Critical Review Essay

Disputes and Crossfires: An In DepthReview of Mindanao Controversies

Mary Joy Cabreza

Sakili, Abraham P. (2010). The Bangsamoro FrameworkAgreement and the MindanaoProblem: Foregrounding Historical and CulturalFacts and Concepts for Social Justice and Peacein the Southern Philippines. Asian Studies Journal,Volume 48 (1&2). Retrieved fromhttp://asj.upd.edu.ph/index.php/archive/169-asian-studies-48-1-2-2012

Tadem, Eduardo C. (2010). Development and Distress inMindanao: A Political Economy Overview. Asian Studies Journal, Volume 48 (1&2 ). Retrieved from http://asj.upd.edu.ph/index.php/archive/ 169-asian-studies-48-1-2-2012

Wadi, Julkipli. (2010). The Philippines and Bangsamoro Polity: Breaking the “Sisyphean Ordeal.” Asian Studies Journal, Volume 48(1&2).

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Retrieved from http://asj.upd.edu.ph/index.php/archive/169-asian-studies-48-1-2-2012

Rodil, Rudy B. (2010). Magpuyong Malinawon sa YutangKabilin (Living in Peace in their AncestralDomain). Asian Studies Journal, Volume 48 (1&2).Retrieved from http://asj.upd.edu.ph/index.php/archive/169-asian-studies-48-1-2-2012

“The agreement not only marks a new chapter in our history;

it now defines the very path we take as a people—one where

opinions are heard and hope is shared; where understanding

and consensus breed meaningful solutions for all

stakeholders; one where every child is offered the

opportunity to shape his own destiny.”- President Benigno Simeon C. Aquino III

(October 15, 2012)

This was the statement given by President Aquino or PNOY for

the Filipinos during the signing of the Framework Agreement on

the Bangsamoro (FAB) in Malaysia on October 15, 2012. The

agreement is believed to put an end to the decades of hostile

relationship between the Bangsamoro and the “Philippine nation”

as what Moro Islamic Liberation Front chair Al Haj Murad Ebrahim

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described. According to the latter, FAB serves as the most

significant document to date regarding the Bangsamoro claim in

Mindanao because it is the key to finally restore the “Bangsamoro

identity” and homeland after many years.

Indeed, this event signifies that the peace talks that have

been undergoing for several years already have finally reaped its

fruits. It is a fervent hope and unfathomable faith of everyone,

regardless of their ethnicity to attain peace, security, harmony

and freedom from civil and military disturbances. Just as what

PNOY said, this is for all stakeholders. This means that this is

not solely confined to the people of the claimed Bangsamoro but

also includes the people living in the rest of Mindanao - for

these people to exercise their rights, draw their own path as

patterned from their culture and society.

This momentous event is undeniably remarkable for all

the parties concerned but will it answer and resolve all issues?

Will the people outside the Bangsamoro land be spare from any

changes? And will the implementation of such be enough to address

the questions surrounding the issue? Mindanao has been in the

limelight for almost a hundred years already due to armed

conflicts and territorial disputes. Several issues have been

raised and numerous actions were done to attend to it but not so

significant changes have taken place.

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This paper tries to highlight certain issues that

have plagued Mindanao and provide an analysis, connection and

synthesis of such. The studies featured in this critical review

came from the Asian Studies Journal Volume 48 issue 1 & 2

entitled BACKROOMS, BATTLEFIELDS AND BACKHOES: THE MINDANAO

CONUNDRUM released in 2012. It was a compilation of papers

presented from a panel on Mindanao convened during the University

of the Philippines (UP) Academic Congress in February 2010.

The order of presentation in this paper starts with

the summary and analysis of the each of the four selected

articles while the latter part is dedicated for the analysis of

the articles as a group.

