Philippine History: E.B. Magalona's Sitio Guintabuan and Elias Magbanua

If you're familiar with the topography of the highway between the municipality of Enrique B. Magalona and the city of Silay in the province of Negros Occidental (in the Philippines), you'd notice a statue of a man holding a sword on his right hand and a pistol on his left. 

With the green sugarcane leaves as his backdrop and the tall electrical posts as his companions, he stands gallantly day and night, rain or shine, with or without any vehicular traffic. At night, without any light, he slumbers in the dark; during the day, he captures the attention of all passers-by.

I once rode a public transport from Bacolod City going home to Victorias City and asked aloud whose statue that was when the bus was passing by it.  One passenger from E.B. Magalona told me it was the statue of E.B. Magalona himself. Of course, I didn't believe him; E.B. Magalona was a senator, not a soldier.

Fortunately for me, thanks to Wilson, Tita Helen's driver, who accommodated my wish, I was able to stop by the monument, read the marker, and took photos. And the research began.

The monument, it turned out, is a marker to commemorate the heroism of a group of  Negrense and Ilonggo soldiers led by Elias Magbanua who fought against the American forces on August 19, 1899. The soldiers from Iloilo Province crossed the Iloilo Strait and joined their Negrense brothers in Saravia (the old name of the municipality of E.B. Magalona) in their fight for independence against the Americans. (During those years, it was normal for Ilonggos to find love and fortune in Negros, one of whom was the young Felix Lozada Montinola of Jaro, Iloilo, who married the daughter of Saravia's mayor in 1897. Read his story here.)

Although they might not have successfully fought off the Americans, their bravery and gallantry are now part of the island's history, just like the other uprisings in the other parts of Negros Island. 

And now that I finally know who he is and what is monument stands for (pun intended), I shouldn't be asking anyone else about it when I pass by that spot. And so, if Silay has its historic Cinco de Noviembre,  should E.B. Magalona also have its own Diez y Nueve de Agosto?

So, every time we pass by this monument, let's remember that, more than 120 years ago, a group of brave Negrenses and Ilonggos risked and sacrificed their lives to fight for their rights, independence, and the future of Negrenses.

And even though this is probably not celebrated or taught at any local elementary schools just like the other bits of our region's history, this marker reminds us a bit of our history we might not even know.

Now, we do.

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Photo: Elias Magbanua basks in the late afternoon sunlight, looking to the west and awaiting the impending sunset on his beloved motherland. 

He raises his sword to remind his fellow Negrenses passing by that fighting for independence goes on and that the memories of their armed struggled against foreign colonizers should live on every time we pass by his monument.

By the way, I'm wondering whether Elias was left-handed because the pistol is on his left hand, and not on the dominant right where it should be if you're righthanded. Or maybe he ran out of precious bullets. Or maybe the sculptor just wanted a dramatic pose.😊