Module 1: Understanding the Rizal Law, Nation and the unexpurgated version of the novels be read.

On May 14,
Nationalism 1956, similar amendments were adopted to the House version.
     The amended version of the bill was also subjected to
scrutiny but was acceptable to the members of Congress. But
Introduction
the passage was almost stopped by technicality since the
     According to Republic Act 1425, better known as Rizal Law, House of Representatives was about to adjourn in a few days
teaching of Jose Rizal's life with the emphasis on his famous and President Ramon Magsaysay did not certify the bill as
novels is mandatory. The law was passed in 1956 after many priority. The allies in the House skillfully avoided the insertion
debates and contestation.  of any other amendment to prevent the need to reprint new
copies (which would take time). They also asked the Bureau of
      In the course of the presentation, the process of how a bill Printing to use the same templates for the Senate version in
becomes a law will be traced to have an idea about the printing the House version. Thus, on May 17, 1956, the Senate
country's legislative process.  and House versions were approved.
Presentation    The approved versions were transmitted to Malacañang and
    How did the Rizal Bill become the Rizal Law?  On April 3, on June 12, 1956, President Magsaysay signed the bill into law
1956, Senate Bill No. 438 was filed by Jose P. Laurel, the then which became Republic Act No. 1425. 
Senate Committee on Education Chair, and delivered Summary
speeches for the proposed legislation. This proposal was met
by controversies, especially the Catholic Church which     In order to Understand the Rizal law, it is necessary to
opposed its passage.  The Catholic Church was influential so understand how a bill becomes a law by a legislative process
that it created a fierce argument between those who sided with which involves. Please go to the Instructional Material and click
the Church and the allies of Claro Recto.  One of the on the power point presentation
opposition members was Francisco "Soc" Rodrigo.  Debates
Filing a Bill in the Senate Office of the Secretary
started on April 23, 1956.
First Reading
Committee Hearings
Second Reading
Voting on Second Reading
Voting on Third Reading 
Consolidation of Version from the House
The debates on the Rizal Bill occurred in the House of Transmittal of the Final Version to Malacañang
Representatives. House Bill No. 5561, an identical version of
Senate Bill 438, was filed by Representative Jacobo Z. The Rizal Bill became the Rizal Law when:
Gonzales on April 19, 1956. The House Committee on
Senate Bill No. 438 was filed by the Senate Committee on
Education approved the bill without amendment on May 2,
Education
1956 and the debates started on May 9, 1956. A major point of
the debates was whether the compulsory reading of the novels Jose P. Laurel sponsored the bill
Noli Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo appropriated in the bill
was constitutional. The call to read the unexpurgated versions Legislators and Senators debated on the Rizal Bill
was also challenged. Legislators and Senators amended versions of the bill
      During the debate, it seemed that it was not possible to Malacañang approved the final version
reach an agreement. To move the procedure to the next step,
Senator Jose P. Laurel proposed amendments to the bill on Malacañang issued Republic Act 1425 aka Rizal Law
May 9, 1956. In particular, he removed the compulsory reading      Therefore, it is a must that students in all schools in the
of Rizal's novels and proposed that Rizal's other works be Philippines study the life, works, and writings of Rizal.
included in the subject. However, he still stood in his belief that
1.2 Nation and Nationalism
One of the major reasons behind the passage of the Rizal Law Kartilya ng Katipunan
was to instill nationalism in the hearts and minds of the Filipino
Sa May Nasang Makisanib sa Katipunang Ito
youth. Let us understand more the meaning of nation, nation-
state, and state. A nation is a community of people that share a Sa pagkakailangan, na ang lahat na nag-iibig pimasok sa
link with one another based on cultural practices, language, katipunang ito, ay magkaraoon ng lubos na pananalig at
religion or belief system, and historical experience, to name a kaisipan sa mga layong tinuntungo at mga kaaralang pinaiiral,
few. A state is a political entity that has sovereignty over a minarapat na ipakilala sa kanila ang mga bagay na ito, ay ng
defined territory. States have laws, taxation, government, and bukas makalawa’y huwag silang magsisi at tuparing maluag sa
bureaucracy - basically, the means of regulating life within the kaloobang ang kanilang mga tungkulin.
territory. The sovereignty needs diplomatic recognition to be
legitimate and acknowledged internationally. The state's Ang kalagayang pinag-uusig ng katipunang ito ay lubos na
boundaries and territory are not fixed and change across time dakila at mahalaga. Papag-isahin ang loob at kaisipan ng lahat
with war, sale, arbitration and negotiation, and even ng tagalog (*) sa pamamagitan ng isang mahigpit na
assimilation or secession. The nation-state, on the other hand, panunumpa, upang sa pagkakaisang ito’y magkalakas na
is a fusion of the elements of the nation (people/community) iwasan ang masinsing tabing na nakabubulag sa kaisipan at
and the state (territory). matuklasan ang tunay na landas ng Katuiran at Kaliwanagan.  

