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AMERICAN COLONIAL PERIOD

 What were the events that brought the Americans to the Philippines?
 Post-Civil War -America’s economy grew tremendously to the extent of being flooded already by the surplus
products and capital which American factories produced and generated.

 America to come up with a plan on how to acquire colonies that would serve as her economic dumping
ground.
(which of the colonizers could not fight a sustainable war if ever they would declare it against that country)
 Spain was the weakest.
(To justify the declaration of war against Spain and take its colonies, Americans started designing steps.
The first thing that they did was the publication of De Lome’s letter which contained personal criticism
against US Pres William Mckinley)
 Dupuy De Lome letter to Spanish ambassador criticizing US Pres William McKinley.
(Spread rumor that American citizens in Cuba was maltreated by Spanish authorities, intended to incite
ordinary American to hate Spaniards)
 February 15, 1898, American warship (Maine) anchored in Havana Cuba was blown up and destroyed, killing
246 crew members.
(Americans held Spain responsible for the explosion)
 April 21, 1898, US Congress declared war against Spain
 PH was colonies of Spain, American had to go there supposedly to destroy Spanish forces

 What was the Treaty of Paris and what was its role in the incorporation of Mindanao and Sulu into the former colony
of Spain?
 American pretended to be friend of the Christian Filipino revolutionaries.
 Aguinaldo’s cooperation – promise and assurance

Emilio Aguinaldo’s cooperation was obtained through the promise and assurance intention was only to destroy the
Spanish forces. however, this “friend” would turn into an adversary after abandoning her promise of not colonizing the
Philippines.
 Treaty of Paris
An agreement that ended Spanish-American War, provided for the cession of the PH to the US for 20
million USD.

 Filipino revolutionists were not the only ones who were affected by the Treaty of Paris. It must be recalled
that until 1898, the Spanish-Moro wars remained unfinished without a clear conclusion.

 Thus, in 1898, we can safely infer that there were still three major states that existed in what is now the
Philippines, namely:

1. Felipinas (which comprised the Spanish controlled territories of Luzon, Visayas and some parts of
northern Mindanao)
2. Maguindanao Sultanate (which comprised the territories of south-central Mindanao) and
3. the Sulu Sultanate (which comprised the territories of the Sulu archipelago and the area of Borneo
known as Sabah).

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 The last two states (i.e., the Sultanates of Maguindanao and Sulu) used to be independent from Felipinas but
when the Spaniards sold the latter, they included the entire Mindanao and Sulu in the business transaction.
Hence, the Moros vehemently objected! They thought it was unfair to include them in the Treaty of Paris since
they felt that the Spaniards never succeeded in subjugating them; and therefore did not have the right to sell
them to America.

Felipinas this time means the Spanish controlled territories of Luzon, Visayas, and the whole of Minsupala including the
unconquered lands of the Maguindanao and Sulu sultanates.

 What were the various stages of the American occupation in Moro land and how distinct the American policies were
in each of the stages?

We can generally identify three stages of American occupation of Moroland: 1.) Military Occupation from 1899-1903;
2.) The Moro Province from 1903-1913; and 3.) The Department of Mindanao and Sulu from 1914-1920.

Military Occupation and the Non-interference Policy

 From 1899-1903, the Americans would preoccupy themselves with the pacification and colonization of Luzon
and Visayas.
 war was still being waged against the Christian Filipino revolutionists, the Americans made sure they were able
to neutralize the Muslims by not provoking and encouraging them to join.
 This was the reason why Brigadier General John C. Bates was sent in February 1899 to meet with the leaders of
Sulu, headed by Sultan Jamalul Kiram. The objective was to win the friendship of the Moros in Sulu by convincing
the datus, headmen and imams to recognize and accept the presence of the American forces in Moroland
 The Bates agreement, as was popularly known in Philippine history, became the epitome of American policy in
Moroland for the first five years. This policy would be known as the Non-interference policy.
 By the term non-interference, it meant that the Americans would not meddle in the right of the natives to
regulate their own affairs, religious beliefs and worship and economic activities. It also entailed the non-
obligation of Moros outside the larger port towns to pay taxes or duties.

