Zubiri resolution
US officials formally handed over the three bells to the Philippines on Tuesday upon their arrival in Manila. The bells would be brought back to Balangiga in ceremonies to be attended by President Duterte on Saturday.
Zubiri filed Resolution No. 965 to keep a bell in the museum to give more Filipinos a chance to see one of the artifacts “and be reminded of the role it played in one of the bloodiest chapters of the Philippine-American War.”
It would also make the bell “accessible to the countless students who make school-sanctioned visits to the National Museum every year, providing them an opportunity to learn from the struggles of our forefathers through the study of this historically significant property,” he said.
In a statement issued by the Diocese of Borongan on Thursday, Bishop Crispin Varquez and his priests said they “collectively object to and strongly stand against the transfer of one or all of the bells of Balangiga from their historical and rightful habitat, which is the Parish Church of St. Lawrence, Deacon and Martyr, in Balangiga.”
“Any effort aimed at such a transfer is a disrespectful mangling of history and the right of the Catholic faithful of Balangiga to their private property,” they said.
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