“The Politics of Remembrance: The Case of the Filipina Comfort Women Statue and the Kamikaze Pilot Memorial” explores the contrasting memorialization of comfort women statues and kamikaze pilot shrines in the Philippines. As part of the Focus Section of The Newsletter by the International Institute for Asian Studies (IIAS) on ‘Monuments, Commemoration, and the Filipino Identity,’ the piece delves into how political and diplomatic interests shape the treatment of the monuments in study and highlights the selective nature of collective memory.

Francisco Jayme Paolo A. Guiang’s chapter on Maria Cristina V. Rodriguez highlights her activism during the Martial Law in the Philippines, detailing her arrest and torture under the Marcos regime. The narrative emphasizes personal resilience amid systemic repression, giving us a glimpse into human rights struggles and the significance of preserving memories of resistance.

A recent study by Ma. Jenina Nalipay and professors from Hong Kong and Shanghai universities highlights the importance of teacher well-being in education. Analyzing PISA 2018 data from nearly 90,000 teachers and students across 19 countries, it reveals that satisfied teachers lead to improved student well-being, particularly relevant in the Philippine educational context.