Tag Archives: Davao Native Tribes

The Social Scene in Davao 1900-1945

The years 1900-1956 saw the coming to Davao of more and more foreign migrants, from far away lands, and domestic migrants, from other parts of the Philippine Archipelago, seeking wealth, freedom, and a better life. The population of Davao increased with the influx of these migrants. such a situation made Davao a society of immigrants, who dared explore new frontiers.

By the time the Americans came to Davao as a new colonial power at the turn of the 19th century, Davao was already peopled by the indigenous ethnic tribes found in the interior of hinterland; by the Muslim settlers, found along the the coasts; and by Christian Filipinos (the descendants of Davao’s first Filipino Christian settlers of 1818 and the Christian Filipino migrants from Luzon and the Visayas, who migrated to Davao to escape political persecutions in their provinces), army deserters, a few fugitives, and the foreign migrants (Chinese, Indonesians, Hindus, Bombays, Syrians, Lebanese) who inhabited the cabacera or town proper.

Davao is a province of many ethnic tribes. Ethnic division among the local population in the community arose as a matter of historical development. The different ethnic tribes had already formed their own communities. Each tribe is different from the other tribes. There was cultural interaction among tribal communities. Their activities were determined by the social practices within their communities. They retained their own languages and their traditional way of life.

The indigenous ethnic tribes are the Atas, Bagobos, Guiangans, Tagakaolos, Bilaan, Manobos, Mandayas, Mansakas and other who live in the interior or hinterland.

The Muslim inhabitants of Davao came from Maguindanao, Cotabato and other parts of Mindanao and Sulu. The Davao Muslims were observed to have the same customs as the other ethnic tribes except that they abstain from eating pork. they were not feared, because of their isolation and their small number. They inhabited the coast of navigable rivers because their homes were small boots. Davao Muslims were nomadic and scattered themselves along both sides of the river and did not form villages, unlike the other ethnic tribes. Their occupations were fishing and trading. Among the Muslims, the effects of public and private education were slowly felt. Although these Muslims regard the Southern Islands as their ancestral homeland, they are now minority in the area because of Christian migration, wherein they somehow suffered systematic social disadvantage.

Both the indigenous ethnic tribes and the Davao Muslims are now exposed to Western culture. Most of the indigenous tribes now dress like other Christian Filipinos and only wear their elaborate traditional clothing during rare occasions like fiestas. But the Davao Muslims, like those in other parts of Mindanao, remained faithful to their Islamic religion and native traditions, as well as to their native costume, the malong. They are no longer polygamus and slaveholders. There are no more juramentados among them. Even in their language, the indigenous tribes and the Muslims are now conversant in Tagalog, Visayan and English.

To promote community life among the nomadic indigenous tribes and the Muslims and to break their migratory habits, the newly arrived Americans, who were able to settle and acquire undeveloped lands, encouraged these tries to settle in fixed communities. Those who were in the highlands were transferred to the coasts and provided labor to the newly opened plantations of the Americans. But the natives, especially the Bagobos, did not like living in the plantations. The Chinese were far more numerous than the Americans and other migrants.

Established Communities and their Social Organizations

It is said that people are the greatest assets of a community. Without them there can be no society and without society no community can exist.

The early American community in Davao was composed of former soldiers-turned-settlers/planters, school teachers, Protestant missionaries, engineers who built bridges and roads, government officials and their families. They look active part in the different social activities in the community.

The socio-cultural influences of the American were the democratic way of life, public education and the Protestant Religion. In 1903, Rev. and Mrs. Robert Black were sent by their home church in the United States to Davao upon the request of the pioneer American planters and congregational missionaries in the primitive and pestilential Davao Gulf area.

More and more pioneer settlers acquired undeveloped lands. They developed the land into plantations that started the plantation economy in Davao. most of these plantations that started the plantations economy in Davao. Most of these plantations were located around the Davao Gulf area.

The Americans settled in their coastal plantations. The wives of some planters described life in the frontier community as joyful, despite hardships and deprivations. Every so often, they would board launches, which plied the Davao Gulf to make business with the native inhabitants in the interior. They bought abaca and sold things that they had.

Clubs were organized in the community to keep alive a vital and invigorating community spirit. In the town proper or cabecera, an American Club was organized where, on weekends, it served as the gathering place for lonely planters and their families coming from the coast plantations. The club became the center of social activities and a place for Americans to relax and share experiences with one another. People in the poblacion lived simply, with no hotels and no recreation centers, except one cinema house, owned by Jerry Roscom, an American Settler.

The town proper had for its inhabitants mostly the Visayan Christians, who were recruited by the American and Filipino migrant planters from the Visayas to work on their newly-opened plantations and the third generation descendants of the first Christian settlers of 1848. The other inhabitants were the foreign migrants like the Chinese, Hindus, Bombays, Syrians, a few Americans,and some Japanese.

