LESSON 19:

THE MINORITIZATION OF
THE INDIGENOUS
COMMUNITIES OF
MINDANAO AND THE
SULU ARCHIPELAGO
 Who are the Indigenous Cultural Communities?

 Created in 1957, the Commission on National Integration (CNI) made an

official listing of the Natural Cultural Minorities (NCM). In the 1960 census,
four years after the establishment of CNI, the NCM’s numbered 2,887,526 or
approximately 10% of the national population. The matter of names and
number is not a settled issue in the Philippines.

 It is generally known that the Moro people are made up of 13 ethnolinguistic

groups.

 The Badjaw are generally not Muslims but because of their identification
within the realm of the ancient Sulu sultanate, they have often regarded as
part of the Islamic scene in the Sulu archipelago.

 The present majority-minority situation is a product of western colonialism

that has been carried over to the present.
 Who are the Indigenous Cultural Communities?
CNI Official Listing of National Cultural Minorities
Luzon-Visayas
1. Aeta Mindanao-Sulu
2. Apayaw or Isneg 1. Ata or Ataas 1. Badjaw
3. Mangyan 2. Bagobo and Guiangga 2. Maguindanao
4. Bontok 3. Mamanwa 3. Iranun, Ilanun
5. Dumagat 4. Mangguangan 4. Kalibugan
6. Ifugao 5. Mandaya 5. Maranao
7. Ilongot 6. Banwa-on 6. Pullun Mapun
8. Inibaloi, Ibaloi 7. Bilaan 7. Samal
9. Kalinga 8. Bukidnon 8. Sangil
10.Kankanai 9. Dulangan 9. Tausug
11.Kanuy, Kene 10.Kalagan 10. Yakan
12.Molbuganon 11.Kulaman
13.Palawano 12.Manobo
14.Batak 13.Subanon
15.Remontado 14.Tagabili
16.Sulod 15.Tagakaolo
17.Tagbanua 16.Talandig
18.Tinggian or Itneg 17.Tiruray
19.Todag
 Current Linguistic Situation

 Inhabiting an archipelago of 7,100 islands which are divided into

three broad geographic zones called Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao,
the Philippine population is according to a linguistic expert,
linguistically diverse, distributed, conservatively speaking, into
between 100 to 150 languages.

 The linguistic diversity is not however, reflected in their skin.

Complexion-wise, the majority of the Filipino natives are Malay brown;
a much smaller percentage are dark like the Negritos or Aeta of Luzon,
the Batak of Palawan and the Mamanwa of Mindanao.
 Social Situation at Spanish Contact
 The communities of the Philippine Archipelago may roughly be divided into two
broad groupings, those who were colonized and those who were not.

 The first sub-group consisted of the Muslims of Mindanao and Sulu and the
Igorot of the Cordillera. The second sub-group were those who are presently
known as Tribal Filipinos.

The Barangay Communities

 The barangays which were basically clan communities were associated with
coastal settlements or those found at the mouths and banks of rivers.

 Each barangay consisting of several families acknowledging a common origin,

was rule by a patriarchal head or datu.
 Not all in the clan village have he same status. There were those who were
equals of the datu in all respects; there were the wellborn (maharlika), bound
to their lord by kinship and personal fealty, possessing land and chattels of
their own. There were the timaua, who did not have the noble blood of
Maharlika but were like them, free. The rest were alipin, less than free. Some
were serfs, alipingnamamahay (housekeeping dependents Others, aliping
sagigilid (household dependets).

The Islamized Communities

 The Muslim principalities were considered to be the most developed

communities in the entire archipelago, having reached the level of
centrally organized life. The Islamized communities are traditional
inhabitants of the southern portion of Mindanao, central Mindanao, the
islands of Basilan, Sulu Archipelago and Southern Palawan.
  Islam first arrived in the Sulu Archipelago towards the end of the 13th
century brought by a certain Tuan Masha’ika. Masha’ika was followed by
a Muslim missionary named Karim ul-Makhdum around the second half
of the 14th century. Rajah Baginda who came at the beginning of the 15th
century was introduced the political element in the Islamization process.
It was his son-in-law Abubakar, whom he had designated as his
successor who started the Sulu Sultanate.
 In 1417, A sulu leader named Paduka Pahal led a trade of expedition of
340 people on China.

