When I was studying history in secondary school, we covered mainly events that happened in mainland Southeast Asia, and across the waters in Indonesia and the history of the Philippines remained largely a mystery to me. In fact, it was only a couple of years ago that we saw our first major exhibition of the Philippines in the form of Land of the Morning: Philippines and its People at the Asian Civilisations Museum.

Joze Rizal, Father of Filipino Nationalism

In his regular column in the Philippine Inquirer, noted Filipino Historian Ambeth Ocampo writes about some surprising, less well-known historic connections between Singapore and the Philippines:

Few people know that Emilio Aguinaldo sought refuge in Singapore in 1898, to escape a lawsuit in Hong Kong filed by greedy individuals who wanted the funds paid in accordance with the Pact of Biak-na-Bato to be liquidated and distributed among themselves. Aguinaldo deposited the funds in two banks, the Hongkong Shanghai Banking Corporation, the grandpa of today’s HSBC, and Chartered Bank, insisting that the principal be preserved and that they live on interest. These funds were later used to re-ignite the revolution against Spain when it did not do its part of the agreement concluded in Biak-na-Bato.

It is significant that when Rizal and Aguinaldo visited Singapore, theirs was a country yet to be born. At the time of these visits, both the Philippines and Singapore were under foreign flags. Those visits gain relevance today simply because they provide a historical link, often underused in Philippine diplomacy, that antedates the births of our countries as free and independent nations.

Rizal visited the famous Singapore Botanical Garden not once but thrice, and one can only presume yet another marker is on the way. But one would wish the site of the house where Aguinaldo stayed, or perhaps the site where he met with a US consul and decided to return to the Philippines and continue the war of independence against Spain can be located, and a simple but appropriate marker will be installed there. After all, another revolutionist and father of his country, Ho Chi Minh, is also commemorated by a marker in Singapore.

Read the full column here.