The Bangsamoro Framework Agreement and the Mindanao Problem:

Foregrounding Historical and Cultural Facts and Concepts for

Social Justice and Peace in the Southern Philippines

In this paper, UP Professor Abraham Sakili mainly

discusses the root cause of the long struggle of Muslims in

Mindanao while at the same time analyzes the implications of the

Bangsamoro Framework Agreement on their quest for freedom and

social justice. The study analyzes and contextualizes the

Bangsamoro Framework Agreement signed on 15 October 2012 between

the Philippine government and the MILF in terms of the nature,

structure and powers of the Bangsamoro political entity which isPage 4 of 31

about to replace the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM)

once the annexes are completed. The author also explains that in

the midst of varied reactions to the Agreement, “the historical

and cultural explanations of the causes of the problem in

Mindanao” have been ignored. In pointing this out, Sakili reveals

a proper nuanced view of Muslim history vis-à-vis Philippine

history, which accounts for “a history of power and sovereignty

of the Muslim peoples” and “how the incorporation of this once-

sovereign community into what is now the Republic of the

Philippines was facilitated through anomalous means.” (Sakili,

2010 pg.21)

Based on the discussion, there have been several

factors that contributed to the Mindanao problem. First, the lack

of cultural awareness on the Muslim way of life by the majority;

second, the misrepresentation and exclusion of Muslim history and

sovereignty in the tale of Philippine history, prior and during

the colonization period; third, the inefficient and inadequate

administration of the central structure of the Philippine

government in handling multiethnic society with unique historical

experiences; fourth, the lack of representation of Muslims in the

central government due to existence of unequal playing fields in

the socio-political and economic affairs; fifth, the persisting

economic and agricultural problems that have turned the Muslim

communities into the “poorest of the poor; sixth, the land

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problems especially in guaranteeing the remaining ancestral

domains for the Muslims; and last, the persistence of the “Moro

image,” a negative perception about the Muslims in the minds of

the non-Muslim majority of Filipino citizens. Only by gradually

and truthfully addressing these problems will this conflict come

to an end.

The aforementioned issues have been existing in the

Philippine society for many years already but until now, complete

settlement has not been achieved. There have been actions taken

both by the government and the Muslim groups (for instance, MILF)

but it seems that the resolution has been elusive. Both armed

conflict and peace talks were done but still the road is still

unclear. As presented by Sakili in this paper, the signing of the

Bangsamoro Framework Agreement has received affirmative and

negative reaction from the public. Some praised it for it will

address the longing and misery of our Muslim brothers and

sisters. Cielito Habito, an economist raises hopes with the

signing because he believes that Southeast Asia gives Bangsamoro

the potential edge in meeting the regional market’s particular

demand for goods and services” (Philippine Daily Inquirer, 15

October 2012 as cited in Sakili 2010). Likewise, Conrado de

Quiros in his Philippine Daily Inquirer article dated 16 October

2012 (as cited in Sakili, 2010), describes the signing as a

“landmark event” that would signify the breaking down of distrust

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– between the government and Muslim groups. However, many critics

have also raised their concerns like two newspaper columnists who

wrote that the agreement “is a curse to the nation” and an

“agreement for PH Dismemberment” and that it “fails to uphold the

Constitution and overlooks inviolate provisions on sovereignty

and territorial integrity” (Sakili, 2010 pg 3). Their reactions

are believed to be caused by a few articles from the agreement

that seems vague in nature like (1) Paragraph VII (4b), which

provides that the Transition Commission will “work on proposals

to amend the Philippine Constitution for the purpose of

accommodating and entrenching in the constitution the Agreements

of the Parties whenever necessary without derogating from any

prior peace agreements;” (2) Paragraph 1 (4), which states that

the relationship of the Central Government and the Bangsamoro

Government shall be asymmetric;” and (3) the provision on the

authority of the Bangsamoro to receive “block grants and

subsidies from the Central Government” as “the power to block

grants”(IV :3) (Sakili, 2010 pg 3-5).

With all of these, I agree with the author that

criticisms will persist unless this issue will be tackled not

only using the economic and legal point of view but also by

analyzing and tracing its historical and cultural context. The

paper has provided a clear narration of the past events that led

to the present struggle of the Muslims. How come that a rich and

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victorious group of people who had vast lands and foreign

relations has become the poorest among the poor? I would like to

point out some factors from the paper which I believe are truly

abusive.