There are three theories that explain the roots of the nation (*) Sa salitang tagalog katutura’y ang lahat nang tumubo sa
and national identity.  Sangkapuluang ito; sa nakatuid, bisaya man, iloko man,
Kapampangan man etc., ay tagalog din.
1 Primordialism - This theory traces the root of the nation and
national identity to existing and deep-rooted features of a Dito’y isa sa mga kaunaunahang utos, ang tunay na oag-ibig
group of people like race, language, religion and others. sa baying tinubuan at lubos na pagdadamayan ng isa’t isa.
Proponents of this theory argued that a national identity has  
always existed and nations have ethnic cores, whereas
division among citizens was determined through dichotomizing  
'us' and "them". 
Liwanag at Dilim
2. Modernity - Nationalism and national identity are products of
“Ang alinmang Katipunan at pagkakaisa ay nangangailangan
social structure and culture brought by capitalism, urbanization,
ng isang pinakaulo, ng isan kapangyarihang makapagbibigay
secularization, bureaucratization.
ng ayos, makapagpapanatili ng tunay na pagkakaisa at
3.  Constructivist approach - nationalism and nationalism are makapagaakay sa hangganang ninanais, katulad ng
results of discourses socially constructed and imagined by sasakyang itinutugpa ng bihasan piloto, na kung ito’y
people who identify with a group.  mawawala ay nanganganib na maligaw at abutin ng kakila-
kilabot na kamatayan sa laot ng dagat, na di na makakaasang
      The actual articulations of nation and nationalism started makaduduong sa pampang na maligaya at payapang
by Filipino heroes like Andres Bonifacio, Jose Rizal and kabuhayang hinahanap. Ang pinakaulong ito ay tinatawag na
others who culminated in the anti-colonial revolution in Asia. pamahalaan.”
However, many Filipino scholars traced the concept of nation
and nationalism through indigenous knowledge.  Sikolohiyang “Ang kadahilanan nga ng mga pinuno ay ang bayan, at ang
Pilipino and Bagong Kasaysayan understood nation and kagalingan at kaginhawahan nito ay siyang tanging dapat
nationalism in the context of Kapwa and bayan.    Kapwa is an tunguhin ng lahat nilang gawa at kautusan. Tungkol nila ang
important concept in the country's social relations and supports umakay sa bayan sa ikagiginhawa, kalian pa ma’t maghirap at
the notion of unity and harmony in a community.  Kapwa maligaw ay kasalanan nila.”
presupposed the Filipino culture and psyche anchored on
“Ang alinmang kapangyarihan upang maging tunay at matuwid
collective social practices that manifest in linguistic terms such
ay Bayan lamang at sa kanyang mga tunay na pinakakatawan
as pakikipagkapwa, pakikisama, pakikipag-ugnay and
dapat na manggaling. Sa madaling salita, di dapat nating
pakikibaka.   
kilalanin ang pagkatao ng mga pinuno na mataas kaysa sa
     All these found place in the works of other historical figures madla. Ang pagsunod at pagkilala sa kanila ay dahil sa
such as Emilio Jacinto. In the excerpts from his Kartilya Ng kapangyarihan ng bawa isa. Sa bagay na ito, ang sumusunod
Katipunan and Liwanag at Dilim, Jacinto emphasized the sa pinunong inilagay ng bayan ay dito sumusunod at sa
importance of state and government, and leadership in building paraang ito’y nakikipagisa sa kalahatan.”
a nation.
Summary
Concepts of nation and nationhood as well as state and nation-
state are: 
 Nation is a group of people that shares a common culture,
history, language and other practices like religion, affinity to a
place, etc.  Nation-state is a state governing a nation. State is
a political entity that wields sovereignty over a defined territory
So, how would you classify the Philippines, a nation, a state or
a nation-state? Are the leaders our nation prepared for
nationhood.
Module 1 Summary-2
 The Rizal Law could be considered as a landmark legislation.
During this period, the Philippines was trying to get up from its
feet from a devastating war and aiming towards nation-
building. As the government sought ways to unite the people,
legislators like Claro M. Recto drew inspirations from the lives
of the heroes of the revolution against Spain. Teaching the life
and works of Rizal, particularly the reading of his novels, Noli
Me Tangere and El Filibusterismo, was proposed to be
mandated to all private and public educational institutions. The
proposed legislation, of course, met oppositions, particularly
from the Catholic Church. After much debate, the proposed bill
was eventually signed into law and became Republic Act No.
1425, also known as Rizal Law.
     Instilling nationalism among the youth was the major factor
behind the passage of the Rizal Law. To have a basic grasp of
nationalism, the concepts of nation, state, and nation-state was
examined. And this was explained by giving the definitions of
nation (a community of people); state (a political entity); and
nation-state (a fusion of the previous two) and traced the
development of the nation-state. It the tackled the various ways
by which social scientists made sense of the concepts of
nation and nationalism, their origins, and development. There
was also a discussion on different approaches by which
nationalism could be viewed: primordialism, modernity, and
social constructivism. A brief discussion about nationalism in
the Philippine context, particularly how indigenous knowledge
was used to examine how Filipinos understand the concepts of
nation and nationalism.