BALANGA CITY — The Philippine Veterans Bank (PVB) in cooperation with the Philippine Veterans Affairs Office midnight of Friday started here the commemoration of the 77th year of the Death March to conclude in Tarlac on Sunday afternoon.
Known as the Freedom Trail March, it retraces the 140 kilometers of actual route of the Death March from the O Kilometer Death March marker in Mariveles to Capas, Tarlac.
Tomas Cloa, Jr., PVB vice-president, said “Ang Freedom Trail March ay ginagawa yearly para bigyang-pugay ang mga bayani na nagparticipate noong Death March 77 years go.”
Cloa said the original Death March lasted for four days after Bataan fell to the Japanese invaders on April 9, 1942.
Its retracing now only takes three days. The Death March, considered as one of the darkest days in Philippine History, was the forcible transfer of 60,000 – 80,000 Filipino and American prisoners of war from Bagac and Mariveles towns in Bataan to Camp O’Donnell in Capas.
“We are doing this because we are not forgetting those who fought in Bataan but will always remember them,” the PVB official said, adding that at present, there are only 2,000 living World War II veterans.
Cloa said this is the third year of the Freedom Trail March and they were lucky that 21 members of the United States Navy Seal participated for the first time.
Also participating were 17 members of the Epic Charity Challenge from the U.S. headed by its director Dr. Lance Cummings of California.
Cummings said they left Mariveles at 12 midnight of Friday and reached Balanga City, 40 kilometers away, at 8:30 A.M. of Saturday.
He described the route from Mariveles to Balanga City: “It is a myriad of sights, smell, sound, everything. It was a full experience of Filipino countryside and city life.”
Cummings said Epic Charity Challenge designs and implements a challenge of events every year and is now on the third year.
“The challenge is to come over here and do the Bataan Death March. Participants train from nine to 10 months to do the challenge. Another challenge is to raise money for different charities,” he said.
Cummings said they have raised $100,000 this year to be given to athletes needing prosthetic and metal shoes.
“Every year we do a different challenge in a different place for different charities,” he said.
Robert Hudson, vice-president of Filipino-American Memorial, said the Death March markers are well-maintained, now with the assistance of the Department of Public Works and Highways.