The lack of cultural awareness on the Muslim way of

life is actually the result of the misrepresentation and

exclusion of Muslim history and sovereignty in the tale of

Philippine history. As people say, the textbooks that schools

have been using for decades are not actually Philippine history

because it just talks about the Luzon and Visayan history. The

lives of the Muslims in the pre-colonial period and during the

colonization on those books are so limited if not totally

missing. According to Cesar Adib Majul, “This situation may be

partially due to lack of available data or sheer ignorance, and

stems to a great ex-tent from the lack of a dialogue between the

people of the North and the South” (Majul,1966 pg.4). It may be

true but there are other resources that could be utilize to come

up with the needed information.

Aside from that, the inadequate administration of the

central government in handling multiethnic society with unique

historical experiences is affected also by the lack of Muslim

representatives in the government especially in the Senate. Only

two current senators are legally registered from Mindanao

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provinces, Teofisto Guingona III from Malaybalay, Bukidnon and

Aquilino Pimentel III from Cagayan de Oro (congress.gov.ph) while

there are a handful of them in the House of Representatives.

Despite of having enough lawmakers from the region in the House

of Representatives, how many of them are able to pass a law for

their people? If not a law, how many of them were able to

allocate enough funds for the progress of their provinces. Why

has it remained to be among the poorest provinces in the country?

It became a selective administration, disregarding the

natives. The multi ethnicity of the Philippines has not been well

managed. Instead of using this to empower and enrich the country

for the benefit of all, these multi ethnic groups became the

instruments to empower and enrich just a privileged few.

With regards to the land disputes in relation to

ancestral domains, the framework agreement has been eyed as the

solution to this perennial problem. The Moro who are currently

fighting for their ancestral lands are like the Balangingi Samal

of the Nineteenth-Century Philippines who was also forcibly

displaced from their native lands by the Spanish colonizers

(Warren, 2003 pg. 23 - 24). Just recently, the government and the

Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) completed all the four

annexes of the Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro (FAB), which

will pave the way for the signing of a comprehensive agreement on

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the Bangsamoro (CAB). Moreover, according to the chairperson of

the Office of the Philippine Presidential Adviser on the Peace

Process, Teresita Deles “This is indeed a long-awaited moment

that is a gift to our people at the start of a new year of

renewed hope and commitment" (PhilStar.com, Jan 25, 2014).

In relation to the last factor, I guess the negative

perception about the Moro in the minds of mostly non-Muslim

Filipino citizens will be very difficult to obliterate. It will

not only take overnight to change that notion. Perhaps, it would

take a gradual and tedious process to achieve such goal.

Nevertheless, the signing of the Bangsamoro Framework

Agreement will not be the only process to address this issue, the

historical and cultural context needs to be highlighted as well.

Development and Distress in Mindanao: A Political Economy

Overview

The study of UP Professor Eduardo C. Tadem provides a

detailed analysis of the economic activities and underdevelopment

of Mindanao as supported by the quantitative data gathered from

the past years. Despite of being known as an object of poverty,

apparently, Mindanao has been a center of foreign investments and

infrastructure projects by the government. Japan, America, Canada

and other foreign countries have invested in the region’s big

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industries. Apart from that, numerous development programs have

been initiated to uplift the status of the area. However,

Mindanao still generates a high poverty rate in the country. The

natural wealth of Mindanao has been greatly utilized and became

an object of relentless economic exploitation since the turn of

the 20th century. As a result, it has yielded boundless riches

for foreign and local investors who are non Mindanaoan. Instead

of being utilized for the advantage and benefits of the natives,

ironically, it even served as an instrument for the Moro, Lumad

and Christian settlers to be marginalized and dump into poverty

even more. Worst, continuous depletion of natural resources in

the area persists uncontrollably.

