Philippine–American War
In 1902, the United States Congress passed the Philippine Organic Act, which provided for the creation of the Philippine Assembly, with members to be elected by Filipino males. (Women did not have suffrage in the US or the Philippines.) This act was superseded by the 1916 Philippine Autonomy Act, which contained the first formal and official declaration of the United States government's commitment to eventually grant independence to the Philippines. The 1934 Philippine Independence Act created the Commonwealth of the Philippines the following year, a limited form of independence, and established a process ending in Philippine independence (originally scheduled for 1944, but interrupted and delayed by World War II). The United States granted independence in 1946, following World War II and the Japanese occupation of the Philippines, through the Treaty of Manila.
Independence Day (Philippines)
On June 12, 1998, the nation celebrated its hundredth year of independence from Spain. The celebrations were held simultaneously nationwide by then President Fidel V. Ramos and the Filipino diaspora. The National Centennial Commission was headed by former Vice President and Prime Minister Salvador Laurel. The body organized and presided over all events around the country. One of the major projects of the Commission was the Expo Pilipino, a grand showcase of the Philippines' growth as a nation in a century, located in the Clark Special Economic Zone (formerly Clark Air Base) in Angeles City. Some other important events included a re-enactment of the first unfurling of the flag at the Aguinaldo Shrine, and the usual flag raising at Independence Flagpole in Rizal Park, Manila.