ABSTRACT Philippine Muslim History (PMH), which is part of the historical past of the Philippines, has been subjected to minimization and even exteriorization in Philippine literature due to Western colonization. Some of the ideas and arguments in this paper are derived from a roundtable discussion on the subject in which Filipino historians participated. ¹ Assistant Professor, Institute of Islamic Studies (IIS), University of the Philippines Diliman • Email: [email protected].
This meant that the Spanish came to bring salvation and civilization to the people of the Philippines, whom they considered uncivilized and savage. ¹⁰ The Roundtable Discussion on Philippine Muslim History was held on November 13, 2019 at the University Hotel, University of the Philippines Diliman. The event was organized by the Islamic Studies Program of the UP Center for Integrative and Development Studies and the Institute of Islamic Studies, University of the Philippines Diliman.
It was only in the second half of the 19th century when no less than Hispanic youths like Rizal, Jaena and many others saw the need to correct the historical narratives of Spain by producing a counter-vision of the native interpretation of the history of Philippines. This counter-vision of the Hispanicized youth, which later constituted the Filipino thinkers of the Propaganda Movement and the Revolution, would revise the two-sided historical narratives of Spain reviving the Philippines. In fact, the Spaniards' hatred of the Moros was the result of their centuries-long war with the Moors in Spain.
But the natives of Luzon and Visayas fell on the sword of the conquistadors and the brothers' promise of salvation and were convinced of the black propaganda against their Moro brothers in the south.
Imaging of the Moros: Colonial Historical Blunder
The struggle of the Moors against the Spanish was marked as the historic years of the "Moro Wars". In the case of Muslims in the Philippines, negative stereotypes are a form of colonial fallacy that portrays negative images of the Moors. Moreover, Christian prejudice against the Moors was strengthened by the invention of a theatrical play called moro-moro.
Moreover, in the early days of the propaganda movement, the Hispanicized youth still held to Spain as the mother country, whose culture was superior to that of the natives. Gowing, “The Disentanglement of the Church and the State in the Early American Regime in the Philippines,” in Studies in Philippine Church History, ed. In fact, according to a popular columnist in 1971, "the already damaging image of the 'Moro image.'
The bias and prejudice of the teachers was clearly the result of the colonial historical wrong done against the Moros. From this point follows the development of the Filipino people into a unique and special nation. The Muslim missionaries who came to the south did not destroy the existing culture and religious traditions of the Moros, but continued to develop them.
They had all the fanaticism of the Spanish priests without the accompanying greed for gold. Their religion did not break down and strip and destroy like that of the early Christians. At the end of the Islamization process, the Sulu Sultanate was established in 1405, which further consolidated the natives.
Some areas in the Philippines such as Mindoro and Calamianes remained tributary states of the Sulu Sultanate until the arrival of the Spanish. His other major works include Political and Constitutional Ideas of the Philippine Revolution and Muslims in the Philippines, which was published in 1973. He received his Master of Arts in History from the University of the Philippines in 1967 and his Ph.D.
With the rise of violent extremism, Muslim-Christian relations in the country today are more volatile, especially due to the rise of modern technology. Discrimination and stereotyping have only taken new paths, such as the use of the Internet and social media.
There is a need to bridge the information gap and correct the negative association of Islam with some terrorist activities. The Way Forward: Teaching Muslim History as a Tool to Promote Nation Unity and Healing. Therefore, it is impossible to ignore the consequences of stereotyping at the grassroots, as it will continuously promote "sore relations" between Muslims and Christians in the country.
Acceptance of the "otherness" of the other is the key value that we must promote in our efforts to teach the history of Muslims in the Philippines as a means of promoting the unity and healing of the nation. Understanding the dynamics of Muslim-Christian relations in the country must be seen from an all-encompassing lens that takes into account historical, political and religious contexts. For example, the Muslim sense of alienation had a historical undertone as the government's resettlement program for non-Muslims in Mindanao eventually marginalized the Muslims and other ethnic groups.
The political context offers another perspective, where the struggle for self-determination is not just about secession from the government, but about regaining the aspiration for independence inspired by the glorious past of the Moro ancestors. This is an opportunity for the Bangsamoro to rise from marginalization and shape their own framework for development, the kind of development that responds to the needs of the people of Mindanao. Regarding the religious context, there is hope that we can improve the strained relations between Muslims and Christians.
This is because both can use their respective religious teachings to underline general terms that are acceptable to them. These general terms refer to the common universal values enshrined in their respective religious teachings, such as the values of love, respect, tolerance and compassion. There is a need to highlight these positive values to discredit those extremists who use religious teachings to justify violence.
Kriselle Aquino of the Office of the Presidential Advisor on the Peace Process (OPAPP) shared that it is also mapping and planning cultural activities to hold a local history conference to collect existing data and various historians in the BARMM to invite to consolidate various stories that will serve as a basis for creating a curriculum together with CHED and DepEd. But the most important program yet to be implemented is RA 10908 or “The Integrated History Act,” which was mentioned earlier. Finally, the academy plays an important role in promoting the concept of pluralism by offering students courses related to intercultural topics, highlighting the positive values shared by different cultures in the country.
Ti di umiso nga adal dagiti Pilipino.” Iti Pakasaritaan ken Pannakaammo: Dagiti Pilings ket Agay-ayamda ti Batayan ti Naipakasaritaan a Diskurso, inurnos babaen ni Neil Martial R. Kultura ken Relihion: Ti Saludsod ti Kinaumiso; Maysa a panangmatmat ti Islam.” Papel a naiparang iti komperensia a "Pilosopia iti Baro a Panawen ti Relihioso ken Kultural a Pluralismo" idiay ISTAC, IIU, Malaysia, Hulio 7, 2007. Dagiti gubuayan iti Islam ti Filipinas. Iti Ad-adu nga Islamiko ngem ti Admitirentayo: Dagiti Pannakaammo iti Kultural a Pakasaritaan ti Filipinas, inurnos babaen ni Isaac Donoso, 3–43.
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Are Muslims Mistreated in the Press?: A Content Analysis of the Philippine Daily Inquirer and People's Journal and Their News Coverage of Muslims. Undergraduate Theme, College of Mass Communication, University of the Philippines Diliman. Education, National Identity and State Formation in the Modern Philippines.” In Constructing Modern Asian Citizenship, edited by Edward Vickers and Krishna Kumar, 1–20. Islamic Manuscripts of the Southern Philippines: A Research Note with the Description of Three Manuscripts. Journal of Sophia Asian Studies, no.
Islamiko a Kinatao, Postkolonialidad ken Edukasional a Patakaran: Panageskuela ken Etno-Relihiuso a Panagsusuppiat idiay Abagatan a Filipinas. Ti Tawid ti Propaganda: Ti Tripartite a Panangmatmat iti Pakasaritaan ti Filipinas. Iti Pakasaritaan ken Kinaignorante: Dagiti Pilings iti Batayan ti Naipakasaritaan a Diskurso, inurnos babaen ni Neil Martial R.
List of Roundtable Discussion Participants
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