This paper gives new insights on the real situation of

Mindanao. Surprisingly, Mindanao is not really left behind in

terms of economic projects as proven by the provided data on the

study. Due to the enormous reserve of natural resources, Mindanao

has been an eye of foreign and local investments, may it be

industrial, or agricultural in nature. Its vast commercial forest

lands, agricultural production, fishery products, rubber, sugar

plantations, mineral sector and other manufacturing industries

have been generating billions of income. With the data

presented, how come, they rank low in terms of economic

development? Why is it that six Mindanao provinces had

exceedingly high poverty incidences like Sulu (88.8%), Tawi Tawi

(69.9%),Basilan (65.6%), Zamboanga del Norte (63.2%), Maguindanao

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(55.8%), and Siquijor (51.9%) (Tadem,2010 pg. 29). Obviously, the

principle of Trickledown Effect has not been evident in this

situation. The gained profits either go directly to the owners/

investors or forwarded to the central government or offices in

the northern part of the country. Simply, the resulting wealth

and incomes have not benefited the greater majority.

Let me also enumerate the contradicting situation of

Mindanao despite of its massive economic activities: the products

being produced are for export purposes only and meager portion

has reached the households of the workers that results to a high

subsistence incidence, income distribution and consumption

varies, the massive infrastructure projects has damaged large

agricultural areas, more tribal communities lose their ancestral

lands and their cultural heritage which cannot be compensated by

any monetary value, large irrigation projects also become the

major pollutants as these irrigation systems discharge their

return flows to only one major river , huge dams also reduce soil

fertility, the major industries in Mindanao are of the extractive

type, which

exploits and depletes natural resources, long-term risks for

their dependent workforce once total depletion occurs, land

grabbing by corporations which are actually ancestral lands of

tribal groups, chemical applications by corporations deplete

soil nutrients , depletion of resources without adequate

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replenishment measures ultimately damages the environment,

periodic flooding in logged-over areas in Northern Mindanao

causes deaths and render thousands homeless, Mindanao industrial

belt is a major cause of pollution, extensive use of agricultural

chemicals by agribusiness operations also poses health hazards,

and the economy is dependent on export trade. Despite the

expansion of economic activities in Mindanao, the southern

economy has remained largely underdeveloped (Tadem, 2010 pg 32).

In spite of these challenges, I can see that the

government has maximized its capacity to extend assistance to the

poor communities of Mindanao. Perhaps, it was not just enough

especially if the privileged few take advantage of the situation.

The country’s leaders must initiate a process of

constructing a new development paradigm for Mindanao that will

finally render social and economic justice for the people of the

region especially the impoverished ones. In the Mindanao case,

this scenario is aggravated by the effects of internal

colonialism - the transfer of wealth from the southern regions to

the nucleus of economic and political power in the north (Tadem,

2010 pg.15) No matter how huge the generated income is if it does

not reach the ordinary citizens, it will be useless. The

government’s effort to maximize and utilize all potential

resources of Mindanao with the aid of the private sector intends

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to have a favorable result for the people. However, little

attention has been paid to the actual needs of Mindanao’s people.

Economic progress is not the only need of the people. There are

certain aspects of their lives that monetary aspect cannot

compensate. Poverty may be addressed but the social inequality

and cultural lag which are the principal causes of unrest and

rebellion are not directly addressed.

The Philippines and Bangsamoro Polity: Breaking the “Sisyphean Ordeal”

Being a Professor and Dean of the Institute of

Islamic Studies in University of the Philippines – Diliman,

Julkipli Wadi delivered a thorough analysis of the “Sisyphean

Ordeal” that describes the Philippine State and the Bangsamoro

polity relationship for almost a hundred years already. It simply

means that the negotiation and efforts to mend the multifaceted

instability of the two polities has been continually subjected to

a cycle of social order, political arrangement, policy, reform

and opposition and other contrary development – leaving no

concrete and final solution to the problem.

In this case, the government’s lack of urgency and

failure to address the ordeal have led the state to rely on a

traditional system of politics that is dominated by local

traditional forces, political dynasties, warlords and other

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similar forces. As a result, it is easy for these local forces to

become the new sources of power in Moro areas as they are driven

to dominate and even exploit the unstable situation to their

advantage which resulted in various socio-political crimes, one

of which is the Maguindanao Massacre of 2009. While discussing

the consequences of the cycle of ordeal in the Muslim Region, the

author did not neglect to share also a few steps to be undertaken

by the current administration to put an end to this conflict.

