Cultural Heritage Promotion (Pinoy Pride)

History

The Philippines has a rich history beginning from its earliest days as one of the busiest trading posts in South East Asia and later, in the trans-Pacific galleon trade. A period of Spanish colonization spanning three centuries then made an indelible impression on the country. This mercurial era, along with the American occupation, played a vital role in shaping the Philippines and its people. A vivid past has left its mark all over the archipelago in many different forms that present-day visitors to the country are now discovering.

The rich Philippine heritage can be experienced, not only in textbooks and museums, but also in beautifully preserved historical sites across the country. A simple textbook description of a historical event comes to life upon a visit to the place where it unfolded. Isla ng Corregidor, or simply, Corregidor, is now a tranquil island where the epic dramatic Battle of Corregidor took place during the last world war. In a country like the Philippines, where history is kept alive, one doesn't need to go far to travel back in time.

Heritage

Tubbataha Reef National Marine Park
Location: Middle of the Sulu Sea, 181 kilometers southeast of Puerto Princesa, Palawan
Inscribe in the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1993

The Tubbataha Reef Marine Park covers 33,200 hectares including the north and south reefs. It is a marvelous marine wilderness and a special ecosystem much appreciated for its beauty as well as its scientific value.

It is a unique example of an atoll reef with a very high density of marine species, with 80% coral cover of 46 coral genres and 376 fish species. The site is an excellent example of a pristine coral reef with a spectacular 100-meter perpendicular wall, extensive lagoons and two-coral islands.

Tubbataha’s north islet is a nesting site for sea birds of all kinds and endangered hawksbill sea turtles; a diver’s paradise with gorgonian seafans, soft corals, and gigantic sea sponges serving as home to turkey fish, anemone crab, banded seasnakes, nudibranchs, starfish, catsharks, surgeon fish, batfish, and butterfly fish. The rare, unusual looking fox-faced rabbit fish can also be found in the marine park. Marine turtles, including the critically endangered hawksbill and green turtle, nest on some of the beaches.

Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park
Location: Saint Paul Mountain Range on the northern coast of Palawan
Inscribe in the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1999
The Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park features a spectacular limestone karst landscape with its underground river. The river is unique because it flows directly into the sea, and its lower portion is subject to tidal influences. The area also represents a significant habitat for biodiversity conservation. The site contains a whole ecosystem --- from mountain to the sea; and protects forests, which are among the most significant in Asia.

A highlight of each visit is a ride through its 8 km-long underground river which runs through a dome of stalactites complemented by stalagmites running the entire length of the cave.

The park is a popular destination for bird watching and is known for regular sightings of threatened bird species of Palawan peacock-peasant and Philippine cockatoo and the endemic birds Palawan scopsowl, swiftlet, hornbill, flyeater and blue flycatcher, tit and flowerpecker. It is blessed to have the Palawan flying fox, Oriental small-clawed otter, stinkbadger, binturong, flying squirrel, mountain tree squirrel and porcupine.

The park also features an exciting Monkey Trail with its series of wooden paths to the forest.

Rice Terraces of the Philippine Cordilleras
Location: Ifugao
Inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1995

The 2,000-year old Banaue Rice Terraces – the most extensive anywhere in the world – were carved into the mountains of Ifugao by ancestors of the Batad indigenous people. The terraces are located approximately 1,500 meters (5,000 feet) above sea level and cover 10,360 square kilometers (about 4,000 square miles) of the mountainside.

Known as the “eight wonder of the world,” the terraces were carved with only simple tools and bare hands. They are fed by an ancient irrigation system, an ingenious complex of bamboo pipes and canals, drawing water from streams created by bubbling springs located in the mountain rainforests.

Considered as a monument to man’s genius in turning a rugged and forbidding terrain into a source of sustenance, the rice terraces stand to be the most awe-inspiring man-made landscape in the Cordilleras. They are also invariably called “The Stairway to the Sky.”

Historic Town of Vigan
Location: Vigan, Ilocos Sur
Inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in 1999

The 16th century town of Vigan is “an exceptionally intact and well-preserved example of a European trading town in East and East Asia.” Its architecture reflects the fusion of cultural elements from the Philippines, China and Europe, resulting in a culture and townscape that has no parallel anywhere in East and Southeast Asia.

Seemingly impervious to time, spared from rebellion and the ravages of war, Vigan has remained unchanged and its many preserved historic sites – more than 180 edifices – make it look like “a piece of Spain.” With its grand cathedral, massive mansions with red-tile roofs and spacious balconies, narrow cobblestone streets, horse drawn carriages, and friendly faces peering out of large windows, Vigan is a place where “time stood still.”

