ZAMBOANGA CITY, 4 April 2006 — A proposal to divide the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) in the southern Philippines is gaining popular support in islands southwest of mainland Mindanao, a prominent Muslim leader said yesterday.
Ustadz Shariff Julabbi said the proposal to separate the island provinces of Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi from the five-province ARMM would be the best way to go due to unavoidable ethnic differences and geographical constraints.
“Muslims in those areas want to separate from the ARMM because they do not see development projects and they do not see regional government officials going around and talk to them. They feel neglected. With this proposed law, we hope to rebuild and develop our own land,” Julabbi told Arab News.
Three members of the House of Representatives, Hadjiri Salapuddin of Basilan, Hussin Amin of Sulu, and Hermilando Mandanas of Batangas introduced the proposed division last month in House Bill 5369.
In an interview, Amin explained his reason for filing the proposed legislation: “The long history of the people of the Sulu Archipelago has left an indelible mark in their culture and tradition. While they share the same religion as the Maranaos, Maguindanaoans and other Muslims in Mindanao, they are a people apart with their own tongues, customs, traditions and ways of thinking.
The two other provinces under the Muslim autonomous region are Lanao del Sur and Maguindanao, and Marawi City, all in central Mindanao.
The Maranaos and the Maguindanaoans, who are from central Mindanao, are the biggest of the 11 ethno-linguistic groups in the southern Philippines and Palawan that embraced Islam long before Spanish colonizers came and introduced Christianity.
Known collectively as the Moro or Bangsamoro, these groups constitute about 20 percent of the total population of Mindanao and the clusters of islands near it, say officials.
The other groups are the Iranun (also known as Ilanun or Ilanum), Jama Mapun, Kalagan, Kalibugan, Sama, Sangil, Tausug and Yakan. The seafaring Sama Dilaut (also called Badjaos) of the Sulu Archipelago are mostly non-Muslims but anthropologists have included them in the Moro category because of their long traditional stay in the Sulu seas.
The Tausugs, who are from Sulu, Tawi-Tawi and Basilan, are the third biggest.
Amin complained that most of the ARMM infrastructure projects are in Maguindanao province, home of regional Gov. Zaldy Ampatuan.
“We see nothing in Sulu, or in Tawi-Tawi and not even in Basilan, but development projects are many in Maguindanao, and these infrastructure should benefit all in the ARMM,” he said.
Fatima Awali, a resident of Basilan, said: “I favor independence over autonomy, or similar to Malaysia, and definitely out of ARMM. There are no improvements, we cannot feel any improvement at all. We need change for the future of our children.”
Amin said majority of Sulu’s residents favor their own autonomy, and also Basilan and Tawi-Tawi. “This proposed law is based on the aspirations of the people in the three provinces and we are supporting them,” he said.
Amin, himself a Tausug, said House Bill 5369 also aims to revive the Sultanate of Sulu. But he said the role of the sultan of Sulu and North Borneo would be largely ceremonial, with power in the hands of state leaders.
At least 8 people claim to be the sultan of Sulu and North Borneo, but the most influential is Sharif Ibrahim Ajibul Mohammad Pulalun, who is a known descendant of Sultan Mohammad Pulalun, who ruled from 1844 to 1862.
Founded in the 1457, the sultanate stretches from a part of the island of Mindanao in the east, to North Borneo, now known as Sabah, in the west and south, and to Palawan, in the north. The Sultanate of Sulu obtained Sabah from the Sultanate of Brunei as a gift for helping put down a rebellion on Borneo Island. Mindanao, Palawan, and the islands of the Sulu Sea were colonized by Spain, which ruled the country.
The British leased Sabah and transferred control over the territory to Malaysia after the end of World War II.
Even after Borneo became part of Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur still pays an annual rent of 5,000 ringgit to the heirs of the Sulu Sultan Ismail Kiram.
