The Philippine independence missions to the United States 1919-1934

Abstract

In 1916 the Filipinos received the promise of independence "as soon as a stable government can be established." The promise, contained in the preamble of the Jones Law, provided impetus to Filipino aspirations for independence. However, the Filipino leaders did not agitate for independence during the World War as a gesture of loyalty to the United States. But by the end of the War in 1913, the Filipinos felt that they had established the stable government required by the Jones Law and that it was time for the United States to redeem its promise of independence to the Philippines. Encouraged by the Jones Law and a sympathetic Governor General in the Philippines, the Filipino leaders concluded that independence from the United States could be obtained through increased political pressure and an active campaign in favour of their cause. Before 1913 the demand for independence had been voiced by means of formal resolutions of the Philippine Assembly (and after 1916, of the Philippine Legislature) delivered to the American Congress through Filipino Resident Commissioners in Washington. After 1913, a more sustained effort to terminate American rule was undertaken, with the appeal for freedom taken directly by the Filipinos to Washington through parliamentary missions or legislative committees sent by the Philippine Legislature. Independence Missions were sent to the United States almost yearly. The first one went in 1919, the last in 1933. The presence of these Missions in Washington had significant influence on the final independence act. In the midst of the Great Depression, the United States finally decided to terminate her tutelage of the Filipinos and fulfill the promise of independence given by the Jones Act of 1916. The demand for independence by the "independence missions" to the United States, agitation by American farm and labour groups, and the persistence of an "anti-colonial conscience" culminated in the passage of the Tydings-McDuffie Act in March 1934, which finally settled the Philippine issue.