Zambales
unfolds for its welcome visitors a contrasting duet of scenery: on one side of the highway, miles and miles
of sandy beaches and blue waters; on the other side, not so far-off, undulating
mountains, most of them still covered with lush forests and animal life. This duality represents what is special about
Zambales and its history.
Against the glinting natural background, the province’s 13 municipalities appear temporary and shifting. The place, nestled on the western side of the Philippines, facing the China Sea, exudes an aura of primitiveness, of remaining unconquered - all 361,110 hectares of it. Against this sense of impermanence, Zambales is negotiating its fate.
Against the glinting natural background, the province’s 13 municipalities appear temporary and shifting. The place, nestled on the western side of the Philippines, facing the China Sea, exudes an aura of primitiveness, of remaining unconquered - all 361,110 hectares of it. Against this sense of impermanence, Zambales is negotiating its fate.
In the space
between mountain and sea, people have made their marks on the land: a church
announcing the presence of a town, a rustic cemetery, a rice field, a mango
orchard. From a mountain bend, a
bustling harbor city asserting a modern air.
Change unravels. History happens.
Change unravels. History happens.
In the
beginning, the first migrants arrived across the sea, from Celebes. They were
superstitious folk who worshipped ancestral spirits, or anitos. Called "zambali" by later Spanish
colonialists - from the Malay term "sambal," meaning worship - they
populated the land that from then on would be known as Zambales.
Their
arrival displaced the original inhabitants -the short, kinky-haired and ash-skinned
Aetas, who delved deeper into the mountains to pursue their culture as hunters
and gatherers.
Spanish
conquistador Juan de Salcedo first arrived in 1572, but it was only in the
early 1600s that Spain exercised effective control - with the establishment of
the province's first towns: Masinloc in
1607, Iba in 1611 and Santa Cruz in 1612.
These towns all served as provincial capital, but the honor remained
with Iba owing to its strategic location.
Zambales
used to be governed from Pangasinan, and only in the late 18th century was it
declared as a separate entity. Ilocanos
settlers penetrated from the north and built settlements that subsequently grew
into what are now the agricultural towns of Castillejos, San Marcelino, San
Antonio, and the agro-fishing towns of San Felipe, Cabangan, and the southern
part of Botolan.
Tagalogs
subsequently broke through the impenetrable forest screen and formed fishing
villages at the southernmost tip of the province, which later became Subic and
Olongapo. From the east, Kapampangans brought in the bright flavors of their
cuisine, their love of learning and their trading acumen.
Zambales
half-emerged from the historical and cultural onslaught with an uneven mix of
13 towns: Botolan, Candelaria, Palauig,
Cabangan, San Felipe, San Narciso, San Antonio, San Marcelino, Castillejos,
Subic, and a chartered city, Olongapo.
In 1895, the
seafaring Spaniards, cognizant of the value of a safe, natural harbor,
constructed a naval base in Subic. Only
three years later, the Americans took over the facility, and in the decades to
come would turn it into the largest U.S. Navy support station in East Asia.
One of the
most illustrious sons of the province of Zambales was Ramon Magsaysay, who was
born in Castillejos in August 1907, and elected as the Philippines' seventh
president in 1953. He served as one of the country's most popular and
best-loved leaders, until an unfortunate plane crash untimely extinguished his
life.
In 1991,
Mount Pinatubo, long lying dormant in the middle of Zambales, erupted in what
was the second-largest volcanic eruption of the century. Tons of sulfur dioxide
and clouds of ash buried towns and forced the evacuation of the U.S. naval
base.
In what
would later be a testament to the success of volunteerism and determination,
Subic Bay was converted into a commercial zone through the efforts of some
8,000 residents of Olongapo City, under the able leadership of Mayor Richard
Gordon. The Subic Bay Freeport Zone
became the Philippines' first successful case of military base conversion into
a tax- and duty-free zone.
Today, Subic
Bay is home to many hotels, restaurants and food outlets, shopping centers and
commercial activity. It has, at the same time, maintained the charm of its
beaches, mountainsides, ecotrails, jungle and wildlife.
Zambales
indeed continues unfazed by the disaster that befell it twenty-something years
ago. Its people, still smiling, pick up the pieces with hope, steadfastness and
an enveloping sense of optimism.
