A Greater Philippines

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Welcome to the main portal page for the ATL, A Greater Philippines. This is an ATL that was created by "A Filipino Mapper" on May 10th, 2021.

This timeline explores Philippine history in an alternate timeline where the death of Ramon Magsaysay in a plane crash was avoided due to the pilots not crashing Magsaysay’s plane “Mt. Pinatubo” on the slopes of Mount Manunggal in Balamban, Cebu leads to an alternate outcome in the 1957 Philippine presidential elections in which the tandem of Magsaysay-Garcia winning their re-election due to their popularity among the general public and the ruling Nacionalista Party which leads to a completely different history of the Philippines during the lengthened presidency of Ramon Magsaysay and beyond.

Introduction:

In the November 1953 Philippine presidential elections, Ramon Magsaysay of the Nacionalista Party was elected president over Elpidio Quirino of the opposing Liberal Party, with the scarcely concealed help of American officials and funds. He was sworn into office wearing the Barong Tagalog, a first by a Philippine president. He was then called "Mambo Magsaysay".

As President, he was a close friend and supporter of the United States of America and a vocal spokesman against communism during the Cold War. He led the foundation of the Southeast Asia Treaty Organization also known as the Manila Pact of September 1954, that aimed to defeat Marxist-Leninist movements in Southeast Asia, South Asia, Oceania, and the Southwestern Pacific.

During his 1st term as President of the Philippines, he made Malacañang Palace literally a "house of the people", opening its gates to the public. One example of his integrity followed a demonstration flight aboard a new plane belonging to the Philippine Air Force (PAF). President Magsaysay asked what the operating costs per hour were for that type of aircraft, then wrote a personal check to the PAF, covering the cost of his flight. He restored the people's trust in the military and in the government.

Magsaysay's administration was considered one of the cleanest and most corruption-free in modern Philippine history; his rule is often cited as the Philippines' "Golden Age". Trade and industry flourished, the Armed Forces of the Philippines was at its prime, and the country gained international recognition in sports, culture, foreign affairs, and so on. The Philippines placed second on a ranking of Asia's clean and well-governed countries.

Magsaysay's term, which was to end on 1957 with a potential to re-elect himself for a full 2nd term as President, was cut short by a plane crash. On March 16th, 1957, Magsaysay left Manila for Cebu City where he spoke at three educational institutions. That same night, at about 1 am, he boarded the presidential plane "Mt. Pinatubo", a Douglas C-47 Skytrain, heading back to the Philippine capital of Manila. In the early morning hours of March 17th, the plane was reported missing. By late afternoon, newspapers had reported the airplane had crashed on Mt. Manunggal in Cebu, and that 36 of the 56 aboard were killed. The actual number on board was 25, including incumbent President Ramon Magsaysay. Only newspaperman Néstor Mata survived. Vice President Carlos P. García, who was on an official visit to Australia at the time, returned to Manila and ascended to the presidency to serve out the remaining eight months of his predecessor's term.

An estimated 2 million people attended Magsaysay's state funeral on March 22th, 1957.

And the rest is history.

Questions in Ramon Magsaysay's presidency and beyond:

• What if the pilots of Magsaysay’s plane “Mt. Pinatubo” had avoided crashing the plane on the slopes of Mount Manunggal, in Balamban, Cebu?
  
• What would have happened in the Philippines during the lengthened presidency of Ramon Magsaysay?
  
• What would have happened in the Philippines after the presidency of Ramon Magsaysay?
  

Resulting in a greater and better Philippines lasting up to the present day than it was in OTL?

Point of Divergence:

• President Ramon Magsaysay's presidential plane almost crashes into a mountain, but the pilots managed to avoid it in time. Magsaysay would return to Manila a few hours later.

OTL vs ATL:

Due to the tremendous amount of differences about the history of the Philippines between OTL and this ATL, a separate page will be used.

OTL vs ATL

Must-read pages

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Timeline