My attention is personally caught by two ideas

mentioned in this paper: first, that the government seemingly

“allowed” the existence and domination of political and

traditional families due to lack of strong hold in the region.

Even the created ARMM which is supposedly the regional

institution and arm of the government to implement such autonomy

for Mindanao has been subjected to strong political family.

The following are some of the past and present political

families that ruled several provinces of Mindanao for decades

(http://www.congress.gov.ph/profile/?v=district): 

Lanao del Sur - Alonto, Lucman, Adiong, Dimaporo, Macarambon,

Dimakuta

Lanao del Norte - Badelles, Lluch, Cabili

Sultan Kudarat – Mangudadatu

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Basilan - Akbar

Cagayan de Oro City - Emano

General Santos City - Antonino

Zamboanga City - Lobregat, Lorenzo

Zamboanga del Norte - Adaza, Ubay, Carloto, Jalosjos

Zamboanga del Sur - Sagun-Lim, Enerio,  Amatong, Cerilles

Tawi-Tawi - Jaafar

Camiguin - Romualdo

Misamis Occidental - Chiongbian, Ramiro

Misamis Oriental - Pelaez, Baculio

Saranggani - Chiongbian, Amatong

Sulu -  Amilbangsa, Rasul, Abubakar, Ututalum, Tulawie

Surigao Norte - Navarro, Barbers, Ecleo

Surigao Sur - Falcon,  Pimentel-Serra , Ty

Agusan del Sur - Paredes, Amante, Plaza

Bukidnon - Fortich, Zubiri, Acosta

Compostela Valley - Caballero

Cotabato - Pendatun, Mastura, Datumanong , Matalam, Mangilen,

Sinsuat

Davao City - Garcia, Lopez, Duterte

Davao del Norte - Del Rosario/Garcia, Sarmiento

Davao del Sur - Bautista, Cagas

Davao Oriental - Almario/Zosa, Palma Gil

(The emphasized names are some of the still active families up to the present.)

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Based on the abovementioned data, we can see that a

few of these families have declined over the past years but many

are still active in the political arena not only in local

politics but also in national as some have entered the Congress

like Zubiri, Pimentel, Romualdo, Antonino, Amante, Plaza and

Barbers. Thus, groups advocating for reforms in Mindanao would

ask why they should exert effort to form and develop new and

genuine political institutions when in the end, these would

eventually be dominated and overpowered by traditional ruling

elites and political families, hence, controlling the Moro

society.

The second idea that captured me was the statement “the

colonial-political mixture is what creates a disjuncture between

the “horizontal” and “vertical” relation of powers because, from

the point of view of governance, a unitary set-up requires a

relatively homogenous society while an effective application of

separation of powers presupposes a stable system of democracy”

(Wadi, 2010 pg 42).

It seems now that because the Philippine government

was patterned from that of the colonizer, thus, it cannot be well

adapted to our society. I would like to emphasize on a unitary set-

up requires a relatively homogenous society. Well then, if this is the

basis for having such a unitary set up, then clearly, it does not

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really fit Philippine society because from the very beginning,

our society is not homogenous. The Philippines itself is

heterogeneous. According to the National Commission on Indigenous

People, there are 110 ethno linguistic groups in the Philippines

(Boncan, Ong, Ponsaran 2010 pg 36). These 110 ethno groups are

coming all over the country, but for Mindanao itself, “the

historian Rudy Rodil classifies Mindanao’s population of 18.13

million as of 2000 into two major categories – the indigenous

peoples and the migrant settlers” (Tadem, 2010 pg. 2). Hence, if

the government would try to have a unitary set up which is

founded on the culture of majority, then the problem would really

arise. As Peter Gowing, an American scholar, rooted the problem

in the fact that “ Muslims in the Philippines constitute a

nationality distinct from and older than the Filipino

nationality” (Gowing 1979 as cited in Sakili 2010). This is also

supported by the data presented by Wadi as part of the Department

of Mindanao and Sulu’s goal which was created in 1914, “that is

to unify the structure and powers of provincial and municipal

governments in Moro land with rest of the country; to institute

“rapid amalgamation with the inhabitants of other islands.”

