Maritess De Ocampo

A lively outdoor gathering with people holding Philippine flags, showcasing national pride

Article (news)

Moira Macainag

<div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:514px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1781243266060Vibrant daytime traffic in Manila city, showcasing bustling urban life and fast-moving vehicles.jpg" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner"></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align:center"><em>Vibrant daytime traffic in Manila city, showcasing bustling urban life and fast-moving vehicles.</em></div><div style="text-align:center"><a href="https://www.pexels.com/photo/busy-street-scene-in-manila-with-blurred-traffic-37430479/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Joseph Robert/Pexels</em></a></div><div><br/></div><p>Every June 12, Filipinos pause to remember the heroes and movements that shaped the nation. But the freedoms they fought for don&#x27;t only live in history books or national monuments. Many of them live in the choices we make every single day, in moments so familiar we&#x27;ve stopped noticing them.</p><p>The ability to ask a question, cast a vote, start a business, sit in a classroom, or share a story online might feel ordinary now. But ordinary, it turns out, is what generations of Filipinos were fighting for.</p><p>Perhaps that&#x27;s the paradox of freedom: the more deeply it becomes woven into everyday life, the easier it is to overlook. We notice it most when it&#x27;s challenged, restricted, or suddenly absent. Until then, it feels less like a hard-won privilege and more like the natural order of things—a baseline we take for granted precisely because our ancestors secured it.</p><div><strong>The Freedom to Know</strong></div><p>Access to information is one of those freedoms that&#x27;s easy to overlook until it&#x27;s gone. Today, we can pull out our phones and instantly learn about a storm, an election, or an issue unfolding on the other side of the world. News travels faster than ever, and information is often only a few taps away.For many communities, access to reliable information is more than a convenience—it can be a lifeline.</p><p>When Super Typhoon Rolly devastated Catanduanes during the pandemic, journalist Jacque Manabat witnessed firsthand what happens when information disappears.</p><div><iframe class="instagram-media instagram-media-rendered" id="instagram-embed-0" src="https://www.instagram.com/p/DEqwdRvyvMF/embed/?cr=1&amp;v=14&amp;wp=810&amp;rd=https%3A%2F%2Fod2-workbench-web.abs-cbn.com&amp;rp=%2F#%7B%22ci%22%3A0%2C%22os%22%3A785978.9000000004%7D" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="" frameBorder="0" height="847" data-instgrm-payload-id="instagram-media-payload-0" scrolling="no" style="background:white;max-width:540px;width:calc(100% - 2px);border-radius:3px;border:1px solid rgb(219, 219, 219);box-shadow:none;display:block;margin:0px 0px 12px;min-width:326px;padding:0px"></iframe></div><script async="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script><div><br/></div><p>Locals told her they had long relied on DZMM radio to track storms and prepare their families. With their usual network off the air, the only signal their radios could catch was a foreign broadcast.</p><p>Her crew—with access to a satellite signal—became an unexpected lifeline, transmitting the island&#x27;s reality to the rest of the world.</p><div><iframe src="https://www.facebook.com/plugins/post.php?href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fjacquemanabat%2Fposts%2Fpfbid02vuvSJ9CNB7jhyfmETwQzNV88ag7rxcu5zbgsuDihbTT7taFC5PkGt1Pbiyt2Xzp7l&amp;show_text=true&amp;width=500" width="500" height="415" style="border:none;overflow:hidden" scrolling="no" frameBorder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe><br/></div><p>&quot;Journalism is an important lifeline,&quot; Jacque says. &quot;Access to verified facts and diverse perspectives keeps a society healthy. Verified data empowers people to make independent choices, navigate daily life, and demand accountability.&quot;</p><p>The experience reinforced a lesson she carries with her today: information is not merely a public service, it can be a matter of survival.</p><p>The freedom to ask questions, seek facts, and access different perspectives isn&#x27;t abstract. Sometimes it&#x27;s the difference between being seen and being left behind.</p><div><strong>The Freedom to Lead</strong></div><p>For many Filipinas today, freedom also means having the opportunity to pursue ambitions that previous generations of women may not have had access to—launching a business, leading a team, or building something entirely their own.</p><p>Gen Z entrepreneurs Cleo Loque of Hiraya Pilipina and Janet Kyla Cañete of Tala by Kyla are examples of how that opportunity can take shape. In their conversation with Bianca Gonzalez on one of the episodes of Paano Ba &#x27;To: The Podcast, both founders reflected on their journeys of turning personal passions into thriving businesses.