Mindanao History: Overlooked Or Disregarded In The Philippine Mainstream Education

Before, the utilization of storytelling or oral tradition was the primary medium for knowledge transmission (Seguin 8), but due to the emergence of ink and paper, texts became the basis of learning, teaching and continued preservation of the historical narratives. The presence of Historical textbooks serves as a representation of the country; it is a celebration of cultural diversity and ethnicity. Textbooks pave the way towards nation-building that allows students to be one with the society (Rendor 3). Despite what might be expected, what might occur if the medium that fills in as a dependable and reliable wellspring of data are the ones encouraging students with false or inadequate records? The Philippines has a vast, diverse and multi-cultural heritage that sets it apart from other countries. Regardless of that, Philippine history books utilized for essential training as well as in the larger scopes of the instructive framework have excluded events that occurred in Mindanao islands that center around the lives of the Moro and Lumad groups who were the first inhabitants of Southern Philippines (Gaspar).

The lack of Mindanao history in Mainstream Philippine Education creates a social divide between the Northern and Southern Narratives which can lead to the student’s ignorance of Mindanao’s contribution and the emergence of the Muslim Religion as an establishment of Cultural Identity (Lopez). Mindanao is mostly inhabited by Muslims which creates an invisible separation from the North who were mostly Catholics; its current state was still recovering from the Marawi Siege, and the presence of rebel groups in the area induce the perception of fear and violence. Certain misconceptions arise that dubs Mindanao as “A War Zone”; “An island with no heroes, natural resources, tourist spots and no significant contribution to the Philippine economy” or “Land Inhabited by Muslims and Terrorists” which lead to the negative stereotyping and “othering” of this region (Arguillas). In his book Muslims in the Philippines, Dr. Cesar Majul referred to “Moro” as an original derogatory label for early Mindanao natives compared to the Muslim Moors of North Africa; it is now a representation of the main Muslim ethnic groups in the Philippines. The Islamization of Mindanao was vaguely present in the school-used textbooks, the arrival of the Indonesian and Malaysian Muslim traders in Mindanao happened together with the establishment of Sultanates in Maguindanao and Sulu long before the 16th century when the Spanish Colonizers landed. Spain succeeded in the conversion of Luzon and most parts of Visayas into Catholicism, but they never controlled Mindanao (Schiavo-Ocampo & Judd 8).

In line with these, the observation of the absence of Lumads in historical narratives are also evident; they are non-Islamic groups who are said to be the original inhabitants of Mindanao whose lands are of high mining potential (Villareal 8). Additionally, one of the events that took place in Mindanao but never included in the Philippine historical textbooks was the Bud Dajo Massacre that was mentioned by President Rodrigo P. Duterte during his press conference last 2016 which went viral and instantly garnered around 18,000 reactions (Estremera). It was known as the “forgotten massacre” where American troops invaded and killed about 800-1,000 Moro villagers. Sadly enough, this event was non-existent in the Philippine Education System. Textbook errors are also inevitable especially in Elementary books such as "Ang Lahing Pilipino, Dakila at Marangal" by Pelingo, Sablaon and Mendoza that claims the tribes of Maranao belong in Sulu, Tawi-Tawi and Tausugs live in Lanao del Norte which is wrong since Maranaos are from Lake Lanao and Tausugs are from parts of Jolo (Estremera). In connection with this, Elementary books such as Lakbay ng Lahing Pilipino and Kultura, Kasaysayan, Kabuhayan fail to include the history of Islamization in Mindanao and the presence of Lumads.

The history textbooks populated by National Heroes such as Jose Rizal, Andres Bonifacio etc. failed to remind students of the Mindanao heroes such as Sultan Kudarat who made tactical strategies against the conquerors that turned out to be successful at the end (Tria). This can fill in as a feeble establishment of history because of the blunders and oversights that can prompt the inappropriate judgment and lack of awareness for the future students. Historians play a considerable part in history making, but they need to make use of the reachable sources and the “Historical Imagination” wherein historians are trained to perceive patterns and to weigh out information to add or subtract in a certain narrative because of the fragmented historical records (White 83-84). Regarding the Filipino writers, the lack of methodology during colonial periods is one of the reasons why the scarcity of factual evidence is prevalent (Larkin). Just like with the Mindanao history, omission of events is present with unsure motives of political agendas or self-propagandas in accordance with Hayden White’s view of emplotment as “encodation of facts contained in the chronicle as components of specific kinds of plot structures” (White 85) that can change the way how the audience sees the narrative which can imply a hidden tactical goal. The mere fact of “ignoring” Mindanao Narratives is alarming because of how it can significantly affect the nationalistic state of students, and their firsthand views of Mindanao that can create an idea of separation between the Northern and Southern Narratives since these students are more exposed and immersed to the Northern history. The lack of Filipino historians who focus on Mindanao history made a significant impact in today’s narratives, one of the known Mindanao Historian is Cesar Majul who wrote the “Muslims in the Philippines. ” Some others are Ruben Canoy, Salah Jubair (aka. Mohagher Iqbal), Datuk Michael Mastura, Rudy Rodil, Samuel K. Tan and Macario Tiu; these authors wrote texts about the Mindanao and Muslim History, but limited copies were only printed (Abinales). Lack of Mindanao history in textbooks can be a result of the unproportioned ratio of historians from the North and the South.

The struggle with these much-needed references was imminent because of the lack of resources since former historians didn’t have the proper foundations to write history compared to those of the western countries. The exclusion of Mindanao History and the errors that come along with it can significantly affect the educational foundation of the students that may later reflect on their judgments. It may lead to biased views towards the North and the constant fear towards the South because of the misconceptions being brought upon them by the same textbooks that are said to be the “avenue for learning. " The idea of Marginalization did not exist before but exists now because of the ideologies that stemmed from the negative stigmas in today’s generation. On the other hand, students are not the only ones affected but also the citizens of Mindanao since it's their heritage that is being overlooked or falsified in these textbooks. The emergence of discrimination and constant negative perceptions towards Mindanao can result if the conflict continues. The people of Mindanao are the only ones who truly know their culture by heart, but it is alarming if it will not reach the future generations. A significant cost is at stake if these stories remain untold because it’s like losing a huge part of one’s cultural identity. What’s worst is that if people choose not to do something about these, chances are that more parts of history will be forgotten. Taking everything into account, Philippine History course books should be gathered and evaluated to check the reliability. The textbooks utilized in the Educational System should be adjusted to remove the falsehood and build up the parity of the periods included without being one-sided. Updates and revisions ought to be done keeping in mind the end goal to coordinate Mindanao history which will counteract historical injustices and ignorance. Encouraging young writers to tackle and research more about Southern history can be a massive help in cultivating a better version of history textbooks that can serve and influence all the students. The government should shed more light on these issues and increase the laws like Republic Act No. 10086 aka. "Strengthening Peoples' Nationalism Through Philippine History Act" which empowers historical preservation through writing.

The commemoration of historical relics and preservation of previous Mindanao textbooks can open new opportunities for the historians to write more and for the publishers to reproduce enough copies to cater to a broader audience. The use of social media can create a platform about the enrichment of Mindanao history to spread awareness and appreciation through ways that are much more popular in the modern world. The diversity of the Philippine culture is impactful in education because it celebrates differences and harnesses the cultural awareness of the students. The understanding of history is what’s important; it should be treasured and not taken for granted. Altogether, efforts like these will raise social awareness which can cultivate and help bring upon peace and development for the betterment of the country. It will be such a waste if these parts of history will be continuously forgotten because it is also a part of the national identity of the Philippines which serves as a window to the past and a connection to the present that continuously shapes the country into what it is today.