Another was from the Ministry of Muslim Affairs in 1981 which

was “to ensure the integration 1981 Affairs of Muslim Filipinos

into the mainstream Filipino society with due regard to their

beliefs, customs, traditions, and institutions.” Even though the

two arms of the government were established in two different

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periods, one under the colonial government while the other was

under the republic, it vividly shows that there was a common

sentiment with regards to the status of the Muslims. I think with

this, we need to go back to what Professor Abraham P. Sakili

mentioned that to resolve such conflict, we would have to trace

and address the historical and cultural context of the issue

before going to the economic and legal area.

Magpuyong Malinawon sa Yutang Kabilin (Living in Peace in their

Ancestral Domain

As a historian, Rudy B. Rodil shared a discussion using the

point of view of the so called “Lumad” of Mindanao. His main

topic is the latter’s role in Mindanao Development. For this

study, two relevant documents were utilized: The Cagayan De Oro

Declaration on the Memorandum of Agreement on Ancestral Domain of

the GRP-MILF Peace Panel and some contents of the Indigenous

Peoples Rights Act (IPRA). For decades, the Lumad has always been

told what to do or what was good for them; worse, no explanation

was given. This became the basis for regarding them as

marginalized “Indigenous People.” Being “marginalized” implies

the following: that their right to own and dispose of their

ancestral lands was taken away from them; migrants were brought

into or encouraged to move into their traditional territories and

in effect displaced them from their own homes; they were required

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to interact actively with the dominant cultures, hence becoming a

passive recipients of an outside culture from their own

perspective; their livelihood were looked down upon and they were

given no part in the economic developments embarked upon by the

government; furthermore, they were even targeted for

assimilation, also known as amalgamation or fusion or integration

into the majority of the population way back in 1997 (Rodil, 2010

pg. 47).

With all of those, the different tribal groups

representing the Lumad have decided to assert their right to take

part in the decision making process for their community in

broader context and exercise their right to self-determination.

As a group, they declared their own general definition of

development: a development that is not destructive to their

culture and environment, and one that is responsive to the needs

of the Lumad in the sphere of their economy, culture, education

and politics (Rodil, 2010 page 52).

I guess the case of the Lumad is a clear

manifestation and evidence that the indigenous groups are partly

if not totally neglected in decision making process. If we want

to live in peace and attain genuine development, then we should

not only enrich those of the majority but include the minority as

well. The problem on us is that we always think that the way to

development is to integrate all in just one entity and goal. At

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the hindsight, we forget that the Philippines is a multicultural

society that requires a multi-cultural approach too. I am not

saying that there should be one policy or program for each tribal

groups, it’s just that, there is a need to consult all

stakeholders before proceeding to any form of agreement because

we might violate other’s rights on our way to progress. In that

case, it will be a selected progress.

Main Arguments from the Four Articles (Differences and

Similarities)

There are four points that I would like to emphasize after

reading and analyzing the contents of the papers.

1. There is a need to construct an effective development

paradigm for Mindanao that will finally render social,

cultural, political and economic justice for the people

regardless of religion and origin.

The papers may have different focus: Sakili and

Wadi talks about the Bangsamoro ancestral domain conflict

and framework agreement, Tadem highlights the economic and

social status of Mindanao despite of its vast riches and

Rodil pays attention to the role of Lumad in the midst of

all negotiations – but all have the same theme and that is

towards the development of Mindanao and all of its

inhabitants - establishing a harmoniously place for them

to reside and raise their families. Based on the data

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provided from the papers, there have been efforts on the

side of the government to address all of these issues.

