OTHER REVIEWS ON PALAWAN MUSLIMS In 1916 H. Otley Beyer, classified the Muslims in Southern Palawan as Taosug and Samal. In 1945, Kuder classified these Muslim into four: the Taw Sug, the Samal, the Jama Mapun and the Molbog of Balabac. According to Robert B. Fox, the spread of the influence of Muslim among the natives of Palawan can be best attributed to trading. The early Muslims came as traders not warriors to spread Islam. This was borne by the fact that the Muslim traders had the means besides being good businessmen. As a result of this trade relation the native also adopted the political concept of the Muslims which was effective through payments of tribute (paramita’an) to the Muslims. There is a legend told by Clemente Bulunan of Baraki in 1953 that the first Masikampo of the Tagbanua was appointed by the Sultan of Brunei, about eleven generations ago. It was told that sometimes during the rule of Kinuyo, the third Masikampo, a Sultan from Brunei visited Inagawan, Puerto Princesa City. In a conference the two heads argued who should head the Tagbanuas in Palawan. In the end, the two agreed to settle the controversy through a duel. Each must select his own representative. Kinuyu selected Lidgid who represented the Tagbanuas while the Sultan from Brunei named Manangkabaw. The two leaders agreed that in the event that Manangkabaw win, all the Tagbanuas in the entire Palawan shall be under the Sultan. On the other hand should Lidgid win, not only would Kinuyo be recognized as the Masikampo of the Tagbanuas but would receive five large boats including their cargoes. The sultan also told his men that they would not return to Inagawan (Puerto Princesa) should Manangkabaw lose. Both contestants wore body protectors (arat) and were armed with kris and shield. A furious encounter ensued; finally Lidgid killed Manangkabaw in the duel. So since then, the Tagbanuas were free and the Masikampo Kinuyo was recognized as the highest authority of the Tagbanuas. The above legend just shows the prowess and bravery of early Palaweño and the capability and capacity to meet the challenges in defense of freedom, dignity, and integrity. These early traits have been handed down to present day generation as it was successfully immortalized in the annals of historical events, the love of freedom as an inalienable right have been upheld in not too few crises that marked the struggle for independence. While it was true that the Palaweño at times displayed submission by paying tributes to the Muslims in the past, the same cannot be considered or viewed as semblance of subservience. In truth, the friendly cooperation was only a strategy to ward off any untoward events that might have resulted in the loss of lives and property. In a sense, act of paying tribute could be considered in some sense as a play of statesmanship and diplomacy par excellence. Muslim influence has been more felt in southern and central Palawan up to the nineteenth century even during the Spanish rule. According to the Tagbanua, the Muslim leaders came to collect tribute in form of rice, honey, ginger, onions, etc. On failure to pay, the children of the Tagbanua were taken by the Muslims as slaves. As a matter of fact there were instances when the leaders of the Tagbanuas themselves were responsible for offering the children to the Muslims to avoid trouble. This kind of relationship was also experienced by the Palaweños until the twentieth century when the Muslims came and took the children as slaves. Because of this, the parents would see to it that their children were kept within protective distance. It was therefore not uncommon to hear parents say, “the Moros are coming”, in order to scare and prevent the children from going out especially after sunset. This fear for the Muslims or Moros as they were called in those days has pervaded the notion that the Muslims were bandits. This notion finds support in the establishment of fortifications of settlements. The forts are of massive structure of high walls. The forts served also as churches where the people sought protection during the Moro raids. The influence of the Muslim has been manifested in the brass gongs, brass coffins, bolos, and arms that people use. The influence went beyond the material, as traces of Muslims influence can be seen in Tagbanua language and even in the religious practices of the Tagbanua. The same could be said the Palawan culture has traces of Muslim origin. The places controlled by the Sultan of Sulu in southern Palawan from 1886 up to 1894 under Harun Narrazid spanned from Bonbon. The settlements of Muslim included, Abo-abo, Isumbo, Panitian, Tagbusao, Bonbon, Malihud, and Ginanagan in the east coast. In the west coast were Volun, Sugud, Boyata, Malanut, Ylanan, Lonacan, Diungan, Taboaya, Polaninga and Luuc. In the southernmost point of the Island of Paragua were Canipaan, Calanganan, Bato-Bato, Huanlig, Buliluyan, Jaya, Ungun, Tacba, Sumbiling, Pinanasan, Taaraya and Sapa. The Muslim controlled also the islands of Bugsuk and Balabac. The traditional Muslim states came about through the gradual unification of distinct barangays and banua under supra village authority