Defense secretary in Cheyenne to see off the Bells of Balangiga

By Austin Huguelet 
Wyoming Tribune Eagle
Via Wyoming News Exchange
 
CHEYENNE — U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis came to F.E. Warren Air Force Base on Wednesday to send the Bells of Balangiga home.
For decades, the two church bells Philippine revolutionaries used to signal an ambush of occupying U.S. soldiers in September 1901 have served as a memorial to the 48 Americans killed in the surprise attack.
But in remarks to military and civilian leaders, including Philippine Ambassador Jose Manuel G. Romualdez, on base Wednesday, Mattis said it was time to let go of those dark days and remove a needless barrier between friends.
"History teaches us that nations with allies thrive," Mattis said. "History also teaches us that all wars end. In returning the Bells of Balangiga to our ally and our friend, the Philippines, we've picked up our generation's responsibility to keep the respect between our peoples."
His decision, communicated to Congress in August, came after more than two decades of lobbying from Philippine leaders.
In a speech last year, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte said the bells were "reminders of the gallantry and heroism of our forbears who resisted the American colonizers and sacrificed their lives in the process" and belonged to the Philippines.
Wyoming leaders and veterans groups like the American Legion, who see the return as desecration of a war memorial, still don't agree.
In a joint statement in August, Rep. Liz Cheney and Sens. John Barrasso and Mike Enzi, all R-Wyo., said moving the bells would establish "a dangerous precedent for future veterans' memorials."
A spokesman for Gov. Matt Mead added then that his boss' views hadn't changed since he wrote to federal officials in 2012 saying he opposed "any efforts to deconstruct our war memorials that honor our fallen soldiers."
But on Wednesday, Mattis urged them to look beyond the physical trophies.
"To those who fear that we lose something by returning the bells," he said, "please hear me when I say that bells mark time, but courage is timeless."
He also pointed out that since the Philippine-American War, Philippine troops had fought side by side with Americans against the Japanese in World War II, against China in the Korean War and against ISIS in the past few years. 
And Mead, who also gave remarks, said he understood the importance of allies in a volatile, post-9/11 era.
"I have been against (returning the bells), and I have been because I've listened to our veterans," Mead said, directly addressing Mattis. "But I do know this: You have a perspective that is broader than mine. You have a history that is broader than mine.” It was not immediately clear when the bells would be removed from F.E. Warren, where they first arrived in 1905, when it was still Fort D.A. Russell. The bells will be refurbished before repatriation. 
A third church bell taken from Balangiga is at Camp Red Cloud, an Army facility in South Korea. It will also be returned shortly.