I played ball

Title

I played ball

Language

English

Year

1947

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Fulltext

... • The experiences recou.fited in the following' article are typical of . what actually tqok place "behind the scenes" in most schools through'.'-•c out fhe .. Philippines during ~he occupation days. They show t~ ~ :·, · ·terly "ball;, game played by our teachers to thwli,rt Japanese culturaJ ' .penetration. I PLAYED BALL by VITALIANO BERNARDINO Divino,n Superintendent of Schools_ for Marindu9ue The day I arrived at Iloilo City to ~Ssume my duties as division superintendent of schools for the province, I was informed that a newly-appointed government official had to "pay his respects" to Captain Hemono, chief of the military admini.:;tration for the island of ·Panay. But for two weeks I kept }lbsti>oning the distasteful visit because l · knew that such "courtesy calls" were actually for the purpose of receiving ins'bructions. It was my desire to delay liS long as I could the advent of the time wheti . I !)hould be subject to the dictation and directions of the Japs· · Of course I expected that sooner "r lat_ er I was to be "requested' to see Cnp· tain Hemono if I did not do so on my ~ccord. And I had to be well prepared for the initial meeting - meaning I should be ready to explain my failure to see the Captain immediately after my arrival. True enough, I wa!> "invit~d" by the Chief of the Military Administration to a conference at his office <Jn the thiii'd floor of · the former Masonic Building on August 14, 1943, at 2:00 o'clock p.m. ·'When you come Iroi?·o?" asked the ·[J;Ozen-faced J ap interpreter as soon as I . was seated in front of Captain Hemono. (The latter did not have on his military coat nor his shoes, and sat with one leg hooked over the right arm of his chair. He appeared unconcerned w-ith. my presence· as if to impress me that the situation was an affair of one in high authority speaking to an underling.) "A few days ago," I answered, try- ' in.g to appear very much composed al· though actually starting to feel the jit-: ters. "W·hen few days?" the interpret~r ' asked again. "July 31st," I replied. "Rong time now. Why not come report chief miritary administrashong Mrive Iroiro?" "Oh, I wanted to start work right away. So I first visited all the schools. I want to be ready to answer any question I may be asked about the schools." Sensing that the explanation did not seem to satisfy the captain, I continuP.d, "My first interest was to find out what is being done with the U!achin&- of Nippongo and whether the 'undesirable' portions of the textbooks have been covered in accordance with the order of the Military Administration in Manila." "Hay, yorosil yorosi! ... bry goodal" I know he would fall for that stuff. And to clinch the very good initial impression, I tried to drive further, "By the way, I was surprised to find that the teaching of Nippongo has not yet been started in the schooL" "We sent pensionado 111anira study teach Nippongo." (I knew that fact when I left Manila as I interviewed some ot the pensionados at the Bureau of Public Instruction. But I made no comment.) "Pensionados come back four months." 35 \J I 36 PHILIPPINE EDUCATOR (The Captain had now taken the initiative in the conversation.) "Too ronp time. So Japanese sibiryan teach Nippongo, he?" I was not prepa~red for this unexpected development. My feigned great concern for Nippongo had put me on the spot and would now serve to facilitate the teaching of this language which I precisely wanted· delayed if ;not entirP.ly prevented. I had to think fast. "May. . . be that can be done," I said hesitatingly. "But I am afraid tJiat iu the long run it might be better to wait for the return of the Nippongo pensionados." I labo:riously explained that a very good start in teaching Nippongo or any other language is essential. That experience in other provinces were to the effect that in the elementary grades Filipino teachers could teach more effectively than Japanese teachers. Filipino teachers could understand Filipino children better. I feared, I concluded, that the Filipino children might develop an unfavorable attitude toward the learning of Nippongo in the hands of an untrained and incompetent teaclier, which would be harmful to the cause of Nippongo in the end. I guessed this reasoning clinched the argument, as thereafter the captain said not a word. I did not either. • • • The rich rice lands between the towns of Pavia and Santa Barbara were converted into cotton plantations by the Japs under the authority of the Dai Nippon Growing Association. The company found very much difficulty in hiring enough men to pick the cotton. People feared being kidnapped or killed by the guerdllas for such positively proJapanese activity. But the cotton being an. essential war material must be picked. The J aps therefore resorted to the schools-the children. One morning an official of the Dai Nippon Association, accompanied by two Kempeis, came to the Santa Barbara Elementaxy School, summoned th• principal and teachers, and instructed them ro require their pupils to spend their class hoUll's in picking cotton. Not cowed even by the presence of the two armed visitors, the principal (who was a brave man, otherwise hewou!.d not have accepted assignment in a school too close to the guerrilla zone) told the visitor that he was sorry he could not acquiesce to their desire without any previous authority from the superintendeH<. 'fo which the cotton official did not reply . . . and left. Wasting no time, the principal rushed to the city and informed me about. the whole story. I sought the intervention of the provincial govern<Y.r, but since immediate action was necessary in order to save the children from having to be collaborators in the J aps' war effort. I forthwith went, in company with the principal, to Captain Hemono. Employing the same strategy that had p.roved very effective in our previous encounters, I })Toceeded with my argument in this wise: That while the picking of the cotton was necessary for the war effort, "we" should try to avoid showing the people any semblance or exploitation in order to convince them of the "sincere, altruistic, and benevolent" intentions of the Japanese people in the .Philippines. Like the Japanese. the Filipinos are lovers of education. and in education lay the hope of rejuvenating them and "weaning them away from Occidental moorings." Nothingshould therefore be done to impair thi$ education. The captain was alf ears while t spoke, and befoo-e we left he assured us that he would look into the matter that same afternoon. The following day the principal came to his school prepared for the worst. The morning passed; then the afternoon. and no visitor came. Thank God! And the principal slept soundly that evening.

Media