The final United Nations victory has been won.
The war is over.
Peace is here.
What events led to the liberation of the Philippines 
in 1945 during World War II?
Around January, American planes were flying
and then throwing leaflets
saying, “Your liberation is at hand.”
Filipino guerillas were instrumental 
in the success of the Allied forces.
Salome Calderon was only 17 years old
when she served in an intelligence unit of the 
Hunters ROTC of Rizal.
Salome’s callsign in the guerillas was “The Lady Hunter.”
I knew practically all the members of the Hunters in Rizal.
Lahat ng member ng Hunters dito sa Rizal, halos kilala ko.
Because they all had to come through me.
Kasi lahat nagdadaan sa akin sila.
Whenever bombings happened in Metro Manila, in Manila,
Pagka nagka-bombahan sa Metro Manila, sa Manila,
all the guerillas around the area were on alert.
lahat ng guerilla around Manila alerto yan.
An American came up to me;
Lumapit sa amin iyong Amerikano;
“We ought to raise the flag” he said.
“We ought to raise the flag” sabi niyang ganoon.
He gave me the flag, and I raised it.
Eh di ibinigay sa akin iyong bandera, 
itinaas ko iyong bandera.
On February 3, 1945, the Battle of Manila commenced.
For me, one of the most interesting things was about, 
throughout the long Japanese occupation
there remained a hope that the American forces
would come back,
and that the American forces would deliver on
the promise that Douglas MacArthur had made
which was, “I shall return.”
And despite the terrible conditions throughout 
the Japanese occupation,
so many here in the Philippines held onto that hope,
and America did in fact return.
On March 3, 1945, the liberation of Manila was complete.
But the fighting between the Allied forces 
and the Japanese continued
until Emperor Hirohito announced the 
Japanese surrender on August 15, 1945.
On September 2, 1945, aboard the USS Missouri,
Japan officially surrendered.
The battleship Missouri, 53,000-ton flagship 
of Admiral Halsey’s 3rd Fleet,
becomes the scene of an unforgettable ceremony
marking the complete and formal surrender of Japan.
As President of the United States,
I proclaim September 2, 1945
to be V-J Day,
the day of the formal surrender of Japan.
And our thoughts go out to our gallant allies in this war,
to those who resisted the invaders.
This is a victory of more than arms alone,
this is a victory of liberty over tyranny.
We move toward a new and better world.
On September 3, 1945,
General Tomoyuki Yamashita, commander of the 
Japanese military forces in the Philippines,
signed the surrender documents at the
 American High Commissioner’s residence
in Camp John Hay, Baguio City.
September 3 is Victory Day in the Philippines,
precisely to mark
not only the end of World War II in 
the Philippines, historically,
but the surrender of the war criminal Yamashita.
My big thing is trying to preserve the memory of World War II
I think these lessons, these have to be learned,
that there was tremendous sacrifice
and so I just think it’s very important to learn about the War.
To this day, the United States continues to honor 
Filipino war veterans
with the U.S. Congressional Gold Medal—
America’s highest civilian honor.
Seventy five years since the end of the Second World War,
the United States and the Philippines continue to be friends,
partners,
and allies for freedom.
Video produced by the
United States Embassy in the Philippines