Perhaps, it has not materialized yet or if it had already,

it was not able to reach its target population. Fortunate

for the big and high income generating cities like Davao,

Gen San, Malaybalay and Cagayan de Oro which have multi-

million investments. Poverty incidence will not soar

tremendously for them. On the other hand, the remote

barrios or far flung areas do not have the same economic

building capacity to provide all of the citizen’s needs.

According to the National Statistics and Coordination

Board (NSCB, 2012), 9 out of the 15 poorest provinces in

the country in the 1st trimester of 2012 belongs to

Mindanao. The list includes the following: Lanao del Sur -

68.9%, Apayao - 59.8%, Eastern Samar - 59.4%, Maguindanao

- 57.8%, Zamboanga del Norte - 50.3%, Davao Oriental -

48%, Ifugao - 47.5%, Sarangani - 46.5%, Negros Oriental -

45.3%, Masbate - 44.2%, North Cotabato - 43.9%, Northern

Samar - 43.7%, Bukidnon - 43.3%, Lanao del Norte - 42.5%

and Sultan Kudarat - 41.6%. As we all know, the poverty

incidence in these areas is not just a product of one

cause but of a few interrelated factors affecting them.

Hence, immediate government intervention is needed to

address such not only for the Muslim but for the Christian

settlers and Lumad as well.

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2. Despite of the high poverty incidence, Mindanao holds a vast rich of natural resources in the country, but was not

utilize well for the benefit of the public.

No wonder, Mindanao is culturally and

naturally wealthy. Mindanao’s forest area comprises 41

percent of the country’s vegetative cover and 56 percent of

Philippine commercial forest land. Its agricultural area of

3.73 million hectares comprises 38 percent of the country’s

total farm area. Mindanao is a palay- sur plus producing

area with Region XII (SoCCSKSarGen) considered the

traditional “rice bowl” and one of the top two rice-

producing regions in the country. Overall, Mindanao

supplies 40 percent of the country’s food requirements and

30 percent of the national food trade. Aside from that,

tuna fishing has become the country’s number one fishery

sector with major export markets in Japan and the US. The

Philippines is the world’s leading producer of coconut and

coconut products and more than half of the country’s

coconut area is in Mindanao. It is also the main producer

for coffee (75 per cent) and for one-third of the country’s

livestock products (Tadem, 2010 pg. 20-23).

Despite of this fact, the area lagged behind in

terms of economic progress due to massive infrastructure

projects like large-scale irrigation projects that affect

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the small lands used by small farmers. There were even

times that the site selection process takes place without

consulting the occupants thus they ended up choosing a

wrong place for infrastructure projects. To add more, large

irrigation projects also become a major source of pollution

to major river systems since it discharges the return

flows, hence, depriving local families of having a clean

water supply. Furthermore, the major industries put up by

private companies and those supported by the government are

of the extractive type, which means exploitation and

depletion of natural resources. It is understandable that

the resources are subjected to extraction to be used for

production and other services but the rate of depletion is

quite alarming and no substantial effort to attend to it

has been done yet. In the case of agriculture, there is

also the issue of the extensive use of agricultural

chemicals by agribusiness operations which poses health

hazards to the workers and other residents near the area.

With all the above mentioned statements, it

only shows that Mindanao is not economically left behind,

well in fact, it could even compete with that of Luzon and

Visayas. However, the way it was utilized has posed a

negative effect to its people who are supposedly the

beneficiary of its product. If only they were properly

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utilized and the gains have reached the appropriate

subjects, then life will be more convenient for the people

of Mindanao.

3. There are still other indigenous groups that deserve utmost

attention aside from the contested Bangsamoro.

The articles of Professor Sakili, Professor

Tadem and Professor Wadi are concerned with the political,

historical and economic aspects of the Moros of Mindanao.