The Warrior Societies

 Like the barangays, the warrior communities were also kinshipbound.
 Dr. Scott calls them warrior communities because they were “characterized
by a distinct warrior class, in which membership is won by personal
achievements, entails privilege, duty and prescribed norms of conduct, and is
requisite for community leadership.”
 The Petty Plutocracies

 Dr. Scott says “dominated socially and politically by a recognized class of rich
men who attain membership through birthright, property and the performance
of specified ceremonies”; and “petty” because their authority is localized.

The Classless Communities

 Dr. Scott claims that the classless communities are so characterized “because
they distinguish no class or group which exerts authority or advantage over the
classes or groups by virtue of ascribed or acclaimed status.”

 “all these societies either farm swiddens or hunt and gather forest products
for their sustenance– or in the case of dumagats, live off fish and turtles.”
None of them had any concept of landownership.
 The Spanish Contribution

 In 1898, at the collapse of the colonial regime, the entire population could be
divided into two broad categories, those who were conquered and colonized
and those who were not.
 It may have been unintended but it was in creating the conditions for the
various barangay communities to discover a common identity in being
Christians and subjects of Spanish colonialism, and find a common cause in
their struggles to eliminate the unjust colonial order.

The American Share in the Process

 American contribution may be categorized as two-fold, in the sphere of

labeling, and in providing political or administrative structures.
 First, they called the Philippine Islands part of their Insular Possessions.
Which to them was legitimately accomplished through the Treaty of Paris in
December 1898 whereby Spain ceded the entire Philippine Archipelago to the
American government in exchange for 20 million dollard legalized.

Regalian Doctrine vs. Ancestral Domain

 The Republic of the Philippine inherited the regalia doctrine from Spain,
as it also adopted hook, line and sinker all laws affecting land and other
natural resources enacted and implemented by the American
colonizers.
 The regalian doctrine is regarded as a legal fiction because no law such
ever existed.
 To ensure unchallenged exercise of the state authority to dispose of state domain
or public lands, the Philippine Commission enacted a law which took away from
indigenous leaders, datus or chiefs their authority to dispose lands within their
respective jurisdictions.

Discriminatory Provisions of Public Land Laws and other

Laws Affecting Land

 The US acquisition of sovereignty over the Philippine archipelago did not

carry with it the recognition of the communal ancestral domains of the
indigenous communities. Neither did it recognize that of Moro, least of
all the legitimacy of their sultanates, nor that of any other community for
that matter.
 The Philippine Commission passed a law (Act No. 718) on April 4, 1903 six months
after the passages of the land registration act, making void “land grants from moro
sultans or datus or from chiefs of non-Christian tribes when made without
governmental authority or consent.”
 The land registration Act No. 496 of November 6, 1902 requires the registration of
lands occupied by private persons or corporations.
 The Public Land Act No. 926 of October 7, 1903 allowed individuals to acquire
homesteads not exceeding 16 hectares each and corporations 1,024 heactares
each.
 Public Land Act No. 926 provided that the 16 hectares allowed earlier to individuals
was increased to 24 but the non-Christian was allowed an area which shall not
exceed 10 hectares.
 Commonwealth Act No. 41 on November 7, 1936 withdrew the privilege earlier
granted to the settlers of owning more than one homestead at 24 hectares each
and reverted to only not exceeding 16 hectares but the non-Christians who were
earlier allowed a maximum of 10 hectares were now permitted only four hectares.
 Resettlement Program

 By operations of law, not only did the indigenous communities find

themselves squatters in their own lands. They also happened to be
inhabitants of provinces which had been opened to resettlements like
Cagayan Valley, Isabela, Nueva Viscaya, Nueva Ecija, Mindoro,
Palawan and so on.
 In the wake of the settlers, or sometimes ahead of them, came the
rich and the powerful in the form of extensive plantations, pasture
leases or cattle ranches, mining concerns, logging operations, and
rattan concessions.
 After more than three centuries of relative freedom and stability
during the Spanish period, many indigenous communities found
themselves, in less than half a century of American rule and in an
even shorter period of the Philippine Republic, rapidly displaced and
permanently dispossessed legally.
 The Indigenous Cultural Communities’
Situation in Mindanao-Sulu

