Balangiga bells: The sound of peace & friendship

When the church bells of Balangiga tolled on Sept. 28, 1901, they foretold of bitter combat between Filipino guerillas and American soldiers occupying the small Samar town at the height of the Philippine-American War that lasted from 1899 to 1902.

In the aftermath of the battle that saw a company of American soldiers almost wiped out and thousands of Filipinos killed as retaliation against the guerilla attack, the bells were taken as war booty. Two of them were placed in a memorial at Warren Air Force Base in Cheyenne, Wyoming while the third one was displayed at the US Army’s Camp Red Cloud in South Korea.

With US Defense Secretary James Mattis during the historic turnover ceremony heralding the return of the Balangiga bells.

For several decades, initiatives were launched by Filipinos and Americans including retired Rear Admiral Dan McKinnon as well as private, historical and religious groups to return the bells to the Philippines, but a major hindrance was the legislation that banned the return of any “veterans memorial object” to a foreign country without specific authorization from law.

It was President Duterte’s impassioned speech during his July 2017 State of the Nation Address that reinvigorated the clamor for the return of the bells. In the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act, a provision authorized the return of the Balangiga bells if the Secretary of Defense certifies to Congress that the transfer is in the national security interest of the US, and that appropriate steps have been taken to preserve the history of veterans associated with the bells, including consultations with veterans’ groups and Wyoming government officials.

With (from left) former US Navy captain Brian Buzzell, multimillionaire businessman Henry B. Howard and Pampangabased former US Navy captain Dennis Wright.

A century and 17 years after that 1901 clash, the Balangiga bells will begin their journey home following our momentous trip to Warren Air Force Base for the Nov.  14 turnover ceremony presided by US Defense Secretary James Mattis. One could feel a sense of history pervading the small ballroom as US servicemen and women present stood when Secretary Mattis and I walked in to start the handover proceedings. 

Joining us were the US-Philippines Society’s Brian Buzzell as well as former US Navy captain Dennis Wright and my good friend Henry B. Howard, who all tirelessly worked to galvanize all the efforts to have the bells repatriated (check out www.philstar.com/opinion/2018/11/18/1869455/christmas-bells-balangiga).

The bells were taken as war booty during the Philippine-American War. Photo from commons.wikimedia.org

As Secretary Mattis said, it was time to close that dark chapter and “smooth the bonds” of friendship between the Philippines and the US that were “tested but never broken by war.”

When the Balangiga bells are finally home — hopefully sooner than soon — they will once again toll, not with the bitter sound of war but the sweet chimes of peace and friendship.