Off to the south

On my flight to Zamboanga and then later on while riding the fast craft to Basilan I think: I have never questioned how any religion or faith is practiced. As a Christian, in my quiet moments, prayer has always been my constant companion. The rosary has carried a strong meaning for me as my main avenue to the Universal Mother. When I pray with the Muslims I raise both my hands, palms upward, and recite the Lord’s Prayer.

My religion has not prevented me from venturing into unknown territory. My being a Christian was never a deterrent to my attraction that I feel toward the islands of Muslim Mindanao. I have no religious prejudice because it was also religion that drew me toward the Muslims. The Muslims of Mindanao defy the Christian conventional image of Muslims with their wonderful variety of colors, ethnic groupings, nuances and even their respectfulness, evident in their greetings. After shaking hands, their right hand touches their left breast, and in Suluand Tawi-Tawi after handshaking, their hands go to their lips and hearts. Both greetings convey heartfelt sincerity. It is their version of the mano or a kiss on the cheek practiced in Luzon and the Visayas.

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Funny, but what has been engraved in their brother Christians’ psyche is the general idea that those who practice Islam have the privilege of getting four wives. Actually the Muslim women of the 20th and 21st century that I know are dominant, assertive, possessive and heaven protect their man if he exhibits fleeting, stealing glances at a veiled woman’s head or face. Islam is actually severity because it allows the cutting of thieves hands and the beheading of drug dealers. These speak of the harshness of their faith which seems to border on barbarism for many in the modern age. But my years of personal experience in Mindanao completely contradicts that picture of Muslims as religious fanatics and juramentados.

Venturing into the ARMM, where a rival religion, Islam, dominates, requires an open mind–and heart – to appreciate the uniqueness of its people and their creativity. Muslim Mindanao’s history is awash not only with tales of militant bravery and patriotism, but rich archeological evidence. Many areas in Mindanao with natural port features served as a hub for international trading. Foreign goods which have retained their beauty over thousands of years (mostly earthen or ceramic blue and whites from their China trade) have been discovered in places around Mindanao, indicating a very high level of culture and aesthetic appreciation.

Thus, it pains my heart to note that the status of the Muslims in Mindanao has deteriorated to large scale poverty. And that between the Christians and Muslims, violence and lack of tolerance abound. Economic development has lagged behind over the last few centuries especially in Marawi City. The Christian and Protestant dominated society and government must have worked against the interest of Muslim Filipinos. Instead of elevating Muslims to rarefied position in our economic and political landscape, the heroic struggle to remain free from foreign masters resulted in their alienation from mainstream society. Foreigners conquered not only political but their belief system as well. This goes for the whole island because surely we were a highly civilized and orderly society before the arrival of the fair race. Though both Western countries and their remote-control governments have left the Philippine shores, the conditioning of their values and preferences have dramatically altered what is native to us. Though physically far from us, Spanish and American influences still pervade.

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It is simply too late to address the problem by asking to return to a time that has passed. But it is not too late to understand where the problems started, how they started and why they persisted despite the exit of European and American masters. There is in Mindanao a festering drama that finds expression in massive violence every so often. That drama must be scripted differently from its historic pattern or the cycle of violence will intensify and destroy more lives. The re-writing of that script cannot be done effectively without a clear appreciation of a fateful recent historical process and its psycho-social dimensions.

It must be the Muslim way which does not separate religion from governance, where religion provides the guidance for their constitution. Patriotism studies, beauty, culture, adventure initially connected me to Muslim Mindanao. It did not take long for me to be drawn into the political scenario. Much as I would have wanted to stay clear of the politics of Mindanao, I realize that it is impossible to isolate oneself from it. For that matter, any Manila resident, preferably a public official, is misconstrued there as being able to assist through any of offices in Manila where the seat of power and decisions are made. And politics can be messy in Muslim Mindanao but so it is in other islands in the Philippines. This means that I inherited friends–and their enemies as well. But practice makes perfect and with strong interest in the culture of the Muslims it necessitated my having to relate with Muslims in Tarlac and even to those in Isabela Province in Cagayan Valley, the Maharlika Village in Taguig and the two Quiapo barangays in Manila.

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Sadly the desire to remain Muslim may never find fulfillment in a Christian-dominated society. Can Christians afford to constantly expend resources and lives to keep Muslims and Islamic beliefs quiet in their own corner in the south? No. After so many years of conflict, of lives destroyed and wasted, of the millions and billions of pesos spent–I wonder how much more will have to happen and be spent before we come to the realization that we can compromise and educate ourselves and our Muslim brothers and sisters. As well as begin to trust their valuable friendships which wouldn’t cost our government as much.

May we continue to discover tolerance in ourselves.