“The History of the Bangsamoro

Struggle”

Prof. Mario “Mayong” J. Aguja

Dept. of Sociology, Mindanao State University-Gen. Santos City
Land of three people:
different in culture
and traditions, of
history, and relations
to the land.

All are victims of

the colonial and
post-colonial
governments

Mindanao: Land of
contradictions 2
LAND OF
CONTRADICTIONS

•Land of PLENTY: plenty of

poor people

•Land of the LORDS:

political lords, landlords,
warlords, drug lords
No MOROS nor
CHRISTIANS, ALL
LUMADS

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 S. of Maguindanao (Saleeby)

Ranao
Principalities

Historical
Accounts:
Dominions of the Maguindanao
Sultanates of Sultanate (1619)
Maguindanao,
Sulu and Pat a
Pongampong ko
Ranao
Sulu
Sultanate (1450)
(included S. Palawan
until it was ceded
by Sultan to Spain on

1705)

Sultanate of Maguindanao (1645)

Sultanate of Maguindanao (1700)

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Sultanate of Maguindanao (1618-1671) Majul
 Two Major Political Streams
MORO
• 1380 –Islam arrived in Tawi- • 1521 – Magellan planted
Tawi
• 1450 – Emergence of •
Sultanate of Sulu
• 1515 - Islam came to •
Maguindanao
• 1619 – Rise of Sultanate of •
Maguindanao
• 1898 – two sultanate still •
alive
FILIPINO
Christianity in the Visayas
1565 – Philippines occupied by
Legazpi
1880 – 1895 Propaganda
period, birth of Filipino nation
1892 – Katipunan-national
liberation
1898 – Jun 12 national
independence (1st Republic)
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 The Sultanates
“the Muslim society had already
attained a fairly high level of social
organization and material
prosperity even before Spanish
colonization. It therefore
possessed human and material
resources and built-in cultural
defenses against any foreign
intrusion.”
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 The Cross and Swords of the
Spanish Conquistadores
n The Spanish deliberately fostered religious
antagonism and consistently portrayed
derogatory images of the Muslims in order to
mobilize the Indios to fight the Moro
n The “Moro Wars” between the Spaniards and
the Moro, characterized by almost
continuous state of battle, raid and counter-
raid lasted more than 300 years

8
 Fight against Spanish colonialism – Spain
employed divide and rule tactics; created
major psychological divide between
Filipinos and Moros
Moro Filipino

• Counter-offensives • Filipino warriors

vs. Spanish employed vs.
dominated Filipino Spanish attacks on
Christian Moros
communities
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The American Eagle Claws and the
Mindanao Crescent

n Moro Province (1903-1913)

n Department of Mindanao and Sulu
(1914-1920)
n Bureau of Non-Christian Tribes
(1920-1937)
n The Commonwealth’s Filipinization
of Moroland (1935-1946)
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 S. of Maguindanao (Saleeby)

Ranao
Principalities

Historical Maguindanao
Accounts: Sultanate
Dominions of the
Sultanates of
Maguindanao,
Sulu and Pat a
Sulu Pongampong ko
Sultanate Ranao
(included S. Palawan
until it was ceded
by Sultan to Spain

on 1705)

Sultanate of Maguindanao (1645)

ç Sultanate of Maguindanao (1700)

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Sultanate of Maguindanao (1618-1671) Majul
MINDANAO-SULU
1903-1913
SURIGAO

SPECIAL: Moro; Agusan

REGULAR: Misamis; Surigao

MISAMIS

AGUSAN

MORO PROVINCE

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Estimated Moro and Non-Moro Population in
Mindanao, 1903-1990, in million
MORO POPULATION NON-MORO POPULATION
Year Mindanao number as % of number as % of
population Mindanao Mindanao
population population
1903 .32 .25 76 .07 24

1913 .51 .32 63 .19 37

1918 .72 .35 50

------------- .36 50

1939 2.2 .75 34 1.4 66

1948 2.9 .93 32 2.0 68

1960 5.6 1.3 23 4.4 77

1970 7.9 1.6 21 6.2 79

1980 10.9 2.5 23 8.4 77

1990 14.2 2.6 19 11.0 81

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 Non-Christians Marginalized
• Philippine Commission Act 1903: Declared
as null and void all land grants made by
traditional leaders without consent of
government

• Implemented Public Land law which favored

homesteaders and corporations;
discriminatory to non-Christians or Moros
and wild tribes

• All of Mindanao opened to resettlement

program for homesteaders and for entry of
corporations
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 Public Land Law and Resettlement

Hectarage Allowed

Non-
Year Homesteader Corporation
Christian

1903 16 has. (no provision) 1,024 has.

1919 24 has. 10 has. 1,024 has.

1936 16 has. 4 has. 1,024 has.

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 The Philippine State
n The Postwar Philippine Republic Integration
Policy (1946-1968)
n The Jabidah massacre
n The Moro National Liberation Movement
n The Tripoli Agreement of 1976
n The Split: MNLF-RG (1982), MILF (1984)
n The GOP-MNLF 1996 Final Peace Agreement
n The Comprehensive Agreement on the
Bangsamoro (CAB0 in 2014
n Passage of RA 11054 –Organic Law for the
Bangsamoro Autonomous Region (BARMM)
in 2018.
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 The Causes of the Conflict

n economic marginalization and destitution

n political marginalization
n non-preservation of Muslim identity
n general feeling of physical insecurity
(individually and collectively)
n the perception that the government was
responsible or the party to blame for much
of their suffering and insecurity
n feeling of hopelessness under the existing
political and economic order.
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