The Moro Province and Direct Rule

 As early as 1901, Emilio Aguinaldo was already captured; and in the following year (1902) almost all of his
generals were either killed, arrested or had surrendered. That is why by 1903, the Americans were already
confident to face the Moros and place them under direct rule.
 From 1903 to 1913, the Americans would organize and implement the Moro Province,155 placing all
Moro/Muslim districts under direct American military control.
 administrators of the Moro province considered military power as most essential in dealing with the Moros
who would be prepared and introduced to civil procedures and institutions under the new government.

 Under the Moro province, the natives were placed under the tribal ward system wherein the tribal chieftain
of the ward was held responsible for the acts of his constituents. The tribal wards were then placed under
municipalities which were further organized into districts, namely: Davao (which is now composed of Davao
Oriental, Davao del Norte, Davao del Sur and Compostela Valley); Cotabato (now includes North Cotabato,
South Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao and Sarangani); Lanao (Lanao del Norte and Lanao del Sur);
Zamboanga (Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga del Sur and Zamboanga Sibugay) and Sulu (partitioned into
Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-tawi).157 Each district is placed under an American district governor who in turn was
directly responsible to the governor of the Moro Province.

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 It was actually during the years of the Moro province that the Americans started implementing policies that
directly interfered with Moro affairs. Among other things, these policies included: 1.) Taxation (i.e. the
imposition of taxes on the Moro population); 2.) Anti-slavery Law (i.e. the banning of slavery among the
Moros); and 3.) Disarmament Policy (i.e. it made carrying of traditional bladed weapons illegal). Indeed,
these policies generated violent reactions among the Moros so that many of the great “battles” or
“massacres” in Mindanao and Sulu would occur during the years of the Moro Province;
 Bud dajo
 Bud bagsak
 American superiority in military power had not only silenced Moro defiance and resistance but also forcibly
brought together the peoples of Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao into one highly centralized and unitary
Philippine colony
 The US military, in fact, considered the Moros like the American Indians during the heyday of western
expansion to California. They believed that the only way to deal with them was by brute force.

What is the Moro Problem?

By the Moro problem is meant that method or form of administration by which the Moros and other non-christians who
are living among them, can be governed to their best interest and welfare
in the most peaceful way possible, and can at the same time be provided with appropriate measures for their gradual
advancement in culture and civilization, so that in the course of a reasonable time
they can be admitted into the general government of the^ Philippine Islands as qualified members of a republican
national organization.

The Department of Mindanao and Sulu and Filipinization

 the document made by President William McKinley, which states that the Philippines was not for the United
States to exploit but “to develop, to civilize, to educate and to train in the science of self-government.”
 “self-government” and eventually become “independent - All these started to come true when the Democrats
won in 1913. As a matter of policy, the Democrats desired to accelerate the move towards self-government and
independence for the Philippines. Gradually, the Democrats would transfer the control of the Insular
Government from American to Filipino hands. This policy was known as Filipinization.

 Part of the Filipinization program was to abolish the Moro Province which championed “direct rule”.
 in 1913, the Moro province would be reorganized into the Department of Mindanao and Sulu. Under the
department, the former districts of the Moro Province were turned into regular provinces plus the new
provinces of Agusan and Bukidnon.
 Accordingly, Filipino officials assumed increasingly greater responsibilities in the government of Moroland.
However, the term “Filipino” in the Filipinization program appeared to be almost exclusive to “Christian
Filipinos”. Thus, the Filipinization program that was vigorously pursued under the department had even caused
Moro resentments instead of Moro enthusiasm, participation and excitement.
The above comment was pronounced against the political backdrop where Christian Filipinos from the north were
appointed in key positions in the government of Moroland.
In any case, the Filipinization program of the colonial administration under the Department of Mindanao and Sulu
would continue whether the Moros were happy or not. For approximately seven years, the department would
advance the program, until May 1920, when it was formally abolished. Thereafter, Moro affairs would then be
placed under the control of the Bureau of Non Christian Tribes under the Department of the Interior, where
administrative as well as legislative control of Moroland was even firmly secured in Christian Filipino hands.