American Cultural policies were heavily concentrated on public education. Public Schools were established and opened on both on the elementary and secondary levels in the town proper and outskirts . In the beginning, school officials and teachers were Americans, but later, the Filipinos took over after they were trained to teach. But most of the indigenous ethnic tribes resisted education. School officials and teachers exerted efforts to reach them for the education of their children. Extension classes were opened in the mirror to reach the most isolated tribes.

During the period, there was only one public elementary school and one public secondary school, the Davao High School, in the poblacion proper. Both schools were first located at Magallanes Street. The only elementary school in the poblacion proper, the Davao Central School, was opened in the early 1920. In the outskirts, the first school was put up to Daliao, being the center of development in 1918. When the Sta. Ana area in the poblacion was developed, another elementary school was established which was the Sta. Ana Elementary School.

The first private schools at the time were: the Immaculate Conception Institute (now University) for girls, founded by the RVM Sisters: St. Peter’s school for boys (first handled by the Jesuits and later by the P.M.E priests); and the Davao Institute which was established by Mr. Godofredo Duremedes. Now at Claveria Street in the vicinity of the Awad building.

The Immaculate Conception College was a Catholic school originally established for girls. It was managed by the Religious of the Virgin Mary (RVM), a congeregation founded by a Filipina, Mother Ignacia del Espiritu Santo. The ICC was founded by three pioneering RVM Sisters in 1905. These sisters laid the foundation for a Mission School here in Mindanao. A year after they arrived, a formal school, St. Peter’s Parochial School, was opened.

As the Population grew, more schools were opened. Fresh high school graduates were hired to teach elementary school pupils because of the shortage of teachers. The school’s Division Superintendent then, Mr. John Stumbo, even recruited fresh graduates of the Zamboanga Normal High School, Class 1937, to teach in Davao.

During the period of the 1920’s the Japanese community grew and developed in Davao. Ohta Kyosaburu became one the leaders of the Japanese community. It was also during this period that the Japanese colony in Davao continued to prosper. A self-contained community had developed. There was the Japanese School, built on one of the main streets (present site of the University of Mindanao along Bolton St.); clinics and hospitals (like the Mintal Hospital), staffed by Japanese doctors and Nurses, were opened; newspapers came direct from Japan; Japanese shops and banks were opened and Japanese-style houses were built and also Japanese entertainment parlors were opened. In March 1920, an annex of the Manila Consulate of Japan was opened in Davao and housed in the site where the present University of Mindanao Gymnasium is located.

The Japanese community was well-organized and self-contained. the Japanese settlers were observed by other inhabitants as industrious, cooperative, thrifty, and obedient to laws. The Japanese community established the Japanese Davao Association, which served as the center of their activities. The association coordinated the social interests of the Japanese settlers. It was organized to assure better living conditions for the members and their families. It also provided financial and medical assistance to those in need of help and extended educational benefits to the member’s children. Primary and secondary schools were built and maintained by the Japanese Davao Association in the town proper and on the outskirts, patterned after the prevailing system in Japan, with Nipongo as the medium of instruction.

Michael E. Dakudao, a Doctor of Architecture by profession (he finished his Masteral and Doctoral degree in Architecture at Tokyo University in Japan), had this to say about the Japanese in Davao…;

While in Davao, the Japanese adhered to the whole fabric of Japanese customs and traditions and they introduced dominant institutions towards maintaining a high consciousness of the Japanese way of life. The Nippon Jin Kai (Japanese Association), which functioned as the governing body of the Japanese nationals, was founded on May 1, 1916. The first Japanese Consulate building was constructed in 1920. By 1936, a total of 12 Japanese Primary Schools were established. Regarding the Japanese religion, shrines and several temples were built on the areas where the Japanese Settled. The first modern hospital in Davao, the Ohta Development Company Hospital in Mintal, was built by the Japanese.

Mintal was known then as “little Nagasaki” because there were more Japanese residents there than Filipinos. Japanese schools were opened where only Japanese children were enrolled. The Mintal Hospital was opened, with Japanese doctors and Japanese nurse employed. Only a few Filipino doctors were hired, like Dr. Santiago P. Dakudao, Sr. and Dr. Juan Santos Cuyugan, to name a few.

The Japanese community also constructed and maintained private roads which were also opened to the public without charge. The number of Japanese residents in Davao, ad recorded in 1937, totaled 15, 150.

There was communal exclusiveness among the Japanese settlers that prevented their integration into the mainstream of Davao society. Only a few married native women.

