|
DIFFERENT GROUPS OF PEOPLE IN THE PHILIPPNES |
|
ARMM The Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (abbreviated ARMM) is the region, located in the Mindanao island group of the Philippines, that is composed of predominantlyMuslim provinces, namely: Basilan (except Isabela City), Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi. It is the only region that has its own government. The regional capital is at Cotabato City, although this city is outside of its jurisdiction. The ARMM previously included the province of Shariff Kabunsuan until 16 July 2008, when Shariff Kabunsuan ceased to exist as a province after the Filipino Supreme Court declared the "Muslim Mindanao Autonomy Act 201", which created it, unconstitutional in Sema v. Comelec.[1] On 7 October 2012, President Benigno Aquino III said that the government aimed to have peace in the region and it will be known as "Bangsamoro".[2]
The Muslims in the south are also culturally linked to Muslim countries in Southeast Asia such as Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei and the Patani of southern Thailand. They are composed of eleven ethnic groups. Each group has its own language but only a few controls a political unit like a province or municipalities. Some groups speak one language with three variations like the Maranao, Iranun and Maguindanaon. The Sama people have one language with many variation such as the dialect of the Jama Mapun, and the Bangingi. 1. The Maranao. Literally, Maranao means people of the lake. Their homeland is called Lanao which means lake. Their oldest settlement started around here, and up to this day, highly populated communities still dot the lake. Their language is similar to Maguindanaon and Iranun. One shall be confused as to which of them owns the mother tongue since the Maranao and Iranun can understand 60% of the Maguindanaon language. At any rate , these groups live in proximity. Continuous contact allows them to develop or share a common practice including language. The Maranao are concentrated in Lanao area. They occupy the most strategic place in Mindanao owing to their access to Iligan bay in the north and Illana bay in the south. During the colonial period, they fought against the Spaniards, usually under the flag of the Maguindanao sultanate. Like other Muslim ethnic tribes, the Maranao are brave and have offered sacrifice in defense of their homeland and Islam. Throughout the colonial period, Lanao was united as one province of the Maguindanao sultanate. Seeing the importance of Lanao, the American colonial government in Manila encouraged landless Filipinos to migrate to Mindanao. Most settlers targeted Lanao as their final destination. After about 50 years, the Filipino settlers became established in the area north of Lanao. This eventually led to the division of Lanao into Del Norte and Del Sur beginning 1960s. Lanao is a land rich in literature. Darangan is an example of this. The existence of darangan attests to the level of civilization that the Maranao have achieved at one point. Potential resources like lake and agricultural land are more than enough to support to make the goal of darangan into reality. The lake in the heart of Lanao Del Sur is the biggest lake in the Philippines. It is so far the current source of energy supply – at least supplying around 80% power grid of the whole Mindanao. The Mindanao State University is located at Lanao’s capital, Marawi City. Most leaders in Mindanao are in fact products of the MSU. Sixty percent of its best professors are Christians Filipinos. Maranao society is a closed society. The entire municipalities of Lanao Del Sur, particularly at the vicinity of the lake are off limits to outsiders. The lifestyle of the people are in their traditional attire, the malong and the abaya. This is the only place in the Philippines whose lifestyle is not affected with the western trend. The Maranao contact to the outside comes through Iligan City and Malabang. Iligan City is 40 minutes ride from Marawi City. Malabang a coastal town of Lanao Del Sur requires more than one hour to reach. Under a long range plan of Christian movement in Mindanao, the Christians would penetrate the heart of Lanao from three areas – from Iligan in the north, Malabang in the south and Wao from the east. They in fact controlled these areas for long time already. 2. The Maguindanao. Originally, Maguindanaon is the name of the family or dynasty which came to rule almost the whole island of Mindanao, particularly the former Cotabato. It later refers to the Muslim people who live in the Pulangi valley which sprawls the Southwestern part of Mindanao. It is for this reason, the Maguindanaon are called people of the plain. They accepted Islam at the last quarter of 15th century. Total Islamization of the whole Pulangi area succeeded only with the arrival of Sharif Kabungsuan a prince from Johore who came to Mindanao after the fall of Malacca and nearby areas to Dutch colonialists in 1511. The greatest contribution of the Maguindanao to civilization in Southeast Asia were the sultanates of Maguindanao and Buayan. These sultanates rose almost simultaneously after the arrival of Sharif kabungsuan who founded the first sultanate in Mindanao. During its heyday, the sultanate of Maguindanao did bring the whole mainland of Mindanao under its control. It became the instrument of the Muslims in Mindanao in thwarting the western colonialism. The Cotabato had been the seat of the Maguindanao sultanate. This is the ancestral land of the Maguindanao including the hill tribes such as the Tiruray, Tasaday and Subanun. Because of its wide valley, Cotabato area has ever since the rice ganary of the country. The colonialists had ever since been attracted to the fertile land of Cotabato. Many times, the Spaniards made Cotabato as capital of Mindanao during their military occupation. This colonial plan, however succeeded only during the American period. It was able to organize the first Filipino settlement in 1912. The Maguindanao are the hardest hit of the Filipino settlement. Their political power diminished after long period of fighting and resisting colonialism and Christianization, particularly at the beginning of the 20th century. The Maguindanao fought alone without foreign support during this period. However, by 1970s, three-fourth of their homeland were lost to Filipino settlers, mostly Ilongo and Cebuano. The Manila government created in the area the five provinces of Maguindanao, Cotabato, South Cotabato, Sultan Qudarat and Sarangani. |