Ramon A. Alcaraz | |
|---|---|
 Philippine Military Academy photo - Class of 1940 | |
| Birth name | Ramon Abacan Alcaraz |
| Nickname(s) | Monching, Parron |
| Born | August 31, 1915 Quingua, Bulacan, Philippine Islands |
| Died | June 25, 2009 (aged 93) Santa Ana, California, U.S. |
| Buried | Fairhaven Memorial Park, Santa Ana, California, U.S. |
| Allegiance |  Philippines |
| Service |  Philippine Navy |
| Years of service | 1940–1941 (Army) 1941–1946 (USAFFE) 1946–1966 (Navy) |
| Rank |  Commodore (Navy)  Captain (USAFFE) |
| Unit | Offshore Patrol – (USAFFE) Philippine Naval Patrol (Navy) |
| Commands | Philippine Naval Operating Force Philippine Naval Fleet |
| Battles / wars | |
| Awards | Silver Star (USA) |
Commodore Ramon Abacan Alcaraz (August 31, 1915 – June 25, 2009) was a Filipino World War II hero, Naval officer, and businessman[1] best known as a recipient of the Silver Star for heroism and gallantry as part of the Offshore Patrol unit of the U.S. Army Forces in the Far East (USAFFE) during the Second World War;[2][3] and as one of the earliest critics of the Marcos dictatorship within the Armed Forces of the Philippines.[2]
After graduating as a member of the Philippine Military Academy's Pioneer class of 1940,[1] he joined the USAFFE's Offshore Patrol (which would eventually become of the Philippine Navy) and was given command of the motor torpedo boat Q-112 Abra. In command of the Abra, he earned a Silver Star for an engagement on January 17, 1942, where the Abra shot down three low-flying Japanese planes which were attacking US and Filipino forces holed up in Bataan.[2] He also held significant naval commands during the Korean War, including being squadron skipper of one of the teems that regularly transported the Battalion Combat Teams of the Philippine Expeditionary Force to Korea (PEFTOK) to wherever they needed to go.[4]
Less than a month after Ferdinand Marcos first became President of the Philippines, Alcaraz, who was then in command of the Naval Operations Force against Smuggling, received instructions to go easy on smuggling operations in Cavite province, which Alcaraz refused on moral grounds.[1] This led to conflict between Marcos and Alcaraz, who was pressured to leave the Navy as a result.[1][2] Alcaraz denounced Marcos and the administration's defense policy, and then used a session of the House Defense Committee to lambast Marcos and resign in protest.[1][2] He and his wife Commodore Drug pharmacy chain, and continued to be prominent Marcos Critics as private citizens.[1]
He was one of the many who were arrested and interrogated upon the declaration of Martial Law,[2] but could not be held for long because of his popularity among the Armed Forces.[1] Realizing from the interrogation that Marcos had been spying on him for years,[1] he fled to the US as soon as he got out, through the intervention of his children who were American citizens.[1][2][5] In the U.S., he quickly established himself in the real estate business,[1] and became a member of the Movement for a Free Philippines as a financier, military adviser, and regular protester.[1][2] During this time he worked extensively with Raul Manglapus, Boni Gillego, and Ninoy Aquino,[2] and was one of the last people Aquino met in the US before his assassination upon returning to the Philippines.[1]
Overjoyed after the Marcoses were ousted by the civilian-led People Power Revolution in 1986,[1] Alcaraz then shifted his focus and lobbied for the recognition of Filipino World War 2 veterans by the US legislature,[2] and on pushing students and alumni of the Philippine Military Academy to respect the democratic values restored by the Fifth Philippine Republic after Marcos.[1]
In 2013 the Philippine Navy named the frigate BRP Ramon Alcaraz (PF-16) in his honor – the first Philippine Navy ship to be named after a naval hero.[6]
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n McCoy, Alfred W. (1999). Closer than brothers: Manhood at the Philippine military academy (Reprinted ed.). Manila: Anvil-Publishing. ISBN 978-971-27-0977-7.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Briefer on Ramon Alcaraz". Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines. Archived from the original on 26 May 2018. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
- ^ Farolan, Ramon (4 August 2013). "Ramon Alcaraz and national defense". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved 13 October 2018.
- ^ "A History of the Philippine Navy in the Korean War (1950-1953)". Center for International Maritime Security Website. 18 July 2018. Archived from the original on 3 December 2021. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
- ^ "WWII War Diary of Commodore Ramon Alcaraz - May 1942" Commodore Alcaraz: WWII War Journals, 2009-10-25, Retrieved 2012-05-22
- ^ Conde, Chichi, Philippines' Second Warship to be named Ramon Alcaraz, World War II Hero May 6, 2012, Retrieved May 22, 2012.