|
Situated on the crossroads of
Asia, on the eastern rim of the China Sea, the Philippines
has hosted voyagers, migrants and traders since the dawn of
history. Early trade with China and Japan can be traced on
the archaeological relics left behind by traders in the
banks of major hubs of the country.
The West discovery of the Philippines in 1521 facilitated
the growth of Christianity and emergence of new culture.
However, Spanish colonization did not actually began until
1565 when voyager Miguel Lopez de Legaspi established a
Spanish base in the town of Manila, the Philippines'
Capital.
In 1898, the Philippines won independence after 327 years
under Spanish rule, but found themselves controlled by the
Americans from 1900-1942 and the Japanese from 1942-1945.
The Americans brought over their educational and legal
systems and introduced their style of government. With the
end of the Japanese occupation in 1946, the Philippines
regained democracy as a Republic. True democracy was fully
achieved by the Filipinos after the "People Power
Revolution" in 1986 which led to the downfall of the
reigning dictatorship. Still one of the strongest
democracies in Asia, the current president is Gloria
Macapagal Arroyo. |
