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Travel to Philippines — Unbiased reviews and great deals
from TripAdvisorPhilippines
| Republic of the Philippines National name: Republika ng
Pilipinas President: Gloria Macapagal
Arroyo (2001)
Current government officials
Land area: 115,124 sq mi (298,171 sq km);
total area: 115,830 sq mi (300,000 sq km) Population (2007 est.): 91,077,287 (growth
rate: 1.8%); birth rate: 24.5/1000; infant mortality rate: 22.1/1000;
life expectancy: 70.5; density per sq mi: 791
Capital and largest city (2003 est.):
Manila, 10,677,000 (metro. area), 1,581,082
(city proper) Other large cities:
Quezon City (2000 est.), 1,669,776 (part of Manila metro. area); Cebu
(2003 est.), 761,900 Monetary unit:
Peso
Languages:
Filipino (based on Tagalog), English (both
official); eight major dialects: Tagalog, Cebuano, Ilocano, Hiligaynon
or Ilonggo, Bicol, Waray, Pampango, and Pangasinense
Ethnicity/race:
Tagalog 28.1%, Cebuano 13.1%, Ilocano 9%,
Bisaya/Binisaya 7.6%, Hiligaynon Ilonggo 7.5%, Bikol 6%, Waray 3.4%,
other 25.3% (2000)
Religions:
Roman Catholic 81%, Evangelical 3%, Iglesia ni
Kristo 2%, Aglipayan 2%, other Christian 5%, Islam 5% (2000) Literacy rate: 96% (2003 est.) Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2007 est.):
$298.9 billion; per capita $3,300. Real growth rate: 7.3%.
Inflation: 2.8%. Unemployment: 7.3%. Arable land:
19%. Agriculture: sugarcane, coconuts, rice, corn, bananas,
cassavas, pineapples, mangoes; pork, eggs, beef; fish. Labor force:
36.22 million; agriculture 35%, industry 15%, services 50% (2007
est.). Industries: electronics assembly, garments, footwear,
pharmaceuticals, chemicals, wood products, food processing, petroleum
refining, fishing. Natural resources: timber, petroleum,
nickel, cobalt, silver, gold, salt, copper. Exports: $48.38
billion f.o.b. (2007 est.): electronic equipment, machinery and
transport equipment, garments, optical instruments, coconut products,
fruits and nuts, copper products, chemicals. Imports: $53.96
billion f.o.b. (2007 est.): raw materials, machinery and equipment,
fuels, vehicles and vehicle parts, plastic, chemicals, grains.
Major trading partners: Japan, U.S., Netherlands, Hong Kong,
China, Singapore, Taiwan, Malaysia, South Korea (2004). Communications: Telephones: main lines in
use: 3.633 million (2006); mobile cellular: 42.869 million (2006).
Radio broadcast stations: AM 381, FM 628, shortwave 4 (each
shortwave station operates on multiple frequencies in the language of
the target audience) (2007). Radios: 11.5 million (1997).
Television broadcast stations: 250 (plus 1,501 CATV networks)
(2007). Televisions: 3.7 million (1997). Internet Service
Providers (ISPs): 271,609 (2007). Internet users: 4.615
million (2005). Transportation:
Railways: total: 897 km (2002). Highways: total: 200,037
km; paved: 19,804 km; unpaved: 180,233 km (2003). Waterways:
3,219 km; limited to shallow-draft (less than 1.5 m) vessels. Ports
and harbors: Batangas, Cagayan de Oro, Cebu, Davao, Guimaras
Island, Iligan, Iloilo, Jolo, Legaspi, Manila, Masao, Puerto Princesa,
San Fernando, Subic Bay, Zamboanga. Airports: 255 (2007). International disputes:involved in complex
dispute over Spratly Islands with China, Malaysia, Taiwan, Vietnam and
possibly Brunei; claimants in November 2002 signed the
“Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China
Sea,” a mechanism to ease tension but which fell short of a
legally binding “code of conduct”; Sultanate of Sulu
granted Philippines Government power of attorney to pursue its
sovereignty claim over Malaysia's Sabah State but Malaysia rejects
claim.
Major sources and definitions
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Geography
The Philippine Islands are an archipelago of over 7,000 islands lying
about 500 mi (805 km) off the southeast coast of Asia. The overall land
area is comparable to that of Arizona. Only about 7% of the islands are
larger than one square mile, and only one-third have names. The largest
are Luzon in the north (40,420 sq mi; 104,687 sq km), Mindanao in the
south (36,537 sq mi; 94,631 sq km), and Samar (5,124 sq mi; 13,271 sq km).
The islands are of volcanic origin, with the larger ones crossed by
mountain ranges. The highest peak is Mount Apo (9,690 ft; 2,954 m) on
Mindanao.
Government
Republic.
History
The Philippines' aboriginal inhabitants arrived from the Asian mainland
around 25,000 B.C. They were followed by waves
of Indonesian and Malayan settlers from 3000 B.C. onward. By the 14th century A.D., extensive trade was being conducted with India,
Indonesia, China, and Japan.
Ferdinand Magellan, the Portuguese navigator in the service of Spain,
explored the Philippines in 1521. Twenty-one years later, a Spanish
exploration party named the group of islands in honor of Prince Philip,
who was later to become Philip II of Spain. Spain retained possession of
the islands for the next 350 years.
The Philippines were ceded to the U.S. in 1899 by the Treaty of Paris
after the Spanish-American War. Meanwhile, the Filipinos, led by Emilio
Aguinaldo, had declared their independence. They initiated guerrilla
warfare against U.S. troops that persisted until Aguinaldo's capture in
1901. By 1902, peace was established except among the Islamic Moros on the
southern island of Mindanao.