During the late 1920s and the middle of the 1930s, the town population was small. The Dabawenyos then active in social life were the third generations descendants of Davao’s first Filipino Christrian settlers of 1848, who came with Oyanguren in the latter’s “conquest”of Davao. These Dabawenyos, aware of the social role they had to play, put up organizations to embrace the natives of Davao, as well as the migrants who decided to make Davao their home. They organized the “Hijos de Mindanao“, which was later changed to “Hijos de Mindanao y Sulu“, to include the Sulu Muslims in Davao under the Leadership of Davao Kanapia with whom the “Hijos developed a strong brotherhood. These Dabawenyos had their annual affairs, usually held as picnics. These affairs were sort of a big family gatherings of Dabawenyos, attended by families and their children, including household helps and friends. They sang Dabaw folk songs under the talisay trees and coconut groves by the beach (as recalled by Noning Lizada, a Dabawenyo historian, in a write-up). the young Dabawenyos studying in Manila organized the “Davao Club”. Whenever the Governor of Davao, Sebastian Generoso, was in Manila he made visits to the Davao Club members.

In the 1930s and early 1940s, as groups of adventurous Filipinos from Luzon, Visayas and other parts of Mindanao came to Davao, after hearing of the good fortune Davao offered, the teen-aged children of the “Hijos de Mindanao y Sulu” formed the “Tayo-Tayo” Club in the town and took as members other children of their ages, regardless of regional origins. This club because the social group of the young and was regarded as the youth club of the time.

In the late 1940s (1945-1946), when World War II ended, the Dabawenyos who pursued their studies in Manila thought of organizing themselves and formed the Club Dabawenyo. Yearly, the members of the club celebrated in Manila the June 29 feast of St. Peter.

The late Atty. Manuel G. Cabaguio, a prominent Dabawenyo, who enroleld in the year 1915 at the San Pedro convent PARVOLITO class, has this to say about the San Pedro Parish, said to be the biggest parish then in Mindanao:

The San Pedro Parish included the present area of the City of Davao, Davao del Sur, the sea coast portion of Davao Oriented of what is now Lupon and Governor Generoso and of Davao del Norte up to the boundary of Agusan. And this parish was served by two and at times, by three priests and two brothers, whose duties were to take care of the church and the convent.

Every year one priest, usually it was the associate priest, went out to evangelized the natives. These visits usually lasted for ten days because of the inadequacy of the transportation. There were no vehicles and the roads were only trails through forest and ravines.

During fiestas, the priest said masses and baptized natives even without the benefit of religious instruction as required now. In the baptism it was the practice to use the surnames of the padrinos who were selected from the prominent people of the community. The trips of the priest to the coastal towns and the hinterlands were dangerous and tiresome. Of course food preparation was excellent and delicious but the priest and his inseparable sacristan had to sleep on bamboo floors. Marriages and baptisms were mostly free unless the padrino happened to be very influential in the community.

The town plaza in the cabecera called the Plaza Oyanguren, now known as Osmeña Park, was a part of the church property until the year 1917 when the first Civil Governor, the late Eulalio Causing from Cebu, requested Fr. Rebull to relinquish church claims on the said portion.

The random recollection of many events during the early Davao days narrated by old-time migrants helps one learn about Davao’s past. One such old-time migrant is Elena Iñigo, known as Aling Nena to the Dabawenyos and the mother of the present Dean of the College of Law of the Ateneo de Davao University. Atty. Hildegardo Iñigo. Aling Nena comes from a Tagalog family that migrated to Davao in the year 1905. She recalls that during the early 1900s there was peace everywhere in Davao. One could sleep soundly at night. People all over Davao seemingly knew one another. She talked of migrants from Luzon who permanently established residence hereabouts. She not only talked of people but also of activities like the arrival of ships from Manila once a month that gave Dabawenyos happiness.

The Cebuanos, Tagalogs, Boholanos, Ilocanos, and other domestic migrants put up their own social organizations. To quote former Judge Pedro C. Quitain, a Batangueño and a Davao old timer, in a written interview he stated that…

On or before 1927 life in Davao was rather dry in that there was not much social intermingling among the people. This could have been due to the diversity of the social outlook among people who come from various sectors of the country. The Visayans obviously socialized among themselves — the Cebuanos, Boholanos, Capizeños, Ilocanos and Antiqueños did the same. They kept themselves in a rather clannish way. Among those from Luzon, the Ilocanos displayed a more prominent clannish disposition compared to the Tagalogs, the Bicolanos, and the Kapampangans who appeared to have developed a certain degree of oneness in more ways than one.