Baroque Churches
Inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1993

San Agustin Church in Intramuros, Manila
Built in 1587, the San Agustin Church is the oldest stone church in the Philippines, the only one that remains as the original evidence of the 16th century Spanish architecture. It has defied several earthquakes and the heavy shelling of both Japanese and American forces in 1945 and now stands as a reminder of the grandeur of the past.

The structural design of the church is extraordinary. It boasts of the only example in the country of a barrel vault, dome and arched vestibules, supporting its choir loft, all made of stone. Its façade is notable for its two pairs of columns – the lowest pair in Doric style, the upper pair in Corinthian topped by a pediment surmounted by a Cross. The main door, carved out of Philippine molave, has a bas-relief of St. Augustine and his mother, Santa Monica. San Agustin Church represents the art and technology of Spanish, Chinese, and native cultures fused together “to suit human sentiments and faiths that found expression in customs and traditions that were evolved through the centuries.”

As the best-preserved example of an urban ecclesiastical complex in the Philippines, the compound serves not only as a historical document of the Spanish colonial heritage but also as a repository of the most important works of art and literature of the period.

Miag-ao Church in Iloilo
Built in yellow-orange sandstone, the large fortress-church of Miag-ao was completed in 1797. It served as a fortress against raids of marauding Moro pirates.

The church is amazingly beautiful because of its two asymmetric pyramidal towers and its finely sculptured, yellow sandstone façade. Its façade’s carving is the pinnacle of Filipino naïve art, in which craftsmen abandon all restraints to interpret Western decorative styles in the local folk idiom. The central element in the façade is Saint Christopher, clad like a Filipino farmer with rolled-up trousers. He carries the Christ Child on his back while holding on to a lush coconut tree for support. Beside him are guava and papaya trees, flanked by ornamental urns. The scene merges Western Catholic iconography with a folk interpretation of coastal Iloilo countryside.

San Agustin Church in Paoay, Ilocos Norte
Photo by Anna Buenaventura.

Paoay’s San Agustin Church, built in 1604, is one of the most outstanding variants of “earthquake baroque” in the Philippines, where the primary consideration was to design the structure for earthquake protection.

The façade of San Agustin Church is astounding but its most prominent feature is the phalanx of buttresses that juts out perpendicularly from the sidewalls, purposely to strengthen the walls – and the entire structure – against earthquake damage. Fourteen massive S-shaped buttresses rise in rhythmic cadence from the ground to the roofline.

The church is an eye-catcher as it emerges from a beautiful open space, unlike many other churches located within urban settings. 

Nuestra Señora de la Asuncion in Santa Maria, Ilocos Sur

The Church of Nuestra Senora de la Asuncion in Santa Maria is unique for its utter disregard for the traditional Spanish urban plan of constructing the church to face the plaza, and less imposing religious and official buildings grouped around. It also has a citadel appearance as the church, with its convent and bell tower, stands alone on the crown of a solitary hill encircled by a stonewall, with stone stairways leading to the church.

It is the only church in the Philippines exuding the ambience of a Mediterranean hill town with its convent built parallel to the church façade and its bell tower detached from the main church. Evoking a Chinese pagoda, the bell tower of octagonal shapes of decreasing diameter is crowned by a small dome, tapering to the sky with an oriental grace.

Protecting Our Filipino Heritage

We sit down with Charles Salazar, head of the NCCA’s Cultural Heritage section, to talk about what it takes to preserve the very fabric of our Filipino culture and legacy

With several bazaars, street fairs, and art festivals taking place more often– with more goers and participants alike– it is evident that there is a continued support (one may even say, “renewed”), for the community of local culture and arts.

With these initiatives permeating into our everyday lives, one begins to ask: what more can I do?

Once, art (and its permutations) were inaccessible to the layman, having been an intricate discipline available to the elite class or those who were fortunate enough to have access to the proper influences and mentors. 

However today, we get to see artists (and art pieces) all-over the internet. In the world of film, music, fashion, theatre, visual art, sculpture, and architecture – it is apparent that there is a harking back to local aesthetics and design.

Numerous local artisans have gained more traction and spotlight in the eyes of the general public. We can easily note here the National Museum’s now-permanent weaving displays, local products now pervading the public markets through bags, clothing, and gastronomy, and the increasing count of young travellers exploring the Philippines.

