06/20/2025
If Dr. Jose Rizal were alive today, this would be his message to the Knights of Rizal and the Leaders of the Philippine Republic
On the Occasion of his 164th Birthday commemoration.
By Jose A, Bonifacio
To the Noble Knights of Rizal,
And to the Honorable Men and Women of the Philippine Government,
Today, as you gather to mark what would have been my 164th birthday, I speak to you—not from the past, but from the heart of every Filipino who still believes in freedom, justice, and the dignity of our race. If this voice, born of love for our country, can still be heard in your time, then let it be spoken with courage, clarity, and conviction.
I thank the Order of the Knights of Rizal for keeping alive not only my name, but more importantly, the ideals for which I lived and died. Through your service, I see hope that the virtues of karangalan, katapangan, and pagmamahal sa bayan continue to breathe in the soul of our people.
But even as we celebrate, I write with a heavy heart, for news has reached me of an event that tests our nation’s sovereignty: the arrest of former President Rodrigo Roa Duterte—not by our own courts, not under our own Constitution, but by a foreign tribunal, the International Criminal Court.
I ask you, my countrymen—have we not sacrificed enough to earn the right to judge ourselves? Have we forgotten that independence is not merely the absence of colonizers, but the assertion of our own dignity as a sovereign people?
I do not write to absolve nor to accuse, but to uphold a principle that must never be forgotten: only Filipinos should determine the fate of fellow Filipinos. If President Duterte is to be held accountable, let it be through Philippine courts, through Philippine laws, and with respect for the will of the Filipino people who once gave him their trust.
To the Philippine government, I implore you: do not let foreign powers define your justice. To the Knights of Rizal, I challenge you: let your swords of wisdom and patriotism defend not only my memory, but the nation I once dreamed of—free, proud, and sovereign.
What meaning has my sacrifice, if we yield now to foreign judgment? What worth has our independence, if we ourselves do not guard its borders?
Let us not be a nation that bows to applause from abroad while ignoring the heartbeat of its own people. Let us stand united, not for personalities, but for principle—for the Republic we fought to build and must never allow to crumble.
Let my 164th birthday not be a simple commemoration, but a call to renew our commitment to Filipino dignity, Filipino justice, and Filipino sovereignty.
With faith in the Filipino, then and now,
Dr. José Protacio Rizal
Dapitan, in spirit—forever for the Philippines
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