The first U.S. civilian governor-general was William Howard Taft
(1901–1904). The Jones Law (1916) established a Philippine
legislature composed of an elective Senate and House of Representatives.
The Tydings-McDuffie Act (1934) provided for a transitional period until
1946, at which time the Philippines would become completely independent.
Under a constitution approved by the people of the Philippines in 1935,
the Commonwealth of the Philippines came into being with Manuel Quezon y
Molina as president.
On Dec. 8, 1941, the islands were invaded by Japanese troops. Following
the fall of Gen. Douglas MacArthur's forces at Bataan and Corregidor,
Quezon instituted a government-in-exile that he headed until his death in
1944. He was succeeded by Vice President Sergio Osmeña. U.S. forces
under MacArthur reinvaded the Philippines in Oct. 1944 and, after the
liberation of Manila in Feb. 1945, Osmeña reestablished the
government.
The Philippines achieved full independence on July 4, 1946. Manuel A.
Roxas y Acuña was elected its first president, succeeded by Elpidio
Quirino (1948–1953), Ramón Magsaysay (1953–1957),
Carlos P. García (1957–1961), Diosdado Macapagal
(1961–1965), and Ferdinand E. Marcos (1965–1986).
Under Marcos, civil unrest broke out in opposition to the leader's
despotic rule. Martial law was declared on Sept. 21, 1972, and Marcos
proclaimed a new constitution that ensconced himself as president. Martial
law was officially lifted on Jan. 17, 1981, but Marcos and his wife,
Imelda, retained broad powers.
In an attempt to resecure American support, Marcos set presidential
elections for Feb. 7, 1986. With the support of the Catholic Church,
Corazon Aquino declared her candidacy. Marcos was declared the official
winner, but independent observers reported widespread election fraud and
vote rigging. Anti-Marcos protests exploded in Manila, Defense Minister
Juan Enrile and Lt. Gen. Fidel Ramos defected to the opposition, and
Marcos lost virtually all support; he was forced to flee into exile and
entered the U.S. on Feb. 25, 1986.
The Aquino government survived coup attempts by Marcos supporters and
other right-wing elements, including one in November by Enrile.
Legislative elections on May 11, 1987, gave pro-Aquino candidates a large
majority. Negotiations on renewal of leases for U.S. military bases
threatened to sour relations between the two countries. Volcanic eruptions
from Mount Pinatubo, however, severely damaged Clark Air Base, and in July
1991, the U.S. decided to abandon it.
In elections in May 1992, Gen. Fidel Ramos, who had the support of the
outgoing Aquino, won the presidency in a seven-way race. In Sept. 1992,
the U.S. Navy turned over the Subic Bay naval base to the Philippines,
ending its long-standing U.S. military presence.
Meanwhile, the separatist Moro National Liberation Front was fighting a
protracted war for an Islamic homeland on Mindanao, the southernmost of
the two main islands. The Philippine army also battled another rebel
group, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. In Aug. 2001, both rebel groups
signed unity agreements with the Philippine government. Frequent and
violent clashes with these and other terrorist groups have continued,
however. Abu Sayyaf, a small group of guerrillas that has been fighting
since the 1970s for an independent Islamic state and reportedly has links
to Osama bin Laden, gained international notoriety throughout 2000 and
2001 with its spree of kidnappings and murders. Two leaders of Abu Sayyaf
were killed in late 2006 and early 2007, dealing a serious blow to the
group. The Philippine military has also battled the New People's Army, a
group of Communist guerrillas that have targeted Philippine security
forces since 1969. International officials reported in June 2003 that
Jemaah Islamiyah, an affiliate of al-Qaeda, was training recruits in
Mindanao, in the southern Philippines. About 120,000 people have died in
the conflicts with rebel groups, and more than 3 million have been
displaced.
In May 1998, 61-year-old former action-film star Joseph Estrada was
elected president of the Philippines. Within two years, however, the
Philippine Senate began proceedings to impeach Estrada on corruption
charges. Massive street demonstrations and the loss of political support
eventually forced Estrada from office. Vice President Gloria Macapagal
Arroyo, daughter of former president Diosdado Macapagal, became president
in Jan. 2001. In May 2004 presidential elections, President Arroyo
narrowly defeated film star Fernando Poe.
Arroyo faced a political crisis in the summer of 2005, after admitting
to calling an election official during 2004's presidential race. A taped
phone conversation between Arroyo and the official seemed to suggest that
she had tried to use her power to influence the outcome. She survived an
impeachment motion in July.
A mudslide in Feb. 2006 leveled the town of Guinsaugon and killed about
1,800 of its 1,857 residents.
Arroyo declared a state of emergency in February, saying the government
had foiled an attempted coup by the military. She also banned rallies
commemorating the 20th anniversary of the ouster of Ferdinand Marcos. Some
observers dismissed the report of the coup attempt as political
maneuvering to gain support and weaken the opposition. On June 24,
President Arroyo met with Pope Benedict XVI at the Vatican, where she
announced that the Philippines was abolishing the death penalty.
In September 2007, former president Joseph Estrada was convicted of
corruption and senteced to life in prison.
The government said in November 2007 that it had reached a deal with
the separatist Moro National Liberation Front that set boundaries for a
Muslim homeland on the southern island of on Mindanao.
A typhoon sunk a ferry in June 2008, killing 865 passengers and crew
members. Another 500 people died during the storm.
See also Encyclopedia: The Philippines.
U.S. State Dept. Country Notes:
Philippines
National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB) www.nscb.gov.ph/ .
See also Timeline: Philippines History
(1521–1946) and Timeline: Philippines History
(1965–Present).
Information Please® Database, © 2007 Pearson
Education, Inc. All rights reserved.
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