 The indigenous cultural communities in Mindanao and Sulu regard

themselves as the real owners of the greater part of the region. The
others were those indigenous inhabitants who constituted the
Christian converts during the Spanish period. Except for four
provinces and a few other towns for the Muslims and about eight or
10 towns for the Lumad, they have become numerical minorities in
their ancient territory.
 Traditional Indigenous Territory
 Historically “Moro” refers to the 13 ethnolinguistic groups enumerated
earlier. The name has been much disliked by the Muslims for may years,
coming as it did from their Spanish enemies who subjected them to
constant attacks aiming to colonize them.
 “Lumad” is a Cebuano Bisayan word meaning “indigenous” which has
become the collective name for the 19 ethnolinguistic groups.

Basis of Indigenous Claim of Territory

 There is incontrovertible evidence that the above-mentioned

indigenous peoples have been living continuously without
interruptions since 1596 to 1898.
 First, they were the first to arrive there.
 Second, among the various groups it was the clan that had a tradition of
communal ownership and control of their territory.
 Lastly, their occupancy was continuous and without interruption at least
until 1898.

The First Foreign Intrusion: The Spanish Challenge

 Armed clashes between Moro and Spanish began from the very first
year of Spanish presence in 1565. The Moros contested their
colonial ambition up to 1898.
 Spain succeeded as early as the first half of the 17th century in
establishing footholds in the eastern, northern and western parts of
the Mindanao.
 Resettlement Programs of the Government

 Initiated by the American colonial government as early as 1912, it was

sustained and intensified during the Commonwealth period in the post-
World War II years. Altogether, there were a number of resettlement
programs.
 Th year 1913 saw the passage by the Philippine Commission of Act No.
2254 creating agricultural colonies aimed at enhancing the rice
production effort already started in the Cotabato Valley.
 The National Land Settlement Administration (NLSA) created by
Commonwealth Act No. 441 in 1939 introduced new dimensions into
resettlement.
 The National Resettlement and Rehabilitation Administration (NARRA)
administered a total of 23 resettlements areas, nine were in Mindanao,
one in Palawan; five in the Visayas, one in Mindoro, seven in mainland
Luzon.
 Population Shifts Resulting from Resettlements

 As a result of influx of settlers from Luzon and the Visayas, the existing
balance of population among the indigenous Moro, Lumad and
Christians underwent serious changes.
 Cotabato has been the traditional center of the Mindanao Sultanate.
Aside from the Maguindanaoan, its Moro population also include
Iranun and Sangil.
 Zamboanga was also the traditional habitat of the Maguindanaoan
wehere the Sultanate dominated the original Subanon inhabitants,
especially in the southern portions.
 Bukidnon had been the traditional territory of the Manobo and the
Bukidnon (also known as Talaandig and/or Higaunon.
 The Case of Cotabato
 In 1918, what used to be known as the empire province of Cotabato had a
total of 171, 978 inhabitants distributed in 36 municipalities and municipal
 The Muslims were the majority in 20 towns p, the lu,ad in 5, and the
migrants in none, the muslims continued to be the the majority in 20 towns,
the lumad increased to hide as a result of political subdivisions, and
migrants had three.

The Role of Big Business in the Displacement Process

 Mindanao teemed with natural wealth. Both American military commanders and
government administrations saw this very earlyin their stay in mindanao.
 In 1962 a U.S. Congressman introduced a bill seeking the operation of Mindanao
and Sulu from the rest of the Philippines.
 During the post-World War era, timber concessions may have delivered the
penultimate blow to the already precarious indigenous hold over their ancestral
territory.
 Contradiction between Government Development Projects and
Indigenous Interests
 As a result of the government’s attempt to reduce the country’s dependence on
imported oil, both administrations from President Marcos to Aquino have
undertaken energy development projects tapping both water and geothermal
resources.