</p><div><iframe class="instagram-media instagram-media-rendered" id="instagram-embed-2" src="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C5BIchAhuvP/embed/?cr=1&amp;v=14&amp;wp=810&amp;rd=https%3A%2F%2Fod2-workbench-web.abs-cbn.com&amp;rp=%2F#%7B%22ci%22%3A2%2C%22os%22%3A955398.5%7D" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="" frameBorder="0" height="847" data-instgrm-payload-id="instagram-media-payload-2" scrolling="no" style="background:white;max-width:540px;width:calc(100% - 2px);border-radius:3px;border:1px solid rgb(219, 219, 219);box-shadow:none;display:block;margin:0px 0px 12px;min-width:326px;padding:0px"></iframe></div><script async="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script><div><br/></div><p>Cleo started Hiraya Pilipina at just 15 years old with an initial capital of ₱20,000, while Janet grew Tala by Kyla from a love for accessories into a brand with physical stores and thousands of customers. Though their businesses took different paths, both founders emphasized a similar lesson: opportunities don&#x27;t always arrive with guarantees. Sometimes, pursuing a dream requires believing in an idea before anyone else does and having the courage to begin before you feel completely ready. Their journeys serve as a reminder that opportunity often starts with a simple decision: to try.</p><div><iframe class="instagram-media instagram-media-rendered" id="instagram-embed-4" src="https://www.instagram.com/p/DKuej0wB4ba/embed/?cr=1&amp;v=14&amp;wp=810&amp;rd=https%3A%2F%2Fod2-workbench-web.abs-cbn.com&amp;rp=%2F#%7B%22ci%22%3A4%2C%22os%22%3A1039339.3000000003%7D" allowtransparency="true" allowfullscreen="" frameBorder="0" height="889" data-instgrm-payload-id="instagram-media-payload-4" scrolling="no" style="background:white;max-width:540px;width:calc(100% - 2px);border-radius:3px;border:1px solid rgb(219, 219, 219);box-shadow:none;display:block;margin:0px 0px 12px;min-width:326px;padding:0px"></iframe></div><script async="" src="//www.instagram.com/embed.js"></script><div><br/></div><p>Their stories reflect a reality that many women today are able to pursue: the opportunity to create something of their own and shape its future according to their vision.</p><p>The ability for women to lead and create reflects decades of hard-won progress. And it&#x27;s a reminder that freedom isn&#x27;t only measured by rights on paper—it&#x27;s measured by opportunity in practice.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/lifestyle/food-travel/2026/6/11/solaire-marks-independence-day-with-filipino-dining-offerings-1937" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Solaire marks Independence Day with Filipino dining offerings</a></div><div><strong>The Freedom to Learn</strong></div><p>Education is often discussed as a pathway to better opportunities. But for many Filipinos, its impact extends far beyond future careers or earning potential. It shapes how people see themselves, the world around them, and the possibilities available to them.</p><p>UP Scholar and college student Sean Mataac traces nearly everything about who he is today back to one thing: access to education.</p><p>Since his science high school days and now as a university student, each opportunity has expanded not only his knowledge, but also his view of what was possible.</p><p>&quot;Being in these environments opened up paths that would have been completely out of reach otherwise,&quot; he says. &quot;They exposed me to different fields, challenged me to think bigger, and connected me with people and places that expanded my view of what I can achieve.&quot;</p><p>But the greatest impact wasn&#x27;t academic.</p><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:454px;display:block" width="454"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1781238183806Sean.jpg" class="fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:454px" width="454"/><span class="fr-inner"><em>Scholar Sean Mataac says nearly everything he is today began with access to education</em></span></span></span></div><p>&quot;Education has been much more than just a tool for my career,&quot; Sean says. &quot;It has been a privilege that transformed not only my future opportunities, but also my character and my outlook on life.”</p><p>For Sean, the value of education wasn&#x27;t limited to the classroom. It isn&#x27;t always measured in grades, credentials, or career outcomes. Sometimes, its greatest impact lies in the perspectives it shapes and the possibilities it helps people imagine for themselves. His journey is still unfolding, but education has already fundamentally altered his horizon. It gave him the language to dream beyond the immediate.