Introduction

The Philippines (a Wikipedia link) is an island country in south east Asia with a population of over 114 million people. It consists of about 7,641 islands. It is bordered to the north by the Philippine Sea, to the east by the Philippine Sea (and then the Pacific ocean), to the south by the Celebes Sea, and to the west by the South China Sea. Its capital is Manila and its largest city is Quezon City.

It is a democratic constitutional republic with a presidential system. The president is head of state, the head of government, and the commander of the armed forces. The president is elected by the citizens for a six-year term. Unusually, the vice-president is elected separately to the president, and therefore may be from a different political party. The president appoints and presides over the cabinet and officials of the government agencies and institutions. There are two houses of parliament: the upper Senate and the lower House of Representatives.

Officially, there is no national religion. The constitution (from 1987) has a bill of rights that guarantees the free exercise of religion.

History

Pre-colonial era (before 1521)

• Early humans: Early human fossils include Homo luzonensis (dating back 134,000 years) and modern human remains from the Callao Cave (about 67,000 years).
• Austronesian migrations: The ancestors of modern Filipinos arrived around 3,000 BCE, bringing advanced maritime and agricultural.
• Society and trade: People organized into independent sociopolitical units called barangays led by datus or rajas. The islands maintained maritime trade networks with China, India, and Southeast Asia, and Islam was introduced to parts of Mindanao and the Visayas.

Spanish period (1521 to 1898)

• Arrival and conquest: Magellan landed in the Philippines in 1521 and was killed in the Battle of Mactan by Datu Lapu-Lapu. Spain later established a permanent settlement in Cebu (1565) and named the archipelago Las Islas Filipinas for King Philip II.
• Colonial impact: Spain introduced Catholicism, a centralized government, and European-style architecture, governing the colony initially via the Viceroyalty in Mexico.
• Revolution: Centuries of resistance led to the Philippine Revolution in 1896, led by nationalists like José Rizal, who was executed by the Spanish authorities.

American period and WWII (1898 to 1946)

• U.S. rule: After its defeat in the Spanish-American War, Spain ceded the Philippines to the United States in the 1898 Treaty of Paris. The Philippine-American War (1899 to 1902) followed as U.S. forces suppressed the newly-declared republic.
• Commonwealth era: The Commonwealth of the Philippines was established in 1935 with Manuel L. Quezon as president.
• World War II: Japanese forces invaded in 1941. Allied forces led by U.S. and Filipino troops, liberated the islands between 1944 and 1945.

Independent republic and the Marcos era (1946 to present)

• Independence: The Republic of the Philippines gained independence from the US on July 4, 1946, with Manuel Roxas as the first president.
• Martial law: Ferdinand Marcos was elected president in 1965 and declared martial law in 1972, ruling authoritatively until he was overthrown.
• People Power Revolution: The peaceful 1986 People Power Revolution removed Marcos and installed Corazon Aquino, thus restoring democratic governance. Subsequent administrations have handled economic growth, regional integration via ASEAN, and contemporary political issues.

Current day

Religion in the Philippines (a Wikipedia link) is as follows (as of 2020):

• Christianity: 91.5%
  • Catholic: 78.8%
  • Evangelical: 4.82%
  • Protestant: 2.76%
  • Iglesia ni Cristo: 2.58%
  • Other Christian: 2.54%
• Islam: 6.4%
• Other religion: 2.1%

Philippine politics tend to be dominated by well-known families and corruption has been significant.

There is a constitutional separation of church and state, however the Catholic church exerts considerable, but lessening, influence on political issues.

Only 37% of Catholics attend church every week, and only 29% consider themselves to be strongly religious.

Issues

The “freedom of religion” bit in the constitution sounds great until it is realized that atheists and agnostics are not officially counted in the census of the country.

Since 2011, the non-religious have increasingly organized themselves, especially among the young. There is still a stigma attached to being an atheist in the Philippines, so secular and anti-theist activities are mainly restricted to the Internet.

Atheists in the country are often harassed for their disbelief. Superstition takes over in that many believe that atheists are satanists.

Despite passing through parts of the legislature, divorce remains illegal due to the Catholic influence. Religious opposition has stalled or restricted secular legal reforms.

Same-sex marriage or civil partnerships are not legally recognized under Philippine law.

The southern region of Mindanao operates under a mixture of Muslim personal laws and Sharia courts. Issues have therefore developed due to incompatibilities with secular statutes.

Heavy debt-servicing and disaster-related agricultural damage have left millions of people with food insecurity, employment issues, and poor household savings.

There are drug-related killings and violence, often linked to security and police forces. There is poor accountability and the government has resisted cooperation with the International Criminal Court.

Secular and atheist groups

The following are the main secular and humanist organizations operating in the Philippines (with links to their web sites unless stated otherwise):

• Philippine Atheism, Agnosticism, and Secularism.
• Filipino Freethinkers.
• Humanist PH.
• Humanist Alliance Philippines International.

See also Irreligion in the Philippines (a Wikipedia link).

Forum

Regarding this forum, remember:

• this is a place to help others, so please be polite,
• that we’re trying to reduce the effects of religion in this society,
• that participants may have been badly affected by religion,
• to respect the privacy of everyone (including yourself),
• the law.

If your motives or actions are otherwise, you will need to find another venue.