represented by a sultan. They were dominated greatly by Islamic religio-political ideas that were assimilated into indigenous beliefs and practices. In contrast to the village organization in the Visayas and Luzon, the pattern in Mindanao and Sulu showed villages linked together in larger supra village organizations. SABAH CLAIMS The massive deportation of Moros (Filipino Muslim) from Sabah has sparked new interest in the ownership of this rich Malaysian state in North Borneo also known as Sabah. Perhaps thinking that it would help his country, the Malaysian Ambassador to the Philippines, Mohammad Taufiq announced on Sept. 2, 2002 that Malaysias Finance Ministry paid early this year the Sultanate of Sulu in southern Philippines its yearly rent of M$5,000 (HK$10,250) for Sabah. This surprised Filipino congressmen, who did not know that Malaysia pays annual rent to the Sulu Sultanate. For many congressmen and Christian Filipinos in general, the Sulu Sultanate had disappeared long ago and is now a mere figment of the imagination. Realizing the logic that he who pays rent does not own the property, some congressmen immediately called for the return of Sabah to the Philippines. The Malaysian ambassador tried to cover his doing by saying that it was not rental fee but Cession Fee. The Philippine government through no less than its President announced that the claim to Sabah would be studied carefully. We affirmed that we can indeed come up with a national unified position on the Sabah issue at this time, a presidential palace statement dated 5 September 2002 quoted the President as saying. Representative Apolinario Lozada called the Malaysian presence in Sabah as an occupation by a foreign government. To review the historical antecedents, around 1405, the year that the war over succession ended in the Majapahit Empire, Sufi traders introduced Islam into the Hindu-Malayan empires and for about the next century the southern half of Luzon and the islands south of it were subject to the various Muslim sultanates of Borneo. During this period, the Japanese established a trading post at Aparri and maintained a loose sway over northern Luzon. In 1380, Makhdum Karim or Karimul Makdum, the first Islamic missionary to the Philippines brought Islam to the Archipelago. Subsequent visits of Muslim Malay missionaries helped strengthen the Islamic faith of the Filipinos (except for those in northern Palawan who would later become Christian with the Spanish colonization). The Sultanate of Sulu, the largest Islamic Kingdom of South East Asia and the Malay Archipelago, encompassed parts of Malaysia and the Philippines. The royal house of the Sultanate claim descent from the prophet Muhammad. The Sultanate of Sulu was a Muslim state that ruled over much of the islands of the Sulu Sea, in the southern Philippines. The sultanate was founded in the 1457 (other sources claim earlier in 1450) and is believed by Muslim historians to have existed for a few centuries although most sources mention that the sultanate was conquered by the Spanish in the 17th century. The Philippines was later annexed by the United States in 1898 as a result of the Spanish-American War and, in the Annex of the Treaty of Paris signed in 1900, the Muslim Mindanao was annexed to the US-Philippines territory. Only North Borneo went to the British, and later became part of Malaysia as Sabah in 1963. At its peak, sultanate of Sulu stretched over the islands that bordered the western peninsula of Mindanao in the east, to North Borneo, currently known as Sabah, in the west and south, and to Palawan in the north. Today significant number of Taosug has been living in Sabah. During the dynastic war in Brunei in the 1650 between Sultan Mu-adin and Sultan Abdul Mubin, the former asked the help of the Sultan of Sulu, Salah ud Din Bakhtiar. The Taosug warriors of sultan came to the aid of Mu-adin and defeated Abdul Mubin. In exchange, the victorious Brunei Sultan gave Sabah and Palawan to the Sulu Sultan in 1658. However, Sulu gave Palawan to Kudarat, Sultan of Maguindanao after marrying a Sulu princess, daughter of Sultan Salah ud Din Bakhtiar, and formed an alliance with Sulu. Sultan Kudarat eventually ceded central-mailand Palawan to Spain in 1705. British Acquisition of North Borneo In 1865, the United States Consul to Brunei, Claude Lee Moses obtained a 10 year lease for the territory of North Borneo from the Brunei. However, post-Civil War United States wanted nothing to do with Asian colonies, so Moses sold his rights to the Hong Kong-based American Trading Company. Besieged with financial difficulties, the company had to its right on North Borneo Consul of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in Hong Kong, Baron Von Overbeck. Von Overbeck managed to get a 10-year renewal of the lease from the Temenggong of Brunei, and a similar treaty from the Sultan of Sulu. On Jan. 22, 1878, the Sulu Sultan Jamal ul Azam (Alam) leased Sabah to Baron Von Overbeck to finance their fight against the Spanish. The Sulu Sultan also gave Overbeck the title of Datu Bendahara and Rajah of Sandakan, thus making him his subject. 