Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao

“ My government will be sincere in dealing with all the peoples of Mindanao. We are committed to a peaceful and just settlement of conflict, inclusive of the interests of all -- may they be Lumads, Bangsamoro or Christian. ”

“ Huwag niyong sabihin na “It’s only in Marawi.” Rebellion has been going on in Mindanao. Walang sinasanto doon. Hindi lang ninyo binabasa nang husto. What’s the... It’s very porous. Kung separate islands ‘yan, maybe. Kung separate ’yan – very porous, they can go... And Mindanao – this is not to... The Moro has nothing to do with it, pareho tayo. Pareho tayong Maranao, so just shut up. Huwag kayong ma... Ito ang totoo.
Maraming Muslim sa Mindanao. Lahat... Eh sa Abra, meron eh. In this fight....Well, where do you think the Moro would side? Kung patayan na. They will side with government? ”

“ To attain our full potential as a nation, let us come to terms with the fundamental issues in Mindanao. Let us forge consensus on a just, lasting, and honorable peace in one country. Peace and development are inseparable twins. But our framework must not compromise constitutionality, national sovereignty and territorial integrity. Instead, let us recognize that we have a multi-ethnic society which should be founded on social justice for all and institutionalized accommodation of ethnic traditions. This would finally introduce a new culture in our nation’s attitude towards mindanao. ”

“ There are whole Filipino populations in Mindanao--Muslims, Christians, and Lumad--who do not want their territories and their residencies disturbed. Not even the majority of the Muslim population shares your separatist views nor the violent means you employ to attain them. The overriding passion of the people of Mindanao is for peace.
Our people will simply not stand for the dismemberment of the country. All of the Philippines belongs to all Filipinos. ”

“ But it is a problem which need not in the least delay the advent of independence for the other fourteen fifteenths of the inhabitants of the archipelago—all Christians living on islands north of Mindanao. It is true that there are some Christian Filipinos on Mindanao, but in policing the Moros, our government would of course protect them from the Moros. If they did not like our government, they could move to such parts of the islands as we might permit to be incorporated in an ultimate Philippine republic. ”

“ If we can harness the forces of good in our nation, the positive force at work here at home and those from abroad such as the US, Malaysia, the OIC and others, we shall prevail in Mindanao with a peace agreement that brings freedom and hope to all Filipinos. With this peace, we would reap dividends in resources invested in agribusiness, not aggression, to build up, not tear down, the Philippine south.
Among the possible peace dividends would be pro-poor road projects like the Siocon-Sirawai-Sibuco-Baligyan Road in Zamboanga del Norte ”

“ The Filipino is no stranger or neophyte to situations like the one we face today. We can, and we will, overcome as we did countless times in the past, [but] only if we work together towards a common goal.
Sad to say, despite all efforts, peace, especially in the Island of Mindanao, continues to elude us. But of course, it is not the peace of the dead but the peace of the living that we seek. Peace flits away like a butterfly when you try to snatch it by the wings. And our pursuit of peace continues.
The red insurgency has been with us for decades; the Muslim issue, for centuries. ”

“ While no nation has the right to violate the territorial integrity of another nation, people that lack the energy, ability, or desire to make use of the resources which Divine Providence has placed in their hands, afford an excuse for a more energetic and willful people to deprive them of their lawful heritage. If, therefore, we are resolved to conserve Mindanao for ourselves and our posterity, we must bend all our efforts to occupy and develop it and guard against avarice and greed. ”

“ That is why new road arteries are being built simultaneously in the area, food production, education, and health services are being given utmost emphasis, and economic activity is being given a big push. P496 million have been appropriated for Mindanao, apart from the funds coming from foreign loans for development. A Muslim information center has been opened in Marawi, the Institution of Islamic Studies in the University of the Philippines, Amanah Bank has been created with a capitalization of P100 million: barter trade has been resumed with Sabah ”

“ There is nothing more that I would wish for than peace in Mindanao. It will be a blessing for all its people: Muslim, Christian and Lumads. It will show other religiously-divided communities that there can be common ground on which to live together in peace, harmony and cooperation that respects each other’s religious beliefs. ”

“ Ladies and Gentlemen of Congress: Peace is a process and it must be carefully nurtured. So is development. Peace and development always go together. Together, both are our best weapons to alleviate poverty in Mindanao and everywhere else, because the lack of either one breeds deprivation and foments tension and armed conflict. Mindanao -- as well as the rest of the Philippines -- needs peace if it is to achieve the sustained, broad-based development its people deserve. ”

“ Now considering Mindanao under its social and political aspect, its population is divided into Christians, heathens, and Moros, all of whom proceed in general from the Malay, Indonesian races,21 and the indigenous or Negrito race, and from crosses of the same races among themselves and with other superior races, especially the Chinese and Spaniards. The Christians are divided into old and new. ”

“ The term Moro is used to describe the Mohammedan Filipino and includes a number of tribes occupying the large island of Mindanao, the smaller islands adjacent to it and those of the Sulu archipelago.
The northeast corner of Mindanao is separated from the island of Leyte by the Surigao Strait, and that part of Mindanao has considerable sprinkling of Christian Filipinos, but both that island and the Sulus can be considered Moro country. The Americans recognize the difference between the two groups of islands and administer government according to different plans. ”

“ As an initial step in the program of giving new impetus to the development of Mindanao, this work will be of incalculable value to the country, since it will not only provide an overland outlet for Davao but will also open to settlement immense unoccupied areas of that island.
The time has come when we should systematically proceed with and bring about the colonization and economic development of Mindanao. A vast and rich territory with its untapped natural resources is a temptation to enterprising nations that are looking for an outlet for their excess population. ”

