The Embassy joins the Filipino-Dutch community and the Filipino people in mourning the passing on 6 January 2022 of Mr. Francisco Sionil José, National Artist of the Philippines for Literature.
The founder of the Philippine chapter of PEN International, F. Sionil Jose was one of the most revered and read Filipino writers whose works have been published and translated into various languages. PEN is a worldwide association of writers, founded in London in 1921, to promote friendship and intellectual co-operation among writers.
Known for his novels and literary works espousing national sovereignty and social justice, his works include the Rosales saga, a five-novel series consisting of The Pretenders, Tree, My Brother, My Executioner, Mass and Po-on. The novels narrate the stories of the Samsons in different generations, intertwining their personal lives with the social struggles of the nation.
Through his prolific writing since the 1960s, Mr. José received various accolades including the CCP Centennial Honors for the Arts in 1998, the Outstanding Fulbrighters Award for Literature in 1988, the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Journalism, Literature, and Creative Communication Arts in 1980, as well as several Palanca Awards. He was bestowed the National Artist Award in 2001 for his outstanding contributions to Philippine literature.
Mr. José visited The Netherlands in 1981 and spoke before the “Third Speaker Congress,” a three-day event in Amsterdam about literature in the developing world. (see account in the newspaper “Trouw” in October 1981. Photo credit: Arpenco.nl)
According to the UST Varsitarian (varsitarian.net), “because of its depiction of student activism during martial law, “Mass” was first published in 1982 in its Dutch translation in Amsterdam and Brussels where it became a best seller. The original Philippine edition came out the following year but only after the assassination of opposition leader Benigno Aquino Jr. which unleashed a wave of protests across the nation.”
The novel “The Pretenders” was also translated into Dutch with the title “Masquerade” and published by the Wereldvenster and Novib in Amsterdam.
More recently, in 2020, the “Po-on” was translated by Mr. Gerard Arp into Dutch with the title “Schemering” and published by Arpenco Publishing. “Po-on” tells the story of the experiences of Salvador family, a peasant family who left their hometown in Ilocos to escape further oppression and persecution from the Spanish colonial authorities. The story focuses on the development of the main character “Istak” as he lost and formed relationships, and changed views about freedom and bravery.
Mr. Arp, who is based in Zoetermeer, had planned for a launch of “Schemering” (Po-on) and was awaiting the schedule of Mr. José’s possible visit when the latter passed on. Mr. Arp is also the translator in Dutch of Jose Rizal’s novels “Noli Me Tangere” (Raak Me Niet Aan) and “El Filibusterismo” (De Revolutie: Een Filipijnse Roman) and Carlos Bulosan’s “America is in the Heart” (Amerika zit in het Hart).
Copies of “Schemering” and other works translated by Mr. Arp may be purchased at www.arpenco.nl.
In his blog “Before the curtain falls,” Mr. José wrote that “…with what I have written, I hope that some will now understand themselves better so that they can also live with themselves. I hope that I have also brought some light into the darkest corners of their minds, their hearts, their own homes, and that I have also given them memory so that they will remember.”
Mr. José’s life and work are also featured in the website of Mr. Arp: https://arpenco.nl/.../f-sionil-jose-zijn-leven-en.../amp/.