25th Sulu Sultan Jamal ul Azam (Alam) To finance his plans for North Borneo, Overbeck found financial backing from the Dent brothers - Alfred and Edward Dent. However, he was unable to interest his government in the territory. Von Overbeck withdrew in 1880, leaving Alfred Dent in control. Dent was supported by Sir Rutherford Alcock, and Admiral Sir Harry Keppel. In July 1881, Alfred Dent and his brother formed the British North Borneo Provisional Association Ltd and obtained an official Royal Charter November 1 the same year. In May 1882, the British North Borneo Chartered Company replaced the Provisional Association. Sir Rutherford Alcock became the first president, and Alfred Dent became managing director. In spite of some diplomatic protests by the Dutch, Spanish and Sarawak governments, the British North Borneo Company proceeded to organize settlement and administration of the territory whose workers mostly came from Fujian or Xiamen (Amoy), China. The company subsequently acquired further sovereign and territorial rights from the sultan of Brunei, expanding the territory under control to the Putatan River in May 1884, the Padas district in November 1884, the Kawang River in February 1885, the Mantanani islands in April 1885 and additional minor Padas territories in March 1898. In 1888, North Borneo became a protectorate of Great Britain. Its administration however remained entirely in the hands of the British North Borneo Company, with the crown reserving only control of foreign relations. European powers recognized Sulu sovereignty over Sabah. Eighteenth and nineteenth-century European maps usually indicated North Borneo as territories of the Sultan of Sulu. When the Americans occupied Sulu, the US declared that while they had sovereignty over all Philippine Islands, they recognized the Sulu Sultans sovereignty over his possessions outside the Philippines. The US made it plain to England in official statements in 1906 and in 1920 that Sabah belonged to the Sultanate of Sulu. Sultan Jamal ul-Kiram II died in 1936 without a direct heir. His niece and adopted child, Princess Piandao succeeded him as Pangyan (Sultana) of Sulu. But the some members of the Ruma Bichara (the Council of Elders) did not like the idea that their Pangyan was married to a non-Taosug. When Pangyan Piandao insisted that her husband, Datu Ombra Amilbangsa be declared Sultan, half of the Ruma Bichara withdrew their support for Piandao and instead proclaimed Piandao cousins Zein ul-Abidin II and Princess Tarhata as Sultan and Pangyan of Sulu. With two sultans and sultanas, the ownership of Sabah came into question. It became confusing even to the Americans and the British. To set the matter straight, the heirs of Jamalul Kiram II asked the Sabah Court to decide on who are the real heirs of the late Sultan. The so-called McCluskey decision in 1939 recognized the proprietary rights of the Sulu royalty to Sabah and named the heirs and their shares. Although the Philippines became independent in 1946 and Mindanao and Sulu were included in the Republic, Manila hold on the South was tenuous. It practically had no idea that Sabah belonged to Sulu. Or if it did, it made no action whatsoever to include Sabah to the Philippines. In 1957 England granted its Malay colonies independence and the Sulu royals, along with the Indonesian government, protested immediately. It was only then that the new Philippine Republic faced the Sabah issue. In 1961, Malaysia invited Singapore and Sabah to join the federation. The Sulu royalty again protested. The Sulu royals granted the Philippine President, Diosdado Macapagal, the authority to claim Sabah. Macapagal promptly opposed the Sabah annexation and sent a delegation to London. But neither Indonesia nor the Philippines could do anything because England declared that, with all its might, it stood firmly behind the creation of Malaysia. The US refused to back up Philippine claims and Indonesia had no one to turn to. President Marcos tried to get Sabah by hook or by crook but it ended with the fiasco now known as the Jabidah massacre, which inspired the Moros to resume the Moro Wars in the early 1970s. One of the results of the 1970s Moro Wars was the displacement of about half a million Moros to Sabah. Despite Sabah annexation to the Malaysian Federation and Sulu inclusion in the Philippine Republic, the State of Sabah continues to pay annual rent to the Sulu royals as specified in the1878 lease, which now amounts to a mere token. The Sulu royalty since 1957 refuses to accept the annual rent although it receives the letters of payment. In 1989, Sultan Jamal ul-Kiram III sent a formal notice to the Philippine government revoking the Sultanate authorization to the Philippine government to claim Sabah. In a press conference on September 4, 2002 at the Sulu Hotel, Sultan Jama ul-Kiram III reiterated its revocation of the Philippine government authority to negotiate for Sabah. SULTAN HARUN NARRAZID On February 22, 1884, Sultan Badarud Din II died. The sultanate was plunged into the maelstrom of civil war, waged by rival claimants to the vacant throne - Raja Muda (Crown Prince) Amirul Kiram (half-brother of the deceased sultan), Datu Alipud Din, and