At last we have seen the bells,” Father Lentoy Tybaco, the parish priest of Balangiga, told domestic television as the bells were lifted from boxes and displayed on a runway. Historians say the bells were rung to signal the start of the surprise attack on American forces, who retaliated with a massacre in which women and children were killed. He has condemned what he sees as the United States’ history of hypocrisy, arrogance and political interference. Dueterte has yet to visit the United States as president, calling it “lousy”, although his foreign minister last month hinted the bells’ return might prompt a change of heart. Giving the bells back was “overwhelmingly viewed as the right thing to do”, said Sung Kim, the US ambassador to the Philippines.

Source: Egypt Independent December 11, 2018 12:56 UTC