As early years as 1924 the Caveteño migrants from Cavite in Luzon formed their social organization which was called the Buklod ng Cavite. The organization was established in order to help them intermingle among themselves during their free time time and also to help fellow Caviteños who came to Davao for the first time. After the day’s or week’s work, attending to their business of selling meat, fish, and vegetables in the market attending to their transportation business, they gathered in the residence of the transportation business, they gathered in th residence of the Angeleses in Claveria street (one of the three oldest street in Davao) to socialize. The residence was not along the main street but in the “looban” (interior) which served as the liason of all adventurous Caviteños who are the grandparents and parents and parents of the younger Caviteños now, imbued in their children the value of education and discipline. Parents sent their children to school for formal education. By 1926 up to the 1930s, according to surveys, there were already more or less 20,000 Caviteño residents in Davao.

The migrants from the Visayas also formed their social organizations, the purpose of which were also the same as those of the other migrant organizations. The Waray Waray Association was organized by the Leyteños and Samareños who speak the Waray dialect. Like the other migrants’ associations they met and had social affairs.

Masonic ideals and practices were introduced in the province of Davao during the early part of the American regime when Frank Carpenter, and American Mason, was Civil Governor and Celestino Chavez, a Filipino Mason, was Deputy Governor for Davao. It was in 1918 when a group of Masons met for the first time to discuss the idea of forming a Masonic Lodge in Davao. With proper dispensation from the Grand Lodge of the Philippine Lodge of the Philippine Islands, the Sarangani Lodge No. 50 was organized in 1919 in the town of Davao.

The members of the Masonic group (Sarangani Lodge No. 50) indulged themselves in charitable and humanitarian activities. The influence of Masonry in the Davao society became predominant and noticable. Their annual installation of officers had always been a significant social affair, attended not only by Masons but also by non-Masons with respect. They say Masons contributed much to the social and cultural development of Davao.

Another social activity of activity of great significance was the establishment of the Davao Mason’s Women’s Auxillary composed of wives of Davao Masons. This organization sponsored wholesome social gathering such as grand balls, picnics, excursions or birthday parties that promoted goodwill, unity and fellowship among Davao Masons and Non-Masons. Through this organization, the Davao Puericulture center and the Davao Women’s Club were organized to promote and advance the interest and welfare of mothers and babies.

Festivals were social affairs involving the community. The more popular festivals were religious in nature. The Catholics celebrated yearly the feast of St. Peter every 29th of June. When Fiesta time came people from the outskirts trooped to the town proper to hear Mass in the morning at San Pedro Church and stayed up to late in the afternoon for the procession in honor of the patron saint, St. Peter. Other religious festivals were held on New year, Christmas, and other holy days of obligation. The majority of the Filipino Christian migrants in Davao were Roman Catholics and only a few were Protestants. The foreign migrants also had their festivals. The Muslims also observed their religious obligations.

The organizer of the Protestant church in Davao, related to the United Church of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP), was Rev. Robert Black, the Evangelical Church, who was sent here in 1903 by the Board of Commissioners for Foreign Mission, now the United Church Board for World Ministries.

The Chinese migrated to Davao, earlier than the Japanese. They had already traded with the native tribes long before the Spaniards came to Davao. They first came as traders bringing with them goods in exchange for Davao Products. But later, when they found great opportunities for a better life and business, they settled here permanently at the turn of the 20th century–the early years of the American regime. These migrants from China intermingled with the other inhabitants of the town proper or cabacera.

The Chinese established their community in the capital town. They organized the Davao Chinese Educational Association with the aim of giving their group the opportunity to be educated. They also established and opened the Davao Chinese High School which was open to both rich and poor. Filipino children were also accepted as students.

By 1923, the Chinese in Davao increase to over a thousand in number, coming from the provinces of Fookien and a Kwangton (Canton), China in search of better opportunities and good life. On June 2, 1923, the Consul General of the Republic of China to the Philippines, Hon. Chao Kuo Shian, arrived in Davao for the first time on an observation tour. Upon seeing the big number of Chinese, school for the children. The proposal was welcomed by the populace. On June 6, a meeting of the Chinese residents was called by the Honorary Consul. During the meeting, the Chinese Educational Association was organized, with Mr. Chua Chin San elected as the First Board Chairman over a board membership of twelve persons. Later, both Mr. Te and Mr. Chua worked for the recruitment of funds and teachers and government approval for the school. On June 3, 1924, the school opened in a rented house on San Pedro Street, with two classrooms to thirty pupils. Because of the dire need for a school site to put up a school building, the Board approached Mr. Juan Lim Villa Abrille who immediately donated a one hectare lot in Sta. Ana Avanue which became the site of the Davao Chinese High School.