Datu Harun Narrazid (al Raschid). Hadji Butu persuaded the majority of the Taosug datus to support Amirul Kiram. The Spanish authorities intervened in the dynastic struggle and asked Raja Muda, Amirul Kiram and Datu Harun to go to Manila. Amirul Kiram ignored the Spanish invitation, for he was advised by Hadji Butu not to heed the Spanish summon. “Remember what happened to Sultan Alimud Din I in 1749,” he reminded Amirul Kiram. Only Datu Harun went to Manila. Governor-General Joaquin Jovellar, irked by the absence of Amirul Kiram, proclaimed him sultan in 1884. In exchange for Spanish support to his dynastic ambition, Harun pledge allegiance and friendship to Spain. Most of the Taosug people, angered by Harun’s subservience to the hated Spaniards, recognized Amirul Kiram as their legitimate sultan. The civil war continued: this time it was between two sultans - Sultan Harun and Sultan Jamalul Kiram II (dynastic name of Amirul Kiram). With the help of Spain, Sultan Harun won the bloody fight. He captured Maimbung (Kiram’s prime minister) remained at the coast to guard the pass to the mountain stronghold. In 1892, while his prime minister, Hadji Butu was in Sandakan settling certain land troubles with the British government, the energetic mother of Amirul Kiram, his cousin, secretly intrigued with the Spanish authorities to replace Sultan Harun and exile him to Palawan. On Dec. 16, 1893, Sultan Harun was forced to exile to Palawan. Upon his return to Jolo, Hadji Butu was persuaded by Governor-General Ramon Blanco to become once more prime minister of the new sultan, Amirul Kiram, who took the name Jamalul Kiram II when he ascended the throne in 1894. After Sultan Harun left Sulu and then settled to southern Palawan, he was given the authority to rule over the Muslim populace in Balabac, and other Southern Islands of Palawan including the present Municipalities of Brooke’s Point, Rizal, Quezon and Espanola. Because of his cogent leadership and creditable services rendered, he was acknowledged, loved, and respected by Palawan Muslims who later became his loyal and trusted followers. The Sultan established his main seat of settlement at Bono-Bono, Bataraza and a smaller one at Abo-abo, Espanola. Several settlements were put-up from Abo-abo downward south. Sultan Harun, aside from his loyal warriors, brought with him his family; his favorite sons Datu Bataraza and Datu Jolkiple were at their late teens when they settled in Bono-Bono. Because of his kindness, understanding, and sympathy over the welfare of the native Palaweños, his rule in a nutshell was a very successful one. He died and buried in Bono-Bono where his tomb serves as landmark in the said place. Datu Bataraza Narrazid being the eldest took over after the death of his father. Like his father, he ruled with prudence and tactfulness and continued the program of government of his great father. When the Americans took over the country, Datu Bataraza’s authority over his subjects was fully recognized and respected by the American Government. He became a good and trusted friend of Gov. Edward Miller. Because of the great trust and confidence of the Governor to Datu Bataraza, he was appointed Deputy Governor and given the title “Superior Datu of the Muslim” population in Palawan. The Governor then set the boundary of his territory from Barangay Salogon, Brooke’s Point down south. A monument erected in Barangay Salogon served as landmark of evidence of the decree signed by the Governor himself. Datu Bataraza married Diumratia and they were blessed with three sons, Sapiodin, Tahang, and Anzaruddin. The sons were still at their early teens when their father died in Manila. The remains of Datu Bataraza was brought back through the help of the Governor General to Bono-bono for solemn burial rites and ceremonies for a noble man. Datu Jolkiple, the younger brother of Datu Bataraza became the legal guardian of his nephew and took care of their educational needs. Since childhood, Sapiodin had shown outstanding performance over his two brothers in the field of intelligence and leadership. In 1967, Datu Jolkiple, the uncle of Mayor Sapiodin was elected as the second mayor of the municipality. His program of government was focused on a massive socio-economic program implementation. Education was also given priority attention during his term. SENATOR ALI BUTU, Prime Minister of Sulu Sultanate Hadji Butu was born in the Islamic City of Jolo in the year 1865. The exact date of his birth cannot be ascertained because the Muslim Filipinos do not keep track of time by the Gregorian calendar and also, customarily, they do not keep written records of births. Hadji Butu was of distinguished ancestry, for he was a descendant of Mantiri Asip, famous prime minister of Rajah Baginda, and the Muslim prince from Sumatra who conquered Jolo in 1390. True to the finest tradition of his family, he served as prime minister to various sultans of Sulu. Since early boyhood, Hadji Butu manifested his prodigious intellectuality. He began to study the Arabic language and the Qur’an (Koran) at the age of six and mastered them in four years time. Despite the turbulence of his