Jones Law (Philippines)
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The Jones Law or the Act of Congress of August 29, 1916, known as the Philippine Autonomy Act of 1916, replaced the Philippine Organic Act of 1902 (Philippine Bill of 1902) that served as the de facto initial constitution of the Philippine Islands after it was ceded by Spain to the United States by virtue of the Treaty of Paris. It provided the Philippine Islands the framework for the creation of an autonomous government in preparation for the grant of independence by the United States Government. It also created a bicameral Philippine Legislature composed of a Senate and a House of Representatives [1].
The Jones Law, enacted by the 64th Congress of the United States on August 29, 1916, contained the first formal and official declaration of the United States commitment to grant independence to the Philippines[2]. The law provides that the grant of independence would come only "as soon as a stable government can be established", which gave the United States Government the power to determine when this "stable government" has been achieved. It aimed at providing the Filipino people (Filipinos) broader domestic autonomy, though it reserved certain privileges to the United States (Americans) to protect their sovereign rights and interests.
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[edit] Passage into law
The first bill seeking to grant the Philippine Islands autonomy and eventual independence was introduced in 1912. It planned to grant the Philippine Islands independence on July 4, 1921. The bill passed committee deliberations, but it did not progress from there.
A second version of the bill which did not set a definite date for the granting of independence was filed in 1914. Several amendments were introduced to the bill, as the Republicans tried to defeat it. It was only passed after the preamble was revised to include a statement that: "... it has always been, the purpose of the people of the United States to withdraw their sovereignty over the Philippine Islands and to recognize their independence as soon as a stable government can be established therein; ...".
It was signed into law by of the United States President Woodrow Wilson on August 29, 1916 .
[edit] Features
Among the salient provisions of the law was the creation of an all Filipino legislature. It created the Philippine Senate to replace the Philippine Commission, which had served as the upper chamber of the legislature.
[edit] Notes and References
- ^ Philippine Autonomy Act (Jones Law)
- ^ In the "Instructions of the President to the Philippine Commission" dated April 7, 1900, President William McKinley reiterated the intentions of the United States Government to establish and organize governments – essentially popular in their form – in the municipal and provincial administrative divisions of the Philippine Islands. However, there was no official mention of any official declaration of Philippine Independence.
