Liberalism in the Philippines emerged during the Philippine Revolution, when Filipino revolutionary José Rizal hinted liberalism in his works.[1] The ideology emerged more during the creation of the Liberal Party of the Philippines, one of the oldest parties in the Philippines. The ideology slowly died out during the 2000s, with the rule of Rodrigo Duterte and other outside ideologies, including Authoritarianism and Populism. The ideology currently sits in a low position, submerged by other popular ideologies.[2]
The 19th century saw the rise of liberalism in Spain, culminating in the Spanish Constitution of 1812.[3] This constitution even included the representation of the Philippines within the Cortes of Cádiz. However, this representation was short-lived.[4] The promises of liberalism in Spain were never fully implemented in the Philippines, where the powers of the state and church increased rather than decreased. The promise of equality under the law for all Spanish citizens in particular was never achieved, with non-peninsulares not being granted equality with native Spaniards in a racially segmented Spanish Empire.[3]
A Filipino named Luis Rodríguez-Varela, or "El Conde Filipino" published books popularizing and defensing the Liberalist ideology. Many of his ideologies reached liberal families, especially in Manila, the popularization and emergence later took part in the creation of the Comite de Reformadores of 1869, the first Liberal Party. The party included various people, including Father José Burgos. The party also had a youth wing in the University of Santo Tomas, including people such as Felipe Buencamino and Paciano Rizal. The party later ended by government suppression in the 1872 Cavite mutiny. After, Nationalism in the Philippines was founded on Liberalism, creating the first generation of Nationalists, Ilustrados. Including the Filipino revolutionary Jose Rizal.[5] This type of liberalism surrounded a group from Spain known as the "Propaganda Movement".[3] Illustrados, including those in the Propaganda Movement, sought reform of the governance of the Philippines and a curtailing of Catholic power. In particular, they called for an end to racial discrimination, and thus the full application of Spanish law in the Philippines, which would provide full rights to those in the Philippines as Spanish citizens with full representation in the Spanish Cortes.[6]
During the Spanish tenure, Filipino revolutionary José Rizal hinted multiple references to the Liberalist ideology, while critics like Renato Constantino and Jose Maria Sison hinted to Rizal as radical. Liberalism was mostly used during the Philippine revolution, after other international revolutions including the American Revolution and the French Revolution. In the novel Noli Me Tángere, a nationalist figure is seen named Elias, which is an important character in the novel. Elias's ideologies include Radicalism and Liberalism, therefore popularizing the ideology even more. Many early thinkers drew directly from the rise of liberalism in Spain during the 19th century. Others, such as Rizal, had philosophies that differed from the mainstream liberalism that developed in Spain, for example being less opposed to the influence of the Catholic Church in society.[7]
During the American tenure, Liberalism became the main ideology, helping state-building. Compared to the prominence in Filipino politics, the ideology never catched on to society, while the leaders saw themselves as Liberal, the rest of the country did not. The ideology of liberalism increased when the idea of de-colonization from the Americans was introduced.
The first challenge of Filipino liberalism was the rule of the former president and dictator Ferdinand Marcos. He stated that his actions constituted a “democratic revolution from the center". His rule also fought against the Marxism–Leninism ideology and Oligarchic families. The Liberal Party later became the main opposition of the Marcos regime. A revolution, named the People Power Revolution, threw down the Marcos regime and set a Liberal, Corazon Aquino, as president. The revolution itself was considered Liberalist.
During the 2016 Philippine presidential election, two favored candidates were foreseen, Liberalist Grace Poe and Populist Rodrigo Duterte. The election eventually ended, placing Duterte as president. The regime, also known as "Dutertemismo", was opposed by Liberalists and priests. The regime was also opposed following allegations of mass murder. Sources also say that Duterte criticized the Liberalist ideology, and disrespecting the press.[8]
Philippine liberalism, more than other things, is related to the ideology of debating. Most of the popular Filipino liberalists are debaters, including educator Camilo Osías and diplomat Carlos Romulo.[9]