Drive for U.S. Gold Medal for Filipino WWII vets picks up steam

Retired U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Antonio Taguba is leading the campaign for a U.S. Gold Medal of Recognition for all Filipino veterans of WWII. PHOTOS BY ROSE PAQUETTE

SAN FRANCISCO — A key piece of legislation in Congress recognizing the wartime service of Filipino and Filipino American World War II veterans would pave the way for U.S. government to award a collective gold medal to an estimated 260,000 recipients, supporters of the veterans said.

The Gold Medal of Recognition is the highest award a civilian could receive, according to Veterans Equity Center Executive Director Luisa Antonio.

Once approved, House Bill 2737 introduced by Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (Dem-Hawaii) and counterpart Senate Bill 1555 introduced by Mazie Hirono (Dem-Hawaii), would allow the minting of the lone, original gold medal with a price tag of around $40,000.00. The bill was introduced on June 11.

Taguba briefing Filipino veterans and their families in San Francisco.

Retired U.S. Army Maj. Gen. and Filipino Veterans Recognition and Education Project Chairman Antonio M. Taguba, during a press conference held at the Filipino Equity Center in San Francisco on July 3, said that Gold Medal of Recognition would be housed in the Museum of American History in Washington, D.C., and would be replicated for distribution to WWII veterans and their families. “The U.S. would destroy the mold, “ Taguba said, “ there should be no counterfeit.”

Taguba said the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President would present the gold medal in a big awarding ceremony. “ Hopefully, this is a big event.” 

Project phases

The Filipino Veterans Recognition and Education Project is a nonpartisan, community- based, all-volunteer national initiative.

“Our mission is to raise awareness through academic research and public education and obtain national recognition of the Filipino American World War II soldiers for their wartime service to the U.S. and Philippines from July 1941 to December 1946, “ Taguba, told veterans and their families.

Phase 1 of the project focus is on conducting research on the Filipino soldiers’ experiences during WWII. Scholars from the University of Maryland and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology will lead this effort.

“The Philippine Government has a national archive in Manila but doesn’t have historical records of the war, “ Taguba. This is the reason, he said, research is needed on Fil-Am soldiers, Philippine Scouts, Philippine Commonwealth Army, Recognized Guerillas, New Philippine Scouts, 1st Filipino Infantry Regimen, 2nd Filipino Battalion and 1st Recon Battalion.

Phase 2 is seeking approval from the U.S. Congress to award a Congressional Gold Medal to the Filipino soldiers.

Phase 3 is designing and implementing initiatives to inform and educate the public about the Filipino soldiers’ contributions to the U.S. war effort. These initiatives will include digital archives and exhibits.

Taguba said that Congress would appropriate funds for minting the gold medal while the his group would need to raise from $2 to $4-million to cover all phases of the project including funding the replicas, recognition events, educational development and public engagement campaigns. Sponsors would also be sought for contributions, grants and in-kind support.

Retired Philippine Army Maj. Gen. Eldon Regua and veterans’ advocate Atty. Lou Tancinco at the briefing.

“Simply said, recognition means ‘Thank you’ for your wartime service,’ said Taguba, stressing that there was “no formal recognition from the U.S. Government” Filipinos’ contributions since the end of WWII.

There are about 260,000 Filipino soldiers who fought in WWII of whom 16,000 to 18,000 (soldiers) remain in the U.S. and the Philippines, the general added.

Other benefits needed

Retired Filipino Army Maj. Gen. Eldon Regua, now based in San Jose, said that the Federal Government and California Veterans Administration also need to focus on four ongoing needs of veterans — education, employment, health care and housing.

At least, 1.8 million (eight percent of all veterans in the U.S.) are in California, said Regua, who had 36-years in active reserve duty. “In my retired veteran’s opinion, we need to focus on these four areas as a minimum to give veterans’ benefits,” he said.

Antonio encouraged Filipino veterans to contact their community representatives: “We wish to inform the Filipino World War II veterans and their survivors of this congressional Gold Medal (award) that will finally recognize everybody.”

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