www.podkas.org....
Jun 25, 2021•20 min•Season 3Ep. 7
We enter the 20th century in this season as we talk about McKinley's Benevolent Assimilation proclamation and the underside of the US "civilizing mission" in the Philippines. What reasons did the United States use to rationalize its continued presence in the islands? Was the new colonial order "benevolent?" Let's find out. For more PODKAS, visit www.podkas.org .
Jun 18, 2021•17 min•Season 3Ep. 6
Happy independence day! What better way to spend this day by interrogating one of the most enduring controversies in our history: Rizal's retraction. An issue that involves scant eyewitness accounts, allegations of forgery, masonic affiliations, the Catholic church, and many other aspects that needs to be unpacked, especially in light of recently found evidence. Did Rizal retract? And if he did, does it matter? Find out in this episode. Visit www.podkas.org for more resources on Philippine histo...
Jun 11, 2021•21 min•Season 3Ep. 5
While the Philippine Revolution remains a centerpiece of our national narrative, some aspects are shrouded in mystery. Some factual information, like the exact date and place of the Cry of Rebellion, could easily be dismissed as inconsequential because we all know that it happened anyway; we just can't tell exactly when. But History demands details. In this episode, we look at the multiple and varied eyewitness accounts of the Cry of Rebellion and how historians weighed in on the issue of using ...
Jun 04, 2021•15 min•Season 3Ep. 4
We look back on the events of May 2021: the Israel-Palestine conflict, Duterte’s debate challenge and the West Philippine Sea, the continuing (mis)management of the pandemic in the country, and flexible learning. We are joined by our friend, Prof. Enrico “Mico” Gloria of the Department of Political Science, U.P. Diliman. Visit our website, www.podkas.org , for content related to the show.
May 29, 2021•39 min•Ep. 5
In 2022, we will commemorate the sesquicentennial of the GOMBURZA's execution, a watershed event that had a direct and deep impact on the Filipinos who will influence and lead the Philippine Revolution years later. But the martyrdom of the three priests could only be understood by discussing the event that led to their execution, and that is the Cavite Mutiny in 1872. What really happened in this event, and why was this the catalyst responsible for influencing a revolution decades later? Find ou...
May 28, 2021•20 min•Season 3Ep. 3
One of the most enduring and perhaps, heated debates in Philippine history is ascertaining the site of the first Catholic Mass in the Philippines, and 2021 marks 500 years since this historical event for Catholic Filipinos. Using our knowledge of history and historiography, let us look at the two traditions claiming to be the sites of the first Mass—Butuan and Limasawa—and try to see what’s the deal with this historical problem. For more content of Philippine history, politics, and society, visi...
May 21, 2021•25 min•Season 3Ep. 2
Our newest season is here! We open Contested Philippine Histories with a historical problem that made the news rounds recently: The Battle of Mactan. Was LapuLapu a Tausug from the "Eastern Kingdom of Sulu"? Did he fight off invaders because of freedom? Was he the middle-aged and muscular warrior in the popular imagination? And did he really kill Magellan? That's a lot of questions, but if these aren't enough, we also interrogate the value and politics of commemoration in the present day, among ...
May 14, 2021•28 min•Season 3Ep. 1
A new season of PODKAS is coming very soon! Starting May 15, we will tackle controversies, hoaxes, scandals, and problems in Philippine history in Contested Philippine Histories, PODKAS Season 3! Follow us on our social media pages: Facebook , Twitter , Instagram . Subscribe to our Youtube channel , and visit our website www.podkas.org for more content and resources....
May 08, 2021•1 min
We can't let April go by just like that. Let's talk about #PatayNaBa, the continuing saga of the West Philippine Sea, the bright spot that is the community pantries mushrooming all over the country, and the 500 years of the Battle of Mactan commemoration hijacked by political interests through wild historical claims. To help us unpack a month bursting at the seams, we are joined by queer politics scholar and HKU Ph.D. student Andoy Evangelista. We will be launching a new season very soon! For no...
Apr 30, 2021•40 min•Ep. 4
At the turn of the twenty-first century, neoliberalism facilitated the expansion of an economy that made the rich richer and worsened inequality, resulting to the masses suffering unemployment and lack of job security, privatization of social services, and abject poverty. Against this backdrop rose Joseph "Erap" Ejercito Estrada, a movie-star turned leader that was loved by the people but was removed through a people power revolution. But before the scandal and controversy, what did Erap represe...
Apr 23, 2021•37 min•Season 2Ep. 14
After the historic and momentous event that was EDSA People Power Revolution, the Philippines was on everyone's lips, especially Western democracies that saw the peaceful revolution as an opportunity to highlight the triumph of democracy over authoritarianism. President Corazon Aquino was invited to deliver a speech at a joint session of the United States Congress. The post-martial law government, or the EDSA Republic, could be understood better through said speech, the focus of this season's pe...
Apr 16, 2021•33 min•Season 2Ep. 13
Before Marcos declared Martial Law in 1972, he had already identified what reasons he would use to rationalize such declaration. He detailed these reasons in Proclamation No. 1081, or the Declaration of Martial Law, a document that reveals, among other things, the many issues, most Marcos created himself, that necessitated authoritarian rule. We discuss all these and more in this episode. For more PODKAS resources and all things wonderful, head over to our website, www.podkas.org ....