time, highlighted by the bloody wars against the Christian Spaniards and Christian Filipinos, he never lost his passionate love for knowledge and peace. He witnessed Spain’s desperate attempts to conquer the Islamic Sultanate of Sulu and the successful resistance of his fighting people - the fearless Taosug warriors. On February 29, 1876, when he was barely 11 years old, a mighty Christian armada under the personal command of Admiral Jose Malcampo (concurrently Governor-General of the Philippines) attacked Jolo and captured it after a ferocious combat. Sultan Jamalul Kiram I and his Taosug army evacuated the city and continued their resistance to Spanish power in the mountains. The Taosugs were beaten in various battles, but they were never conquered. As the war against Christian Spain raged, Sultan Jamalul Kiram died and was succeeded by Jamalul A’lam I. On January 22, 1878, Sultan Jamalul A’lam, who needed funds to carry on the war against the Christian invaders, signed an agreement with two foreign adventurers - Baron Gustave von Overbeck (Austrian consul in Hongkong) and Alfred Dent (British trader) - wherein he leased his territory in North Borneo, called Sabah, for an annual rent of 5,000 Malayan dollars (US $1,600). On April 8, 1881, Sultan Jamalul A‘lam died, and was succeeded by Badarud Din II. Butu was then only 16 years old. Despite his tender age, he was designated prime minister to the new sultan because of his knowledge of the Arabic language and the Qu’ranic law. A year later (1882), he accompanied Sultan Badarud on a pilgrimage to Mecca, the Holy City of Islam in Saudi Arabia. This was his first visit to Mecca, and from this time on till his death he enjoyed the title of Hadji. In Mecca, Hadji fraternized with the learned priests and scholars of Arabia, thereby improving his knowledge of the Arabic language, religion, and jurisprudence. Upon his return to Jolo (together with Sultan Badarud) in January, 1883, he came to be recognized as the foremost Taosug authority on Islamic law and theology. The Spanish authorities, realizing the influence of Hadji Butu, launched a vigorous campaign to capture him. Eventually, after several weeks of jungle fighting, the elusive Hadji Butu was taken alive and brought to Jolo, where the new Sultan Harun cordially welcomed him and asked him to become his prime minister with the condition that the Sultan will stop the war against Amirul Kiram and rule the people in accordance with the noble tenets of Islamic faith. Shortly after Hadji Butu assumed the premiership under Sultan Harun, Governor-General Ramon Blanco visited Jolo and conferred with him on the restoration of peace and order in the sultanate. Convinced of the sincerity of the Spanish governor-general, Hadji Butu pleaded with Amirul Kiram and his followers to lay down their arms. Evidently, his peacemaking mission was successful because all hostilities ceased. Once more peace reigned over the war-torned sultanate. Under the able advisership of Hadji Butu, Sultan Harun ruled widely and well. He consistently refused Spanish demands to levy taxes in the sultanate for Spain for which reason the Spanish authorities became hostile to him. In 1892, while Hadji Butu was in Sandakan settling certain land troubles with the British government, the energetic mother of Amirul Kiram secretly intrigued with the Spanish authorities to replace Sultan Harun and exiled him to Palawan. On Dec. 16, 1893, Sultan Harun was forced to exile to Palawan. Upon his return to Jolo, Hadji Butu was persuaded by Governor-General Ramon Blanco to become once more prime minister of the new sultan, Amirul Kiram, who took the name Jamalul Kiram II when he ascended the throne in 1894. Two years later he accompanied the new sultan on a pilgrimage to Mecca. This was Butu’s second visit to Islam’s Holy City, which lasted one year. This time the Katipunan of Luzon was declaring a revolution against Spain to declare their independence. They joined force with Americans to oust the Spaniards in Luzon who after two years would be fighting them also. In April, 1898, shortly after Hadji Butu’s return to Jolo from Mecca, the Spanish-American War broke out. On May 1st, the American squadron under the command of Commodore George Dewey sank Admiral Montojo’s fleet in Manila Bay. On June 12, 1898, General Emilio Aguinaldo, who had returned to the Philippines from exile in Hong Kong aboard one of Dewey’s vessels, proclaimed the Declaration of Philippine Independence at Kawit, Cavite, and urged his people to resume their libertarian struggle against Spain which was temporarily halted by the “Pact of Biak-na-Bato.” On August 13, 1898 the American land forces under General Wesley E. Merritt, supported by the Filipino troops, crushed the Spanish army and captured Manila. Finally, on December 10, 1898 the Spanish-American War ended, with the signing of the Treaty of Paris. This treaty brought peace between Spain and the United States, but it ignited a more destructive conflict - the war for Philippine independence (1899-1902). Hadji Butu watched the portentous events in Luzon with keen interest. On May 19, 1899, while the forces of the First Philippine