Colonial Capital, Modernist

Capital, Global Capital: The

Changing Political Symbolism of
Urban Space in Metro Manila,
the Philippines
Gavin Shatkin

I
ntroduction
Capital cities play an important role in representing the aspirations and
ideals of a nation, or at least the national governments interpretation
of these aspirations and ideals. They are symbolic theaters for national
ideology, a reflection of the larger national stance towards urbanism, a catalyst
for national economic development, and at least historically, a bridge between
local culture and the imagined community of the nation-state.1 They
contain monuments and museums that act as receptacles of collective
memory, they play host to ceremonies and spectacles marking important
events, past and present, in the nations history, and they contain the spaces
that represent centrepoints of political power. They are also the sites where
the forces of change contest the status quo through protest. As such, the
physical development of capital cities is shaped by their political functions,
and their physical form in turn influences the realm of political action.2
Despite the fact that many also function as capitals, the study of Asias
cities has predominantly focused on their economic role. As integration into
the global economy has fostered an economic, spatial and technological
transformation in these cities, analysis has particularly focused on their role
as global citiescentres that coordinate the integration of national and
regional economies into global flows of trade and investment.3 While the

______________________

1 Scott Campbell, The Changing Role and Identity of Capital Cities in the Global Era, paper
presented at the Association of American Geographers Annual Meeting, Pittsburgh, April 2000, p. 1.
2 Victor Sumsky, The City as Political Actor: Manila, February 1986, Alternatives vol. 17 (1992),
pp. 479-492; Amos Rapoport, On the Nature of Capitals and their Physical Expression, in John
Taylor, Jean Lengelle and Caroline Andrew, eds., Capital Cities: International Perspectives (Ottawa: Carleton
University Press, 1993), pp. 31-68.
3 Fuchen Lo and Yue-Man Yeung, Globalization and the World of Large Cities (Tokyo: United Nations
University Press, 1998); Roger Simmonds and Gary Hack, eds., Global City Regions: Their Emerging
Forms (London: Spon Press, 2000).

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global city concept is highly relevant and worthy of study, the political role
of Asias capitals has also had an important influence on their form, as
governments have imbued this form with symbols of their aspirations for
nation building. A number of recent studies (as well as some older studies)
have begun to explore the role of urban development in defining national
identity, and in projecting an image of progress and global competitiveness.4
This paper follows these studies by developing an historical framework for
understanding changes in state strategies for capital building, and the
relationship between these changes in political symbolism and changes in
the use of public space for the expression of political dissent. It argues that
a fundamental shift is occurring in the political symbolism of urban space in
the global era as the privatization of urban development has led to the
degradation of public space, and that this shift has implications for grassroots
political action.
The paper will begin by examining both the current and historical political
symbolism of city building in globalizing capital cities, where the pressures
and changes from globalization encounter the politics and symbolism that
are associated with the nations capital. This paper will focus specifically on
the case of Metro Manila 5 although an effort will be made to draw
inferences to the larger group of global capital cities, it is recognized that
there are significant differences as well as similarities between these cities.
As with many other Asian capitals, Metro Manila developed its current form
under colonial rule, and has historically symbolized the countrys interface
with the international economy and with modernity. It is the economic
and political epicentre of the countrywhile Metro Manila proper contains
about 11 million people, it sits at the centre of an industrializing and
urbanizing region that contains a population of some 17 to 18 million. This
region contains a disproportionate share of the countrys economic
production and cultural resources. Yet it also faces myriad daunting social
challenges, most visible and pressing being the fact that some 40 percent of
its residents live in informal settlements. Their presence inevitably raises
questions about the governments strategies for economic and social progress.

______________________

4 Some of the most notable examples include: Lily Kong and Brenda Yeoh, The Politics of
Landscapes in Singapore: Constructions of Nation (Syracuse: Syracure University Press, 2003); Gerard
Lico, Edifice Complex: Power, Myth and Marcos State Architecture (Quezon City: Ateneo de Manila University
Press, 2003); Tim Bunnell, Cities for Nations?: Examining the City-Nation-State Relation in
Information Age Malaysia, International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, vol. 26, no. 2 (2002),
pp. 284-298; Beng-Lan Goh, Modern Dreams: An Inquiry into Power, Cultural Production and the Cityscape
in Contemporary Urban Penang, Malaysia (Ithaca: Cornell Southeast Asia Program, 2002); and Aprodicio
Laquian, The City in Nation-Building: Politics and Administration in Metropolitan Manila (Manila: University
of the Philippines, 1966).
5 Metro Manila is a metropolitan area made up of 17 cities and municipalities, of which the city
of Manila is one. The term Metro Manila will be used throughout the paper to refer to the metropolitan
area as a wholewhere the term Manila is used it refers only to the city of Manila.

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 Colonial Capital, Modernist Capital, Global Capital

The paper begins by arguing that urban planning in Metro Manila has at
various junctures reflected the efforts of political actors at the national level
to legitimize their rule, and to represent their desired model for the social
transformation of the nation. As such, capital building has mirrored
contemporary socioeconomic and political relations. Specifically, the paper
argues that there have been three distinct epochs in capital-building strategies
in the Philippines during the last century: the American colonial period,
the period of modernist planning under President Ferdinand Marcos
authoritarian rule, and the current period of the Philippines integration
into the global economy. Next, the paper argues that, in the global era, the
symbolism of Metro Manila as a capital and as a global city have become
intricately intertwined, as the national government has sought to emphasize
the nations preparedness for globalization, and its cosmopolitan nature, as
defining national characteristics. Specifically, the Philippine government has
increasingly encouraged private-sector involvement in planning and focused
less attention on the development and maintenance of public space. Finally,
the paper examines the implications of capital building during these three
epochs for the symbolic use of urban space by oppositional political
movements. It contends that, as public space has become increasingly
degraded and marginal in the global era, citizens of Metro Manila have sought
new forums for political action, and that this has important implications for
the countrys democracy.

Three Phases of Capital Building: Colonial, Modernist and Global

This section examines the ways that national governments express power
through capital building, how people interpret and react to such
representations, and how such representations have changed historically.
Viewed from the perspective of national governments, the development of a
capital is an opportunity to express a vision of an idealized national future,
to impress both domestic and foreign observers, and to legitimize their rule.6
Specifically, capitals perform three main political functions. First, they are
forums for national leaders to present an argument for the legitimacy of
their policies and programmes by presenting the capital as a symbol of
progress that represents a template for the rest of the nation to follow. Second,
the spaces of the capital create a forum for ceremonial purposes, the stages
and props for ceremonies and ritualswhat have been called shrines or
theaters of power.7 Third, particularly in countries that have emerged from

______________________

6 James Holston, The Modernist City: An Anthropological Critique of Brasilia (Chicago: University of
Chicago Press, 1989); Anthony King, Cultural Hegemony and Capital Cities, in John Taylor, Jean
Lengelle and Caroline Andrew, eds., Capital Cities: International Perspectives (Ottawa: Carleton University
Press, 1993), pp. 251-270.
7 Rappoport, On the Nature of Capitals and their Physical Expression, p. 36.

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colonial rule relatively recently, the development of capitals is used to define

national identity, or as King puts it, to knock the nation into shape. 8 This
is especially pressing where such identities are still formative, or are besieged
by competing symbols and allegiances. The spaces, monuments and public
buildings in capitals play a key role in providing citizens with references to
their shared national identity as interpreted by government.
Hence, as Rapoport states, the form of capital building is intended to
dramatically communicate culture-specific schemata of political authority,
act as mnemonics, legitimate acts, secure compliance and reinforce the
official definition of the state.9 This is achieved through the following
measures: the construction of public buildings, monuments or facilities, such
as museums, parks and squares; the building of monumental infrastructure,
such as broad boulevards; exertion of control over what Kong and Yeoh10
call quotidian landscapes, for example the space of housing, places of
worship and cemeteries; and efforts to make the capital exemplary in social,
economic and cultural development.
Inasmuch as the vision for nation building presented by national leaders
is contested, capitals are also an important arena in which oppositional forces
seek to subvert or redefine this vision. Symbolic spaces, such as Tiananmen
Square in Beijing, the Mall in Washington, DC, or the Democracy Monument
in Bangkok, become spaces of protest as oppositional forces use collective
action to offer an alternative interpretation of their meaning. In addition,
the persistence of social problems in capitals serves to make the failures of
the national governments vision for national development all the more
visible.
The specifics of the capital building strategies employed by governments
vary according to the context. Hall develops a categorization of capitals that
is useful in beginning to understand these contextual factors.11 Among other
categories, he discusses: political capitals, in which the political function
predominates and drives development (examples include Canberra and
Brasilia); multi-functional cities, which are not only political but also cultural
and economic centres (London, Paris, Madrid); and global capitals, which
also function as global cities that house the regional or national
headquarters of multinational corporations and business service functions
(London, Tokyo, Seoul). This categorization helps us to understand the
audience for which the capital is developed (which may include not only
citizens but also multinational capital and other groups), and the degree to

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8 King, Cultural Hegemony and Capital Cities, p. 253.

9 Rappoport, On the Nature of Capitals and their Physical Expression, p. 36.
10 Kong and Yeoh, The Politics of Landscapes in Singapore.
11 Peter Hall, The Changing Role of Capital Cities: Six Types of Capital City, in John Taylor,
Jean Lengelle and Caroline Andrew, eds., Capital Cities: International Perspectives (Ottawa: Carleton
University Press, 1993), pp. 69-84.

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 Colonial Capital, Modernist Capital, Global Capital

which the citys function as a capital plays a dominant role in shaping urban
development. To these categories, this study emphasizes a class of cities where
global economic connections co-exist with a high density of political and
cultural functions. The latter exert a powerful social and cultural influence
and profound impact on the image of the country as a whole. At the same
time, the global city function of such cities dictates that capitalist projects
become a new source of symbolic spaces. National governments, including
that of the Philippines, have consequently sought to develop the capital city
in the image of a global city both as a means to attract capital, and to instill
in their citizens a confidence in the power of global integration to transform
their societies.
Capital-building strategies have also changed over time, and reflect
relations of power and the interaction between government and the governed
at a particular historical juncture. While tradition, nostalgia and historical
symbolism dictate some continuity in their form, evidence of contemporary
power relations is inscribed in the built form of capitals. This paper argues
that Metro Manila has gone through three distinct phases in its development
as a capital during the past century. The first phase was colonial, during
which the American colonial administration redeveloped the city in the image
of American cities in an effort to instill in its subjects a belief in the
benevolence of colonial rule. Next was the modernist phase during the mid-
to late twentieth century, in which the Philippine government (similar to
governments of other newly independent states) sought to legitimize its rule
and redefine national identity through the use of modernist planning and
architecture. The last and contemporary phase is global, in which the
Philippine government seeks to use the development of Metro Manila to
project an image of an economically successful global city, both to persuade
its citizens that its strategy of globalization of the economy is correct, and to
attract investment and tourism in order to fully realize this strategy.
The remainder of this section will discuss the colonial and modernist
phases, while the next section will discuss the global phase. Given space
constraints, the intent is not to present an exhaustive account of the recent
history of the city, but rather to provide a brief analysis of the forces affecting
Metro Manilas development as a capital during each phase.

Manilas development under American colonial rule

The United States colonized the Philippines from 1898 to 1946, a period
during which the population of Manila rose from slightly more than 200,000
to over 700,000.12 It embarked upon this venture with a combination of
idealistic zeal, economic pragmatism and a willingness to make use of the

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12 Manuel Caoili, The Origins of Metropolitan Manila: A Political and Social Analysis (Quezon City:
New Day Publishers, 1988).

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full force of its military might that has since become characteristic of
Americas foreign military ventures. Initially startled by the ferocity of the
resistance they encountered, the US Army responded with brute force in
the Philippine-American War, which cost over 200,000 lives.13 Once peace
was restored, however, the colonial administration implemented a series of
political reforms, public health and educational programmes and public
works projects intended to persuade Filipinos of the superiority of American
institutions, and to quell continuing calls for independence. Most notable
was the development of a popularly elected, decentralized form of
government modelled on that of the USelections for provincial governor
were held in 1902, for national assembly in 1907, for national legislature in
1916 and for president in 1935.14
Manila was a beachhead of the US presence, and an obvious place to
begin the effort to convince Filipinos of Americas enlightened intentions.
The US had inherited from the Spanish a city in decline, a grand city from
another era fallen on hard times.15 While the fortified settlement of
Intramuros retained some of the elegance that made it one of the most
celebrated colonial cities of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, the
moat around it was stagnant and a perennial health hazard, and infrastructure
in the areas outside of the walls was spectacularly inadequate.16 One of the
first tasks of the colonial government was to improve public health, and it
did so through the construction of the citys first modern hospital,
development of a sewage system, improvements to the water system, and a
public health campaign. The results were impressive, as described by McCoy
and Roces:17

From 1902 to 1904 Manila suffered one of its periodic cholera epidemics
which left 4386 dead. But by 1911 sanitation and public education had
virtually eliminated the disease. Smallpox, which was killing 6000
people every year in the greater Manila area, was eradicated through
compulsory vaccination, and malaria was reduced by mosquito control.
The sum of these measures cut Manilas death rate by almost half
from 43 per 1,000 population in 1899 to only 23 in 1914.

Colonial administrators next turned their attention to aesthetic concerns

and improvement of the transport system. In 1904 Daniel Burnham was

______________________

13 Manuel Caoili, The Origins of Metropolitan Manila.

14 John Sidel, Capital, Coercion, and Crime: Bossism in the Philippines (Stanford: Stanford University
Press, 1999), p. 16.
15 Alfred McCoy and Alfredo Roces, Philippine Cartoons: Political Caricature of the American Era
1900-1941 (Quezon City: Vera-Reyes, 1985).
16 Robert Reed, Colonial Manila: The Context of Hispanic Urbanism and the Process of Morphogenesis,
University of California Publications in Geography, vol. 22 (Berkeley: University of California Press,
1978); McCoy and Roces, Philippine Cartoons.
17 McCoy and Roces, Philippine Cartoons.

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commissioned to develop plans for Manila and the northern hill resort city
of Baguio. Burnham had recently supervised the completion of Pierre
LEnfants 1791 plan for Washington, DC, and is today considered the
preeminent architect of the City Beautiful movement, a turn-of-the-century
American reformist movement that sought to transform degraded inner cities
through the development of monumental neoclassical buildings, broad
boulevards and parks. Burnham, who viewed the task as a patriotic act and
refused remuneration, visited the Philippines for six weeks in 1904-05. He
set the ambitious objective of transforming the city into the adequate
expression of the destiny of the Filipino people as well as an enduring witness
to the efficient services of America in the Philippine Islands.18
His plan for Manila was a classic expression of the City Beautiful
movement. 19 The plan focuses on the citys most aesthetically pleasing
feature, Manila Bay. Luneta, a park bordering Intramuros that was a feature
of the Spanish colonial city, was to be widened, and around it was planned a
major complex of government buildings that was to include the capitol and
several departments of the national government.20

Grouping itself closely about the capitol building at the center, [the
complex of buildings] forms a hollow square, opening out westward
toward the sea. The gain in dignity by grouping these buildings in a
single formal mass has dictated this arrangement, the beauty and
convenience of which has been put to the test in notable examples from
the days of old Rome to the Louvre and Versailles of modern times.
The eastern front of the capital group faces a semicircular plaza, from
whose center radiates a street system communicating with all sections of
the cityan arrangement entirely fitting for both sentimental and
practical reasons: practical, because the center of governmental activity
should be readily accessible from all sides; sentimental, because every
section of the capitol city should look with deference toward the symbol
of the nations power. The plaza allows space at its center for a monument
of compact plan and simple silhouette.

The plan also included a grand boulevard along the bay to the south of
Luneta that was to be lined with public buildings. To the north of Luneta,
Burnham envisioned a broad boulevard lined with museums and libraries.
Throughout the city, wide diagonal arteries with roundabouts were planned
to ease traffic congestion. Finally, the plan proposed the development of a
world-class hotel in order to tap into the growing international tourism trade
and to provide a retreat for American expatriates. The Manila Hotel, located
______________________

18 Daniel Burnham, Report on Improvement of Manila, in Bureau of Insular Affairs, Sixth

Annual Report of the Philippine Commission: 1905: Part 1 (Washington, DC: Government Printing Office,
1906), p. 635.
19 Thomas Hines, American Modernism in the Philippines: The Forgotten Architecture of
William E. Parsons, Journal of the Society of Architectural Historians, vol. 32, no. 4 (1973), pp. 316-326.
20 Daniel Burnham, Report on Improvement of Manila, p. 632.

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on a lot adjacent to Luneta, opened in 1912.21 While much of Burnhams

plan was never realized, its influence on the citys development since is quite
apparent, particularly in the layout of Luneta (currently Rizal National Park)
and the clustering of public buildings around it.
Two aspects of the Burnham plan are particularly notable. First, it sought
to turn the Spanish model of planning in Manila inside out, and to redefine
the relationship of public buildings to the urban fabric. Rather than being
cloistered in Intramuros, government buildings were to be placed in
deliberately public and accessible spaces, symbolizing in the minds of
Americans the values of American democracy. Intramuros itself was to be
preserved as a quaint artifact of the Spanish period, its walls opened in places
to allow for the efficient circulation of traffic and the moat surrounding it to
be filled and converted into a public park. Government buildings were to be
designed to be magnificent in outward form and aspect, compelling an
attitude of respect, if not inspiring a feeling of awe in the colonial
administration and, eventually, the post-independence government that was
to replace it.22 The plan was thus perfectly suited to the times, and fit well
with the American agenda of political reform. Second, the plan focused
almost exclusively on concerns of aesthetic improvement and efficient
transport. The plan interpreted Manilas primary functions in a manner
consistent with the desires of the colonial administrationit was to be a
forum to express the majesty of public institutions, and an efficient market
for commerce. As in other Burnham plans, social concerns and the needs of
the working class are almost entirely disregarded.23
Burnhams plan for Manila also embodied the contradictions inherent
in the American colonial regime. The main critique of American colonial
rule in the Philippines has been that it failed to address the countrys severe
socioeconomic disparity, and indeed exacerbated it through an economically
opportunistic alliance with the countrys landowning elite. In doing so, the
argument follows, the colonial regime undermined its own tenuous efforts
at political reform. Hence, while it left in place an electoral democracy,
political representation has in fact been limited due to the dominance of
the countrys landowning class.24 As the countrys democracy faltered, and
concerns abounded regarding corruption among politicians, the clientelist
nature of electoral politics, and collaboration with the colonial regime, the
symbolism of the grand spaces designed by Burnham seemed increasingly
hollow. The aesthetic and practical impact of the plan was gradually

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21 Thomas Hines, American Modernism in the Philippines.

22 Daniel Burnham, Report on Improvement of Manila, p. 632.
23 David Brody, Building Empire: Architecture and American Imperialism in the Philippines,
Journal of the American Architectural Society, June (2001), pp. 123-145.
24 Alfred McCoy, ed., An Anarchy of Families: State and Family in the Philippines (Madison: University
of Wisconsin Center for Southeast Asian Studies, 1993).

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 Colonial Capital, Modernist Capital, Global Capital

overwhelmed by a number of social illsa housing crisis, endemic corruption

among the police, inadequate transportation for working-class Manilans,
social issues such as prostitution, and population growth that soon began to
outstrip infrastructure improvements.25 In implementing the Burnham plans,
the colonial government had lavished resources on [a] glittering faade.26
In the long run, however, the social inequities inherent in the colonial
experience had transformed Manila into a symbol of the failures of American
rule.

Marcos and modernist planning

In The Modernist City, Holston argues that Brazilian planners have used
modernist architecture and planning as a powerful tool in forwarding their
development agenda.27 He focuses on Brasilia, which was planned as a new
capital during the 1950s and 1960s and was modelled on the ideas of
prominent modernist architects, most notably Le Corbusier (although for
political reasons Brasilias planners disavowed this connection). This
remarkable effort at social engineering is perhaps the best-known example
of nation building through modernist capital building, but other less
ambitious instances were occurring in other parts of the world during the
mid- to late twentieth century. In the Philippines, the modernist paradigm
reached its apex during the years of Ferdinand Marcos authoritarian rule,
between the time of his declaration of martial law in 1972 and his overthrow
in 1986. Marcos had risen to power based on the skillful use of nationalist
rhetoric and imagery, the manipulation of patronage networks and brute
force. In an effort to solidify his political base, he assembled a group of
technocrats and initiated a number of public works projects, most notably
road building in the provinces. Along with his wife Imelda, who was appointed
governor of the newly created Metro Manila Commission in 1975, he also
sought to reshape the capital, paying particular attention to two audiences
Filipino citizens (particularly the increasingly powerful urban middle class),
and the international community.28
The redevelopment agenda had several thrusts.29 First, a number of
prominent public buildings were constructed, most notably the Cultural
Center Complex (CCC), located on reclaimed land along Manila Bay. The
complex included the Cultural Center of the Philippines, the Folk Arts
______________________

25 McCoy and Roces, Philippine Cartoons.

26 McCoy and Roces, Philippine Cartoons.
27 James Holston, The Modernist City: An Anthropological Critique of Brasilia (Chicago: University of
Chicago Press, 1989).
28 Caoili, The Origins of Metro Manila.
29 The following account draws heavily on an excellent account by Michael Pinches,
Modernization and the quest for modernity: architectural form, squatter settlements and the new
society in Manila, in Marc Askew and William Logan, eds., Cultural Identity and Urban Change in
Southeast Asia: Interpretive Essays (Geelong: Deakin University Press, 1994), pp. 13-42.

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Figure 1: Cultural Center of the Philippines Photo: Gavin Shatkin, 2004

Theater, the Philippine International Convention Center and the National

Film Center. These buildings represented the latest developments in
modernist architecture, and were designed to present a type of streetscape
entirely new to the city, and to impress pedestrians with their scale and
grandeur. This is conveyed eloquently by Pinches in his description of his
first encounter with the CCC in 1976:30

Of the several large buildings that made up the complex, the first and
most imposing was the Cultural Center of the Philippines, designed by
prize-winning architect Leandro Locsin. Fronted by a large pool
and spectacular fountain, it rose as a huge white concrete monolith
cantilevered out over a glazed entrance hall and raised semi-circular
vehicular ramp. The imposing character of the structure owed much to
the flat, empty expanse of parkland that surrounded it, particularly given
the contrasting high density of building along the streets nearby and
through most of the city.

Here, the Marcoses could showcase their transformation of the Philippines

for an international audience, and the increased international stature of
the country for a domestic audience, by hosting the 1976 Miss Universe
Pageant, an annual international film festival and other international events.
Indeed, Imelda Marcos rhetoric in speeches and interviews about the CCC

______________________

30 Pinches, Modernization and the quest for modernity, p. 14.

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 Colonial Capital, Modernist Capital, Global Capital

emphasized its importance in affirming [the Filipino] identity and in

symbolizing the countrys shining future against our impoverished past.31
A second thrust of the redevelopment agenda was a campaign to eliminate
the citys informal settlements through a series of evictions and generally ill-
conceived and inadequate housing programmes.32 Finally, the most ambitious
project of the Marcoses was the proposed construction of a new capital in
Quezon City, on a large plot of land on the outskirts of Metro Manila. The
site was given the name National Government Center. A complex of buildings
was to be located in a park-like setting, and several major monuments were
to be constructed, the most prominent being a large bust of President Marcos
himself.33 The plan was never realized, and in fact parts of the area have
become Metro Manilas largest informal settlement. Several government
functions did eventually move there, however, including the Supreme Court
and the Congress.
Hence, as with American colonial plans for Manila, the Marcoses vision
was ultimately undermined by its own contradictions. A persistent insurgency
in the countryside and an increasing reliance on industrialization-led growth
fed a steady stream of migrants to Metro Manila, and the lack of affordable
housing and the Marcoses eviction campaigns exacerbated the deterioration
of housing conditions for the growing number of poor. Rampant corruption
led to economic decline, so that both domestic and multinational export-
oriented business and the middle class joined the ranks of the disenchanted.
The CCC, and other expensive building projects, soon came to represent
the venality and corruption of the regime. Today the CCC complex lies
underutilized and at times seemingly abandoned.
Hence the experiences of the American colonial government and the
Marcos regime in capital building are in many respects similar. Each sought
to redefine state-civil society relations through master planning and
magnificent architecture, yet the symbolic meaning of the resulting spaces
has remained contested. Such issues are to some degree inherent in the
project of capital building, as monuments and symbolic spaces freeze both
the aspirations of political regimes and the contradictions they embody in
the built form of the city. Nevertheless, both the American colonialists and
the Marcos regime have shaped some of the most prominent spaces in Metro
Manila, and these spaces continue to define the image of the city, both for
its residents and for tourists and expatriates. The next section will argue
that these spaces have become increasingly marginal in the current context
of democratization and the globalization of the citys economy, largely as a
consequence of the privatization of urban development.
______________________

31 Imelda Marcos quoted in Pinches, Modernization and the Quest for Modernity, p. 14.
32 Pinches, Modernization and the Quest for Modernity.
33 Erhard Berner, Defending a Place in the City: Localities and the Struggle for Urban Land in Metro
Manila (Quezon City: Ateneo de Manila University Press, 1997).

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Metro Manila as Capital City

The period since the fall of Marcos in 1986 has been marked by
tremendous political and economic change in the Philippines. The rhetoric
of recent administrations has emphasized the accountability and inclusiveness
of public institutions, and the country has experienced dramatic reforms
for decentralization. Integration into the global economy, which was
encouraged under Marcos, has accelerated, and manufacturing exports have
grown significantly. This section will begin with a conceptual discussion of
the impact of globalization on the physical development of capitals, and will
then focus on the impact of these changes on the role of the national
government in Metro Manilas development, and the types of symbolism
that are inscribed in new urban spaces.
Hall provides a useful starting point for this discussion by identifying three
forces for change in the global erapolitical, economic and
technologicalthat have implications for the development of capitals.34
Three political forces are of particular note. First, for reasons complex and
varied, globalization has coincided with a wave of democratization and
decentralization worldwide, and local governments have consequently gained
greater voice in urban development. In Metro Manila, for example, 17 city
and municipal governments enjoy considerable autonomy in such areas as
land use planning, housing and economic development. Second, particularly
in global capital cities, political and economic actors in the city have gained
increased national political influence. Mayors of such cities are usually
instantly considered potential candidates for head of state.35 Global capital
cities also wield significant influence through the financing of national
elections. In Thailand, for example, six of the seven people named by the
military government of Thailand in 1991 as the most prominent dark
influences, or businesspeople who wield undue influence in the countrys
political system, were from the Bangkok Metropolitan Region.36 Likewise,
in the Philippine national elections of 1986, the bankroll and political support
of Makati-based business was critical to turning the tide of the election in
Corazon Aquinos favour, and to the post-election movement that precipitated
the flight of the Marcos family following allegations of fraud.37 Finally, the
______________________

34 Hall, The Changing Role of Capital Cities. Halls analysis focuses on the case of European
capitals, and the discussion here differs from his in significant ways. The categorization is useful
nonetheless.
35 David Myers, The Dynamics of Local Empowerment: An Overview, in David Myers and Henry
Dietz, eds., Capital City Politics in Latin America (Boulder: Lynne Riener, 2002), p. 3. This is less so in
Metro Manila than in most places because of the highly fragmented nature of the citys politics.
Nevertheless, recent Metro Manila mayors who have risen to national political prominence include
Joseph Estrada, a former mayor of San Juan who went on to be president, and Alfredo Lim, a current
senator who was formerly mayor of Manila.
36 Gavin Shatkin, Globalization and Local Leadership: Growth, Power and Politics in Thailands
Eastern Seaboard, International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, vol. 28, no. 1 (2004), pp. 11-26.
37 Mark Thompson, The Anti-Marcos Struggle: Personalistic Rule and Democratic Transition in the
Philippines (Quezon City: New Day Publishers, 1995).

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contemporary doctrine of neoliberalism, which has been adopted by

governments in many parts of the world, demands a different form of
architecture and urban design than the doctrine of authoritarianismone
that celebrates the power of capital as a liberating force, and the spirit of
entrepreneurialism as a facet of the national character. In sum, these political
changes have meant that: a) national governments no longer exercise as
much independent influence on capital building as they did previously, and
must increasingly collaborate with local governments and the private sector
in order to get anything done; b) development decisions are increasingly
influenced by groups within the capital itself whose interests are tied to the
process of globalization; and c) as national governments have embarked on
a strategy of globalization, they have had to rethink the symbolic meaning
of space in the capital.
Economic and technological forces for change are closely related. National
economic fortunes rest heavily on the shoulders of capital cities with
increasing global connections, as such cities are often central to efforts to
attract multinational investment. Architecture and urban planning
consequently become tools for projecting an image of economic progress to
multinational capital. Telecommunications infrastructure and high-speed
rail are also important components of the globalization strategy as they are
viewed as key to the efficiency of the urban economy. And, of course, the
increased political influence of groups whose interests are tied to
globalizationparticularly both domestic and international export-oriented
business and the middle classfurther shapes urban policy and planning.
The developments of Cyberjaya and Putrajaya in Malaysia provide an
excellent example of the ways in which national governments have
aggressively sought to harness new technologies, both to stimulate economic
growth and to bolster the strength of the nation-states.38
King points to another force for change in capitals: the cultural impact
of globalization.39 Specifically, he argues that capital cities are subject to the
same flows of migrants and tourists as other global cities. As a result, the
political symbols of capitals are not representative of the social groups that
occupy the capital, and the monuments and images of the capital are
consumed by the tourist gaze.40
Many national governments have responded to these changes by using
their somewhat depleted41 influence over the development of capitals to
encourage the development of spaces that evoke the success of their strategy

______________________

38 Bunnell, Cities for Nations?

39 King, Cultural Hegemony and Capital Cities.
40 King, Cultural Hegemony and Capital Cities, p. 266.
41 It is worth noting that the decline in power and influence of national governments in shaping
urban spaces has not occurred uniformly in different contexts. In the city-state of Singapore, for
example, the national government owns most of the land and has profoundly shaped urban life

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of globalization. Monumental public architecture of the type observed at

the CCC is no longer as feasible or even desirable as it once was. In its stead,
global capitals have all seen the ascendance of the architecture of globality
the glass and steel skyscrapers, the smart buildings and the signature style
of the renowned architect.42 The private sector has come to play an increased
role in defining patterns of development, particularly through the
implementation of mega-projects, which are often undertaken as public-
private partnerships. Indeed, seven of eleven Asian projects listed by Olds in
his book on mega-projects are public-private partnerships, and seven are
also located in capitals.43 Finally, national governments are conscious of the
multiple audiences that will consume spaces in the capital, and have
endeavoured to encourage forms of urban development that cater to the
interests of the economically and politically influentialthe middle class,
multinational business, tourists and expatriates. Hence the symbols of the
global city compete with the symbols of power of the national government
for attention, space and scarce resources in the urban development agenda.
The remainder of this section will examine ways that globalization has affected
the political symbolism of urban development in Metro Manila.

Metro Manila and the global economy

Globalization has accentuated the four main economic roles of Metro
Manila. First, the city has emerged as a command and control centre for
the countrys integration into the global economy. The Makati central
business district (CBD), built and managed by the Ayala Land Corporation,
contains 90 percent of the headquarters of the top 1000 companies in the
country, and about 80 percent of headquarters of multinational
corporations. 44 Second, Metro Manila is a centre for consumption.
Globalization has accompanied an influx of expatriates and tourists and,
more significantly, the growth of a Filipino middle class that has increased
disposable income and a strong penchant to consume.45 The commercial
development that has emerged to meet increased consumer demand has
had a remarkable impact on the urban landscape. Third, Metro Manila is

______________________

through the development of public housing. It therefore continues to exercise dominant influence
in shaping urban form, even as that influence is exercised through partnership with the private sector.
See Kong and Yeoh, The Politics of Landscapes in Singapore, for a discussion of state strategies of nation
building in contemporary Singapore through interventions in historic preservation and the
development of cemeteries, housing, the arts and other areas.
42 Richard Marshall, Emerging Urbanity: Global Urban Projects in the Asia Pacific Rim (London: Spon
Press, 2003), specifically chapter 6, The Focal Point of China: Lujiazui, Shanghai, pp. 85-106.
43 Kris Olds, Globalization and Urban Change: Capital, Culture, and Pacific Rim Mega-Projects (New
York: Oxford University Press, 2001), p. 31.
44 Berner, Defending a Place in the City, p. 18.
45 John Connell, Beyond Manila: walls, malls, and private spaces, Environment and Planning A,
vol. 31 (1999), p. 422.

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seeing an increase in the tourist trade.46 While the Philippines is not as

popular a destination as Thailand or Singapore, arrivals have risen steadily
from 1.04 million in 1992 to 2.17 million in 1999. The concentration of
hotels, transport infrastructure, travel agencies and amenities in Metro Manila
means that a disproportionate amount of the economic benefits of tourism
accrue to the capital. Finally, Metro Manila has emerged as a city of labour
export. There were more than 800,000 registered Filipino overseas contract
workers (OCWs) in 2002, and their annual remittances to the Philippines
totaled more than US$6 billion. Tyner finds that this industry has a distinct
geography that is highly centralized, with more than 99 percent of OCW
recruiting agencies located in Metro Manila, and 77 percent of these located
in just two cities within Metro Manila: Manila and Makati.47
These economic changes have enhanced the citys function as the
preeminent economic centre in the country, and national development plans
have recognized the city as a critical engine for globalization-led economic
growth. In this context, the national government has come to play new roles
in the citys development. Three roles are particularly noteworthythe
growing function of national government agencies in establishing public-
private partnerships around real estate mega-projects; the national
governments role in the development of large-scale infrastructure projects;
and its role in tourism-related redevelopment.
Mega-project real-estate developments have long been a feature of Metro
Manilas growth, with the Makati CBD and Ortigas Centre as early models,
but this trend has expanded significantly in recent years. Several recent
developments, all initiated in the mid-1990s and some still under
construction, are worth noting. Perhaps the most significant is Bonifacio
Global City (BGC), which was initiated with the sale of development rights
to a 214-hectare portion of Fort Bonifacio, a former military base, to a
consortium of businesses for US$1.6 billion in 1995.48 A master plan envisions
the area eventually containing enough apartments and condominiums to
house 200,000 residents, and shopping and office facilities for 500,000
daytime workers and shoppers.49 Reflecting an impulse to project an image
of global power and influence, consultants hired to master plan the city
took principal investors and representatives of the Bases Conversion

______________________

46 Peter Mullins, International Tourism and the Cities of Southeast Asia, in Dennis Judd and
Susan Fainstein, eds., The Tourist City (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1999), pp. 245-260; NEDA
(National Economic and Development Authority), Medium Term Philippine Development Plan, 2001-
2006 (Manila: NEDA, 2001).
47 James Tyner, J., Global Cities and Circuits of Global Labor: The Case of Manila, Philippines,
Professional Geographer 52:1 (2000), pp. 61-74.
48 Chris Horwood, The Taking of Fort Bonifacio, Euromoney vol. 310 (1995), pp. 20, 22.
49 Sara Liss-Katz, Fort Bonifacio Global City: A New Standard for Urban Design in Southeast
Asia, in Hemalata Dandekar, ed., City, Space and Globalization: An International Perspective, proceedings
of an International Symposium, University of Michigan, 26-28 February 1998.

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Figure 2: Eastwood City Walk, Eastwood City Photo: Gavin Shatkin, 2004

Development Authority (the government partner in the project) on a tour

of Paris, London and other cities, and incorporated their reflections on the
forms of these cities into the final plan. The stated intention of the developers
is to provide a city that meets globally accepted standards necessary for
economic investment and growth, where the needs of an international
business community may be met.50 While the development of the site was
slowed by the Asian financial crisis, the project promises to reshape the
citys market for prime real estate. Another such project is Eastwood City, a
6.5-hectare complex in Quezon City that hosts several high-rise condo-
miniums, as well as office buildings that house the headquarters of several
corporations, most notably IBM. It has been established as a special economic
zone, with incentives offered to information technology investors. Yet other
examples include Rockwell Center in Makati, which was developed on the
6.3-hectare site of a thermal power plant, and Filinvest Corporate City, a
244-hectare complex in the city of Muntinlupa in southern Metro Manila.
These developments have highlighted the emerging role of the national
government in facilitating the process of place making by the private sector.
Each of the developments has followed the Makati CBD model, using land-
______________________

50 Fort Bonifacio Development Corporation has a Web site, available at <http://www.

fbglobalcity.com/>, site last accessed 2 December 2005.

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use planning, limits to vehicle entry points, careful control of setbacks and
floor-area ratios, and a variety of other mechanisms to create an attractive
environment for foreign investors and consumers. Each offers potential
residents and investors an integrated environment with opportunities for
corporate investment, shopping and entertainment, and residence. They
are instantly recognizable as the most planned and socially regulated places
in Metro Manila.
Second, recent national development plans have placed a great deal of
emphasis on expanding Metro Manilas infrastructure, and particularly on
alleviating the severe traffic congestion that is perceived to be a significant
deterrent to investment and growth. Some of the significant recent
infrastructure initiatives include: the expansion of the Mass Railway Transit
and the Light Rail Transit lines to connect areas between Quezon City and
the city of Manila; the completion of the Metro Manila Skyway along the
South Super Highway, which connects Metro Manila to urbanizing regions
to its south; the development of three additional expressways connecting
Metro Manila to its surrounding region; and expansions and improvements
to Ninoy Aquino International Airport.51
Finally, development plans have called for a general sprucing up of Metro
Manila to make it more attractive to tourists:52

Services at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) and other

international ports will be upgraded to become more efficient, flexible,
fast, and connectivity-friendly in responding to the needs of visitors .
Traffic along major tourist thoroughfares will be decongested by
structuring and implementing traffic rerouting schemes. Clean-up drives
and beautification programs on the routes to and from international
airports and other identified tourist thoroughfares will be continued.

Historic sites that are regarded as potential tourist attractions, such as

Intramuros, have also been the focus of redevelopment plans.
All of these transformations have changed the spatial experience of Metro
Manilathe contrast between publicly and privately planned spaces is
increasingly stark. In the new city megaprojects, one is struck by the skyline,
the opulence of the building interiors, the impeccable landscaping, and the
smooth flow of traffic. The wealthy increasingly experience the city as an
archipelago of carefully planned consumer, residential and work spaces
(malls, condominiums, gated subdivisions) connected by elevated, climate-
controlled transport. A 1993 article by Tadiar discussed the impact of the
development of flyovers on the experience of traversing the city, as the

______________________

51 Monique Cornelio-Pronove and Chemerie Cheng, Metro Manila, in James Berry and Stanley
McGreal, eds., Cities in the Pacific Rim: Planning Systems and Property Markets (London: Spon Press,
1999); NEDA, Medium Term Philippine Development Plan, 2001-2006.
52 NEDA, Medium Term Philippine Development Plan, 2001-2006.

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height and distance [flyovers] provide render Manila an aerial sighta space
deprived of detail and content and reduced to abstract textures from which
one can extract a particular kind of aesthetic pleasure.53 This description
has become all the more apt as the scale of transportation projects, including
flyovers, elevated highways and light rail, has grown. In essence, what has
occurred is the privatization of planning, with government acting as a
facilitator of private-sector investment in city building, providing land,
enabling development and developing infrastructure links. Meanwhile, local
governments struggle with fiscal constraints and political obstacles to
planning, and the centres of government power, particularly Manila and
Quezon City, become ever more gritty and degraded as they are overcome
by the pressures of traffic congestion, population expansion and age.
Much has been said about the meaning of these changes for social
relations. Dick and Rimmer posit that these developments are a manifestation
of a self-fulfilling prophesy of middle-class fear of a chaotic, congested city.54
The poor, living and travelling at the street level, bear the lions share of the
costs of congestion and environmental degradation. Both the poor and the
wealthy experience a dearth of truly public space, space that is not intended
to restrict social interaction or engage the user in a consumer experience.
Much less, however, has been said about the implications of this change
for national identity and political action. Yet sites of national political
symbolism are marginalized with the privatization of planning. In Manila
and Quezon City, many public spaces are mired in neglect, while others
have been privatized. Those structures in Burnhams plan that were eventually
built seem besieged by the city around themthe National Museum and
Manila City Hall, for example, are hemmed in by the endless rumbling of
jeepneys along Padre Burgos Avenue. Opposite these buildings, the moat
surrounding Intramuros has been converted into an exclusive golf course,
and the pavement abutting this moat has been colonized by the homeless.
The Marcos-era structures have been similarly surrounded or occupied by
the marginal of Philippine society. For example, the impressive buildings
that house the Congress and the Supreme Court in the National Government
Center stand incongruously in the midst of Southeast Asias largest informal
settlement. Some parts of the Cultural Center Complex are being used for
cruising by gay men and prostitutes.55 In sum, it is increasingly the centres
of business and commerce that communicate power and wealth in Metro
Manila, while public spaces communicate ambivalence about past
government efforts to shape the symbolic meaning of urban space.

______________________

53 Neferti Tadiar, Manilas New Metropolitan Form, differences: A Journal of Feminist Cultural
Studies, vol. 5, no. 3 (1993), p. 154.
54 Howard Dick and Peter Rimmer, Beyond the Third World city: the new urban geography of
South-East Asia, Urban Studies, vol. 35, no. 12 (1998), pp. 2303-2321.
55 Lico, Edifice Complex, p. 155.

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Political Protest in Globalizing Metro Manila

The following discussion will address the question of how change in the
symbolic meaning of Metro Manilas urban spaces has been reflected in
changes in political protest and conflict. This question is particularly germane
to the case of Metro Manila, which has a long history of protest. The analysis
will focus on two recent events that propelled the Philippines onto newspaper
headlines worldwide: the Peoples Power 2 demonstrations that drove
President Joseph Estrada from power in January of 2001, and an army mutiny
in July of 2003, in which renegade soldiers occupied a Makati mall to protest
alleged corruption in the military and in the administration of President
Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. The symbolic use of urban space in these two
protests was in many ways a departure from that of previous protests,
including the original Peoples Power revolt of 1986, and this section will
argue that this reflected changes in the symbolic meaning of urban spaces
in the global era.
In an insightful article, Sumsky explores the role of symbolism inscribed
in the physical form of cities in shaping political outcomes, focusing
specifically on the anti-Marcos demonstrations of 1986.56 He poses the
following questions: 57

What kind of emotional background did the streets and quarters of Metro
Manila create in the crucial moments of the anti-Marcos campaign? What
kind of human inclinations and behavior did they promote? Could there
be anything about their historical past, their visual images, or the
functions they perform today that supported nonviolent action or
became an obstacle to it?

Sumskys analysis focuses on the three most important sites of the protests.
The first is Luneta, or Rizal National Park, which holds great symbolic
significance for Filipinos. It was here that the revered national hero Jose
Rizal was executed by the Spanish, and where the Philippine flag was first
raised at the end of colonial rule. Both events are marked by monuments
that serve as a focus for anniversary rituals. Luneta is also the countrys most
famous public space, as well as a centre of public institutions. The second
site is Epinafio de los Santos Avenue (EDSA), a ring road that embraces the
core of Metro Manila. The protests reached a crescendo here, and the
demonstrations are consequently often referred to as the EDSA revolution.
This site was significant for simple strategic reasonsthe part of the road
that was the epicentre of the protests was between Camp Aguinaldo and
Camp Crame, two military bases where troops had decided to back the anti-
Marcos movement. Protesters gathered here to provide them with protection
______________________

56 Sumsky, The city as political actor.

57 Sumsky, The city as political actor, p. 479.

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and moral support.58 Finally, Mendiola Bridge in the city of Manila is located
near several venerable educational institutions, and leads onto a road that
terminates at a gate of nearby Malacanang Palace, the presidential residence.
This bridge has been the site of violent and sometimes fatal clashes between
anti-government protesters and security forces at several points in history
in 1970, 1983, 1986 (during Peoples Power) and during Corazon Aquinos
rule in 1987. Sumsky concludes that each of these spaces, by providing
poignant political symbolism and allegories of heroism and resistance,
prepared the people of the city for political mobilization.
This paper argues that the transformations in urban form related to Metro
Manilas role as a global capital city have changed the meanings of these
spaces, and led to the emergence of new spaces of political action. This is
not to say that the aforementioned spaces have been entirely divested of
their political significance. However, their significance has diminished, and
the symbolic significance of new spaces of political action is rooted in their
proximity to new sites of power that have emerged with the globalization of
the citys economy.

People Power 2
Between January 16 and 21 of 2001, a series of protests, popularly referred
to as Peoples Power 2, or EDSA 2, ousted President Joseph Erap Estrada.
Although the international press viewed this event with some skepticism,
and some perceived it as mob rule, Filipinos generally viewed it with great
pride as the latest example of their ability to safeguard fragile democratic
institutions through direct action.59 Estrada, a former actor who went on to
be mayor of a Metro Manila municipality and a senator, was elected in 1998
in large part due to his popularity with the countrys poor. He immediately
became the butt of jokes, particularly among Metro Manilas middle class,
regarding his intelligence, abilities in English, and affinity for women and
alcohol. The protests that eventually led to his ouster began with a series of
news stories starting in October 2000 regarding his alleged corruption and
involvement in underground gambling schemes. The anti-Estrada
demonstrations were notably more divisive than the anti-Marcos
demonstrations, pitting an alliance of the middle class, business interests,
and some elements of the left against a core of Estrada faithful drawn largely
from the poor and the lower-middle class.60

______________________

58 David Steinberg, The Philippines: A Singular and a Plural Place (Boulder: Westview Press, 1994),
p. 147.
59 Amando Doronila, Peoples coup: Bloodless, constitutional, democratic, Philippine Daily
Inquirer, 22 January 2001, p. A1.
60 Carl Lande, The Return of Peoples Power in the Philippines, Journal of Democracy, vol. 12,
no. 2 (2001), pp. 88-102.

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In many respects, EDSA 2 reaffirmed the relevance of the sites of protest

discussed by Sumskypeople were called to the streets by leaders from the
Catholic Church and non-governmental organizations, and converged on a
number of sites, including Mendiola, and most notably EDSA. The focus of
the protests was the EDSA shrine, a monument to the 1986 movement at a
major crossroads on EDSA.61 However, the increased role played by the
Makati CBD in EDSA 2 was also notable. Ayala Avenue, the road that runs
through the heart of Makatis business and commercial district, was a major
site for protests, as noted in the following account of a participant:62

By 11 am, Wednesday, you could see a sea of people in black gathering

on Ayala Avenue in front of the monument to Senator [Benigno] Aquino
[former President Aquinos husband, murdered by the Marcos regime
in 1983].
The stock market people had all walked out of their booths into the
streets. Our sons university had called off all classes to enable students
to join the march to Ayala and then to Edsa. The crowd kept replenishing
itself. By Thursday, there must have been between 500,000 and 1,000,000
people at Edsa. The young students and young professionals were in the
majority, but you saw old people, the middle class, and the urban poor.
Many had their children in tow, whole families.
It was an unforgettable sight! The crowd would roar Guilty si Erap!
(Erap is guilty!). In the afternoon, a massive human chain was forming
from Ayala all the way to Edsa .

The human chain is particularly notable as an expression of displeasure

with the Estrada administration by Ayala-based professionals. News accounts
of the crisis in the major daily English-language newspapers, such as the
Philippine Daily Inquirer and the Manila Times, placed a great deal of emphasis
on the decline of the peso and the Philippine Stock Exchange, key indicators
of concern for the business elite and Makati-based professionals. Makati
businesses were involved in the protests in numerous other waysmany office
workers wore black, and held rallies in the CBD. Earlier on, in late November,
Makati businesspeople had organized a People Power Lunch for a group
of protesters from rural areas who staged a rally in Makati.63 Since Estradas
departure, Makati has become a focus for pro-Estrada rallies, as these forces
have also come to understand the citys political influence and symbolic
importance.

______________________

61 It is also worth noting that the shrine stands adjacent to Ortigas Center, a major office and
commercial complex that has recently come to be Makatis chief rival in providing world-class office
space.
62 Lande, The Return of People Power in the Philippines, p. 94.
63 Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism (PCIJ), People Power Uli!: A Scrapbook About EDSA
2, with Jokes, Text Messages, Photos, Digital Images and More (2001). Quezon City: Philippine Center for
Investigative Journalism.

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Another significant development was the increasing importance of

information technology, as cyberspace emerged both as a means of
organizing protests, and a forum for protest in and of itself. Of particular
note was the phenomenon of text messaging, a service that allowed cell-
phone users to send brief text messages to each other for a minimal fee.
Some have argued that the increasingly ribald and pointed jokes about
Estrada sent through text messaging prior to the protests played a critical
role in turning public opinion against him. As the allegations of indiscretion
became more serious, however, the use of this medium began to have a
greater impact, as did the use of other information technologies: 64

Email and the Web were also the weapons of protest. As many as 200 anti-
Erap websites and about 100 e-mail groups were set up during that period.
Organized groups used e-mail to discuss position papers, reach a
consensus on issues and mobilize numbers for rallies. The Internet was a
bridge that linked protesters in the provinces, Metro Manila and overseas.
The Web played host to satire, polemical tracts, even virtual rallies.

In a very real sense, therefore, information technologies performed a

function similar to that of the physical locations of the protests.

The Army Mutiny in Makati

The second movement was an army mutiny in the central business district
of Makati in 2003, in which 296 soldiers of the Armed Forces of the
Philippines (AFP) occupied a section of the Makati CBD. The mutiny came
just a day after President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo had reported that a
planned coup against her government had been averted, and there was
widespread speculation that the mutineers were a group that had broken
off from this plot. At approximately three A.M. on Sunday, July 27, renegade
soldiers planted bombs around Rustans department store in the Glorietta
shopping centre and the Hotel Inter-Continental.65 At four A.M., a group of
soldiers occupied the Oakwood Premier apartment complex, claiming its
residents as hostages. These residents, mostly expatriates, and including the
ambassador from Australia, were released within hours. The soldiers issued
statements accusing the Arroyo administration and the army of corruption,
and demanding the resignation of the president and her cabinet. They
further called on the people of the city to come out into the streets in a show
of people power. Following a tense 19-hour standoff the soldiers agreed to
return to their barracks. In the days that followed, speculation focused on
the possible role of prominent politicians and former president Estrada,
but at its core the mutiny seems to have been initiated by a group of
disaffected officers.
______________________

64 PCIJ, Peoples Power Uli!

65 Karl Kaufman, Timeline: coup attempt foiled, Manila Times, 28 July 2003, page A1.

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The choice of venue for this act of armed protest is of particular interest
to this paper. Located a stones throw from the office buildings that house
many of the headquarters of multinationals and prominent Philippine
businesses, the Glorietta shopping complex is closely associated in the minds
of Manilans with the wealth generated by the globalization of the Philippine
economy. While the SM Megamall has a more proletarian atmosphere, it is
Glorietta where the middle and upper classes, and expatriates, come to bask
in air-conditioned opulence, purchase luxury items, dine at the wide variety
of restaurants, and see the latest Hollywood blockbusters. Why did the soldiers
choose this location? The most apparent explanation is that this was a suitable
stage from which to address the new wealthy, the owners of capital, and the
international communitythe very groups whose attention and assistance
the soldiers would need in order to achieve their objectives.

A changing geography of political protest?

What do the above two accounts mean for the role of Metro Manila as a
capital and a site of political symbolism? They certainly do not indicate that
the three sites discussed by Sumsky have been entirely stripped of their
symbolic power. However, they do indicate that their function as symbols of
history and national origin is being challenged by new sites that symbolize
the global function of the city, and peoples perception of the role of the
global economy in the countrys destiny. It is these sites, rather than the
political centres of the city of Manila and Quezon City, that increasingly
project an image of power and prosperity, and that, depending on ones
perspective, either provide a galvanizing vision for the nations future or a
symbol of the inequities inherent in the globalization process.

Conclusions
The 1980s and 1990s witnessed a remarkable wave of political movements
across Southeast and East Asia. In the capitals of Bangkok, Seoul, Jakarta,
Metro Manila and Beijing, people converged in streets and squares to evoke
the political symbolism of urban spaces in their struggles. These movements
were a remarkable assertion of the power of public spaces as tools of political
progress. This paper has argued that we are witnessing the beginnings of a
shift in the meaning of urban space in the globalizing capitals of Southeast
and East Asia, as development is increasingly shaped by the symbolism of
globalization and global capital. In Metro Manila, globally connected places
have gained power as sites of political symbolism. National governments are
less involved in efforts to construct utopias representing an idealized vision
of the future. The utopias of present-day Metro Manila are being built by
the private sector, and they are being built for profit. While Metro Manila is
perhaps an extreme example of this phenomenon, it is nonetheless indicative
of a trend that, to greater or lesser degrees in different contexts, is shaping
the globalizing capital cities of the region.
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This paper further argues that there is a need for a shift in the focus of
studies of the politics of urban form in Asian capitals. Much of this literature
has focused on the role of government in exerting direct political and social
control over urban development in an effort to shape the nation-building
process. In Singapore, for example, Kong and Yeoh find that the work of
nation construction is certainly tied intimately to the states projects in
ideological hegemony, and landscapes play a critical role in this effort,
not least by concretizing and naturalizing particular preferred ideologies.66
Elsewhere, Lico, in his excellent account of architecture under the Marcos
regime, follows Foucault in employing the concept of the Panopticon to
describe the ways that states use architecture as a means of surveillance and
control of citizens.67 While this paper does not contest these analyses, it
argues that these findings are specific to certain cases (in Southeast Asia,
notably Singapore and Malaysia) and specific periods (notably periods of
authoritarian rule, such as that of the Marcos regime), and that a gradual
shift is taking place. With the globalization of Metro Manila and other cities,
government is playing a reduced role in city building and space has been
bifurcated between the privately planned global city for the middle and
upper classes and the neglected and marginalized spaces of the rest of the
population. Lico summarizes Foucaults framework as arguing that, with the
increased power of the nation-state, space is arranged and structured to
carry out disciplinary powers through knowledge of surveillance.68
Borrowing Licos language, we argue for a modified conception of the
relationship between the nation-state and urban spacein the global era,
space is privatized and commodified to carry out disciplinary power through
the knowledge of exclusion.
This paper has argued that past efforts at nation building through the
symbolic use of urban space have failed in the Philippines largely because
the idealized image of state power embodied in these symbols proved to be
a myth. Ironically, the current ideology of capital building is that public
space is unnecessary, and that a sense of identity and common purpose can
be forged by a vibrant for-profit private sector. This too is proving to be a
myth, both because privatized spaces exclude a large segment of Metro
Manilas population, and because they do not provide a supportive
atmosphere for publicly oriented, non-consumer activities. The privatization
of city building is thus likely to have important consequences for the future
development of democracy in the Philippines.

University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, U.S.A., August, 2005

______________________

66 Kong and Yeoh, The Politics of Landscapes in Singapore, p. 202.

67 Lico, Edifice Complex.
68 Lico, Edifice Complex, p. 3.

600