Apr 09, 2021•24 min•Season 2Ep. 12
March flew past us by yet felt unnecessarily long. For our Women's Month episode, we tackled the biggest issues of the month, and boy, was that jampacked: Anti-Asian hate in the United States, Bloody Sunday the continuing anti-communist campaign in the Philippines, Evergiven and the Suez Canal obstruction, the growing tensions in the West Philippine Sea, and the continuing COVID-19 saga in the country in light of another ECQ. This is a lot for the Podkas team so we enlisted the help of our frien...
Apr 02, 2021•43 min•Ep. 3
The Philippine postwar years are often overlooked in history classrooms, but understanding this period is crucial to contextualize how we do politics today. In this episode, we discuss one of the most prominent Philippine presidents of this period: Ramon Magsaysay, and the increasingly complex dynamics of US-Philippine relations with the Cold War as a backdrop. Whose guy really is Magsaysay? Let's find out. For more information and resources, check out our website, www.podkas.org ....
Mar 26, 2021•24 min•Season 2Ep. 11
In 1943, almost two years after Japan launched a surprise attack, the Philippines was "granted" independence under Japan. A new republic was inaugurated, the Second Philippine Republic, led by President Jose P. Laurel. How did this republic come to be, and how were politics under the auspices of Japan? Filipinos have indeed longed for independence, but is this the envisioned independence? We'll answer these and more as we look at Philippine independence sponsored by the Japanese Empire during Wo...
Mar 19, 2021•33 min•Season 2Ep. 10
In this episode, we explore the dynamics of US hegemony in the Philippines as they occupied the country at the turn of the twentieth century by reading the Commission on Independence's petition letter, Filipino grievances against Governor Wood . Of particular interest in this period are the quest for independence through political negotiations and the clash between the Filipino political elite and one very stern American governor-general, Leonard Wood, the petition letter's subject. What were th...
Mar 12, 2021•31 min•Season 2Ep. 9
What does it mean to be free? In this episode, we demystify some of the issues surrounding Philippine independence—its symbolisms, silences, and misconceptions—by reading the Declaration of Philippine Independence, authored by Ambrosio Rianzares Bautista. Visit www.podkas.org for more resources and information about the show, and like, follow, and subscribe to our socials for updates.
Mar 05, 2021•28 min•Season 2Ep. 8
For the February edition of our monthly WRAP UP , we talk about five news breakers: Myanmar coup, the lumad school raids, the continuing vaccine politics in the Philippines, the MGCQ recommendation in NCR, and the PDEA-PNP misencounter. We explore these news with our special guest, Prof. Jio Guiang of #ThrowbackKasaysayan. Want more? Visit our website, www.podkas.org for more episodes, resources, and other good stuff....
Feb 27, 2021•37 min•Ep. 2
The answer to this episode's question is not as straightforward as some people think, and there needs to be some contextualization on specific events that led to the execution of Bonifacio, particularly, the politics between Magdalo and Magdiwang, the two influential factions of the Katipunan in Cavite. We shed light on one of Philippine history's most contentious controversies by reading Emilio Aguinaldo's Mga Gunita ng Himagsikan . For more information, episodes, shownotes, and other resources...
Feb 26, 2021•27 min•Season 2Ep. 7
Aside from writing the Kartilya ng Katipunan , Emilio Jacinto also wrote Liwanag at Dilim, which detailed the political philosophy of the Katipunan as a movement and an organization, and served as proof why Jacinto has been known to be the "brains of the revolution." We talk about this and more in this episode of PODKAS. Visit our website, www.podkas.org for more information and resources on Philippine history, politics, and society.
Feb 19, 2021•28 min•Season 2Ep. 6
In this episode, we zone in on the propaganda movement and arguably the wittiest of its firebrands, Marcelo H. Del Pilar. His work, Dasalan at Tocsohan , parodied Catholic prayers and surely agitated the target of the propaganda movement's criticisms, the friars. Join us as we analyze this primary source and the circumstances surrounding the burgeoning agitation for reform that will lead to revolution in the late nineteenth century. For a deeper dive into Philippine history, politics, and societ...
Feb 12, 2021•26 min•Season 2Ep. 5
What's so special about the nineteenth century? Why do scholars call it "the long century," when all centuries are... a hundred years? Why will our great revolutionary heroes appear in this period? And why so many questions? We'll answer all these by reading an outsider's perspective of the Philippines in this century: John Foreman's The Philippine Islands, first published in 1890. Visit our website, www.podkas.org , for more stuff on Philippine history, politics, and society....
Feb 05, 2021•32 min•Season 2Ep. 4
Today's news is tomorrow's history. In this episode, we discuss some of the issues and events that rocked January 2021, lest we forget. We also welcome the newest member of the PODKAS team, Joselito "Bro" Ebro Jr.! Want more? Visit our website, www.podkas.org for more episodes, resources, and other good stuff.
Jan 30, 2021•42 min•Ep. 1
As soon as a return route from the Philippines to the Americas was established, Spain launched its major scheme to maximize the profits they can get by having a colony in the "far east:" the Galleon Trade. In Manila, galleon ships were loaded mostly with Chinese goods, and traveled to Acapulco, Mexico, crossing the vast Pacific Ocean. Join us as we learn about this trade that lasted for more than two centuries by reading Antonio de Morga's Sucesos de las Islas Filipinas in this new episode of PO...
Jan 29, 2021•39 min•Season 2Ep. 3
