The KKK and the “Kartilya ng katipunan”

•The Kataastaasan, Kagalanggalangang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan (KKK) is arguably

the most important organization formed in the Philippine History.

• Founded on the night of July 7, 1892.

• Arcarraga St. (Claro M. Recto St.)
• The katipunan was a secret revolutionary society of Filipino patriots.
• The Kataastaasan, Kagalanggalangang Katipunan ng mga Anak ng Bayan
• Founder: Andres Bonifacio, with the aid of his friends
- Teodoro Plata
- Ladislao Diwa
- Deodato Arellano
- Valentin Diaz

Andres Bonifacio
• The Great Plebeian
• Born in Tondo on November 30, 1863, the first child of poor parents.
• Named after St. Andrew the patron saint of Manila.
• He had three brothers and two sisters:
- Ciriaco
- Procopio
- Espiridiona
- Troadio
• His parents died when he was 14 yrs old
• He supported his siblings by selling bamboo canes and paper fans in the city streets.
• He also worked s a warehouse keeper in a mosaic tile factory in Sta. Mesa.
• He worked first as a messenger and was as an agent in Fleming and Company, but he
transferred to Fressell and Company for a higher wage
• He started his education in the school of Guillermo Osmena, a private primary school in
Tondo.
• He educated himself by extensive reading of good books and learning Spanish by self-study
• Monica - first wife of Bonifacio who died because of leprosy
• Gregoria De Jesus - second wife of Bonifacio whom he had a son named Andres, who died
because of smallpox.

Emilio Jacinto
• Brains of the Katipunan
• Born in Trozo (Tondo), Manila, on December 15, 1875
• His father died shortly after he was born, so he was adopted by his uncle Don Jose Dizon.
• Obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in Colegio de San Juan de Letran.
• Studied Law at UST but was not able to finish it.
• Remained loyal to Bonifacio even after his death.
• He died on April 16, 1899, at 23 years old because of Malaria.
Dr. Pio Valenzuela
• The physician of the Katipunan,
• He helped Jacinto in putting up the Kalayaan, the Katipunan’s newspaper.
• Madlang-away (fight of the people) - his pen name.
• Collaborated with his best friend Bonifacio in writing the manifesto entitled sa Mga Kababayan

Katipunan Government
• Kataastaasang Sanggunian (Supreme Council) - for the whole country.
- Consisted of a president, a fiscal, a secretary, a treasurer, and a comptroller.
• Sangguniang Bayan (Provincial Council) - for every province.
• Sanggunihang Balangay (Municipal Council) - for every town.
• The Judicial power of KKK was exercised by the Sangguniang HUkuman (Judicial Council)
- It decided cases involving treachery among the members and quarrels between them.

Officers of KKK
• The first Supreme Council of the Katipunan was organized on August 1, 1892. It was
composed of the following:
• President (Supremo) - Deodato Arellano
• Comptroller (Intervenor) - Andres Bonifacio
• Fiscal - Ladislao Diwa
• Secretary - Teodoro Plata
• Treasurer - Valentin Diaz

• Deodato Arellano - was the first President of Katipunan

• Roman Basa - became the Supremo because Bonifacio was disgusted over the performance
of Arellano.
• Two years after, another election was held with the following as officers:

• Supremo - Andres Bonifacio

• Secretary of State - Emilio Jacinto
• Secretary of War - Teodoro Plata
• Secretary of Justice - Briccio Pantas
• Secretary of Interior - Aguedo Del Rosario
• Secretary of Finance - Enrique Pacheco

Katipunan Membership
• Originally, the KKK recruited new members by means of the TRIANGLE SYSTEM
- An original member would recruit two new members who did not know each other.
- Example: Bonifacio formed the first triangle with Diwa and Plata

• They also agreed that they would pay a membership fee amounting to one real fuerte (twenty-
five centavos) and a monthly due of media real (twelve centavos).
• Every member of the Katipunan adopted a symbolic name:
- Andres Bonifacio - May pagasa
- Emilio Jacinto - Pingkian
- Artemio Ricarte - Vibora
- Emilio Aguinaldo - Magdalo

• Three Grades of the Katipunan Membership:

- Katipun ( Associate) - first grade, password was ANAK NG BAYAN
- Kawal ( Soldier) - second grade, password was GOMBURZA
- Bayani (Patriot) - third grade, password was RIZAL

Prominent Katipuneras
• Gregoria De Jesus- wife of Bonifacio and was called Lakambini of the Katipunan.
• Maria Dizon - cousin of Emilio Jacinto
• Simeona De Remigio - wife of Tomas Remigio
• Melchora Ramos Y Aquino
- Tandang Sora (January 6, 1812 - March 2, 1919)
- Mother of the Katipunan
- She fed the Katipuneros and nursed the wounded patriots
- Later, she was arrested by the Spanish authorities and was exiled to Marianas

Sisters of Rizal
• Josefa Rizal
• Trinidad Rizal

Literature of the Katipunan

• Emilio Jacinto - youngest and greatest writer of the Katipunan
• His pen name was Dimas-Ilaw
• He wrote the following:
- A la Patria - his poetical masterpiece
- Liwanag at Dilim - a series of essays on human rights, liberty, equality of men, labor, and love
of country
- Kartilya ng Katipunan - contains the teachings of the KKK.