Republic under President Emilio Aguinaldo were courageously resisting the American invaders, two American battalions occupied Jolo. The following month, on August 20, 1899 Hadji Butu, representing Sultan Jamalul Kiram II, concluded a treaty with General John C. Bates. According to this so-called “Bates Treaty,” the Sultan of Sulu recognized American sovereignty and, in return, the United States recognized the sultanate as an American protectorate and agreed to respect the Islamic religion and customs (including polygamy and slavery) of the Taosug people and not to cede or sell Sulu or any part of it to any foreign country. A statesman of foresight and sagacity, Hadji Butu realized the futility of resisting American arms. For the sake of peace and to prevent unnecessary loss of lives and property in Sulu, he cooperated with the Americans and advised his people to accept American rule. On October 10, 1904, he was appointed by the American military authorities as assistant to the Military Governor of the province. Subsequently, on June 20, 1913, General John J. Pershing (Military Governor of the Moro Province) promoted him as Deputy District Governor of Sulu. In the same year the military rule in the Moroland was ended and the Department of Mindanao and Sulu was established. In December, 1915, Hadji Butu was appointed by Governor-General Francis Burton Harrison as senator, representing the 12st Senatorial District (Mindanao and Sulu). He was thus the first Muslim to sit in the Philippine Senate. He proved to be an able parliamentarian so that he was re-appointed senator by Governor-General Henry L. Stimson in 1928. The first bill sponsored by Hadji Butu in the Senate provided for the establishment of a Philippine Military Academy, a Philippine Naval Academy, and for compulsory military instruction in all schools and colleges in the Philippines. As a senator, Hadji Butu worked hard for more appropriations for the construction of more schools, hospitals, roads, and bridges in Mindanao and Sulu. One of Hadji Butu’s sterling qualities was his flaming love of the Philippines. He was a sincere advocate of Filipino nationalism - one country, one people, and one flag. Together with Manuel L. Quezon, Sergio Osmeña, and other Filipino patriotic leaders, he crusaded vigorously for Philippine independence during the American regime. He welcomed the Jones Law of 1916, for he considered it to be “a great step towards the attainment of the national ideal.” From 1919 to 1934, he campaigned for the independence cause in Mindanao and Sulu, urging the Muslim Filipinos to support their Christian brothers in the peaceful struggle for the restoration of Filipino freedom. He was senator from 1916-1931. Hadji Butu was blessed with four sons and eight daughters. On February 22, 1937, a year after his appointment by President Quezon as member of the Board of National Language (representing Mindanao and Sulu), Hadji Butu at age of 72 died of kidney ailment at his residence in Jolo. THE ROYAL BLOOD MUSLIM AND SLAVERY The sultanates emerged out of stateless societies conditioned by the character of the kinship society or barangay: since the head of the barangay was a datu, a man of high status and of exceptional bravery and wealth, he was able to extend his authority beyond the immediate kin group to the area or district. Many half-legendary accounts of the genesis of the sultanates mention the innovating elements whether Arab, Persian, or Islamized Malay traders, missionaries, or adventurers; invariably gain entry through the nobility, often by marrying the daughter of the leading chief. This was, for instance, the case with both Sharif Kabungsuwan - founder of the Sultanate of Maguindanao and Abu Bakar - chief architect of the Sulu Sultanate. They married women of the nobility and both were descended from aristocratic Arabs who married noble Malay women in Malaya. Most serious scholars regard these stories as semi-legendary, as they are based on local, though written, genealogies (tarsila, salsila or silasilah). There are, however, more prosaic accounts written by European observers who, though not present at the actual founding, were close enough to form reasonable accounts of the emergence of the sultanates. One of these accounts, written by the Spanish priest-historian Gainza parallels the ethno histories. The social institutions of these people must have been very similar to those of the rest of the Philippines Archipelago until some Arab missionaries and preached Islam to them. They established themselves in the Rio Grande (river in western Mindanao) were they were well received by a docile people. Introducing some religious practices, they local women, learned the native language, adopted many customs of the country and adjusted themselves to the social order. In time they were able to acquire slaves to increase their prestige until they were able to join the ranks of the datus (nobility). Working with more union, skill and coordination than the natives, and having slaves like them, they progressively increase their power and formed a sort of confederation among themselves until they were able to establish monarchy (sultanate) which