The injustices in 1872 are no different from now. From systemic oppression to the state’s attacks on individuals forwarding progressive ideas, the events in the film “GOMBURZA” strike a chord in present-day society.
Directed by Jose “Pepe” Diokno III, “GOMBURZA" follows the story of the three Filipino priests, Mariano Gómes, José Burgos, and Jacinto Zamora, under Spanish colonial rule. “GOMBURZA,” from the combined name of the three priests, weaves together relevant historical events from racism towards local clergymen to being targeted for criticizing unfair policies.
Beyond the chronological narration of the journey of the three priests to martyrdom, the award-winning film dares its viewers to tie the suffering of the martyrs to the current context of Philippine society and challenge the oppressive system.
“Rebelde,” “Filibustero,” and “Erehe” were some of the accusations leveled at Fr. Pedro Pelaez, a Filipino priest who advocated for the secularization of local churches and, notably, served as the mentor of a young Fr. Burgos. After his untimely death, the three priests continued the secular movement which quickly gained the attention of the Spanish friars intent on cementing the church’s influence in political and state institutions.
This major historical detail was rightfully included as it is parallel to today’s red-tagging, where students and progressive church groups are no exception to the state’s vilification of those who fight for the liberation of the oppressed. Currently, the government rehashes the same aggressive tactics through the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC) and the draconian Anti-Terror Law.
And just as Felipe Buencamino, a previous student of Fr. Burgos, was seized for advancing educational reforms through the Juventud Escolar Liberal, students and youth groups who call for a nationalist and mass-oriented education are also red-tagged by the state. Targets are continuously placed on the backs of youth activists, comprising eight out of the fifteen documented enforced disappearances reported in just a year under Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s presidency.
Additionally, the Rural Missionaries of the Philippines, a national organization of religious clergy and laypeople active in advocacy work among the peasantry and indigenous peoples, was accused of funding “terrorist activities” by the NTF-ELCAC in 2022. Their coordinators, Fr. Wilfredo Ruazol and Sr. Elenita Belardo officer were also judicially pursued by the NTF-ELCAC with trumped-up charges of perjury in early 2023.
“GOMBURZA” dispels the notion of church neutrality in radical movements to liberate colonized nations—a challenge posed for churches to be more involved today, as most fail to acknowledge the historical and material conditions of today’s social issues, and even uphold oppressive ideologies.
Historical films must create a seamless narrative that sews together a nation’s past, which is usually taught in isolation, to its implication to today’s sociopolitical realities. Acknowledging how past horrors mirror the present society is one thing—to confront it is another. The real challenge is to bring the same indignance of the characters in the film outside the theaters to the people, for that is where the real battleground lies.
Sins of colonial oppressors seep through the blood of their present-day successors, but history is a witness to the triumph of the masses. As their legacies of injustice plague today’s society, the raised fist of Fr. Burgos as he took his last breath signals the ordinary Filipino to be with the struggle towards national liberation. ●
