History of the Chinese Mestizo in the Spanish Colonial Period
One of the institutions that facilitated the integration of Chinese immigrants into Philippine life was the Catholic Church. The Church, in cooperation with the Spanish government, enticed the Chinese to convert to Catholicism by granting converts privileges that non-converts did not enjoy. This included exemption from certain taxes, as well as the right to marry local women and live in a designated area called Binondo, an island located just outside Intramuros, the seat of the Spanish government. The offspring of these intermarriages, the Chinese mestizo, could be depended upon to help the missionaries’ proselytizing efforts in China and elsewhere in Asia. In time, Binondo became a community of Catholic Chinese and their families, while non-Catholic Chinese were restricted to a place called the Parián (market-place).