LOOK: Balangiga bells on their way back to Philippines
MANILA, Philippines — The three Balangiga bells will soon be back in the country as they are now on their way for delivery, the United States Embassy in the Philippines said on Saturday.
The bells—two at the Francis E. Warren Air Force Base in Cheyenne, Wyoming and one at Camp Red Cloud, headquarters of the 9th Infantry Regiment in Uijeongbu, South Korea—were removed from display and are now on their way to the Philippines.
According to Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, the bells are now in Guam and are expected to arrive at the Villamor Air Base in Pasay City on Dec. 11.
US Embassy releases photos of Balangiga Bells in Wyoming being readied for transport last Nov. 15. Defense Sec. Lorenzana says the bells are now in Guam and will arrive in Manila on Dec. 11. | @FMangosingINQ pic.twitter.com/RUiXXcBw81
— Inquirer (@inquirerdotnet) December 8, 2018
Removal, transportation & packaging of 2 of the #BalangigaBells from the FE Warren AFB in Cheyenne, WY, USA last Nov. 15. Bells due in Manila on Dec. 11. (Photo: .@USEmbassyPH) | @JeromeAningINQ pic.twitter.com/MXJ9nk4EMt
— Inquirer (@inquirerdotnet) December 8, 2018
Residents of Balangiga in Eastern Samar have been clamoring for years for the return of the bells which were taken as war trophies from the Balangiga town church during the Philippine-American war following the Balangiga massacre in 1901.
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It was only last August that U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis signed the document which allowed the bells to be returned to the Philippines.
The bells will be displayed at the St. Lawrence the Martyr Parish Church which underwent repairs after it was devastated by the Supertyphoon Yolanda (international name: Haiyan) in 2013. /muf
