Democratic Alliance (Philippines)

The Democratic Alliance was a leftist party[1] in the Philippines created on July 15, 1945,[2] primarily composed of members of the National Peasants Union of the Hukbalahap, the Committee of Labor Organizations of the Communist Party of the Philippines, the Filipino Blue Eagle Guerrillas, and other organizations.[3] The party supported and endorsed the bid of incumbent president Sergio Osmeña and the Nacionalista Party during the 1946 presidential elections against Manuel Roxas and the Nacionalista's liberal wing (now the Liberal Party) due to the latter's sympathetic attitude towards Filipino collaborators of the Japanese during World War II and close affiliation with "vested-interest landlord groups" (Simbulan, 2005).[4][5]

With the success of the Roxas bid for presidency, six candidates from the Democratic Alliance who were elected in the 1946 Philippine House elections were prevented from taking office on allegations of fraud and violent campaign tactics during the election.[1] These were Luis Taruc (Pampanga, 2nd district), Amado Yuzon (Pampanga, 1st district), Dr. Jesus Lava, José Cando (Nueva Ecija, 1st district), Constancio Padilla (Nueva Ecija, 2nd district), and Alejandro Simpauco (Tarlac, 2nd district).[5] Their absence from Congress helped President Roxas ensure the passage of the parity rights amendment in the 1935 Constitution of the Philippines required under the Bell Trade Act of the United States Congress.[1] The Bell Trade Act, also known as the Philippine Trade Act, required that the rights to Philippine natural resources that Philippine citizens and corporations enjoyed be equally extended to citizens and corporations of the United States. The constitutional amendment, known as the Parity Amendment, was ratified in a plebiscite on May 11, 1947.[6][7][8]

Five of the six Democratic Alliance candidates were allowed to take their seats later, after the amendment was approved. Following these congressional decisions, many in the Democratic Alliance felt the government biased towards US foreign policy, and resumed the Huk Rebellion.

References
  1. Dolan, Ronald E, ed. (1991), Philippines: A Country Study, Washington: GPO for the Library of Congress
  2. Chapman, Abraham (1946). "Note on the Philippine Elections". Pacific Affairs. 19 (2): 193–198. doi:10.2307/2752493. ISSN 0030-851X. JSTOR 2752493.
  3. Entenberg, Barbara (1946). "Agrarian Reform and the Hukbalahap". Far Eastern Survey. 15 (16): 245–248. doi:10.2307/3022677. ISSN 0362-8949. JSTOR 3022677.
  4. Osmeña, Sergio S. "Speech of President Osmeña before the delegation of the Democratic Alliance, September 23, 1945". Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
  5. Simbulan, Dante C. (2005). The Modern Principalia: The Historical Evolution of the Philippine Ruling Oligarchy. UP Press. ISBN 978-971-542-496-7.
  6. BENGZON, JOSE F. S. (1969). "National Treatment of Americans in the Philippines: Parity Rights, Retail Trade and Investments". The International Lawyer. 3 (2): 339–363. ISSN 0020-7810. JSTOR 40704547.
  7. "Bell Trade Act | United States [1946]". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
  8. scph. "The "Parity Amendment" to the 1935 Constitution is ratified in a plebiscite in 1947 | Supreme Court of the Philippines". Retrieved May 5, 2020.


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