The KKK and the “Kartilya ng Katipunan”

• It was only Katipunan that envisioned:
1. A united Filipino nation that would revolt against the Spaniards for
2. The total independence of the country from Spain

• Previous armed revolts had already occurred before the foundation of the following Katipunan,
but none of them envisioned a unified Filipino nation revolting against the colonizers:
1. For example, Diego Silang was known as an Ilocano who took up his arms and led one of the
longest running revolts in the country. Silang, however, was mainly concerned about his locality
and referred to himself as El Rey de Iloco (The King of Ilocos).

2. The propaganda movements led b y the ilustrados like Marcelo H. Del Pilar, Graciano Lopez
Jaena, and Jose Rizal did not envision a total separation of the Philippines from Spain but only
demanded equal rights, representation and protection from the abuses of the friars.

• In the conduct of their struggle. Katipunan created a complex structure and a defined value
system that would guide the organization as a collective aspiring for a single goal.

• One of the most important Katipunan documents was the Kartilya ng Katipunan.

• The document was written by Emilio Jacinto in 1896.

• Jacinto was only 18 years old when he joined the movement
• He was a law student at the Universidad de Santo Tomas.
• Jacinto became the secretary of the organization and took charge of the short-lived printing
press of the Katipunan.
• On 15 April 1897, Bonifacio appointed Jacinto as a commander of the Katipunan in Northern
Luzon. Jacinto was 22 years old.
• He died of Malaria at the young age of 24 in the town of Magdalena, Laguna
• The Kartilya can be treated as Katipunan’s code of conduct. It contains fourteen rules that
instruct the way a Katipunero should behave and which specific values he should uphold.

Generally, the rules stated in the Kartilya can be classified into two:

1. The first group contains the rules that will make the member an upright individual and
2. The second group contains the rules that will guide the way he treats his fellow men.

• Kartilya ng Katipunan ni Emilio Jacinto:

1. Ang kabuhayang hindi ginugugol sa isang malaki at banal na kadahilanan ay kahoy na
walang lilim, kun di damong makamandang.
2. Ang gawang magaling na nagbubuhat sa pagpipita sa sarili, at hindi talagang nasang
gumawa ng kagalingan, ay di kabaitan
3. Ang tunay na kabanalan ay ang pagkakawang gawa, ang pagibig sa kapwa at ang isukat
ang bawat kilos, gawa’t pangungusap sa talagang katuiran.
4. Maitim man at maputi ang kulay ng balat, lahat ng tao’y magkakapantay: mangyayaring ang
isa’y higtan sa dunong, sa yaman, sa ganda…, ngunit di mahihigtan sa pagkatao.
5. Ang may mataas na kalooban inuuna ang puri sa pagpipita sa sarili; ang may hamak na
kalooban, inuuna ang pagpipita sa sarili sa puri.
6. Sa taong may hiya, salita’y panunumpa.
7. Huwag mong sayangin ang panahun: ang yamang nawala’y mangyayaring magbalik; ngunit
panahung nagdaan na’y di na muli pang magdadaan.
8. Ipagtanggol mo ang inaapi; kabakahin ang umaapi.

9. Ang taong matalino’y ang may pagiingat sa bawat sasabihin, at matutong ipaglihim ang dapat
ipaglihim.
10. Sa daang matinik ng kabuhayan, lalaki ay siyang patugot ng asawa’t mga anak: kung ang
umaakay ay tungo sa sama, ang pagtutunguhan ng inaakay ay kasamaan din.
11. Ang babai ay huwag mong tignang isang bagay na libangan lamang, kun di isang katuang
at karamay sa mga kahirapan nitong kabuhayan; gamitan mo nag boong pagpipitagan ang
kaniyang kahinaan, at alalahanin ang inang pinagbuhatan at nagiwi sa iyong kasanggulan.
12. Ang di mo ibig na gawin sa asawa mo, anak at kapatid, ay huag mong gagawin sa asawa,
anak at kapatid ng iba.
13. Ang kamahalan ng tao’y wala sa pagkahari, wala sa tangus ng ilong at puti ng mukha, wala
sa pagkaparing kahalili ng Dios, wala sa mataas na kalagayan sa balat ng lupa: wagas at tunay
na mahal na tao, kahit laking gubat at walang nababatid kun di ang sariling wika, yaon may
magandang asal, may isang pangungusap, may dangal at puri; yaon di nagpapaapi’t di
nakikiapi; yaong marunong magdamdam at marunong lumingap sa bayang tinubuan.
14. Paglagalap ng mga aral na itoat maningning na sumikat ang araw ng mahal na Kalayaan
dito sa kaabaabang Sangkapuluan, at sabugan ng matamis niyang liwanag ang nangagkaisang
magkakalahi’t magkakapatid na ligayang walang katapusan, ang mga ginugol na buhay, pagud,
at mga tiniis na kahirapa’y labis nang natumbasan.

Analysis of The “Kartilya ng Katipunan”

• Similar to what we have done to the accounts of Pigafetta, this primary source also needs to
be analyzed in terms of content and contexts:

1. As a document written for a fraternity whose main purpose is to overthrow a colonial regime,
we can explain the content and provisions of the Kartilya as a reaction and response to certain
value systems that they found despicable in the present state of things that they struggled
against.

2. Moreover, one can analyze the values upheld in the documents as consistent with the
burgeoning national and liberal ideals in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.

3. In contemporary eyes, the Katipunan can be criticized because of these provisions. However,
one must not forget the context where the organization was born