History defines our identity and gives direction to our lives

ON Oct. 29, 2024, Supreme Court senior associate justice Antonio Carpio donated to the University of Asia and the Pacific a replica of an 1875 map of the Philippine archipelago. The original of the map with the title “Carta General del Archipielago Filipino” was made under the direction of Captain Claudio Montero, the first head of the Philippine Hydrographic Commission during the Spanish regime.

Justice Carpio has been going around the country donating this map to departments of the government, schools, universities, and libraries. He explained to a small audience the significance of this map. This map is an official document that indicates all the islands that belonged to the Philippine archipelago during the Spanish regime and the territory that was ceded by Spain to the United States in the 1898 Treaty of Paris.

Justice Carpio was part of the team that argued the claims of the Philippines before the arbitral tribunal of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. The tribunal decided in favor of the Philippines.

There was, however, an error in the Treaty of Paris, Justice Carpio pointed out. Article III of the treaty designated lines indicated by points on latitude and longitude and all the islands within those lines were the territory of the Philippines that Spain ceded to the US.

But then, the Americans found out that there were islands that were occupied by Spaniards and Filipinos that fell outside those lines. And so, the US and Spain went back to the negotiating table and agreed that those islands falling outside the lines drawn by the Treaty of Paris were supposed to be included in the territory of the Philippines ceded by Spain to the US.

These islands included the Spratly Islands and the Scarborough Shoal. The treaty that corrected the error is the Treaty of Washington of 1900. All the ceded islands belonging to the Philippine archipelago are indicated in the 1875 map, which makes this document very important for legal and historical reasons. This is why Justice Carpio is advocating that it be known and present in government and educational institutions. This document was used in the Philippine claims presented to the arbitral tribunal.

After Justice Carpio’s explanation, a history professor declared, “This is the first time I hear about the Treaty of Washington.” A lawyer in the audience affirmed, “Me too!”

At present, some of the Spratly Islands are occupied and claimed by Vietnam, China, Taiwan, Brunei, and Malaysia when perhaps it is arguable that all those islands belong to the Philippine archipelago as indicated by the Carta General of 1875.

History is so important! It defines our identity, and it gives direction to our lives. Without history, we are lost. Think of a man who forgets his own personal history because of some mishap. He will not know who he is. He is lost. That is what will happen to us Filipinos if we do not know our history.

Fr. Cecilio L. Magsino,

cesmagsino@gmail.com