The Moro piracy in the Spanish era in the Philippines can be directly related to the issue on religion, the conflict between the Christians and the Muslims. The term Moro was derived from the word Moors who are a group of people that invaded the Iberian Peninsula back in the year 711. The Spanish used this term to associate the Muslim tribes in the southern part of the Philippines who resisted the foreign subjugation for a very long period of time (Prus, 2018). They were under the Datus and the Sultans, have set their own version of the society and governance.
Trade, relations, power and religion were factors that Spanish government wanted to take over and monopolize in the country. The Moro who has an established trading market with the nearby countries, the Arabs and the Chinese, pose a threat to the Spanish rule who wanted all these connections to be placed at their hands. The Moors are also incessant in their efforts to drive away the foreign powers. Their autonomy is something that they give a great amount of value. The constant clash of the two forces has occurred in significant numbers over the centuries.
According to Saleeby (1908) in the late 1500's until the 1600's, the Moro armada forayed the islands of Negros, Panay, Cebu, and the rest of the Visayas. The people residing in the reduccions fled to the mountain areas to save themselves from the raiders while the Spanish military and other natives defended the pueblos. These scattered attacks to the Visayas and Southern Luzon led to the request of the Jesuits to advance in the land of the Moros which entails a vision of a bloody war to attain the supreme power over them. The governor-general granted this and the Spanish military was able to kill 300 Moros and save Christian captives of about 120 individuals. The Moros would raid these Spanish settlements due to the fact that the colonizers are also serve as a threat since their political dominance is expanding in Manila, etc. The royal families residing in these areas are related to those in Sulu and Brunei therefore there is mutual tension on both parties.
The slave trade heightened the piratical raids to its peak in the 1600's to early 1800's (Non, 1993). This symbolizes the wealth and the power the group holds, depending on the number of slaves in captive. The effects of these involved the capture of independent voyages from one island to another and settlements are always on the edge of alertness to prepare any surprise attacks. The Spanish government and military forces countered these strikes by building stone forts, trenches and stone churches in which served as evacuation areas of the people. The locals introduced the 'pancaos' which is a sea crafts that were faster than the ships and boats of the Moros, and were made to chase the raiders away far from the settlements.
The raids stopped in February 11, 1851 when Jolo was taken under by Spain and a treaty was signed between the Sultan of Sulu and the Spanish officials. Despite this, smaller number of groups still continued their way of doing these attacks to neighboring areas. The effects of the Moro movement is that it continued, from the Spanish era it extended to the American occupation when the Americans want to infiltrate Mindanao also for power and religious reasons, and then to the Japanese time where the Japanese also tasted the ferocity of the Moros. Their autonomy is greatly emphasized, maintained
and protected by them, which can now be seen in the Bangsamoro autonomous region of the Philippines.
Their perseverance and the love of their own people and belief, embracing the Moro life, as they bring us to where we are now. The historical significance that they have imparted in each settlement in various islands in the Visayas and areas in Luzon altered the sequence of the story of these places and had led to the current state of the country. The terror, the wrath and the conflict that they have brought to the communities have left marks in the society be it in physical such as the fortresses and churches or the perception, the stigma that stuck in the society regarding the moros. They are relevant. There might still be a definite division between the Moros and other Filipinos, we are still connected through the history of our ancestors that are still breathing in our own veins. The richness of the conflict, the depth of the origin, and the interconnected wiring of our history has brought us together despite the discord of the two groups.
References:
Non, D. (1993).Moro Piracy during the Spanish Period and Its Impact. Southeast Asian Studies, Vol. 30, No.4. Accessed on 1the 14th of October 2019 at https://kyoto-seas.org/pdf/30/4/300403.pdf
Prus, D. M (2018). Who were the Moros? What were they fighting for? Accessed on 14th October 2019 at https://www.quora.com/Who-were-the-Moros-What-were-they-fighting-for
Saleeby, N. (1908). The History of Sulu. Manila: Classic Book Section. Accessed on the 14th October 2019 at https://historyofsulu.wordpress.com/2014/07/17/moro-raids/
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