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Policy of Attraction
To mitigate the resentments of the Moros, for instance, the colonial government would come up with programs and
projects that would attract the former. Free education was institutionalized and public schools were established
almost everywhere in the Moro districts.
The colonial government also created the Pensionado Program, which sent non-Christian natives to Manila and
America for higher learning or educational tours.
Hospital and field dispensaries were also provided in such number that medical care came within the reach of nearly
all the inhabitants.
The Muslims were given greater participation in local and provincial government. Later, some were even appointed
to the Philippine legislature.
 How did American policy or practice contribute to the “Mindanao problem?”

4.) How did American policy or practice contribute to the present Mindanao problem?
four major contributions of United States policy to the Mindanao problem:
a) The forcible incorporation of Mindanao and Sulu into the Philippine colony;
b) Resettling of Christian natives to Mindanao;
c) The discriminatory land Laws, and
d) Attempt to annex Mindanao, Sulu and Palawan into the US territory.

a. Forcible Incorporation of Mindanao and Sulu

 When Maguindanao and Sulu were included in the treaty of Paris.
 The two sultanates used to be independent from Spanish Felipinas; yet deliberately, the Americans still included
them.
 Completed the subjugation of the Moros and therefore succeeded in forcibly incorporating them into the
predominantly Christian Philippines.
 United States stole three independences from three sovereign states when she signed the Treaty of Paris in 1898;
i.e., she took away not only the independence of Aguinaldo’s Republika ng Pilipinas but also the independence of the
Maguindanao and Sulu sultanates.
 When the United States decided to leave in 1946, she, however, gave independence for Pilipinas, including
Maguindanao and Sulu.
 Thus, the Muslims, Christians and Lumads became citizens of a republic comprising at least two nations.

b. Resettling Christian natives to Mindanao

 1912, Americans introduced the idea of resettling landless but industrious farmers from Luzon and Visayas to
Mindanao.

 The planners or architects of the settlement scheme also believed that this is one way the Moros could be
united with the Christian Filipinos.

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 This is “the policy of assimilation by colonies, combining a minority of Moros with a majority of Filipinos”.

 The American colonial government so encouraged the Christian settlers to the extent of giving them free
transportation, financial and legal assistance, farm tools and other implements.

 American lured “corn-loving” Cebuanos to settle in Mindanao, by telling them that hybrid American corn can be
found in Mindanao, if they wanted it, they have to go to Mindanao.

 Moro Colonies or “Agricultural Colonies” – a systematic program by the Americans established by General John
Pershing and Frank Carpenter established in the Cotabato Valley and Lanao.

 Americans who introduced the idea of bringing the Christian settlers to Mindanao, who, in fairness to the latter,
would pour out their energies to develop the lands the colonial government granted them.

 But the American program of bringing over Christian migrants to Mindanao did not only generate further
resentments among the Muslims and Lumads but also it created a permanent and ready venue for the
eventually frequent and bloody physical encounters. Apparently, both are unaware they are victims of
unfortunate colonial decisions.

c. Discriminatory Land Laws

The Moros did not only dislike the coming of Christianized natives from Luzon and Visayas, but resented as well the
passing of several discriminatory land laws. These laws include:
Act #496 of 1902 otherwise known as the Land Registration Act – this act required the registration of lands occupied by
private persons or corporations. It also required that the application for registration of title shall be in writing, signed
and sworn to by the applicant. Note that this law was implemented in 1902 while the first schools in Moro and Lumad
areas were established in later dates. In Cotabato, the first school was established in 1903 inside military camps for
Moros who wanted to serve the American Army. Lanao had literacy schools for Moro soldiers only in 1904. Other areas
of Minsupala would follow at a much later date.
Act #718 of 1903 – This law declared null and void all land grants made by Moro Datus/sultans and chiefs of non-
Christian tribes when made without government authority or consent.
Act #926 of 1903 (Public Land Act) – This act declared as public (i.e., government) lands, all lands not registered under
Act No. 496 of 1902. Under this law, public lands were to be disposed of in three ways: by homestead, purchase (by
individual or corporation), and lease.
The Mining Law of 1905 – This law declared all public lands in the Philippines as free, open for exploration, occupation
and purchase by citizens of the Philippines and the United States.
The Cadastral Act of 1907 – This law was designed to facilitate the acquisition of new landholdings. This law was
deemed to have allowed the educated natives (Indios and Non-Indios) bureaucrats, and American land speculators,
who were more familiar with the bureaucratic process, to legalize claims usurped through fraudulent surveys.