Davao is a cosmopolitan community where ethnic groups have preserve their languages and customs. The foreign and the Christian Filipino migrants in the town proper/cabecera maintained a social existence wholly different and distinct from that of the native indigenous tribes and Muslims. Many of the indigenous tribes encountered discrimination and suffered social disadvantages. The gap between the groups was caused by the differences in education, social background, wealth, and social standards. The native indigenous tribes lagged behind the Christian Filipinos and foreign migrants in matters of educational attainment. The Davao Muslims were in an intermediate position culturally between Christian Filipino migrants and the indigenous ethnic tribes.

As an immigrant society, Davao still attracted people from other parts of the Philippines and other lands until the later part of 1945. The people of Davao had proven that people of many different backgrounds could live together in peace and harmony.

Resistance and Struggle of Lumad Tribes of Mindanao 1903-1935

In written works on the struggles of Filipinos against colonial America, one is lucky to find a single mention of the participation of the tribal peoples of Mindanao. Nothing is written about it in textbooks in Social Studies or in Philippine History, and we are not aware of any comprehensive study being undertaken about it today. This paper attempts to fill this vacuum. This is a product of a modest research on the resistance of the Lumad against the unwanted intervention of colonial America and on the lives of these tribal people.

As a name referring collectively to the indigenous peoples of Mindanao who are distinct from the Bangsa Moro, “Lumad” is fairly recent. Its use requires a brief explanation. At the Founding Congress of Lumad Mindanaw in Kidapawan, Cotabato in June 1986, fifteen our of the estimated eighteen tribes of the non-Muslim indigenous peoples agreed to use the collective name “Lumad.” This is a Cebuano word which means indigenous or native. Having no common word with which to call themselves, and since Cebuano was the lingua franca they used in their conferences they readily agreed to adopt the name.

The following ethnolinguistic groups comprise the Lumad: Ata, Bagobo, Banwaon, B’laan, Bukidnon, Higaunun, Mamanwa, Mandaya, Mangguwangan, Mansaka, Subanon, Tagakaolo, T’boli, Tiruray, Manobo and Kalagan. Also excluded from these are indigenous peoples already integrated with the majority population such as the Surigaonons of Surigao, the Butuanons of Butuan, Misamisnons in Misamis Occidental and Oriental, and the Dapitanons in Zamboanga del Norte.

Today, the terms Lumad and Bangsa Moro are recognized by law, as provided for in Republic Act 6734, otherwise known as “An Act Providing for an Organic Act for the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.” For the purpose of this paper, it will suffice to give a general indication of the various provinces where the different ethnolinguistic groups were settled during the first decade of 20th century. We will use the present names of the provinces and their respective borders. Although there were only nine provinces in Mindanao at the end of the first decade of the 20th century and today there are twenty-two, the general locations of their settlements have not changed much.

The earlier provinces were Agusan, Surigao, Davao, Cotabato, Bukidnon, Misamis, Lanao, Zamboanga and Sulu. The only change has been their partitioning into: Agusan del Norte; Agustan del Sur; Bukidnon; Surigao del Norte, Surigao del Sur; Davao del Norte, Davao Oriental, Davao del Sur; Cotabato, South Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao; Misamis Occidental, Misamis Oriental, Camiguin; Lanao del Norte, Lanao del Sur; Zamboanga del Norte, Zamboanga del Sur; Basilan; Sulu, Tawi-tawi, and the chartered cities of Davao City, Iligan City, Zamboanga City and others.

Let us start from the east and proceed southward.

The Mamanwas inhabited the area around Lake Mainit where Agusan del Norte and Surigao del Norte are situated. From Surigao City they would filter down to the east coast, until the Tago River in Surigao del Sur. Next to the Mamanwa were the Mandaya, who had lived along Tago River in Surigao del Sur down to Mati, Davao Oriental; then westward until the head of Agusan River in Agusan del Sur and to Salug River in Davao del Norte.

In Davao Oriental and Davao del Norte would be found in the Mansaka, Mangguwangan, and the Dibabawon, all close kin of the Mandaya. At the lower portion of Davao Oriental, particularly at Cabo de San Agustin, dwelt Manobo, and Tagakaolo residents. In the island of Samal, which is now part of Davao del Norte, resided the Isamal who, in the accounts of Spanish missionaries, were a mixture of Samal and Mandaya, but not Muslim. In the western part of Davao del Norte approaching Davao City there lived the Ata, and from their territory downward to Davao del Sur would be found the Guiangga, Tagbanwa, and Bagobo.There were also Moros in Davao but they settled along the shoreline of Davao Gulf. More specifically, out of the seventeen communities noted in 1870, the Moros lived by themselves in seven and intermingled with the Mandaya, Bisaya, Bagobo and B’laan in the last ten.

