{"id":97499,"date":"2017-04-08T20:07:27","date_gmt":"2017-04-09T00:07:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/?p=97499"},"modified":"2017-04-08T20:07:27","modified_gmt":"2017-04-09T00:07:27","slug":"75th-day-of-valor-in-the-eyes-of-filipino-artists-govt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/2017\/04\/08\/75th-day-of-valor-in-the-eyes-of-filipino-artists-govt\/","title":{"rendered":"75th Day of Valor in the eyes of Filipino artists, gov’t"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"The<\/a>
The Philippines on Sunday will commemorate its 75th Day of Valor (Araw ng Kagitingan). (Photo: Ramon F. Velasquez\/ Wikipedia<\/a>)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

MANILA\u2013The Philippines on Sunday will commemorate its 75th Day of Valor (Araw ng Kagitingan).<\/p>\n

In commemoration of the day, the Philippine News Agency (PNA) approached some artists to ask them what the \u201cAraw ng Kagitingan\u201d means to them.<\/p>\n

\u201dIt means a lot to honor the veterans\/heroes by remembering their contributions to our country,\u201d said painter Ed de Guzman. \u201dThey have shown their love for the country by giving their own lives to achieve peace and freedom.\u201d<\/p>\n

The painter from Quezon City observed that in this digital age, it seems like the youth has forgotten such Filipino values as love for country.<\/p>\n

Teaching these values in school must thus be strengthened, he said.<\/p>\n

\u201dIt\u2019s also important that the government focuses on the veterans\u2019 concerns to give them better hope, and so that the future generations would see these veterans as models in fighting for the country,\u201d said de Guzman.<\/p>\n

Visual artist Aleili Ariola-Oclos\u2019 grandparents are veterans. \u201cWe just need to listen to their stories,\u201d she noted. \u201dEven though they may be repeating those stories, it is important for them to feel that you are willing to listen, and that you have a heart to know their story.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ariola-Oclos emphasized that taking care of them means more to them than any award they could receive.<\/p>\n

\u201dSometimes, it\u2019s not the material things that people need in order to say that they are valued. To make them feel that we are truly grateful is what matters,\u201d the young visual artist from Cavite pointed out.<\/p>\n

Every time she hears \u201cBataan\u201d, she said she remembers her grandparents\u2019 story.<\/p>\n

\u201dMy grandfather said he marched while his foot was tied with a chain. My grandmother, on the other hand, pretended to be a man to avoid being raped by the Japanese,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

For Aleili, \u201cAraw ng Kagitingan\u201d is not just for those who fought with weapons in their hands, but for everyone who did everything to fight for their families and their countrymen.<\/p>\n

\u201dWe must respect not just the veterans, but all the elderly,\u201d she remarked.<\/p>\n

Her painter husband, Archie, said veterans deserve love and honor.<\/p>\n

\u201dThey have sacrificed their lives for the benefit of many, and they have served the country without asking for anything in return,\u201d he told PNA.<\/p>\n

This is why, for Archie, commemorating the Day of Valor is also recognizing the bravery of Filipino veterans.<\/p>\n

Archie\u2019s works include murals that can be found in Bonifacio Global City, Taguig, and in Dasmari\u00f1as, Cavite. Most of his artworks depict the lives of farmers and fisherfolk.<\/p>\n

The government, for its part, wants to echo the message that as Filipinos enjoying their freedom today, they must continue to immortalize the selfless heroic sacrifices of the veterans.<\/p>\n

For this year\u2019s observance, the government has chosen the theme, \u201cParangal sa mga Beterano, Tungo sa Bayan na Nararapat sa mga Pilipino, mga Pilipino na Nararapat sa Bayan\u201d.<\/p>\n

A series of commemorative events and replication ceremonies had been lined up to show the nation\u2019s gratitude and appreciation for the veterans.<\/p>\n

Through these activities, the government aims to instill a sense of national pride and patriotism among Filipinos.<\/p>\n

Furthermore, by commemorating \u201cAraw ng Kagitingan\u201d, the government targets to prepare the youth to be the nation\u2019s future defenders, emulating the veterans\u2019 values.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

MANILA\u2013The Philippines on Sunday will commemorate its 75th Day of Valor (Araw ng Kagitingan). In commemoration of the day, the …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":33,"featured_media":97500,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,16,95],"tags":[16890,17682],"class_list":["post-97499","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-art-and-culture","category-news","category-news-ph","tag-araw-ng-kagitingan","tag-filipino-artist","mauthors-ma-cristina-c-arayata","mauthors-philippine-news-agency"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97499","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/33"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=97499"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/97499\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/97500"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=97499"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=97499"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=97499"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}