Japanese in the Philippines

Philippine Japanese Occupation

Notable Names:

  • Lt. General Masaharu Homma

    • Command-in-chief of the Japanese Imperial Forces

  • General Douglas MacArthur

  • President Manuel L. Quezon

  • Jorge B. Vargas

    • Executive Commissioner of the Central Administrative Organization of Occupied Philippines

    • Later Chairman of the Philippine Executive Commission

  • Benigno Aquino, Sr.

    • Interior of the Philippine Executive Commission

    • Later becomes a vice president of the 2nd Philippine Republic along with Ramon Avancena

  • Antonio de las Alas

    • Finance of the Philippine Executive Commission

  • Jose P. Laurel

    • Justice of the Philippine Executive Commission

    • Later becomes the president of the 2nd Philippine Republic

  • Claro M. Recto

    • Education, health, and public welfare of the Philippine Executive Commission

  • Quintin Paredes

    • Public works and communication of the Philippine Executive Commission

  • Jose Yulo

    • Chief Justice of the Supreme court

  • Franklin D. Roosevelt

    • US President of that time

  • General George C. Marshall

    • US Army Chief of Staff

  • General Jonathan M. Wainwright

  • Ramon Avancena

    • A vice president of the 2nd Philippine Republic along with Benigno Aquino Sr.

  • Luis Taruc

    • Leader of the HUKBALAHAP

  • Lt. Gen. Tomoyuki Yamashita

    • Supreme commander of Japanese troops in Manila

Notable Organizations:

  • Central Administrative Organization of Occupied Philippines

  • The Philippine Executive Commission

  • Kapisanan sa Paglilingkod sa Bagong Pilipinas (KALIBAPI)

  • Preparatory Commission for Philippine Independence (PCPI)

  • Hukbo ng Bayan Laban sa mga Hapon (HUKBALAHAP)

Entry of Japanese in the Philippines

  • On December 7, 1941(Washington Time), Japanese forces bombed Pearl Harbor in Hawaii resulting in 2,897 deaths.

  • The Japanese had a general offensive plan: to acquire Dutch and British possessions in Southeast Asia by destroying the US Pacific Fleet.

Pearl Harbor

  • On December 8, 1941(Philippine Time), Japanese bombers conducted air attacks in various places in the Philippines, 10 hours after the attack on Pearl Harbor.

    • The main Japanese forces landed in Lingayen, Pangasinan on December 22, 1941, and destroyed air and naval defenses in several locations.

    • This was led under the command of Lieutenant General Masaharu Homma.

  • Air and Naval Defenses destroyed:

    • Davao

    • Tuguegarao

    • Baguio

    • Iba

    • Tarlac

    • Clark Field

  • The American Asiatic Fleet in the Philippines withdrew to Java, Indonesia.

The siege of Bataan and Corregidor

  • On December 24, 1941, General MacArthur implemented War Plan Orange 3, ordering the withdrawal of all island forces to Bataan peninsula and the evacuation of civilians.

  • President Manuel Quezon was advised to evacuate to Corregidor Island, and Manila was declared an open city on December 26, 1941.

    • The second inaugural ceremonies of the Commonwealth occurred in the Corregidor tunnel.

  • The Japanese forces entered Manila on January 2, 1942, and many people stayed in air-raid shelters for days.

Japanese Martial Law Philippines

  • On January 3, 1942, General Masaharu Homma announced the end of the American occupation and the imposition of martial law in the Philippines.

  • On January 23, 1942, Jorge B. Vargas was ordered to assume the position of the Executive Commissioner of the Central Administrative Organization of Occupied Philippines.

  • Curfew was imposed, starting from 8:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m., and later from midnight to 6:00 a.m.

Douglas MacArthur and the Filipino-American Troops

  • Despite living on half-rations, drinking contaminated water, and being weakened by disease, the defensive soldiers in Bataan resisted the Japanese attack on January 9, 1942.

  • The Japanese outflanked the defenders of the Abucay-Mauban line by finding a path over Mount Natib and forced a withdrawal to Corregidor on January 24, 1942.