Let us return to the north. In Agusan del Norte and Agusan del Sur, especially along the entire lenght of Agusan River, there was a great concentration of Manobo people. There were also the Banwaon in Agusan del Sur. The western part of Agusan del Norte was the starting point of the Bukidnon habitat, crossing the north of Bukidnon and the entire stretch of Misamis Oriental , up to Iligan City. To the southern part of Bukidnon the Manobo inhabitants formed a bridge settlement towards the Manobo of Cotabato, and the Ata-Manobo around Davao City. There were no Lumad living in Lanao except some Higaunon (or Bukidnon) in Iligan City. At the Bukidnon-Lanao border area, particularly in the present municipalities of Talakag and Pangantukan, there were also Maranao residents.

Aside from the Manobo and the B’laan, the T’Boli (South Cotabato) and Tiduray or Tiruray were also Cotabato inhabitants. It was also in Cotabato where the Maguindanao and the Iranun peoples were concentrated, especially in Maguindanao province. In South Cotabato and Davao del Sur were to be found Sangil settlements.

The entire Zamboanga peninsula, which now consists of the three provinces of Zamboanga del Norte and Sur and Misamis Occidental, has been referred to as the traditional territory of the Subanon, although Zamboanga del Sur has long been home to the Maguindanaon, Iranun, and Sama and the western part of Zamboanga del Norte, especially where the municipalities of Siocon, Sibuco, and Siraway are situated, has become Tausug and Sama homeland. From the Sama and Subanon a mix has emerged, the Kalibugan ethnolinguistic group. They also consider themselves as Moro.

As a whole, the Lumad in the first decade of the 20 th century lived in territories that now correspond to the seventeen provinces. No Moro mixed with the Lumad in Agusan, Surigao, Misamis and Camiguin. But they did in Davao, Bukidnon, Cotabato, Lanao del Norte and Zamboanga. Based on the 1903 and 1918 censuses, it is clear that the Lumads were not a minority in the provinces of Agusan, Bukidnon and Davao. If the Christians were a majority in Surigao, Misamis and Zamboanga, this had its beginnings during the Spanish period when the colonialists maintained their bases in these places and it was here that the missionaries attracted several natives, Lumad and Moro alike, to be baptized. In Cotabato, the Moro were clearly in the majority.

An Overview of Indigenous Resistance in Mindanao and Sulu, 1903-1935

The colonialists happened to be conscientious reporters of their accomplishments and one of the most detailed accounts of the past are the official reports of the Philippine Constabulary (PC). Foremost among these is The Story of the Philippine Constabulary, 1904-1935 written by Harold H. Elarth. He was a veteran of what they proudly described as the Mindanao Campaigns. He started as a lieutenant and towards the end of his story was already a colonel. His book is a collection of reports from different parts of the Archipelago. Those about Mindanao contain his own experiences, or those of his friends and comrades in arms in the Constabulary. Although the bias was obvious in his write-ups, one can discern the role of their adversaries, whom they frequently engaged in combat. They themselves can serve as mirror in our analysis of the details we need.

The Philippine Constabulary was organized by the Americans in 1901 purportedly to maintain peace and order. Its regular constables consisted of indigenous Filipinos, but its officers were all Americans, and remained so until 1935. In this matter, the colonialists were able to maintain their interest without having to employ Army Regulars or American Volunteers.

Let us first look at the summary of the events from 1903 to 1935, then discuss each of the more significant incidents of resistance. In the first decade alone of American Occupation in Mindanao, until as late as 1914, there were already fierce engagements against the local people, an eloquent indication of the intensity of the indigenous peoples’ resistance in Mindanao and Sulu against the new colonizers. There were hundreds of raids directed against forths and 26 uprisings occurred which , on account of their magnitude, the Americans categorized as “military campaigns.” Most of the engagements took place in Sulu, Lanao and Cotabato. But uprisings also erupted in Davao, Agusan, Bukidnon, Misamis and Zamboanga. The second decade was not as intense although sporadic fightings also occured.

But in the third decade, especially towards 1928, the PC was busy again. Earlier, until 1914, Americans troops were very mush involved in the engagements. But as soon as a sufficient number of Philippine Scouts had enlisted, it was they and the PC contingents who were employed to confront the uprisings. The years 1931-1935 went into the records of the Constabulary as “The Mindanao Pacification Campaign.” There were also some eruptions in the Agusan area, Aside from the usual hot spots — Sulu, Lanao and Cotabato.