</p><div><strong>The Freedom of Choice</strong></div><p>Among the many freedoms Filipinos enjoy today, the ability to have a voice in the country&#x27;s future remains one of the most significant. But at its core, democracy is about participation, the chance to be heard and to help shape what comes next. For many young Filipinos, that experience begins when they step into a voting booth for the very first time.</p><p>Student volunteer and first-time voter Anika Gaspar is no stranger to community service, regularly taking part in initiatives that provide meals and support to people experiencing homelessness and others in need. So when she stepped into a voting booth for the first time, she understood the significance of participating in another way.</p><p>&quot;Exercising my right to vote made me feel that I can somehow make a change and contribute for the betterment of our country, even in a small way,&quot; she says.</p><p>But for Anika, freedom runs deeper than a single ballot.</p><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:592px;display:block" width="592"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1781237503043Anika.jpg" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="592" style="width:592px"/><span class="fr-inner"><em>First-time voter Anika Gaspar exercising her right </em></span></span></span></div><p>&quot;Freedom means being able to utilize our voice, express our opinions, and actively participate in things we know will affect not just us, but other people as well.&quot;</p><p>For young Filipinos especially, she believes, learning to engage rather than sit on the sidelines is how a better future gets built.</p><p>After all, democracy doesn&#x27;t only live during election season. A first vote is more than a milestone—it is often the first tangible reminder that one&#x27;s voice carries weight. And while a single ballot may seem small, it remains one of the most direct ways citizens can help shape the future they hope to inherit and participate in conversations about the kind of country they want to build.</p><div><strong>The Freedom to Tell Our Stories</strong></div><p>Stories have always connected people. What has changed is how easily those stories can now be shared. Today, anyone with an internet connection can reach an audience, find a community, or inspire someone they&#x27;ve never met. For many Filipinos, that ability to tell their own stories has become one of the most accessible forms of self-expression.</p><p>Content creator Fonz used to watch celebrity interviews in his early twenties, drawn to stories of struggle, persistence, and ambition. He felt connected to people he had never met simply because they were willing to share their journeys.</p><p>Now that he has a platform of his own, he hopes to do the same.</p><p>&quot;I hope that by sharing what I went through and what I still go through, it will resonate with somebody out there. Because I know it can be helpful.&quot;</p><p>When viewers began messaging him to say his videos helped them through difficult periods in their lives, it changed how he saw his work.</p><p>&quot;You would think creating comedy content on TikTok is not very important,&quot; he says. &quot;But it helped me understand that what I do matters.&quot;</p><p>Sharing his dreams openly also led to opportunities he never expected. One industry contact later told him that an old video, where Fonz talked about wanting to become an actor, was one of the reasons he was considered for a television role.</p><blockquote cite="https://www.tiktok.com/@ribsp/video/7536941287128239367" class="tiktok-embed" data-video-id="7536941287128239367" id="v29630175655765100" style="max-width:605px;min-width:325px"><iframe name="__tt_embed__v29630175655765100" sandbox="allow-popups allow-popups-to-escape-sandbox allow-scripts allow-top-navigation allow-same-origin" src="https://www.tiktok.com/embed/v2/7536941287128239367?lang=en-US&amp;referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fod2-workbench-web.abs-cbn.com%2F%23%2Fworkspace%2Fmonitoring%3Fitem%3Durn%3Anewsml%3Aod2-workbench-api.abs-cbn.com%3A2026-06-12T04%3A51%3A36.203944%3A91f6c6cc-6a56-4898-997f-c0b74859ca3f%26action%3Dedit" style="width:100%;height:722px;display:block;visibility:unset"></iframe></blockquote><script async="" src="https://www.tiktok.com/embed.js"></script><div><br/></div><p>&quot;Had I not expressed that I wanted to be an <em>artista</em>, I&#x27;m not sure if he would have even considered me for the part,&quot; he reflects. &quot;I think it&#x27;s worth putting your dreams out into the world because the universe might do something to make it happen.&quot;</p><p>Not all freedoms are exercised in voting booths, classrooms, or newsrooms. Some live in the stories we choose to tell and the voices we choose to share — and sometimes, those stories travel farther than we ever expected them to. That&#x27;s the beauty of self-expression, we never quite know whose life our words might reach, or how those connections might find their way back to us when we least expect it.