  • General MacArthur directed that there would be no more retreats and the troops resisted every attempt by the Japanese to penetrate their second line of defense.

The Philippine Executive Commission

  • The Philippine Executive Commission was established on January 23, 1942, with Jorge B. Vargas as chairman and various department heads appointed:

    • Benigno Aquino, Sr., interior

    • Antonio de las Alas, finance

    • Jose P. Laurel, justice

    • Claro M. Recto, education, health, and public welfare;

    • Quintin Paredes, public works and communication

    • Jose Yulo was named Chief Justice of the Supremecourt

Escape of Douglas MacArthur

  • President Roosevelt abandoned the Philippines to the Japanese

  • General MacArthur left the Philippines for Australia, suggestion of US Army Chief of Staff, General George C. Marshall

    • On March 11, 1942, MacArthur departed from Corregidor to Mindanao in 2 days

    • On March 17, 1942, MacArthur departed from Del Monte Field, Barangay Dicklum, Manolo Fortich

    • On March 17, 1942, MacArthur landed in Australia and made his promise to the Filipinos

The Fall of BATAAN and CORREGIDOR

  • The 11,000 defenders of Corregidor held out against intense Japanese bombardment until May 6, 1942, when the Japanese secured a beachhead on the island. and landed tanks

  • General Homma warned Wainwright of execution of all prisoners unless they surrender.

  • General Wainwright ordered the American flag to be lowered on Corregidor to avoid a massacre.

  • Despite the surrender of Bataan and Corregidor, the Filipino people remained strong and underground guerrilla movements were initiated.

The Bataan and Illigan Death March

  • On April 10, 1942, The Bataan Death March began , with Filipino-American troops forced to march from Bataan to San Fernando, Pampanga.

  • Around 10,000 lives were claimed by this infamous trail.

  • On July 4, 1942, The Iligan Death March began, surrendered soldiers in Mindanao were made to march from Camp Keithley to Iligan with the rest of the Mindanao POWS to Camp Casisang, Malaybalay, Bukidnon.

The Japanese Military Administration Announced political Changes

  • The Japanese Military Administration dissolved political parties and established the non-political organization KALIBAPI, a non-political organization.

    • Kapisanan sa Paglilingkod sa Bagong Pilipinas

The 2nd Philippine Republic and the Filipino Resistance

  • The KALIBAPI members appointed a committee to nominate members of the Preparatory Commission for Philippine Independence (PCPI) on June 18, 1943.

  • The new constitution contained articles from the 1935 constitution that suited the Japanese.

  • The KALIBAPI, lead by Benigno Aquino Sr., held a party convention on September 20, 1943, and elected Jose P. Laurel as president of the second republic.

    • Benigno Aquino Sr. and Ramon Avancena as a vice president

  • The new republic was inaugurated on October 14, 1943.

  • Farmers in Pampanga formed local brigades for protection and created the guerrilla army HUKBALAHAP or “Hukbo Ng Bayan Laban sa mga Hapon”.

  • Luis Taruc was chosen as the leader of HUKBALAHAP.

Arrival of MacArthur and The Japanese Surrender

  • General MacArthur's return to the Philippines with his army in late 1944.

    • This marked a significant turning point in the Pacific theater of World War II.

  • The Battle of Leyte Gulf from October 23 to October 26, 1944.

    • American forces engaged Japanese forces during this battle.

  • American soldiers reaching Mindoro by mid-December.

  • Successful docking of US liberation forces at Lingayen Gulf on January 9, 1945.

  • Lt. Gen. Tomoyuki Yamashita, supreme commander of Japanese troops in Manila, mobilized kamikazes (Japanese suicide pilots).

    • However, they failed to stop the advancing Americans.

  • Deployment of MAKAPILI units by the Japanese to defend Manila.

    • These units also failed to succeed in their defense.

  • Fighting continued until Japan's formal surrender on September 2, 1945.

    • Due to the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.