Present Status and Gains of the Lumad Struggle

 Among the Lumad, much work has been done to influence recent legislations the would
benefit them and the cultural communities as a whole
 the 1973 Constitution of thePhilippines carried a sympathetic acknowledgment of the
unique character of the tribal peoples of the country in a single provision
 The nationwide protests against the dictatorship of the Marcos regime affected the Lumad
 The various Lumad organizations took active part in the public consultations held during
the drafting of the Charter
 The names “Lumad” and “Bangsa Moro” have at last been accepted in the legal dictionary
of the country
 The Journey Towards Moro Self-Determination
 First, long before the Spanish colonizers arrived in the Philippine
archipelago, they enjoyed a high level of centralized social system as
exemplified by the Sulu Sultanate
 And two, by their singular success in maintaining their freedom against
repeated Spanish attempts to subjugate them for three hundred thirty three
years
Triumph of Western Colonialism
 With the signing of the Treaty of Paris, or with one stroke of the pen,
figuratively speaking, all inhabitants of the islands without exception -the
Moros no less -became colonial subjects of the United States of America.
 Subsequent American moves were designed to clear away all forms of
opposition to the assertion of American rights of possession and the
establishment of American colonial rule.
 Moro leaders’ recognition and acknowledgment of American sovereignty
shifted centers of authority from them to American officials and
institutions.
Moro Resistance
 Between 1903 to 1936, Moro lives lost from the fighting were estimated by the
Americans to be between 15,000 to 20,000.
 Most notorious or most famous of the encounters, depending on one’s point of view,
were the battles of Bud Dajo and Bud Bagsak in Sulu, the struggle of Datu Ali in
Maguindanao, and the Lake town campaigns in Lanao
 American success in arms was effectively balanced with equally determined efforts
in civil affairs
Datu Participation in Colonial Government
 Formerly prime minister to th sultan of Sulu, HadjiBatu was chosen Special
Assisstant to the American Governor of the Moro Province in 1904
 Datu Piang started his service as third member of the Provincial Board of
Cotabbato in 1915
 Other datus served in various capacities a good number of them starting as third
member of their respective provincial boards
Education, A Tool of Pacification
 American officials never underestimated the efficacy of education as a conquest.
 Special were made to enable sons and daughters to obtain education
 The case of Sulu is instructive. A girls dormitory managed by Christian Filipino
matron and financed by American ladies ib New York was established in 1916 in
Jolo
 The support given by the leading datus certainly made the dormitory a great success.
Early Moves Towards Recovery of Self-Determination
 When armed resistance died down, Moro leaders continued to articulate and revive
the issue of self-determination
 In 1921, 52 Moro datus and five Americans-four of whom were residents of Sulu,
addressed a petition to the President of the United States requesting that should
independence be granted to the Northern provinces of the Philippines.
Movement for Muslim Independence
 The Muslim Independence Movement (MIM), headed by Datu Udtog Matalam,
acknowledged among the Muslims of Mindanao and Sulu issued a manifesto
declaring their desire for independence from the Republic of the Philippines of
Muslim
 The Philippines government had been implementing a policy of isolation and
dispersal of Muslim communities which had been detrimental to the Muslims and
Islam
 Islam- is a communal religion and a way of life that requires a definite territory for
the exercise for its tenets and teachings.
“Christian” Countermoves
 The years 1969 to 1972 was a period of indiscriminate encounters betweeen
Muslims and Christians
 The physical pattern of events showed the spread of conflict from North Cotabato to
Lanao del Sur, from Cotabato to Lanao del Norte and from Cotabato to Zamboanga
del Sur
 The general masses, both Muslims and Christians, were caught in the crossfire.
MNLF Launches War of Bangsa Moro Nationsl Liberation
 The MIM faded into the background after President Marcos spoke to Udtog Matalam
 After the declaration of martial rule, in November 1972, the Moro National Liberation
Front-Bangsa Moro Army launched a series of coordinated attacks on military outposts
and announced to the world
 From the last months of 1972 to December 1976, large-scale fighting raged in
Moroland.

