Gov. Vicente del Rosario's Certification on the Lipa Guerrilla Regiment, December 1945
[TRANSCRIPTION]
The Lipa Guerrilla Regiment used to be known as the “Second Batangas Regiment” when it was affiliated with the Marking’s Guerrillas of Marcos Agustin. It was formed by a former USAFFE officer named Felino Paran. Upon Paran’s capture by the Japanese, command was assumed by Miguel Lina and became known as the “Lipa Guerrilla Unit.” The organization ultimately failed to collectively gain official recognition by the United States Army, but some of its members did get this coveted accolade. In this document1, Batangas Provincial Governor Vicente del Rosario wrote a certification on the Lipa Guerrilla Unit addressed to “the authorities of the United States Army.”
[p. 1]
COMMONWEALTH OF THE PHILIPPINES
PROVINCE OF BATANGAS
OFFICE OF THE G O V E R N O R
TO THE AUTHORITIES OF THE UNITED STATES ARMY &
OF THE PHILIPPINE ARMY,
The undersigned, in his capacity as Provincial Governor of Batangas and as a private citizen has the honor to certify:
1. That the undersigned came to know in the early part of 1943 of the guerrilla organization in the Province of Batangas by Col. Felino Z. Paran by personal contact with some of his organization leaders while the undersigned was residing in Lucena, Tayabas as Judge of the Court of 1st Instance of that province.
2. That from my own personal investigation, I came to know that [the] Paran Guerrilla Unit [unreadable] widespread in the Province of Batangas and had fought and resisted [unreadable] the Japanese forces and had helped the civilian population of Batangas in their efforts to evade Japanese massacre.
3. That I have come to know that the Paran Guerrilla Unit, officially known as the Lipa Guerrilla Unit, secured arms and ammunition by wresting them from the Japanese forces, by taking the machine guns of those American airplanes shot down by the Japanese anti-aircraft guns. As a proof of which, this organization has now in its possession six Japanese machine guns .30 caliber, 1 .30 caliber American machine gun, and 4 .50 caliber American machine gun, 1 Japanese trench mortar. Besides these machine guns, the organization captured many rifles from the Japanese.
4. That I am a native born of Lipa and I can certify under my word of honor as an official of the government and as a private citizen that the Lipa Guerrilla Regiment under Col. Felino Z. Paran has the respect and esteem of the people of Batangas for the resistance it had offered against the Japanese forces and the loyalty it demonstrated to the American Liberation Forces. Far and above all these, the organization had demonstrated nothing but patriotism in their endeavors during the war.
5. That I am making this statement voluntarily with no purpose other than to help the authorities concerned to give credit to whom it is due.
[p. 2]
6. That of my knowledge, no criminal nor civil complaint has been filed against the Lipa Guerrilla Regiment.
7. That the United States Army would commit a prejudicial error if it should fail to recognize the Lipa Guerrilla Regiment under the command of Col. Felino Z. Paran.
IN WITNESS of all the foregoing, I have signed this statement at Lipa, Batangas on this 20th day of December 1945.
B A T A N G A S