The Rise Of Australasia

Chapter 654 - 497: Cooperation

As of 1919, the population of the Philippines had already exceeded 10 million, to be exact, it had reached just over 10.53 million.

If it weren’t for the data from later generations, Arthur would not believe that this country would increase its population by 11 times in just a hundred years, and even achieve a population of 114 million in 2023, ranking 13th in the world and one of the most populated countries in Southeast Asia, second only to the future Indonesia, which is now the Dutch East Indies region.

A region that can accommodate hundreds of millions of people is also a thorn in America’s side in Australasia, and it must be removed.

If the Philippines is managed well, it will become a dumping ground for Australasian products and a source of cheap labor in the future.

At the same time, the Philippines can also serve as the first line of defense against island nations, easing the double pressure Australasia may face from island nations and the United States.

After controlling the Philippines, the US bases on the Pacific coast can be completely removed, and the US’s long-desired Pan-Pacific policy will be doomed to fail.

In the long run, regions like the present Dutch East Indies and the Philippines can serve as vassal states of Australasia in the future, undertaking some low-end industries and heavily polluting industries for Australasia.

With a combined population of over 300 million in the Dutch East Indies and the Philippines in later generations, they can form an expendable army of over 30 million at any cost, or provide tens of millions of cheap labor, which is much better than using the lives of Australasians to fill the gap.

Manuel is a smart man. When he learned that he had no choice, he readily agreed to all the terms offered by Sam.

It is no exaggeration to say that if Manuel were to rally in the civil community of the Philippines, he could easily form an armed force and even trigger a wave of resistance against the United States in the Philippines.

It should be noted that the US rule in the Philippines is by no means peaceful. The Philippines has experienced various rebellions since the Spanish colonial period and naturally will not obediently submit to American rule.

Since the United States passed the Philippine Act in 1902, ending military control over the Philippines, the country has been under the control of the civilian government led by the Americans.

Being led by the Americans is no joke. Although it appears to be a Philippine government, it is practically controlled by the Americans. Filipinos have to go through American approval to pass any law.

This situation has deepened the contradictions between the Filipino people and the Americans, especially since the policies implemented by the Americans hardly take into account the opinions of the Filipino people, which greatly intensifies anti-American sentiments in the Philippines.

Manuel expanded the opportunities for Filipinos to participate in politics through the Jones Act. Although they did not gain the upper hand, the Filipino political arena did indeed have more local voices, which is why Manuel has great prestige in Filipino politics.

It can be said that without Manuel, the Filipino political arena would still be dominated by the Americans, and Filipino officials would have no say in the face of the Americans.

Although the Jones Act has eased the contradictions between the Filipino people and the Americans, as long as the Americans dominate the Filipino government for even one day, these contradictions will never be resolved.

Therefore, Sam gave Manuel the first task: to secretly form armed forces, break them up into very small teams, and sabotage the US rule in the Philippines.

A complete Philippine armed force is definitely no match for the Americans. Disintegrating into small teams of varying numbers and breaking them up into individual parts will actually play a more important role.