“ Mindanao was already Islam by 100 years. So ano ito, it’s a imperialism thing. There is a historical injustice committed against the Moro people. We have to correct it, but it is well na, impossible now. Kaya kayong mga kapatid kong mga Moro, alam naman ninyo — ako migrant ang tatay ko roon, so I’m mixed blood ako, Moro pati Christian. ”

“ We hesitate to speak in defense of our Armed Forces and our police even if they are in the right. We hesitate to speak for our security; we hesitate to speak for the men who place at the disposal of the Republic their lives and their properties and their honor. And we expect from them the utmost vigilance, dedication, patriotism and heroism. The economic development program of our Republic in Mindanao is possible only because of the heroic ef­forts of that armed force and of the civilians who have fought for the peace and order of that portion of our country. ”

“ While I do not believe that any large number of Americans can be induced to settle permanently in Mindanao (and Mindanao seems to be the most inviting place) , there will be ample time to test this question while a government is being established among the Moros. It is more likely that the waste lands will be settled upon by immigrants from the northern islands and that in time the Christian Filipinos will be sufficiently numerous to control the islands, and they can then be annexed to the northern group.
The leaven of American ideas is already spreading. ”

“ West Mindanao is taken up by the mixed population (Arabo-Negrito-Indonesian) of pirates, Mussulman fanatics, known by the name of Moros; the east of this island being inhabited by several tribes as yet little known, such as Mandayas in the south, Bogobos in the north, etc., and the Caragas tribe of Bisaya or Vissaya. Most of these last people occupy the rest of the archipelago north of Mindanao, as far as and including the south of Masbate and Samar and Tablas islands. They are met again beside the Moros in Palawan Island between the Philippines and Borneo. ”

“ A Filipino presidente was appointed, a dato to head the Moros, and a Captain Chinese, as he was called, to manage his people, who were mostly merchants and pearl fishers.
Mindanao was under a military-civil government that worked wonders, for in a few years many of the Moros were brought under control, and they became loyal Americans, although they had always been bitter enemies of the Filipinos [Pg 332] and the Spaniards. They say they have found the Americans brave, and have not been lied to by them, and so they seek our protection. ”

“ Mindanao the territory conquered by our religious, namely, the district of Cagayáng and the province of Carágha, ought to be considered as the rose among the thorns, oppressed by Moros, Mindanáos, and Malanáos, and by infidel Tagabalóyes and Manóbos. Of those peoples, the former keep the evangelical ministers in continual fear, because of their persecutions ”

“ They have their own senator in the Philippine Senate and they have their own representatives in the House.
Results of the Policy of Attraction Considering the past history of these southern islands, it is almost incredible that such results have become possible. Many of the non-Christians in the interior of Mindanao-Sulu have even changed their manner of dressing and have adopted the garb of the Christians, whom they are endeavoring to imitate as much as possible, mingling with them in their work, and assisting in maintaining law and order. The Moros themselves have changed a great deal ”

“ Without stopping to use your pencil, you can see that Mindanao, the island where the “intractable Moros” Governor [568] Forbes speaks of live, contains about a half million people. Half of these are civilized Christians, and the other half are the wild, crudely Mohammedan Moro tribes. Above Mindanao on the above list, you behold what practically is the Philippine archipelago (except Mindanao) , viz., Luzon and the six main Visayan Islands. ”

“ To wind up this description of the Moros of Mindanao, it must be said of them that they are always ready to fight for the liberty of enslaving other people, and that nothing but force can restrain them from doing so. That they will not work themselves, and that as long as their sultans, dattos, and pandits have a hold on them, they will keep no engagements, respect no treaties, and continue to be in the future, as they have always been in the past, a terror and a curse to all their neighbours. [374]
1 See ‘In Court and Kampong,’ by Hugh Clifford. ”

“ The tree-dwellers just referred to are the Manobos and the Bagobos with pointed teeth—for Mindanao is not entirely inhabited by Moros; there are supposed to be no less than twenty-four tribes on this island alone. They build in trees, to escape the spear thrusts of their neighbours through the bamboo floors. ”

“ Neither has insurgency completely subsided. In some parts of the southern islands, in Northern Luzon and Bicolandia there is still occasional righting between our troops and rebellious bands. Although the government has broadened its effort to develop the Muslim regions through a broad-based, integrated program of economic and social development, and our negotiations with leaders of the disaffected communities have been productive. ”

“ It has large fields of high productivity, yet also six of our ten poorest provinces.
The prime reason is the endless Mindanao conflict. A comprehensive peace has eluded us for half a century. But last night, differences on the tough issue of ancestral domain were resolved. Yes, there are political dynamics among the people of Mindanao. Let us sort them out with the utmost sobriety, patience and restraint. I ask Congress to act on the legislative and political reforms that will lead to a just and lasting peace during our term of office. ”

“ But not alone the Moro sword and spear has delayed for so long the conquest of Mindanao. Deadly fevers lurk in the lowlands, the swamps and the creeks of that rich and fertile island.
The Moros appear impervious to the malaria. At all events they live and thrive in, or in close proximity to, mangrove swamp and flooded jungle. The Tagal or the Visaya is not immune, and some even resist an attack of the terrible perniciosa less than a white man. I shall never in my life forget the awful sights I witnessed in 1887 and 1892 when some native regiments returned to Manila from the war in Mindanao. ”

“ To those who oppose this measure: I believe that it is incumbent upon you to suggest more meaningful measures. If you do not present an alternative, you are only making sure that progress will never take root in Mindanao. ”

“ And long before that, peace will have come to Mindanao. All insurgents shall have turned their swords into plowshares. They will have become so absorbed into one society that the struggles of the past will be just the stuff of legend. ”