In 1935, Elarth reported, Moro casualties lay between 15,000 to 20,000. They had no compiled statistics for the Lumad, but from Elarth’s book we are able to collect no less than twenty nine incidents or engagements involving them, although details lacked consistency: Manobo (11 engagements); Higaunon (4); Tiduray (3); Bukidnon (2); Bagobo (2); Mandaya (2); Mansaka (1); Tagakaolo (1); B’laan (1). What we shall discuss are the significant cases of Lumad resistance. (a) the uprisign that revolved around the assassination of Governor Bolton in Davao in 1906; (b) the Tungud movement that began in Davao and spread to Agusan and Bukidnon in 1908-1910; (c) the Subanon uprising in 1909-1914; (d) the rebellion of the Langkat in Cotabato in 1926-1927; and (e) the response of the Bagobo to the encroachment of the Japanese into their lands in 1918-1935.

Uprising in Davao, 1906-1908; Governor Bolton was Slain

It was on June 6, 1906 when Governor Edward C. Bolton of Davao was killed. His head was cleaved by Datu Mungalayan, a well known Tagakaolo chieftain from Malalag, now a municipality of Davao del Sur. Mungalayan was then the recent appointee of Bolton as deputy chief of Tribal Ward No. 6 of the Tagakaolo, and he was to be responsible for the settlement pf the Manobo people. Also slain with Bolton was Benjamin Christian, an American planter. After a few months, on August 3, 1906. Mangalayan was also killed.

At first glance, there is no rebellion in the story. But investigation conducted by the authorities revealed some unexpected angles. But before we proceed let us clarify the meaning of Tribal Ward No. 6.

Davao was one of the five district constituting the Moro Province created in 1903. The others were Cotabato, Lanao, Zamboanga, and Sulu. Agusan and Bukidnon were made the Special Province of Agusan because the majority of the people living there were Lumad. Surigao and Misamis were made regular provinces where most of the citizens were Christians. The status of special province was viewed by the colonial government as a preliminary step that would prepare the Moro and the Lumad to be citizens of a regular unit of the government’s political structure. It must be pointed out here that the American’s considered them uncivilized, thus, the Tribal World was a step towards civilizing them.

There were six Tribal Wards in Davao: No. 1 was among the Ata, No. 2 the Bagobo, No. 3 the Guianggas, No. 4 the Mandaya, No. 5 the Moros and No. 6 the Tagakaolo. There were eighteen in Cotabato, thirteen in Lanao, nine in Sulu and five in Zamboanga, the the sub-districts numbered fofty-six. The law establishing the Tribal Ward also provided for the district governon, like Bolton, to appoint his deputy or representative for every Ward. As much as possible, the appointee was a chieftain acknowledged as leader by his members. The district governor was also authorized to create additional sub-tribal wards whenever necessary.

Governor Bolton was just beginning to establish Tribal Wards when he was killed. The investigation unearthed that on February 22 of that year, he had assembled the known members of the various tribes in Malalag, and formed many Tribal Wards. It was not at all hard for the Tagakaolo, Manobo, B’laan and kalagan people who were close neighbors. He also induced them, including the Moro, Bagobo, and Mandaya, to permanently transfer their respective communities to the coastal areas and to plant abaca, coconuts and other crops, instead of practicing kaingin which was good for one harvest of palay and camote. He explained that too many trees were destroyed by the kaingin.

He claimed to have earned the admiration and loyalty of the tribes because he went to their places alone and unarmed. He was able to persuade a Tagakaolo chieftain, Balawag, to descend from the mountains and to build his community near the shores of Malalag. In fact, in that February 22 conference, he appointed Balawag and Mangalayan to be the leader of the Tagakaolo Tribal Ward and his deputy, respectively, the latter being tasked to directly supervise one of the Manobo communities.

For a while, the situation among the Tribal Wards was manageable. But later, the planters said, tribals expressed their misgivings to the planters of Bulatakay, Padada, Malalag, and Kibulan. Rumors had it that certain Americans would ne killed, including the Governor and Mr. McCullough, a planter in Kibulan and the governor’s real assistant who directly supervised the newly created Tribal Ward of the Tagakaolos. The rumors spread and snowballed. Now all Americans from Digos to Kibulan were to be assassinated. The planters immediately reported this to the authorities.

It was also learned that tribal by the name of Simbanan had been doing healing work there for two years and this included the distribution of anting-anting or charms which would help ward off bad luck and cure illness, and so on. He was friend to both Balawag and Mangalayan and had tremendous influence over them. According to the investigator, he strongly suspected it was Simbanan who instigated Mangalayan to assassinate the Americans.

The testimonies of other tribal people revealed that Balawag, Simabanan, Mangalayan, and his relatives and friends and many other tribals as well, and Sulutan and Kawag from Digos held a conference at Mangalayan’s place at Daul. There they agreed that Mangalayan would kill and rob the Americans in Kibulan, Balawag would do his work in Malalag, and Sulutan and Kawag in Digos. It turned out that not all of the Lumad people there were agreeable to the plan. Those who opposed in conducted their own conference and swore to defend some of the planters.

