Jose P. Laurel

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Jose P. Laurel

3rd President of the Philippines President of the 2nd Republic
In office October 14, 1943 – August 17, 1945
Preceded by	None
Succeeded by	None
Born	March 9, 1891 Tanauan, Batangas
Died	November 6, 1959 Tanauan, Batangas
Political party	Kapisanan ng Paglilingkod sa Bagong Pilipinas (KALIBAPI)[1]
Spouse	Pacencia Hidalgo
Religion	Roman Catholic
Signature

José Paciano Laurel y García (March 9, 1891 – November 6, 1959) was the president of the Japanese-sponsored Republic of the Philippines from 1943 to 1945.

Laurel was not subsequently officially recognized as a Philippine president until the administration of Diosdado Macapagal.

Contents 1 Biography 2 Notes 3 External link 4 References

[edit] Biography

José P. Laurel was born on March 9, 1891 in the town of Tanauan City, Batangas. His parents were Sotero Laurel, Sr. and Jacoba García.

As a teen, Laurel was indicted for attempted murder when he almost killed a rival suitor of his girlfriend. While studying and finishing law school, he asked for and received an acquittal.

Laurel received law degrees from the University of the Philippines in 1915, from Escuela de Derecho in 1919, and from Yale University in 1920. He became a Secretary of the Interior in 1922 but resigned along with others in 1923 in protest of American Governor-General Leonard Wood. In 1925 he was elected to the Philippine Senate. When the Commonwealth of the Philippines was established, he was appointed associate justice of the Supreme Court and later Chief Justice at the outbreak of the war.

Following the attack on Pearl Harbor in World War II, Laurel was instructed to remain in Manila by President Manuel Quezon, who fled to Corregidor and then to the United States to establish a government-in-exile. His prewar, close relationship with Japanese officials (a son had been sent to study at the Imperial Military Academy in Tokyo, and Laurel had received an honorary doctorate from Tokyo University), placed him in a good position to interact with the Japanese occupation forces.

Laurel was among the Commonwealth officials instructed by the Japanese Imperial Army to form a provisional government when they invaded and occupied the country. It was because of his being well-known to the Japanese as a critic of US rule, as well as his demonstrated willingness to serve under the Japanese Military Administration, that he held a series of high posts in 1942-1943. In 1943 he was selected, by the National Assembly, under vigorous Japanese influence, to serve as President. That year he was shot by Philippine guerillas, but recovered. Laurel was instrumental in interceding, protecting and looking after the best interests of the Filipinos against the harsh wartime Japanese military rule and policies. During the Second World War, the Japanese had massacred many Filipinos, and raped and molested Filipino women, Laurel's willingness to work with the Japanese military is seen by many as having led to this behavior being somewhat mitigated subsequent to his inauguration.

On August 15, 1945, the Japanese forces surrendered to the United States. Gen. Douglas MacArthur ordered Laurel arrested for collaborating with the Japanese. In 1946 he was charged with 132 counts of treason, but was never brought to trial due to the general amnesty granted by President Manuel Roxas in 1948. Laurel ran for president against Elpidio Quirino in 1949 but lost in what was then considered as the dirtiest election in Philippine electoral history. In the subsequent presidential election, Laurel, then serving as a senator, declined to be nominated, working instead for the successful election of Ramon Magsaysay. Magsaysay appointed Laurel head of a mission tasked with negotiating trade and other issues with United States officials, the result being known as the Laurel-Langley Agreement.

Laurel considered his election to the senate as a vindication of his reputation, and had no difficulty being reelected. He retired from public life in 1957, concentrating on the development of the Lyceum of the Philippines established by his family. On November 6, 1959, he died of a massive heart attack and stroke.

Jose P. Laurel was married to Pacencia Hidalgo in 1911, and had nine children. Many of them grew to be active in politics, such as:

• Jose B. Laurel, Jr. (former speaker)
• Jose S. Laurel III (former Ambassador to Japan)
• Salvador H. Laurel (former senator/former vice-president/former Secretary of Foreign Affairs/former Chairman of Philiipine Centennial Commission)
• Mariano H. Laurel (former President of Philippine Banking Corporation)
• Sotero H. Laurel, Jr. (former senator)

[edit] Notes

1. ^ It was the only party that was allowed to operate under the Japanese Occupation of the Philippines.

[edit] External link

• The Philippine Presidency Project

[edit] References

• Laurel, Jose P. (1953). Bread and Freedom.
• Zaide, Gregorio F. (1984). Philippine History and Government. National Bookstore Printing Press.

Preceded by: ?	Secretary of the Interior 1919–1922	Succeeded by: ?
Preceded by: Antero Soriano	Senator 1925–1931	Succeeded by: Claro M. Recto
Preceded by: ?	Delegate to the 1934-35 Constitutional Convention 1934–1935	Succeeded by: ?
Preceded by: ?	Associate Justice of the Supreme Court 1936–1941	Succeeded by: ?
Preceded by: Jose Abad Santos	Secretary of Justice July 17, 1941 – December 24, 1941	Succeeded by: Jose Abad Santos
Preceded by: N.A.	Commissioner of Justice and the Interior 1942–1943	Succeeded by: N.A.
Preceded by: ?	President, Preparatory Committee for Philippine Independence 1942–1943	Succeeded by: [ ?
Preceded by: N.A.	President of the Philippines 1943–1945	Succeeded by: N.A.
Preceded by: '	Senator 1951–1957	Succeeded by: '

Presidents of the Philippines - List
Aguinaldo | Quezon | Osmeña | Laurel | Roxas | Quirino | Magsaysay     Garcia | Macapagal | Marcos | Aquino | Ramos | Estrada | Arroyo

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