Little attention has been given to the socio-cultural

aspects of those outside the Bangsamoro entity. This is

what the fourth article by Professor Rodil put into

consideration in his paper. His paper has been appreciative

of the other cultural minorities in the region specifically

the Lumad. There are 17 Lumad ethnolinguistic groups: Atta,

Bagobo, Banwaon, B’laan, Bukidnon, Dibabawon, Higaonon,

Mamanwa, Mandaya, Manguwangan, Manobo, Mansaka,

Tagakaolo, Tasaday, Tboli, Teduray, and Ubo. According to

the Lumad Development Center Inc., there are about 18 Lumad

groups in 19 provinces across the country. They comprise 12

million to 13 million or 18% of the Philippine population

and can be divided into 110 ethno-linguistic groups.

Considered as "vulnerable groups", they live in hinterlands,

forests, lowlands and coastal areas

(http://www.ncca.gov.ph). Now, what is its connection to the

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previous topic? The previous papers are more concerned about

the status of the Bangsamoro without thinking that there are

other cultural groups in the area. This plan of action by

the government and other involved parties would be even more

effective if it would not inflict any harm to the other

stakeholders like the Lumad.

4. There are various solutions/ conclusions provided at the

end of every paper, all of it must be critically evaluated

to be able to come up with the best one.

At the end of the every paper, either

conclusions or recommendations are given. For Professor

Sakili, the Bangsamoro Framework Agreement will only be

considered successful until it has been affirmed by the

Congress and substantiated with annexes based on historical

and cultural realities, only then can the Muslims in

Mindanao finally harvest the “fruits of peace” and Muslim

struggle be finally put to rest. On Professor Tadem’s

study, Mindanao has been the object of relentless economic

exploitation that led to immense wealth and riches for a

few mostly non-Mindanaoan firms and individuals but at the

same time, generated poverty and social marginalization for

its working population, thus, a clearer and substantive

action policy would be needed. In the case of Professor

Wadi, he proposes that the next administration should

pursue a peace policy geared towards the forging of a

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comprehensive peace agreement with both MILF and MNLF as

early as possible so that the remaining years of the new

administration’s term would be concentrated on the

implementation of the agreement and the institution of

reforms in Moro. And for Professor Rodil’s side, he calls

for the government and for the other segments of the

Mindanao population to grasp that recognizing Lumad

aspirations for self-determination within their ancestral

domains, allowing them to create and develop their own

social spaces, will solidly contribute to a better

Philippines.

With the abovementioned statements, clearly all

conclusions and recommendations are valid and products of a

comprehensive study. The challenge now is how to prioritize

and implement each of those. Definitely, it would need

several factors to address such. One would be the

government’s intervention to take a look and analyze its

implications to the involved parties. Next would be the

civilians who also happen to be the stakeholders on the

issue. A serious planning is absolutely necessary to amend

differences and resolve other issues. It is very important

to hear all sides to avoid one sided decisions and make

everyone accountable to it at the end.

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Conclusion

True growth and development are inclusive. It does not

marginalized any group of people may it be due to race,

color, gender or religion. It recognizes and respects the

rights of the involved parties. In all fairness to the

effort of the Philippine government to address certain

issues, it has been trying to ensure that the policies to be

implemented will also deal with the concerns of other

marginalized groups. This only shows that strong policy

making process is in need to be able to resolve any form of

conflict in the country. The commitment of the government

especially its policy makers to pass and finalize legally

such action is a crucial factor towards achieving the goal.

Apart from that, Mindanao is an asset to the

country. It possesses must see places or tourist attractions

that will boost our economy. It holds vast of natural

resources that is largely in need for the growing

population. If only these things will be protected, enrich

and tap properly, then it would be such a large scale

support and strength to the development of the country.

Overall, the papers provide a comprehensive

analysis of the Mindanao controversies. Actually, there is

another paper in the journal that focuses on the Maguindanao

Massacre but I decided not to include anymore on this

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review. It only proves that the compilation has met its

goals and that is to analyze the details surrounding the

disputes in Mindanao. I just noticed that there were updated

data while some were not. The presentation of figures are

crucial in such analysis because it serves as your basis to

critically scrutinize the situation that is why current data

are highly suggested.

Nevertheless, the papers prove that a just and

sustainable peace is on its way for Mindanao. Hopefully,

animosity among parties will totally vanish in time.

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