Act 2874 of 1919 – This law allowed Christian settlers to homestead 24 hectares while non-Christians were only allowed
10 hectares. Corporations were allowed 1,024 hectares170

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As a consequence of these laws, many of the Moros and Lumads would be marginalized and alienated. The Land
Registration Act of 1902 and Public Land Act of 1903, in particular, were responsible for turning many of the natives into
squatters of their own lands. Aside from the fact that many of them were ignorant of the process of land registering and
titling, the government did not exert enough effort to assist the Moros and Lumads in acquiring titles to the lands they
were occupying.

d. Making Mindanao Part of the US Territory

 Although Mindanao was made part of the Philippine Islands under the Treaty of Paris, certain practices showed
that Americans wanted it for themselves. The administration of the Moro Province unwittingly gave many
American officials and capitalists a reason to make it a permanent territory of the United States.

 It began in 1906 and intensified through the 1920s, when American planters (through the Zamboanga Chamber
of Commerce) with the backing of American officials petitioned Washington to incorporate Mindanao into the
US territory.

 Col. Ralph Hoyt, acting governor of the Moro Province, recommended that “Mindanao be segregated from the
rest of the Philippines and declared as a territory of the US, not as a colony but as coaling stations and naval
base with a civil-military government similar to the present government of the Moro Province.”

 Several missions or visits to the Philippines by high US officials was also conducted to support this view on the
ground that “Americans are in a better position than Filipinos to govern the Moros,” “Filipinos are unfit for
self-government,” and “Moros are united for the continuation of American rule,” among other reasons.

‒ Secretary Dickinson in 1910

‒ The Wood-Forbes Mission in 1921
‒ Thompson in 1926

 On June 21, 1926, New York Congressman Robert Bacon filed a bill in Congress for the “removal of the Moro
Province from the jurisdiction of the present Philippine government and granting them a separate and distinct
form of administration under direct authority of the United States.”

 After it lapsed without action, another one was filed (HR 12772 and HR 15479, 69th US Congress, 1926). Known
as the Bacon Bill, its aim was to permanently annex Mindanao (excluding Misamis province), the Sulu
Archipelago, and Palawan into the US territory, supposedly to lessen US dependence on imported rubber.

 In the end, all these moves were defeated by counter protests among Filipino nationalists, and by broader US
policy (e.g., the Jones Act of 1916) determined to grant independence to the Philippines in the near future.

 Overall, the effect is that they reinforced the division between Moros and Christian Filipinos during that period.
Frank Carpenter, Governor of the Department of Mindanao and Sulu, observed that “American officials
encouraged” such animosity.

 They also planted the seed of a peculiar separatist movement in Mindanao waged more strongly by Americans
rather than by Moros. Pelzer concurred later: "such a separation has been suggested repeatedly by Americans

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interested in plantation development who Conversely, it sought to detach this region from the Philippines as it
posed an obstacle for its independence.