they declared to be hereditary family and from which the native datus elected a sultan (king). If innovation was introduced mainly by the nobles of the traditionally stratified barangay or banua society, it is not surprising that it is most visible effects should be found among the nobility. The first major effect was the introduction of an internal differentiation in the nobility into those directly related to the line of the ruling sultan and those who were related to it distantly, or not at all. The most common titles for the members of the nobility are datu, pangeran, and salip (sharif). “Datu” appears to be proto-Austronesian or Malayan title being found in Fiji where it appears as ratu. It was the more common nobility title in pre-Spanish lowland Philippines. “Pangeran” is a Javanese title found in Mindanao and Sulu but more frequently in Borneo. The “Salip” or “sharif” is equivalent to the title “sayid” and both are Arabic in origin. The full title actually is “sayid sharif” which means “master and noble”. The Arabians generally use the first word, sayid, but Filipinos in Mindanao, Sulu, and Borneo have adopted the second, sharif or salip. These three titles refer to both persons and status groups and are the therefore in contrast to the title “rajah” (derived from Sanskrit) and “sultan” (derived from Arabic), which are office titles assumed only by individuals, not by a whole group. Despite the tenuous ties between sultan and chiefs or between the capital and outlying district, a certain amount of bureaucracy developed to ensure a minimum of integration. In Sulu, for instance, a state council (ruma bichara) was created with 6 to 9 members drawn from the more important chief religious leaders, and the richer and more prominent members (orangkaya) of the realm. A religious court (agama court) with judges (kadi), experts in Islamic law (shari’ah) and customary law (adat), was established. Some of these laws were put down in writing and promulgated. Agents, or panglima, of the sultan supervised execution of the laws, collected revenues for the treasury. The Sultanate of Sulu expanded and became not only a multi-village but complex and stratified poly ethnic state. The full-blown sultanate may be pictured as three concentric circles corresponding to three ethnic categories. At the center were the Taosug speakers, the dominant ethnic group in Sulu followed by the various Samal speakers. Then lastly, it was followed by the various traditionalist groups in Mindanao, Palawan and Borneo under the influence of both the Taosug and the Samal. The sultan, the royal datus, and the ordinary datus all came from the dominant Taosug. The Samals were generally commoners; their local village headmen and district chiefs were either rich commoners or Taosug datus (royal princes) who established themselves as chiefs in Samal areas. The traditionalists, who did not share the Muslim religion of the Taosug and the Samal, were regarded, like the slaves, as the lowest segment of the state society, almost outside the pale of “civilized” Muslim culture. Unlike the high-status titles of datu and salip, the gentry’s titles mantili (mantiri) and orangkaya were not passed on from father to son; the titles were either gained through achievement or conferred by some state officials. Although the commoners formed a distinct stratum in traditional society, their distinctiveness lay not in their possession of a transmissible status title, but in their lack of it. The basic contrast is between nobility and not commoner class. Finally, the slave’s class consisted of descendants of slaves, those captured in wars and piracy raids, or purchased from slave raiders and debtors. The Jama Mapun term for slave is Ata (Ayta/Ita), which is also used to refer to Negroid aborigines of Palawan where most slaves were captured. Both the Muslim nobles and commoners particularly the notables owned slaves. Slave-owning was an important factor in the stratification system, for a number of slaves not only enhanced one’s prestige and status but also contributed to political and economic power, as slaves could be put to work, used as retainers, or sold or exchanged for other forms of wealth. The social classification into nobles, commoners, and slaves created status groups or social strata. This implied an unequal distribution of political power and economic goods. Monopoly by the Taosug and Mapun datu and salip nobles of high-status titles went hand in hand with a virtual monopoly of power and wealth. Although this correlation was not absolute (some notables succeeded in acquiring some power and wealth) the correlation in traditional society was higher than that of contemporary Sulu society in general and the Jama Mapun sub-society in particular. Economic activity was concentrated on a mixture of farming, fishing, and trading. The Taosug and Mapun nobility left the tasks of farming and fishing to their subjects and slaves, while they did a combination of trading, raiding, and exploitation of the populations in the Christian settlements. Chinese, and later, European, traders frequented Sulu – one of the largest entrepots in Southeast Asia. The