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Republic of the Philippines HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Quezon City FIFTEENTH CONGRESS Second Regular Session HOUSE BILL No.

5159 _______________________________________________________________________ Introduced by Reps. TEDDY A. CASIO, NUR-ANA I. SAHIDULLA and TUPAY T. LOONG

EXPLANATORY NOTE On March 5 to 8, 1906, a thousand Moro men, women, and children were massacred inside the 50-foot crater of Bud Dahu a dormant volcano six kilometers off Jolo, the capital town of Sulu Province in Mindanao. The victims were a community of Tausugs who fled to Bud Dahu in defiance of the United States occupation of Mindanao. Spain ruled the country for 333 years but the Moros never recognized its authority. When the Americans set foot in Jolo on May 1, 1899, months after the signing of the Treaty of Paris, they were ready to defy the new colonizers just as they defied Spanish colonization. This led to several encounters between the Moro tribes and the American forces, eventually resulting to massacres such as that in Bud Dahu. The American colonial government preferred to call the massacre a battle and described it as a mere legitimate armed confrontation between the military forces and a group of lawless fanatics. But many American personages like American literary luminary and social critic Mark Twain called the encounter a massacre. American historian Vic Hurley said, By no stretch of the imagination could Bud Dahu be termed a battle. The American troops stormed a high mountain peak crowned by fortifications to kill 1,000 Moros with a loss to themselves of twenty-one killed and seventy-three wounded! Our Muslim brothers and sisters fought desperately but their wavy-edged kris swords, hunting spears, and rifles were simply no match against the Americans firepower. Some of them, including women and children, were mowed down by as many as fifty bullets while others were impaled with bayonets. Only six survived the four-day assault. One hundred and two years later, that infamous Bud Dahu Massacre remains largely ignored by the Philippine government. Nevertheless, the Bud Dahu massacre continues to inspire the Bangsamoro people in their struggle for self-determination. They invoke the same spirit in resisting the continued presence of U.S.

This bill seeks to rectify governments neglect in marking this important historical event. The victims of the Bud Dahu massacre should be included in our countrys list of martyrs of freedom. The government should hold commemorative activities of that massacre so that the nation can better appreciate our history of struggle in general, and that of our Muslim brothers and sisters in particular. In this light, the passage of this bill is earnestly sought. Approved,

TEDDY A. CASIO Bayan Muna Party-list

NUR-ANA I. SAHIDULLA 2nd District, Sulu

TUPAY T. LOONG 1st District, Sulu

Republic of the Philippines HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES Quezon City FIFTEENTH CONGRESS Second Regular Session HOUSE BILL No. 5159 _______________________________________________________________________ Introduced by Reps. TEDDY A. CASIO, NUR-ANA I. SAHIDULLA and TUPAY T. LOONG

AN ACT PROVIDING FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A NATIONAL SHRINE IN MOUNT DAHU NEAR THE MUNICIPALITIES OF JOLO AND PATIKUL, PROVINCE OF SULU, TO BE KNOWN AS BUD DAHU SHRINE, AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress assembled: SECTION 1. There is established in Mount Dahu near the Municipalities of Jolo and Patikul, Province of Sulu, a national shrine, to be known as Bud Dahu Shrine, which shall comprise the whole of Mount Dahu, the site of the historic Bud Dahu Massacre on March 5 to 8, 1906 where almost a thousand Moro men, women and children were massacred by American forces because of their defiance to foreign occupation. SECTION 2. There shall be constructed on the foot of the mountain, a monument to the Tausug people who were defiant of the United States occupation of Mindanao. The monument shall depict the valiant struggle of the Bangsamoro people for self-determination. SECTION 3. Necessary funds for the purposes of this Act shall be provided for in the appropriations for the Department of Public Works and Highways. SECTION 4. Effectivity. This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in the Official Gazette or in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation. Approved,

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