THE COMMONWEALTH PERIOD

1. WHAT WERE THE EVENTS THAT PRECIPITATED TO THE CREATION OF THE COMMONWEALTH GOVERNMENT IN
THE PHILIPPINES?
 As a matter of justifying their acquisition of the Philippines as a colony, the United States had to announce to the
world that she was taking the Philippines for benevolent and noble purposes.
 United States made clear when President McKinley said in the Benevolent Assimilation Proclamation that the
Philippines are not theirs to exploit but to develop, civilize, educate and train the Filipinos in the science of self-
government.
 as early as 1902, the United States had to pass a Philippine Bill which promised independence to Filipinos “as
soon as a stable government is established in the Philippines”.
 But more than 10 years had already passed; yet, there seemed to be no serious move on the part of the
American government to really grant Philippine Independence.
 Along with other factors, Filipino pressure would eventually succeed in convincing the United States to pass the
Jones Law in 1916, which expedited the process of Filipinization and granted more autonomy to the Filipinos.
 But in general, however, the Jones Law simply reiterated what the Philippine Bill of 1902 promised, i.e., to grant
Philippine independence “as soon as a stable government is established therein”
 Two successive independence missions were sent to the United States:
1) led by Sergio Osmeña and Manuel Roxas in 1931;
2) the other would be headed by Manuel L. Quezon in 1933.
‒ The latter mission would eventually result to the Tydings-McDuffie Act which created the
Philippine Commonwealth.

2. WHAT WAS THE PURPOSE OF CREATING THE PHILIPPINE COMMONWEALTH?

The purpose of creating the Philippine Commonwealth was actually anchored on the self-proclaimed American
mandate of “educating and training the Filipinos in the science of self-government”.
In other words, the commonwealth was deemed to be a transition period where the administrative skills of the Filipinos
are honed before they could be granted “absolute” independence. It was supposed to last 10 years (i.e. 1935-1945) but
due to World War II, independence was only granted in 1946.

3. WHAT WERE THE VARIED REACTIONS OF THE MOROS TOWARDS THE ISSUE OF PHILIPPINE INDEPENDENCE?
 Some favored independence with the Christian Filipinos while others wanted separate independence. Some
suggested to stay under American protection for a while others wanted to be under the United States forever.

 The Moros who wanted independence with the Christian Filipinos were mostly:

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► “Leaders who had benefited from the Philippine State system, having been appointed to national or
provincial offices, or who had been closely associated with Christian Filipinos in politics or business”.
► Moros who realized that resistance was futile; and that they should “make the best out of the situation they
were powerless to change.”

 Some really favored independence with the Christian Filipinos as it was their sincere conviction to be so.
 Datu Auraya Dianalan:
“We are not like carabaos that Americans pull to one side and Christian Filipino to another.
We have proper convictions and we do not (sic) the dismemberment of our country and the
separation of our territory from that of our Christian brothers.”
 Datu Facundo Mandi:
“That in a clear and unequivocal way it may be made known that Mohammedans, like
their brethren the Christian Filipinos want the absolute, complete and immediate
independence of the Philippines and that they protest against any intent to divide and
disintegrate them.”

 Datu Ibra, Lanao delegate:

“After all, the inhabitants of Mindanao and Sulu and the inhabitants of Luzon and Visayas
are brothers in fact. We are of the same race and there runs in our veins the same blood.
We inhabit a group of islands, which Providence has given us. We must live not only as
friendly neighbors but as brothers in fact...”

 Those who did not want the idea of becoming independent with the Christian Filipinos. They ranged from
those who considered the latter as their traditional enemies up to those who feared Moro interests and
concerns would not be heard or addressed once they were merged with the Christian majority.
 Datu Sacaluran:
“I am an old man now. I do not want any more trouble. But if it should come to that, we shall
be given over to the Filipinos, I would still fight.”

 Hadji Abdul Kamid Bogabong, in Dansalan Declaration dated March 18, 1935,
“…One more discriminatory act of our Christian Filipino Associates is shown in the recent
constitution of the Philippine Commonwealth. In that constitution, no provision whatsoever is
made that would operate for the welfare of the Moros… the (provisions of the) constitution are all
for the welfare of the Christian Filipinos and nothing for the Moros. As a proof of this, our delegate
did not sign the constitution… (Thus) should the American people grant the Philippine
independence; the islands of Mindanao and Sulu should not be included…”

 Those who wanted to stay under American rule forever.

 Hadji Abdullah and Datu Dimaampao Dangcal:
“We, the undersigned Datus in favor of late Amai Manabilang, who had been the foremost
Americanista party for many years and until his death, respectfully send this communication to his
Excellency, the President of the United States of America, to request that the American people must
not give us to any other race except the American people.”

