The Propaganda Movement encompassed the activities of a group of Filipinos who called for political reforms in their land in the late 19th century, and produced books, leaflets, and newspaper articles to educate others about their goals and issues they were trying to solve. They were active approximately from 1880 to 1898, and especially between 1880 and 1895, before the Philippine Revolution began. Prominent members included

José Rizal José Protasio Rizal Mercado y Alonso Realonda (, ; June 19, 1861 – December 30, 1896) was a Filipino nationalist, writer and polymath active at the end of the Spanish colonial period of the Philippines. He is considered the national h ...

, author of novels '' Noli Me Tángere'' and '' El filibusterismo'', and essays; Graciano López Jaena, publisher of ''

La Solidaridad ''La Solidaridad'' (The Solidarity) was an organization created in Spain on December 13, 1888. Composed of Filipino liberals exiled in 1872 and students attending Europe's universities, the organization aimed to increase Spanish awareness of th ...

'', the movement's principal organ; Mariano Ponce, the organization's secretary, and Marcelo H. del Pilar. Specifically, the Propagandists aims were the following: * Reinstate the former representation of the Philippines in the

Cortes Generales The Cortes Generales (; en, Spanish Parliament, lit=General Courts) are the bicameral legislative chambers of Spain, consisting of the Congress of Deputies (the lower house), and the Senate (the upper house). The Congress of Deputies meet ...

or Spanish Parliament * Secularize the clergy (i.e. use secular or diocesan priest rather than clergy from a religious order) * Legalize Spanish and Filipino equality * Reestablish Spanish citizenship for Filipinos * Reestablish the Philippines as a province of Spain * Abolish '' polo y servicios'' (labor service) and the ''bandala'' (forced sale of local products to the government) * Guarantee basic civil freedoms * Provide equal opportunity for Filipinos and Spanish to enter government service Dr. Domingo Abella, Director of the National Archives, has suggested that the Propaganda Movement was misnamed. He believes that it should have been called the Counterpropaganda Movement because its essential task was to counteract the campaign of misinformation that certain Spanish groups were disseminating in Spain and later in Rome (the Vatican). It was a campaign of information, as well as a bid to build sympathy for political reform. It is notable in contrast to the Katipunan, or the "K.K.K.", a Filipino revolutionary movement seeking the total

independence Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the s ...

of the Philippines from Spain. The Propaganda Movement instead sought to have the Philippines assimilated as a formal

province of Spain A province in Spain * es, provincias, ; sing. ''provincia'') * Basque (, sing. ''probintzia''. * Catalan (), sing. ''província''. * Galician (), sing. ''provincia''. is a territorial division defined as a collection of municipalities, ...

, rather than being ruled as a colony. The Filipinos of this movement were using "propaganda" in its Latin sense, not the pejorative connotation it has acquired in English. For instance, the Catholic institution called ''Sacra Congregatio de Propaganda Fide'' - Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith, is now translated as 'For the Evangelization of Peoples'). It was in the latter sense that the word was used by the Filipino group that sent Marcelo H. del Pilar to Spain to continue the "propaganda" on behalf of the Philippines.

References

Philippine Revolution {{Philippines-hist-stub