basis of Sulu’s exports was bird’s nest, trepang (sea slugs), pearl, and mother-of-pearl shell. Forest products such as rattan, bees-wax, and almaciga gum were collected from the traditionalist populations in the hinterlands and exported. Some idea of imports can be gathered from the reports of Dalrymple, a representative of the British East India Company, who visited Sulu in 1760. The natives, he wrote, were interested not only in cloth, but in “some iron and steel, and a little lead, some glassware; superfine broadcloth, yellow, blue, red and green, to the amount of 1,000 dollars”. Political activities may be grouped into three patterns. One was maintenance of foreign relations with the Chinese, English, Dutch, French and native principalities such as Brunei and Maguindanao. The second pattern was the struggle between various royal lines for succession to the office of sultan. The third pattern was constant effort of the datus to increase their political and economic power by factional maneuvers, by pirate raids, and by collecting revenue from subject populations in of Palawan and Borneo. The expansion of the sultanate was partly due to the activities of the datu and salip nobles who moved out of the political in-fighting to increase their political and economic fortunes. The normative values by which the people of the traditional society carried on their day-to-day life may be described as fundamentally religious rather than secular. The whole socialization process was geared toward a “cultured” style of life defined in terms of increasing conformity to the ideals of the Five Pillars of Islam, the ultimate aim of making a pilgrimage to Mecca to achieve the status of Hadji in the community. The identification of religion with culture led to that those without religion (agama) were pagan (kafir) and uncultured; and those who had a special degree of religious charisma were deserving of high prestige. Thus, the salip, who were believed to be descendants of the Prophet Muhammad, were revered and placed among the nobility. In short, the entire value system was built upon a syncretic understanding of Muslim religious ideals and practices. The Islamic sultanates of Sulu and Brunei flourished for nearly 400 years, from about 1500 to 1900. Sulu collapsed under the combined pressure of the Spanish, American, and British thrusts into the southern Philippines, while Brunei was dismembered by the British. Sulu, weakened by Spanish attacks and the loss of its Borneo territories, signed away its temporal power to the Americans (after the Spaniards lost in the Spanish-American War) in the Bates Treaty of 10 August 1899, which was confirmed in the Carpenter Treaty of 1915. Brunei yielded to British pressure and became a protectorate on 5 December 1905 but finally became independent kingdom in 1984. These fateful political events in the southern Philippines and Borneo were large-scale, precipitating changes that made their impact initially at the capitals, and ultimately at the lower levels of the districts and villages. This general context of the economic, political, cultural, and religious life of the Jama Mapun and Taosug, a part-society of the feudal states of Sulu and Brunei is how being understood. Finally, the 1935 Philippine Constitution banned all the titles of the nobility in the country by way of American democracy that not only further weakened the Sultan’s kingship and cultural nobility, but abolished slavery. But the legacy by the Arab traders and missionaries still remains the following: the religion of ISLAM, the Arabic language including the Arabic names still used by the Muslims, and their genealogical lineage to Prophet Muhammad and to Ishmael, the first born son of patriarch Abraham through the Egyptian slave Hagar. The Muslim populations as per Palawan census records are the following: 17,069 out of 236,635 population in 1970, 12,776 out of 162,669 populations in 1960, 8,614 out of 106,269 populations in 1948, 6,395 out 93,673 populations in 1939, 5,524 out of 69,053 populations in 1918 and 5,000 out of 46,615 populations of 1910. Finally, the Christians live now peacefully with their Muslim brothers and sisters in Palawan like the Molbog, Jama-Mapun, Taosug, Maranaw, Samal Bangingi, Ubian, Badjaw, Yakan and Palaw-an. And since 2005, all Filipinos regularly joined their Muslim brothers in the celebrations of Hariraya Eidel Fitr Mubarakh after the Ramadhan fasting. This is a good sign of more friendly and peaceful relationships with the two groups of Filipinos. So the Philippines in general and then Palawan in particular remained part now of the Islamic World Map of the Organization of Islamic Countries. And since the downfall of Islamic Manila on June 24, 1571 (annually celebrated as Manila Day) and until the present time for more than 400 years (plus the 700 years in Spain), the country hosted the Christian-Muslim wars, one of the longest battles in the world. However, the declaration by the Philippine Government of the official annual celebration of the End of Ramadhan as a Philippine Holiday since Nov. 4, 2005 signaled the beginning of P E A C E !
Posted on: Mon, 07 Jul 2014 13:13:27 +0000