Kalayaan nga ba talaga? President Laurel’s Inaugural Address, October 14, 1943

In 1943, almost two years after Japan launched a surprise attack, the Philippines was "granted" independence under Japan. A new republic was inaugurated, the Second Philippine Republic, led by President Jose P. Laurel. How did this republic come to be, and how were politics under the auspices of Japan? Filipinos have indeed longed for independence, but is this the envisioned independence? We'll answer these and more as we look at Philippine independence sponsored by the Japanese Empire during World War II through a speech by Jose P. Laurel, President of the Second Philippine Republic.