The Muslim conflict which has been persistent in the Philippines for centuries has deep historical roots embedded in the transformational dynamics that shaped the political landscape of the Philippines, and in particular the southern islands of the Mindanao region. The Mindanao conflict is considered the second-oldest on earth, after the conflict between North and South Sudan.
Currently, the government is again negotiating a peace process in Mindanao after a number of failed attempts in the past. As the famous adage goes, “the past is bound to be repeated if it is forgotten.” A critical requirement for attaining lasting peace in Mindanao is to first understand the history of the conflict. As the Sun Tzu argued, there is no instance of a nation benefitting from prolonged war. This paper presents an overview of the historical events that shaped the growing conflict in Mindanao starting from the rise of Islam in the Philippines and an analysis of root causes for a deeper understanding of the conflict.
I. Introduction
II. Historical Overview
i) The Geo-Political Context
ii) Overview of the Muslim Struggle
III. Root Causes of the Conflict
i) Minorization of the Moros
ii) Politization of Religion
iii) Polarization of Muslim Leadership
iv) Chained autonomy
IV. Analysis
V. Conclusion
VI. Appendix
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