Dissent, Repression and Revolution: Descent into Manila’s "Dark Labyrinth," 1895-1898

• In Event: 358. The Philippines in the World: Ties and Tensions in Philippine History and Cultures

Abstract

The transformation of nineteenth-century Manila into a cosmopolitan city as a result of direct Spanish colonial engagement in the Philippines left an indelible imprint on the nature and intensity of the 1896 revolution that erupted at the zenith of Spanish colonial rule. By analyzing Manila’s complex social matrix and the close interactions existing within this urban milieu it is possible to develop a better understanding of the secret society, Katipunan, and its path towards revolution. During the period of turbulent political upheavals threatening Spain and the rest of its declining empire in the 1890s, the colonial administration intensified state repression in the Philippines to enforce law and order while hunting down enemies of the state. By 1895 the escalation of state terror against suspected native opposition forced the Katipunan to become radicalized and more inclined toward armed struggle.
This clandestine milieu was the birthplace of the revolutionary Katipunan and the 1896 armed rebellion against Spain. The confluence of the institutionalization of Spanish urban policing and covert surveillance as well as the formation of the secret organization created the essential elements of a clandestine political underworld in Manila that I refer to as the 'dark labyrinth.' As the colonial state descended into the underworld of espionage, manipulation, and deception in search of its unknown enemies, so too did the Katipunan, to ensure its survival. Consequently, the descent into Manila's ‘dark labyrinth,’ I will argue, incubated the 1896 Katipunan-led revolution both by fostering organized subversion and intensifying state repression.

Author

• Maureen S. Justiniano, Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA)