Guillermo Peñamante Nakar (June 10, 1906 – October 2, 1943) was a Filipino soldier who became one of the first commanders of the guerrilla movement against the Japanese occupation of the Philippines before he was captured and executed by the Japanese in 1943.
Early life and education
Nakar was born on June 10, 1906, in Infanta, Tayabas. He graduated from the Philippine Constabulary Academy, the forerunner of the Philippine Military Academy, in Baguio in 1932.[1]
Wartime service
When the Pacific War broke out in 1941, Nakar was then a captain in the 71st Infantry Regiment of the United States Army Forces in the Far East (USAFFE).[2] Stationed in northern Luzon, he was unable to join the Allied forces' war plan to retreat to Bataan due to the speedy arrival of Japanese forces in the area. Instead, he withdrew his unit into the mountains and participated in guerrilla warfare against the occupiers, with his unit being renamed the First Guerrilla Regiment and later the 14th Infantry Regiment. His theater of operations included Cagayan, Isabela, Nueva Vizcaya and Pangasinan, where his unit managed to launch a raid on Dagupan.[1]
Among his exploits was his attack on the Japanese garrison and airfield in Tuguegarao, Cagayan on January 13, 1942, while the Battle of Bataan was in its early stages, which led to 100 Japanese killed and three warplanes destroyed on the ground. After communications with the Philippines were lost following the Fall of Bataan in April and that of Corregidor in May, Nakar was able to transmit a radio message to General Douglas MacArthur's headquarters in Australia in June 1942 that confirmed the formation of an armed resistance movement in the country. Nakar was ultimately recognized by MacArthur as "the most prominent USAFFE officer in the northern Luzon area" and was promoted to lieutenant colonel.[1] Nakar also published one of the first publications issued by the guerrilla movement, Matang Lawin (Hawk's Eye), which came out in mimeograph form from June to September 1942.[3]
Capture and execution
Nakar was captured by the Japanese at his hideout in Sitio Minuri in Jones, Isabela, on September 29, 1942, after being betrayed.[4] He was taken to the main Japanese garrison in Manila at Fort Santiago and was tortured there for several months in an effort to convince him to change his allegiance to Japan. Surviving inmates testified that he continued to defy the Japanese before his execution on October 2, 1943.[5]
Douglas MacArthur considered his capture as "the first serious blow to the coordinated command" of the guerrilla movement in Northern Luzon.[1]
Legacy
After the war, Nakar was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Conduct Star by the Philippine Army, with his widow receiving it on his behalf in 1946.[1]
The headquarters of the Southern Luzon Command of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, located in Lucena, Quezon was renamed in his honor in 1978.[1]
The municipality of General Nakar, Quezon was created and named in his honor in 1949. It includes Nakar's home village of Anoling and other villages carved out from its parent town of Infanta.[6]
Personal life
Nakar was married to Angelina Coronel and had three children.[1]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g Farolan, Ramon (October 1, 2012). "Message from Nakar". Philippine Daily Inquirer. Retrieved July 5, 2023.
- ^ Almario, Virgilio. "Guillermo Nakar". CulturEd Philippines. Retrieved July 5, 2023.
- ^ Lent, John. "GUERRILLA PRESS OF THE PHILIPPINES, 1941–45" (PDF). University of the Philippines. Retrieved July 5, 2023.
- ^ "Historical Personages". infanta.gov.ph. Retrieved July 5, 2023.
- ^ Stevens, Frederic (1946). Santo Tomas Interment Camp (PDF). United States of America: Stratford House, Inc. p. 335. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
- ^ "About Us". generalnakar.gov.ph. Retrieved July 5, 2023.