 Datu Dimaampao Dangcal of Dansalan’s letter, which said:

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“We would like to be under the American rule forever. We do not want independence… We have
found out that Americans as a people are kind, honest and just…”

 By appealing not to give the Moros “to any other people except the Americans” and by clearly stating that they
wanted “to be under American rule forever”, Hadji Abdullah and Datu Dimaampao must have thought that only
the Americans could provide the Moros an impartial and disinterested leadership.

 Anyhow, the petition letters not favoring the granting of Philippine independence would all be ignored in the
Philippines and the United States. Hence, history would take a course in such a way that the Moros and Lumads
would be incorporated into the Philippine body politic whether they liked it or not.

4. WHAT WERE QUEZON’S POLICIES TOWARDS MINDANAO AND HOW DID THESE AFFECT THE MOROS AND LUMADS?
 When Manuel L. Quezon assumed the Commonwealth presidency, he identified three (3) major priorities:
1.) Development of Mindanao for the sake of the National Economy,
2.) Strengthening security in Mindanao as part of national security, and
3.) The advancement and integration of the Moro population.
 The first two priorities caught much of Quezon’s attention and energy so that very little was left for the third and
last priority.

 The first priority of the Quezon administration meant that Mindanao was to be developed, not necessarily for
the sake of Mindanao and its native inhabitants but for the sake of the national government and economy.
Indeed, describing Mindanao as the “Land of Promise” could not simply be appreciated by many of the
indigenous inhabitants (Moros and Lumads) of the island.

 The second priority, perceived two major threats to national security in Mindanao:
1) First, was the existence of many non-Christian populations (Moros and Lumads) in Mindanao and Sulu;
and
2) Second, was the existence of a growing colony of Japanese agriculturists and entrepreneurs in Davao.
− The first was considered a threat because the non-Christian tribes were perceived to be not loyal to
the Philippine government while the second was considered bothersome because Japanese
expansionism in Asia was common knowledge already as early as the late 1920s.
− To address these threats therefore, the Commonwealth government of Quezon would encourage
substantial numbers of Christian natives from Luzon and Visayas to migrate to Mindanao and Sulu.
Government encouragement this time was so remarkable that migration into the region from 1936
onwards would even surpass the rate of migration recorded during the American period. In

 The third priority, the Commonwealth government also did exert some efforts. However, these efforts/moves
seemed to do more harm than help.

 For instance, Quezon seemed to view integration as attainable only through applying the same rules to
Christians and non-Christians, which somehow transgressed the limits of cultural sensitivities of many
Moro and Lumad groups. He was somehow insinuating that what is “okay” to the Christian majority will
also be “okay” to the non-Christian minority.

 Quezon never realized that he has collided with cultural institutions of the Lumads and the Moros. For
instance, if the state recognizes only monogamous marriages because the culture of the Christian majority

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dictates, the Moros and Lumads will certainly be alienated because it makes their second and succeeding
marriages illegal. Consequently, second and succeeding wives and the children of these women were also
made illegitimate by the uniform application of law.

 Quezon and his government would then proceed to abolish various laws, which somehow gave the Moros
and Lumads distinct treatment during the American colonial period.

 In January 1937, Quezon would abolish the Bureau of Non-Christian Tribes, which was the only
government agency that tried to meet the special needs of the non-Christians administratively.

 He also “end official recognition of the civil titles held by Moros and valued by them as expressive of their
traditional social system”.

 He also abolishes the Moro Board, which was established to settle some religious disputes according to
traditional laws.

 The justification of Quezon was that its abolition would force Moros “to take their cases to the regular courts of
justice or bring extra-judicial cases for amicable settlement to the local mayors or other officials”. What Quezon
failed to realize was the fact that he had totally scrapped the traditional system of governance that was functioning
well and most appropriate to the local culture. He also failed to realize that by replacing the traditional leaders with
salaried officials, he was actually corrupting the concept of leadership among the Moros.
 There are certain features of the new system of governance which radically altered the notion of “governance and
leadership” among the natives.

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