Department of Tourism Booth exhibits local produce and artisan goodies

A modern interpretation of classic ventanillas - a collaboration with Anna Sy & Jason Chai | Photo from "Filipino Modern" 

Fried tamban (saltwater sardine) is served with young corn and moringa oil at Toyo Eatery in Manila | (Photo: George Tapan)

After hundreds of years of colonisation, one can dare to hope, are we finally embracing (in a larger scale) our own diverse and ethnic culture?

Great as this might be, all this could do with a bit more push. With that in mind, we sit down with Charles Salazar of the NCCA to talk about what more we can do to preserve and push for the appreciation of our local culture.

With regards to Cultural Heritage, what are the current projects of the National Commission for Culture and the Arts?

With the enactment of Republic Act No. 10066 of the National Cultural Heritage Act of 2009, the NCCA and its attached cultural agencies have a common reference document as the basis of all initiatives.

For the general public, increasing their appreciation of cultural heritage is made possible through their participation in the annual celebrations of National Heritage Month every May, International Museums Day every May 18, History Month every August, Museums and Galleries Month and Indigenous Peoples Month every October, Archives Day every October 21, and Libraries and Information Services Month every November.

Details on a local weave product

Cultural heritage preservation is highly dependent on the technical competence of heritage experts and workers. One of the NCCA programs towards this endeavor is the support it has extended to the Escuela Taller de Filipinas Foundation, Inc.

A joint initiative of the Kingdom of Spain and the Republic of the Philippines, Escuela Taller is a vocational school that trains out-of-school youth in traditional construction and conservation methods.

Wash day from the Art and Picture Collection; NYPL The New York Public Library (1900 - 1940) | Photo: Courtesy of NCCA Facebook

Another program is the Cultural Mapping Training Program which aims to train local government units in mapping their cultural resources, developing cultural profiles, and using these profiles to build their local inventory of cultural properties and in incorporating them in local development plans.

Heritage trainings are also organised, not only by NCCA, but also by organisations, schools, and local government units which are supported by NCCA through its competitive grants program. Under this programme, the researches and publications of individual experts are also supported.

International opportunities for heritage experts and workers are made available by NCCA. The attendance of experts in international conferences to present their research may be supported through the International Travel Grants Program.

Under the aegis of cultural agreements with other countries, the Philippines is able to send its heritage experts abroad and for international experts to come to the country.

How about conservation projects?

The Commission has entered into an agreement with the Tourism Infrastructure and Enterprise Zone Authority (TIEZA) to fund infrastructure projects involving World Heritage Sites of cultural significance.

Photo: Courtesy of NCCA Facebook

Preparatory works for the restoration of the Manila Metropolitan Theater is ongoing. Other conservation projects for built heritage initiated by other institutions are supported by NCCA through its competitive grants programme.

Why is it important to support these projects?

Support for these projects is a step towards shaping our shared identity.

Plaza Goiti (now called Plaza Lacson), Manila, the 1920s | Photo: Courtesy of NCCA Facebook

The concept of cultural heritage is strongly rooted in the legacy of those who went ahead of us, but what we do about their tangible and intangible legacies have strong implications for our future as well as the future of the succeeding generations.

Thus, our support to these projects also becomes our contribution to an ongoing story which runs along a continuum of generations.

What are some ways we can embrace our heritage more?

It would be easy to embrace heritage if it becomes experiential and personal.

Casco traffic on estero going north toward Santa Cruz Church, Manila, Philippines, 1898-1899 

Photo: Courtesy of John Tewell via Flickr (from the Denver Public Library Collection) | NCCA Facebook

One can begin by looking into his family history. The experience of listening to stories of relatives, going through photos and documents, and visiting hometowns is a personal journey towards one’s identity. Through this, we understand how buildings, sites, and objects carry meanings and are rendered significant which is how heritage works. 

Take time to travel around the Philippines and even abroad.

An object of the past becomes heritage if it is considered significant by a society. When we travel, we get to know about other societies through the things they cherish. Learning about other cultures is also a means to learn about ourselves more. It is not only about the sites/sights but also the cuisine, language, values, and beliefs that must be appreciated.

THE IMPORTANCE OF CULTURAL HERITAGE

Although cultural heritage is definitely important in terms of promoting tourism of a place (which, by the way, can boost economic growth), it certainly does not stop there. There is a deeper significance on preserving our cultural heritage than the possibility of generating income for local communities. It is understanding and appreciating our way of life as a people.

Our cultural heritage is our umbilical cord between the past and the present, which can be helpful to the future. There is wisdom as to how buildings were built a certain way during our ancestors’ times. We can pick a learning or two from their ways back then that can be more effective when we blend with our modern practices.

