lThe Philippine Flag: Symbol of our Sovereignty and Solidarity
the help of her daughter Lorenza and Delfina Herbosa Natividad, niece of Dr. Jose Rizal and wife of Gen. Salvador Natividad.
Made of silk, the flag had a white equilateral triangle at the left containing a sunburst of eight rays at the center, a five-pointed star at each angle of the triangle, an upper stripe of blue and a lower stripe of red. The sun stands for liberty; the sunburst of eight rays for the first eight provinces to take up arms against Spain; and the three stars for the three island groups fo the Philippines – Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao. The white triangle signifies Filipino hope for equality; the upper blue stripe stands for peace, truth and justice; while the lower red stripe stands for patriotism and valor.
General Aguinaldo brought the flag with him when he returned to the Philippines from Hong Kong on May 19, 1898. He unfurled it in public for the first time to celebrate the victory of the Filipino forces against the Spaniards during the Battle of Alapan on May 28, 1898.
It was, however, in Kawit, Cavite, on June 12, 1898, that the official hoisting of the flag took place during the proclamation of Philippine Independence by General Aguinaldo. During the unfurling, the music band of the San Francisco de Malabon played for the first time the Marcha Nacional Filipina, composed by Julian Felipe, a Filipino music teacher and composer from Cavite. Later, the poem “Filipinas” by a young poet soldier Jose Palma became the lyrics of the anthem.
The same flag was flown with dignity during the inauguration of Malolos Congress on September 15, 1898.
The Philippine flag stood as witness to the glorious events of our history. It encountered the most significant events in the Filipinos’ struggle for freedom. And since it symbolizes our ideals and sentiments as a nation, it deserves to be treated with solemnity and dignity.
The display of the Philippine Flag from May 28 to June 12 of each year honors the sacrifices of our heroes for our hard-earned freedom. This also a fitting respect and affection for our national flag – the symbol of our sovereignty and solidarity.
Filipino People Should Respect the Philippine flag
Giving respect to the national flag, the Philippine flag is one of the value that our beloved teachers taught us. It is an important lesson taught during elementary days, but do we know why we should respect and love it?
According to the curator of the Aguinaldo Shrine, it's important to revisit the history of the flag and be reminded of how our heroes fought for our independence. In an interview with Rappler, Haidee Paulette Bedruz, curator of the Aguinaldo Shrine, said that the flag, more than anything, is a symbol.
“It’s a symbol of who we are, of what happened in the past, and what it represents for us,” she said in a mix of Filipino and English. So, these symbolizes that giving importance to our flag is a must. Everyone should respect, and give value to our Philippine flag in an appropriate ways. Our great heroes fought much to achieve the freedom that we should have as a Filipino people.
But some individuals neglect, disrespecting and ignoring on how we should respect our Philippine flag.
There are many Filipinos who didn't apply the right all about our flag. They just disregard our flag especially during flag ceremonies in some schools. As an individual saying, WE MUST RESPECT OUR PHILIPPINE FLAG.
I am deeply hoping all of you to support this petition in order to make the Philippine flag gives more value and importance to everyone.
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