The OIC Mediates RP-MNLF Negotiation

 Through the invention of the Organization of Islamic Conference, the Philippine
Government and the MNLF agreed to meet at the negotiating table
 The first formal talks, which failed, took place in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia in 1975
 Another was attempted in Tripoli, Libya in December 1976
 There were disagreements on how the document should be implemented.
1987 Constitution Provides for Regional Autonomy in Muslim Mindanao
 A new ceasefire was entered into by the government and the MNLF.
 The 1987 Constitution provided for the specific steps for the establishment of an
autonomous region including the enactment of an organic act for the Autonomous
region in Muslim Mindanao
 The new Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao currently in place covers only the
four provinces of Maguindanao, Lanao del Sur, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi
Prospects of Bangsa Moro Struggles
 The first signs of factionalism showed in late 1977
 More definite signs emerged their later
 In the early 80’s the Moro Islamic Liberation Front came to the surface, identified
with Hashim Salamat
 The OIC has continued to recognized the MNLF as the legitimate representative of
the Bangsa Moro
 The present administration of President Fidel V. Ramos has so far expressed its desire
to talk with all factions
Among the Lumad: The Case of Mt. apo and Datu Inong Awe
 Datu Inong Awe was well over 90 years old when he led a Bagobotribal
delegation to Manila to protest against the planned drilling of geothermal
wells at the Mt. Apo area
 The Philippine government has been incessantly searching for every
possible source of natural energy, be it oil or geothermal

Apo Sadawa

 is a dormant volcano
 it is the home of Mandarangan, chief of the bagobo war gods
 it is a sacred mountain for bagobo tribe
 Researcher saw a vast store of geothermal energy in the belly of the
mountain
 Long Line Fighting Leader
 Datu Inong Awe, his father is the cousin of Datu Tongkaling
 several of their warriors called Bagani died in the hands of the japanese
during the world war 2

Geothermal Potential in Mt. Apo

 Much has transpired since that initial show of opposition of led

by Datu Inong Awe.
 PNOC reportedly plans to dig a total of 170 wells as part of the
ten-year power development program of the National Power
Corporation (NAPOCOR)
 Early Attempts to Explore the mountain

• PNOC tried to vain to obtain permits to explore energy potentials of

Mt. Apo in 1983.
• The Revised forestry Code clearly provides that National parks
shall not be subject to exploitation and other activities of a
commercial nature.

Stemming Tide of Tribal Opposition

• In attempt to stem the tide of growing tribal opposition NAPOCOR
AND PNOC have agreed to set up Environmental and Tribal
Welfare Trust Fund
• The fund will be administered by the multi-sectoral management
group.
More Opposition

• February 1992 PNOC was set to star full scale drilling

operation.. The unconcealed entry into Mt. Apo area a
hundred of army troops was more than eloquent proof of the
seriousness of their intentions.

Other Related Issues

• Issues raised were not confined to matters directly related to
ancestral domain; militarization is another matter. Moreover,
ecological concern has increased since environmental
destruction around the Mt.Apo are is bound to affect the lives of
people their.
 Dyandi: Defend Mt. Apo to Last Drop

• As early as April 1989, an alliance of the various tribal groups

have been established, and this has been sealed with a Dyandi
or blood compact where the participants, 31 tribal leaders in all
vowed to defend Apo Sandawa to the last drop of their blood.

Pamaas, The counter-ritual

• If the opposition had its Dyandi, the pros had their Pamaas,
a propitiatory rite to appease Apo Sandawa and rid the
geothermal project of evils spirits and curses which might
interfere with its implementation.
 Tribe vs Tribe

• Barely month later on april 17, 1992 manobo tribemens

declared a pangayaw against oppositionist who set up
camp near the project site.

Panipas, Preparation for Armed Confrontation

• Oppositionist bagani or warriors headed by Datu tulalang

Maway, 85, and the original participants of dyandi, go to the
peak of apo sandawa to held another ritual called kanduli or
panipas.
 NPA Enters scene
• New peoples army had enter in to the scene. The government
deployed more than five battallions of polices and army, as of
march and about a thousand more in mid of July also local tribe
deployed 500 strong within and around the project site.

President Ramos makes presence felt;

Favor Mt. Apo Geothermal Project
• On july 24, 1993 a newspaper reported an important event related to
Mt. Apo it says that; president ramos formally signed a memorandum of
agreement among local officials and tribal leader which prvides the
continuation of the contruction of the Mounr Apo Geothermal power
plant project.
Agus 1 Hydoelectric Plants: What price electricity is?

• Energy crisis in Mindanao! Thus screamed

newspaper headlines late 1991 to the early part
of 1992.
• Agus river flows from Lanao lake to Illiganin.
• Later they solved the electricity crisis.

The Guimba Incident

• On November 3, 1978, 11 philippine Constabulary soldiers and

six workers were killed and four others were wounded in an
ambushed at Guimb, Marawi City. The group was on the way to
restore power line that had been boomed earlier by MNLF.