By Chris Lee

History of Mexico and the Philippines  Mexico was first populated more than 13,000 years ago.  In 1519, the Spaniards, led by Hernando Cortez, defeated the Aztecs, and established the region as a spanish colony.  Mexico achieved its independence from Spain in  Mexico was administered by the Partido Revolucionario Institucional (PRI) from the time of the Mexican revolution( ) to the middle of the 90s.  The Philippines were believed to be populated as far back as 67,000 years ago.  Ferdinand Magellan was the first European to discover the islands on one of his voyages in  The Philippine Revolution broke out in 1896 to gain its independence from Spain, just like in Mexico.  In 1987, the Philippines established a constitution that was based on the U.S.’s style of a republic.

 Mexico is located right below the United States.  The capital city is Mexico City.  Mexico is the thirteenth largest country in the world.  Over 112 million people live there.  The Philippines is located to the east of Vietnam and it is southeast of China.  Their capital is Manila.  There are 7,107 islands in the Philippines.  In 2011, there were 95,800,000 people living in the Philippines.

 Languages-Spanish, Mixtec, Tarascan, English, and many others.  Symbols-tricolor flag of red, white, and green, the national anthem (Himno Nacional Mexico), and their coat of arms.  Languages-Filipino, Spanish, English, Tagalog, and many others.  Symbols-Filipino flag, national anthem (Lupang Hinirang), and their coat of arms.

Values, Beliefs, and Norms of Mexico and the Philippines  The central feature of social life is the family, with the father as the dominant figure.  Religions-Catholicism, Protestantism, Seventh-Day Adventist, among others. -no official religion  They value Day of the Dead and Cinco de mayo.  Filipinos value strong relationships among everyone as well as social harmony.  Religions-Islam, Roman Catholicism, Aglipayan, Evangelical Christianity, among others.

Subcultures within Mexico and the Philippines  Political parties of Mexico-  National Action Party- pushes for a Christian Democracy under Felipe Calderon.  Institutional Revolutionary Party-most dominant party, and advocates a mixed economy as well as national industries.  Labor Party-formed in 1990 by Maoist activists.  Political parties of the Philippines-  Liberal Party-is the second- oldest political group, and it controls the House of Representatives.  Nacionalista Party-organized in 1907, was the oldest party, and administered the country for most of the 1900s.  Nationalist People’s Coalition-founded in 1991, members that were from this group were originally from the Nacionalista Party, but left because of disputes.

 Mexico’s economy is the 13 th largest in the world.  In 2008, Mexico experienced an economic recession.  Overall, the economy is good as it benefits from free trade with more than 40 countries including Japan and Israel.  However, there are some downsides: in terms of the amount of money there is a huge difference between the upper and lower- socioeconomic classes. Economy of Mexico

Economy of the Philippines  The Philippines has the 46 th largest economy in the world.  As of 2011, it was estimated that the country had $216.1 billion.  They trade with other nations such as, the United States, Korea, and China.  The economy has transformed from an agricultural economy into a more industrialized one.

 The Mexican Drug War-  Rival drug cartels are in conflict with each other over territory.  The Mexican Government is also trying to stop it and eliminate their drug trafficking.  It was estimated that so far that 34,612 people were killed.  Islamic uprisings-  Since the 1960s, there has been conflict between the government and groups such as, the MILF and the MNLF.  Since 2001, the United States has allied with the Philippine government so as to try and diminish the insurgencies.

 There are some things that I liked about both cultures, and some things that I did not like.  Things that I found interesting:  Mexicans main value is that of the family.  Filipinos value strong relationships between each other.  Mexico has the 13th largest economy in the world.  The Philippines have a constitution similar to that of the United States.  Things that I disliked:  Mexico is currently involved in a drug war.  Although Mexicans value family, they also have the male as the dominant figure.  I would not like to live in either of these countries even though they both have some interesting things about them only because I would not like to experience culture shock, and am actually very much happy just living here in the U.S. I would not like to live anywhere else other than where I have done research on either. My Opinion of Mexico and the Philippines

Where I live: The U.S.A.

Bibliography en.wikipedia.org