AMBASSADOR of Israel to the Philippines Rafael Harpaz shared his deep appreciation of former President Manuel L. Quezon’s directive to open the country’s borders for victims of the Holocaust at the ceremonial celebration of the latter’s 141st birthday in Quezon City.
As a gesture of gratitude, Harpaz, along with his fellow Israelis, recalled the momentous event for the 10,000 Jews who were then escaping the Nazi regime in the 1930s.
“We will continue to tell the story of President Quezon. In fact, every Israeli delegation visiting the Philippines [stops] by the Philippine-Israel friendship monument here in Quezon Memorial Circle to honor and pay [their respects] to this leader,” the ambassador said in his speech.
Under the Nazi regime, Jews were forced to leave their own country, while those who remained were persecuted. At that time, the majority of the democratic countries closed their doors to Jews in fear of upsetting the Nazis.
“However, there was one leader who stood out. Quezon decided to open the doors of the Philippines and was willing to provide 10,000 visas for the fleeing Jewish refugees. Unfortunately, only 1,300 Jews made it to the Philippines as the doors of Europe were already shutting down [then],” Harpaz shared.
Quezon’s decision to save the Jews was just revealed in recent decades to Filipinos and the rest of the world.
The awareness of many Filipinos on Quezon’s legacy is now more pronounced with the efforts done by many organizations and individuals, including the Embassy of Israel in Manila, and with the help of academic materials, as well as historical films that brought the story to the people, especially to the younger generation.
In 1949, then-President Manuel A. Roxas made another significant decision for the Israelis, when the United Nations needed to vote on the creation of the State of Israel. The Philippines was the only Asian country to vote in favor of Israel.
The two historic decisions tightened the long and lasting friendship between Israel and the Philippines.
“I was honored to be the official escort of [Mr.] Duterte during his historic visit to Israel [in] September 2018. He is the first Filipino president in office to officially visit the State of Israel,” the Israeli envoy recalled.
During Duterte’s visit to Israel, a 90-year-old Jew stood up and shared his warm greetings in Tagalog—a testament of the special bond between the two nations.
Israel, as one of the strongest and most-developed countries in the world, has lent a hand to the Philippines several times. When Supertyphoon Yolanda (international code name Haiyan) ravaged the Visayas in 2013, the Mediterranean country did not hesitate to give assistance, and was one of the first on the ground to conduct relief operations.
“History provides today’s leaders with role models. Quezon [represented] true leadership with integrity and moral conviction, which should be followed by leaders and by the young generation,” Harpaz concluded. Christine Cudis/PNA
Image credits: Embassy of Israel in the Philippines/PNA