KATIPUNAN

August 8, 2022 Opinion

A play of words is magical, it means a many things to a different persons, different era’s and alternate
lifetimes. Katipunan in the Filipino context means to gather or to assemble from the Tagalog root word “tipon.”
When gathering was banned, the word was used in hushed conversation and secluded encounters.
In the 1800’s it meant the K a t a a s t a a s a n , Kagalanggalangang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan or the
Kataastaasan Kagalang-galang na Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan [Supreme and Honorable Association of the Children of the Nation] or the KKK, revolutionary society founded by anti-Spanish colonialist Filipinos aiming to gain independence from Spain through a revolution.

It was an organization which aimed to go against the grain of the Spanish and at a time when our countrymen were getting tired to the rule of the long nosed and pale skinned foreigners. Amidst the maltreatment there were deaths, hardship and strife for many, fueling the need for change and self-rule. Founded by Filipino patriots Deodato Arellano, Andrés Bonifacio, Valentin Diaz, Ladislao Diwa, José Dizon, and Teodoro Plata, the Katipunan was a secret organization until it was discovered in 1896. This discovery led to the outbreak of the Philippine Revolution.
These men were labelled to be activists, dissenters, revolutionists, I am not sure if the word communist was applicable at that time, but they were perceived as that too. But dissent knows no boundaries and the discontent
of these men, fueled the Philippine Revolution, which won our independence eventually.

Today, in the millennial age the Katipunan, has been reformatted to become the slang “Katips, “owing to the modern day revolutionaries who made a movie out of it. It has been subject to a lot of debate, the 2 – hour musical, which delves into the intricacies of Martial Law under the late great dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr.

It shows the struggle of
activists, however you perceive
them to be at t that time.
It shows torture
It shows love
It shows how people gave
a good fight
It shows defeat
It shows triumph
It shows death
It shows life

The modern day “Katips”
is a lot of things rolled into a 2-
hour movie.
The meaning of “Katips”
will vary based on your biases,
your inclinations. It will be
proven by history, it will be
tested by time.
To the KKK and Katips,
may the odds ever be in your
favor.