[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 125 (Thursday, September 18, 1997)]
[House]
[Page H7590]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                       TRIBUTE TO RIZAL AGBAYANI

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from California [Mr. Filner] is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. FILNER. Mr. Speaker and colleagues, I rise today to honor and pay 
tribute to Mr. Rizal Agbayani, a veteran of World War II and a former 
member of the U.S. Armed Forces in the Far East. He died of a heart 
attack last week at the Fairfax Hospital in Virginia, near Washington, 
DC. He is survived by his wife, Criselda, and his eight children.
  Mr. Agbayani came to Washington as part of the 37-veteran delegation 
from Hawaii attending the gathering of the National Advisory Council of 
Philippine-American Veteran Leaders. Almost 300 Filipino veterans were 
in our Nation's Capital last week, gathered together for the first 
time, working with a united front to achieve equity for all Filipino 
World War II veterans.
  Mr. Agbayani actively took part in meetings with several Members of 
Congress. He was also one of the hundred demonstrators at a rally in 
front of the White House organized by National Advisory Council members 
and the 130-member Equity Caravan, a 6-city, 2-week march to Washington 
designed to call attention to the Filipino Veterans Equity Act (H.R. 
836) and urging Congress to pass this bill.
  Mr. Agbayani was named after Jose Rizal. A national hero of the 
Philippines, Rizal was executed for his fight to free the Philippines 
from colonial Spain, and this year marks the observance of the 
centennial anniversary of Rizal's death. Like his namesake, Mr. 
Agbayani died while fighting for justice, and today his body is being 
flown to the Philippines to his final resting place.
  I want to take this opportunity to commemorate the life and struggle 
of Mr. Agbayani and the thousands of other Filipino World War II 
veterans whose participation was so crucial to the outcome of World War 
II. Too few Americans are familiar with this chapter in our Nation's 
history.
  During this war, the military forces of the Commonwealth of the 
Philippines were drafted to serve in our Armed Forces by Executive 
order of the President of the United States. Filipino soldiers defended 
the American flag in the now famous battles of Bataan and Corregidor. 
Thousands of Filipino prisoners of war died during the 65-mile Bataan 
death march. Those who survived were imprisoned under inhuman 
conditions where they suffered casualties at the rate of 50 to 200 
prisoners a day. They endured 4 long years of enemy occupation.
  The soldiers who escaped capture, together with Filipino civilians, 
fought against the occupation forces. Their guerilla attacks foiled the 
plans of the Japanese for a quick takeover of the region and allowed 
the United States the time needed to prepare forces to defeat Japan. 
After the liberation of the Philippine Islands, the United States was 
able to use the strategically located Commonwealth of the Philippines 
as a base from which to launch the final efforts to win the war.
  One would assume that the United States would be grateful to their 
Filipino comrades, so it is hard to believe that soon after the war 
ended, the 79th Congress voted in a way that can only be considered to 
be blatant discrimination, as they took away the benefits and 
recognition that the Filipino World War II veterans were promised.
  Mr. Agbayani and his comrades have been fighting over 50 years to 
regain this recognition that they so deserve. Their sons and daughters 
have joined in the fight, wishing desperately to restore the honor and 
dignity to their fathers while they are still alive. The urgency is 
real, Mr. Speaker. At least six Filipino World War II veterans are 
dying each day.

  Mr. Agbayani's journey to Washington last week was his final journey 
in search of this recognition for his Filipino World War II comrades. 
As a tribute to Mr. Agbayani and the thousands of other veterans 
already gone before us in death, I urge my colleagues to take a serious 
inventory of this issue, to cosponsor 836, and to correct a monumental 
injustice by restoring the benefits that were promised to the Filipino 
World War II veterans for their defense of democratic ideals.

                          ____________________