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Unveiling of a Bust of Dr. Jose Rizal 14 June 2013 | Cadiz, Spain Senator Edgardo J. Angara

I always feel blessed when I come to Cadiz, where in 2011 I witnessed the inauguration and oath-taking of Mayor Teofila Martinez and the City Council of Cadiz.

I was also equally privileged to be inducted in 2012 into the Real

Academia Hispano Americana de Ciencas, Artes y Letras (HispanoAmerican Royal Academy of Science, Arts and Letters) as an

Acadmico Correspondientethe first non-Spanish speaking individual

to be given such an honor.

But my visits to Cadiz are also made more significant by the historical ties this port city shares with the national awakening of the Philippines, a former colony of the Spanish empire and the first constitutional republic in Asia. It was here that La Pepa, the Cadiz Constitution of 1812, the so-called lost Constitution of the Philippines, was written and enacted.

In Cadiz, one of the oldest inhabited cities in all of Europe, La

Pepa, was enacted on March 19, 1812, becoming the first written
constitution of Spain, and of the Philippines.

While La Pepa would be short-lived and immediately abolished, it would stand as a shining libertarian charter that enshrined human rights, representative government, and a monarchy accountable to an elected parliamentunprecedented in any of the colonial empires at the time.

La Pepa became the blueprint for the creole revolutions of

Spains Latin American colonies, as well as the libertarian movements in nearby Portugal.

La Pepas libertarian ideals coincided with those espoused by

the Filipino Propaganda movement: Philippine representation in the

Cortes as a province of Spain; secularization of the parishes; and the

recognition of the political rights of Filipinos.

The Cadiz Constitution then stands as a bridging point between the historical struggles toward democracy and representative government experienced both by Spain and the Philippines. It is another artifact in the heritage our two nations share, underlying further that our futures chart similar paths.

Hence, unveiling a bust of Dr. Jose Rizal, my countrys foremost national hero and a leading light to the Filipino Propaganda Movement, solidifies this common heritage. Where Cadiz was among the breeding grounds for Spanish libertarian thought, Rizal stood as the figurehead for a similar movement in the Philippines.

Rizals intellect and compassion has been hailed as the pride not just of Filipinos, but of the whole Malay race. Himself wary of armed struggle, Rizals martyrdom would become the rallying point for Filipinos to take up arms and fight for their independence.

As a firm believer in the significance of Philippine-Spanish ties, I look forward to more opportunities for our nations to congregate and collaborate towards a future fast becoming more intertwined.

Today, the world is undergoing major upheavals as many Western nations, including Spain, are beset with domestic turmoil and recession. Simultaneously, so-called centers of gravity of economic production are migrating towards the East, prompting some to predict the onset of an Asian Century.

The precise consequences of these changes remain to be seen, but they will be determined by the relationships nations cultivate among themselves.

In my view, Philippine-Spanish ties are undergoing resurgence, after many intervening years of disengagement. That this bond is built on a mutual commitment to liberal and democratic values, on top of a common culture and shared blood ties, makes it truly special and hence, all the more auspicious.

On behalf of the Filipino people, allow me to express deep gratitude for the noble gesture Cadiz has undertaken to honor the Filipino hero, Dr. Jose Rizal.

Viva Espaa! Mabuhay po tayong lahat!