A moment in Tribuna

The Espana-Filipinas Tribuna that was held last Nov. 27 to 28 at the Hyatt Hotel and Casino Manila was a memorable one for me not only as a team member of Filipiniana.net, but also as a historian. On that day, Gaspar Vibal, founder of Filipiniana.net, exhibited the rare 1^st editions of Noli Me Tangere & El Filibusterismo by our national hero, Jose Rizal. The crowd of both Spaniards and Filipinos were all “oohs” and “ahhs” as they saw the encased, well-guarded books of our national hero now once again, back to the Philippines were it belongs. Also one of the visitors who viewed and hold it with pride was none other than her Excellency, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. She can’t hide her glee and delight upon seeing the books herself!

There was a short video presentation pertaining to the life and works of Jose Rizal with commentaries of his Spaniard contemporary, notable by Wenceslao Retana, who was once a critic of Rizal turned supporter after he saw the dignity and integrity of Rizal.

One irony of the situation is that, the honor guards, UST Golden Corp of Cadets, were guarding it with care, dignity and pride. Of course, the irony is that more than a century ago, UST was the same university that ordered the banning and burning of the said novels claiming that it was “heretical and scandalous” to the Spanish regime in the Philippines. More than a century later, they are now guarding it with pride while wearing their bearskin caps, red uniform and golden sash, a fitting honor to the national hero, who was also an alumnus of UST.

To view the story on how Gaspas Vibal got the book, visit www.filipiniana.net under the blog section.