It is also our connecting bridge to cultures that share similarities with us, strengthening our ethnic bond as a human race. It also enhances our societies as we find fulfillment and pride in shaping our cultural identity.

Understanding our cultural heritage also impact our understanding of our humanity. Why some of them disappear is partially because of lack of understanding why they were being done in the first place. Historian Simon Thurley views it as a cycle: by understanding cultural heritage, we come to value it; by valuing it, we want to care for it; by caring for it, we enjoy it and help other people enjoy it, too; and from enjoying it, people thirst to understand.

In my travels, I have taken this cycle. When locals value and care for their cultural heritage, they proudly share them with visitors like me. Then I get to enjoy it and I thirst to understand their culture, whereby valuing and caring for it as well. And that care goes back to valuing and caring for my own culture, which is the reason why I came about writing this blog series on cultural heritage. I hope that we get to this point in our own backyard — valuing and caring for what is truly Filipino, so that others will enjoy and understand our roots, resulting to more people valuing it and caring for it.

What We Can Do

Coming from the Vientiane Declaration on Reinforcing Cultural Heritage Cooperation in ASEAN at the 26th ASEAN Summit in Lao PDR in 2016, we can start with three things that we can do to help revive + preserve (I call it “reverve”) our very own Filipino cultural heritage:

1.) Protecting through education and supporting the cause

• Researching by reading or traveling. One of the places I love to visit when I am in a new place are the museums, the local markets, the historical buildings, and the communities. I open my senses whenever I visit a place for the first time, to absorb whatever information I can and experience them myself. I find that by traveling, I learn more than what I read from books and documents, and get to understand what I read better as I witness cultures through my travel encounters.
• Teaching children. When I was working, and later volunteering, for Hands On Manila Foundation, we’ve been teaching public school students, children in home cares, and street kids about culture, may they be local folklores or stories, often bringing them to heritage sites. Children appreciate them as much as I do. And I find a certain sense of fulfillment knowing we have planted the seed of knowledge and understanding in their fertile young minds.
• Supporting organizations advancing this cause. There are a number of international, national and local organizations and government bodies that long to provide venues for understanding, exchange and appreciation of cultural heritage. We can share our resources, time or talents in organizations that have the mission of promoting appreciation and education of our heritage and culture.
  • One known organization is the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization or UNESCO. They have declared world heritage sites and have come up with programs so that nations and societies preserve these sites.
  • Another organization I have encountered is the International Council on Monuments and Sites or ICOMOS, when I attended one of their conferences in Vigan City. I went there as an individual, wanting to fill my thirst for understanding on cultural heritage.
  • The Philippine government has bodies like the National Center for Culture and the Arts (NCCA) and the National Historical Commission of the Philippines (NHCP) which are mandated in the promotion and preserving of our culture and heritage. During my work with Hands On Manila Foundation, we have partnered with these organizations in supporting their projects and programs.
  • There are other organizations that put cultural heritage as part of its varying initiatives. Rotary Club, for example, through its various chapters, also have projects reviving and promoting cultural heritage in different cities all over the world, as part of its thrust of advancing world understanding, goodwill, and peace.

2.) Preserving by documentation, events and campaigns

• Heritage mapping. I do my share in my own little way. I have volunteered for the Wikimedia Foundation Philippines heritage mapping project and lent my support with coming up with write-ups on our local food and indigenous ingredients for the Slow Food Movement. Documenting and mapping our cultural heritage is a way of preserving our culture, with the help of technology.
• Holding and attending seminars, workshops and talks on cultural heritage. Conferences are a way of bringing like-minded individuals in discussing the present track and the future of our cultural heritage. I believe that we help preserve it as we continue to review previous initiatives and plan projects that will serve this purpose.

3.) Promoting by raising awareness and encouraging dialogue

• Blog and social media posts. Utilizing the power of the pen (or the keyboard), I commit my blog space and my weekly newspaper column in promoting our cultural heritage, to raise awareness and encourage dialogue.
• Participating in festivals and promoting them. Festivals are not just venues of having fun and feasting on great food. It is a coming together of people with shared beliefs and cultures. It is a way of educating others in a not-so-boring way.

My Opinion

Our cultural heritage is very important to us, so it is just that we protect it. Sometimes we tend to forget things that we should do to protect our natural resources. So, as a concerned citizen, we have to promote the protection of our cultural heritage. People needs to be informed about this kind of thing, because our future depends on it.