Editing History of the Philippines (section)

=== Commonwealth ===

{{Main|Commonwealth of the Philippines}}
[[File:Manuel L. Quezon (November 1942).jpg|left|thumb|Philippine President [[Manuel L. Quezon]]|179x179px]]

The [[Great Depression]] in the early thirties hastened the progress of the Philippines towards independence. In the United States it was mainly the sugar industry and labor unions that had a stake in loosening the U.S. ties to the Philippines since they could not compete with the Philippine cheap sugar (and other commodities) which could freely enter the U.S. market. Therefore, they agitated in favor of granting independence to the Philippines so that its cheap products and labor could be shut out of the United States.<ref>Goff, Richard; Moss, Walter G.; Terry, Janice; Upshur, Jiu-Hwa: ''The Twentieth Century: A Brief Global History'', Boston: McGraw-Hill, 1998, pp. 212</ref>

[[File:Quezon Roosevelt.jpg|thumb|right|Commonwealth President [[Manuel L. Quezon]] with United States President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] in Washington, D.C.|162x162px]]
In 1933, the [[United States Congress]] passed the [[Hare–Hawes–Cutting Act]] as a Philippine Independence Act over President [[Herbert Hoover]]'s veto.<ref>{{Harvnb|Agoncillo|1990|pp=345–346}}</ref> Though the bill had been drafted with the aid of a commission from the Philippines, it was opposed by Philippine Senate President [[Manuel L. Quezon]], partially because of provisions leaving the United States in control of naval bases. Under his influence, the Philippine legislature rejected the bill.<ref name="uslc-20">{{Harvnb|Dolan|1991-20}}</ref> The following year, a revised act known as the [[Tydings–McDuffie Act]] was finally passed. The act provided for the establishment of the [[Commonwealth of the Philippines]] with transition to full independence after a ten-year period. The commonwealth would have its own constitution and be self-governing, though foreign policy would be the responsibility of the United States, and certain legislation required approval of the United States president.<ref name="uslc-20" /> The Act stipulated that the date of independence would be on July 4 following the tenth anniversary of the establishment of the Commonwealth.
[[File:Aurora Quezon in Malacañan Palace.jpg|left|thumb|267x267px|[[Philippine First Lady]] [[Aurora Quezon]]]]
A Constitutional Convention was convened in Manila on July 30, 1934. On February 8, 1935, the 1935 Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines was approved by the convention by a vote of 177 to 1. The constitution was approved by President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] on March 23, 1935, and ratified by popular vote on May 14, 1935.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thecorpusjuris.com/laws/constitutions/8-philippineconstitutions/66-1935-constitution.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090522092815/http://www.thecorpusjuris.com/laws/constitutions/8-philippineconstitutions/66-1935-constitution.html|title=Corpus Juris – 1935 Constitution|author=Super Administrator|archive-date=May 22, 2009|work=thecorpusjuris.com|access-date=February 29, 2012|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Harvnb|Zaide|1994|pp=317–318}} (archived from [http://www.thecorpusjuris.com/laws/constitutions/8-philippineconstitutions/66-1935-constitution.html the original] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090522092815/http://www.thecorpusjuris.com/laws/constitutions/8-philippineconstitutions/66-1935-constitution.html |date=May 22, 2009}} on May 22, 2009)</ref>

On September 17, 1935,<ref name="presidency.ucsb.edu">{{cite web|url=http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=14980#axzz1nmGfKCgR|title=Franklin D. Roosevelt: Proclamation 2148 – Establishment of the Commonwealth of the Philippines|work=ucsb.edu}}</ref> [[1935 Philippine presidential election|presidential elections]] were held. Candidates included former president Emilio Aguinaldo, the ''[[Philippine Independent Church|Iglesia Filipina Independiente]]'' leader [[Gregorio Aglipay]], and others. [[Manuel L. Quezon]] and [[Sergio Osmeña]] of the [[Nacionalista Party]] were proclaimed the winners, winning the seats of president and vice-president, respectively.<ref name="US-influence">{{cite encyclopedia|title=Philippines, The period of U.S. influence|url=https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-23717/Philippines|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica Online|access-date=February 10, 2007}}</ref>

The Commonwealth Government was inaugurated on the morning of November 15, 1935, in ceremonies held on the steps of the [[Old Legislative Building (Manila)|Legislative Building]] in Manila. The event was attended by a crowd of around 300,000 people.<ref name="presidency.ucsb.edu" /> Under the Tydings–McDuffie Act this meant that the date of full independence for the Philippines was set for July 4, 1946, a timetable which was followed after the passage of almost eleven very eventful years.

[[File:Central facade of the Legislative Building.jpg|thumb|Legislative Building of the commonwealth of the Philippines]]
The new government embarked on ambitious nation-building policies in preparation for economic and political independence.<ref name="US-influence2">{{cite encyclopedia|title=Philippines, The period of U.S. influence|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica|url=https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-23717/Philippines|access-date=February 10, 2007|edition=online|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070205150116/https://www.britannica.com/eb/article-23717/Philippines|archive-date=February 5, 2007|url-status=live}}</ref> These included national defense (such as the [[National Defense Act of 1935]], which organized a [[conscription]] for service in the country), greater control over the [[Economy of the Philippines|economy]], the perfection of democratic institutions, reforms in education, improvement of transport, the promotion of local capital, industrialization, and the colonization of [[Mindanao]].

However, uncertainties, especially in the diplomatic and military situation in [[Southeast Asia]], in the level of U.S. commitment to the future [[Republic of the Philippines]], and in the economy due to the [[Great Depression]], proved to be major problems. The situation was further complicated by the presence of agrarian unrest, and of power struggles between Osmeña and Quezon,<ref name="US-influence2" /> especially after Quezon was permitted to be re-elected after one six-year term.

A proper evaluation of the policies' effectiveness or failure is difficult due to Japanese invasion and [[Japanese occupation of the Philippines|occupation]] during World War II.