</p><div><a class="fr-green fr-strong" href="https://www.abs-cbn.com/lifestyle/food-travel/2026/6/10/lechon-fondue-craft-spirits-take-center-stage-this-independence-day-weekend-1424" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">YOU MAY ALSO LIKE: Lechon Fondue, craft spirits take center stage this Independence Day weekend</a></div><div><strong>Freedom in the Everyday</strong></div><p>Freedom rarely looks like a chapter in a history book. Most days, it doesn&#x27;t announce itself at all. It just looks like everyday life.</p><p>It exists in the spaces of our routine. In the ability to choose our own paths, pursue our own ambitions, and imagine a future bigger than the circumstances we were born into. Today, we rarely recognize these things as radical freedoms. We simply call them choices.</p><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:959px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1781241274596https___www.pexels.com_photo_children-playing-traditional-game-in-philippines-37560113_.jpg" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner"></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align:center"><em>A group of children playing a traditional game on streets of Philippines.</em></div><div style="text-align:center"><a href="https://www.pexels.com/photo/children-playing-traditional-game-in-philippines-37560113/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Grace/Pexels</em></a></div><div><br/></div><p>For different people, those choices take different forms. But it reminds us that Independence Day is not just a holiday on the calendar or a single date in time. At the heart of every story is the same truth: those choices are a hard-won inheritance. </p><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:514px"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1781243446714https___www.pexels.com_photo_street-food-preparation-in-manila-market-37065934_.jpg" class="fr-fic fr-dib"/><span class="fr-inner"></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align:center"><em>A vendor prepares traditional street food in Manila, showcasing Filipino culture.</em></div><div style="text-align:center"><a href="https://www.pexels.com/photo/street-food-preparation-in-manila-market-37065934/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Amore Dumlao/ Pexels</em></a></div><div><br/></div><p>True independence is more than just a victory won in the past; it is an active, living license. It is not merely the freedom from something, but the freedom to become something.</p><div><span class="fr-img-caption fr-fic fr-dib" style="width:548px;display:block" width="548"><span class="fr-img-wrap"><img src="https://od2-image-api.abs-cbn.com/prod/editorImage/1781240808032https___www.pexels.com_photo_philippine-treasury-with-national-flags-in-manila-37821433_.jpg" class="fr-fic fr-dib" width="548" style="width:548px"/><span class="fr-inner"></span></span></span></div><div style="text-align:center"><em>Historic building in Manila with Philippine flags on display, clear blue sky background.</em></div><div style="text-align:center"><a href="https://www.pexels.com/photo/philippine-treasury-with-national-flags-in-manila-37821433/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Ramius Aquiler/Pexels</em></a></div><div><br/></div><p>The generations who fought for it may never have imagined the exact lives we live today. But perhaps that was never the point. They weren&#x27;t fighting for a specific future—they were fighting for the possibility of many. For the right of every generation after them to decide, for themselves, who they wanted to be.</p><p>After all, the future was never meant to belong to a single generation, or to be a relic to preserve. It was always meant to be shaped by those who came after.</p><p>That was the point all along.</p>

<p>Freedom isn't always found in grand moments. Through the stories of Filipinos from different walks of life, this feature explores how independence continues to shape everyday choices, opportunities, and aspirations.</p>

Freedom isn't always found in grand moments. Through the stories of Filipinos from different walks of life, this feature explores how independence continues to shape everyday choices, opportunities, and aspirations.

This Independence Day we explore the everyday freedoms we often take for granted

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This Independence Day we explore the everyday freedoms we often take for granted

Moira Macainag

Published June 12, 2026 01:32 PM PHT

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Updated June 12, 2026 01:52 PM PHT

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June 12

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