Every year, there is a formal ceremony on Mt Samat that features the Philippines' president, cabinet, and foreign dignitaries. President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.'s anniversary statement, like last year's, again made no mention of Japan and simply asked Filipinos to follow the example of their country's World War II heroes.
As you can see from this video, no one, not the president of the Philippine, not the Secretary of the Department of National Defense Gilberto Teodoro, not the Armed Forces of the Philippines chief Gen. Romeo Brawner Jr., nor the deputy chief of mission of the US Embassy, Y. Robert Ewing, identified in their remarks who the enemy was during the battle of Bataan. Japan as a perpetrator and invader was missing from all the statements with the exception of the one by the Japanese ambassador,
Ambassador Endo Kazuya did not directly say who were the "courageous souls who made the ultimate sacrifice." Instead, he listed the various ways Japan has been helping the Philippines. He only observed that "By facing our history and sincerely reflecting on the deeds and sacrifices during those dark times, we lay the very foundation of our future-oriented partnership – one built upon mutual respect, understanding and trust." The defenders of the Philippines have faded into their islands' invaders.
In the U.S. the Philippine Embassy and the Washington Filipino Community held a program at the National WWII Memorial remembering Bataan. On April 5, the Bataan Legacy Historical Society held a grand commemoration at the San Francisco National Cemetery for the 83rd Anniversary of the Bataan Death March and 80th Anniversary of the end of WWII. On April 4, the 14th Annual Chesapeake Bataan Death March Memorial Walk was held in Chesapeake, Virginia and attended by crew members of the Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Bataan (LHD 5).
Neither the House or Senate Veterans Affairs Committees issued statements on April 9. None of the committee members did either. Maybe next year we can organize a letter writing campaign to encourage them to acknowledge National Former POW Recognition Day. Frankly, there is the same silence on National POW/MIA Recognition Day in September.
By a law, signed by President Ronald Reagan on April 1, 1988, presidents are obligated to issue a proclamation to commemorate National Former POW Recognition Day and the unique service of POWs. This year's proclamation was a bit different from others. It was issued late in the day--proclamations are usually issued the day before--and less focused on POWs. See HERE.
Talking about "Bataan," the Department of Defense removed at least 13 public webpages that mentioned Bataan. This was part of a purge of DOD websites that were believed to display some sort of diversity, inclusion, and equality content. A 59-word list was presented to help identify content for removal. The list included "history," "respect," and "dignity."
This database, put together by Associated Press, identifies 13 webpages removed that mentioned Bataan: 9 about the Bataan Death March Memorial at the Kessler Air Force Base in Biloxi, MS; 3 reporting honoring Bataan Death March victims at the Osan Air Base in South Korea; and one at the Misawa Air Base in Japan reporting on the Osan ceremony.
When I first looked at this database, when the controversy was reported in March, I only found three webpages that mentioned Bataan. They all originated at an air base in New Mexico. Unfortunately, I did not record this. These pages appear to have been reinstated.
