1. Economy and Independence Power and Trade in the Commonwealth Years

2. Business and Politics Remember This Axiom: The Business of Politics is The Politics of Business - Many maneuverings in politics are the result of business interests by politicians from their constituents

3. The Philippines and the U.S.  It is interesting to note that much of the legislative maneuvering prior to the Commonwealth era was linked to the economic status of the United States in the Depression and the post-war Depression era.

4. Trade with the U.S. The kind of commerce that existed then with the United States was that of preferential trade. Philippine products were given priority in the US market especially that of coconut oil and sugar Tariffs on Philippine goods were considerably lower and had more quotas in importation to the US It developed the Philippine economy during this period

5. Payne-Aldrich Tariff Act Enacted in 1909, this opened the Philippines to free trade with the United States and eventually developed trade between the two countries The only disadvantage is that it severely limited Philippine prospects to trade with other countries

6. The Philippine Independence Campaign The Jones Law provided the presence of two resident commissioners to the US to sit and observe the proceedings of the US Congress. They would be eventually be replaced by a Commission on Independence or parliamentary missions to the US to petition for Philippine independence. From 1918 to 1932, there were at least five Philippine independent missions to the United States that eventually ended with the creation and approval of the Tydings- McDuffie Law that provided for self-government of the Philippines.

7. The Great Depression The Great Depression of the ’30s in the US was, ironically, a period of prosperity in the Philippines

8. It was during this period that the US period actively pursued laws to “eliminate the competition in Philippine imports” and “to grant independence to the colony to achieve this.”

9. Thus, both the Hare-Hawes-Cutting Law and the Tydings-McDuffie Law had provisions regarding trade beneficial to the US HHC – taxation of Phil. Exports - joint Fil-American trade conference for “trade transition”

10. Tydings-McDuffie Law Approved on March 24, 1934 Also known as the Philippine Independence Act It provided for the drafting and guidelines of a constitution for a 10-year "transitional period" which became the Commonwealth Government before the granting of independence Authority from the US President will be given to a High Commissioner instead of a Governor-General In spite of the granting of self-government and eventual independence, there were other provisions in the law that may recognize the Philippines as an independent country but will be detrimental to the economic conditions that were begun during the American colonial period.

11. The Tydings-Mcduffie Law Relations with the United States Pending Complete Independence Section 6. After the date of the inauguration of the government of the Commonwealth of the Philippine Islands trade relations between the United States and the Philippine Islands shall be as now provided by law, subject to the following exceptions: (a) taxation of refined and unrefined sugar; (b) taxation of coconut oil (c) taxation of abaca (d) imposition of export taxes to be increased every year for 9 years

12. In the case of the T-M Law, the preferential trade measures were counteracted with laws like the proposal to tax coconut oil. The solution that was made was the “Norris Amendment” which accrued to the Philippine Treasury the taxes on imported coconut oil to the US. The funds will be later used once the Phil. is independent Copra

13. In the case of sugar, the Jones-Costigan Act of 1934 imposed quotas on sugar imports To counteract this, Philippine sugar barons increased their production to get a large quota The country was alloted 850,000 long tons. When FDR signed it into law, he increased the Philippine quota to 1,040,000 long tons. But this quota would be eventually be taxed to protect US sugar producers and manufacturers

14. Immigration The act reclassified all Filipinos that were living in the United States as aliens; were not allowed to work legally, and a quota of 50 immigrants a year was enforced. (Section 8). The pertinent articles were: (1) … citizens of the Philippine Islands who are not citizens of the United States shall be considered as if they were aliens…. The Philippine Islands shall be considered as a separate country and shall have for each fiscal year a quota of fifty. (2) Citizens of the Philippine Islands who are not citizens of the United States shall not be admitted to the continental United States from the Territory of Hawaii unless they belong to a class declared to be non-immigrants (3) the Philippine Islands shall be considered a foreign country.

15. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt signing the Tydings McDuffie Law, March 24, 1934. Behind him are independence mission head Manuel L. Quezon and Elpidio Quirino

16. The Commonwealth Years Following the signing of the Tydings-McDuffie Law, the Philippines began to ready itself for its transition from a colonial entity to a self- governing nation.

17. 1934 Constitutional Convention Claro M. Recto, president of the Constitutional Convention, during the opening of the session that began the writing of the 1935 Constitution

18. 1934 Constitutional Convention On July 10, 1934, an election was held to vote for the delegates to write a constitution for the Philippines. 202 delegates were elected and the convention was opened on July 30. The draft of the Constitution was finished by January 31, 1935 and was approved by the Convention on February 8. There was only one dissenter, Tomas Cabili of Lanao, who felt that the Constitution did not serve the people of Mindanao. The Constitution was approved by President Roosevelt on March 23, 1935 and ratified by the Filipino people in a plebiscite on May 14, 1935.

19. President Roosevelt signing his approval of the 1935 Constitution that created the Commonwealth Government.

20. The 1935 Elections On September 17, 1935, the first national elections were held for the presidency of the Commonwealth. The candidates were Manuel Quezon and Sergio Osmeña (Nationalist Coalition); Emilio Aguinaldo and Raymund Melliza (Nationalist Socialist); and, Gregorio Aglipay and Norberto Labong (Republican)

21. Quezon and Osmeña won an overwhelming majority with 70% of the votes. The Commonwealth Government Inauguration of the Commonwealth, November 15, 1935.

22. 1935 and Beyond… At the start of the Commonwealth Government, Philippine exports were going up to the concern of American interests as competition was growing in a recovering US economy. Soon Quezon and US High Commissioner Frank Murphy were calling on both legislative powers to “balance out” the import-export trade

23. Reciprocity “Trade Reciprocity” became the word to campaign for equal trade. A group – the Phil- American Trade Association – was formed to do two things: -support for adequate protection for important items in US trade -education campaign to emphasize the value of the Phil. Market for American goods

24. Economic Nationalism This was the singular characteristic of the Commonwealth economy. Examples: 1. Public Land Act 2. Creation of the National Economic Council 3. removal of preferential trade opening the economy to the world market

25. Other Problems 1.Social Justice Quezon was aware of the problems of the peasantry and tried to enforce a social justice program that would improve their lot. There are a few testimonies to this as opined by peasant and communist leader Pedro Abad Santos. “Quezon… I thought [was] a benevolent despot aware of the complaints of the peasantry and the dangers of social unrest… Some attempts at ameliorative legislation were made to improve the lot of the peasant tenant and small land owner but they were ineffective in the face of local control by the big landed proprietors…. “ It was also known that Quezon also employed scare tactics by telling off the landlords who were also his friends. As Quezon himself, narrates: “I tell them if you know what’s good for you better improve the conditions of your tenants. You do not have enough sons for the army, so we must conscript our soldiers from the poor. we put guns in their hands and teach them how to use them. If you are not careful they will use those guns against you. If you want to save what you have, give them ten percent of it or they will take it all.”

26. “ Social Justice is far more beneficial when applied as a matter of sentiment and not of law.” Quezon managed to enforce policy programs that benefited the poor and the needy like health plans, pension funds and other beneficial laws. The agrarian, land tenancy and labor problems, however, remained.

27. 2. Political power - it was said that the Commonwealth was practically a “Quezon government” as political opposition was effectively reduced. -Quezon also practiced a self-serving form of political patronage that made a dominant force in Philippine politics that reached a climax with his presidency

28. An Assessment It has been said that the Commonwealth Government lived a short life to provide an adequate assessment as to its achievements in our history. World War II disrupted the government and its functions bringing it to a standstill Nevertheless, one can conclude that the government proved itself useful in alleviating the lives of Filipinos with regards to their social and economic and eventually pave the road to independence.