More angles surfaced in the investigation. five to eight months had passed when, it was said, a Moro fanatic named Sumalugpun initiated a dance in Sumlug, now barrio in the municipality of Lupon in Davao Oriental. Moro chieftains Datu Compao and Datu Tomaras learned the dance and propagated it, as soon it became fashionable among the Lumad in the Tagum River Sumalugpun initiated a dance in Sumlug, now barrio in the area down to Padada and Kibulan. From scattered reports the investigators were able to priece together a mystery behind the dance.

Compao and Tomaras were said to be discovered a new god called Lavi. It was believed that as soon as it arrived, compao would be proclaimed king of the Moros, there would be bountiful harvests from the farms, the bolos ans the axes would work the fields by themselves while the Moro people sat and watched, the fish catch from hook and line would be plentiful even if the poles were short, and illness would vanish, and so on. But all these exchange for the donations given in abundance. Those who did not give anything would receive nothing. And Lavi would pluck out the tongue of whoever would tell on the Americans. Finally, the Bisayans would be slaves to the Moros and the Americans and Spaniards would be banished or killed.

Compao and Tomaras were reportedly triumphant at Sumlug. The two sent word to Datu Macibelan of Lepandi (Lapanday?) to come with all his friends to meet them immediately with plenty of tribute, to meet with Lavi and learn the dance. The datu came with nine of his friends. They were taught the dance and afterwards Compao and Tomaras ordained them as Tataiyan (preachers). They built a school in Lepandi. Their students from Sarangani learned the dance and in turn taught those from Daron, Digos, and Padada, who thereafter propugated it among the people. they received abundant contributions and half of these went to Compao and Tomaras. The B’laan and Tagakaolo also arrived, all bearing gifts. But the dance did not reach the southern part of Padada. The nine people mentioned above testified that Compao did mention something about Governor Bolton’s imminent death.

When Governor Bolton learned of the dance and its rapid spread, he personally went to Sumlug. He brough Compao and Tomaras back with him to Davao but did not imprison them. He allowed them instead to freely roam around the town and continue with their gift receiving activities. From there Bolton visited the place of Balawag and stayed for the night. The next day, he proceeded with Mr. Benjamin Christian to Mangalayan’s house/place and also stayed overnight. The following day they all visited Simbanan. Mangalayan had his two brothers with him. Before sundown they passes by a fisherman’s hut and Mangalayan and his brothers tarried awhile to chat with the folk. The story goes that bout thirty minutes later, Mangalayan arrived, still with his two brothers, and was heard to have said: “I have regained my manhood; I just killed the two Americans.” After a few days, Mangalayan and Datu Dauda, along with several Lumads from different tribes, looted the store of a certain Mr. McCullough.

It took the authorities two years to capture Bolton’s killers and the other people involved in the killing. At this time a certain Datu Andas posed as some kind of god and induced his compatriots to follow him. They did, but abandoned him after a month when he was captured and imprisoned. It was not mentioned in the report what Anda’s connection was with the assassination of Bolton, but it is important to note that during the first decade of American rule in Davao there were many other incidents showing the indigeous people’s opposition to foreigners staying in their lands. On January 31, 1903, for instance, four Mandayas slew William Sprague, a planter in Mapagba, the first American to fall on the hands of the Lumad. Since then, several other planters and their employees were reportedly slain.

Shortly after the Bolton incident, the authorities began the search for the culprits. In the raid at the house of Simbanan, one of his followers, Macumpa, was killed. The victim’s father, Cadui, sworet to avenge his son’s death. His first victim would have been a certain Mr. Harvey, also a planter, but it was he who was killed instead by the PC. In 1907, a Bagobo named Manga, was shot dead in prison by the PC. Earlier, Manga and his 27 followers had been arrested for refusing to pay taxes and to work in a road-bulding project.

The Tungud: A Religious Movement in Davao, 1908-1910

Initiated by a Manobo named Meskinan (Mapakla in real life), this movement started in 1908 among the Manobos along Lubuganon River in Davao. Stricken with cholera, so the symptoms indicated, and believed by relatives to be at the brink of certain death, he was abandoned by these same relatives. But after three days, he showed up, alive and well. He claimed that he was cured with the help of a benevolent diwata. More was added to the element of mystery since he trembled each time he finished telling hsi story. For his relatives, was sure proof that he was possessed by a good spirit. The story spread and by the time this reached the River Mawab, Meskinan had been transformed from an ordinary baylan to a god. He neither ate nor drank anymore.

Not long after, messages arrived in Mawab from Meskinan himself: The world would end after a month and the diwatas of the tribe would no longer assist the people wearing black. Meanwhile, he took it upon hinself to help the people save themselves from the collapsing world. He ordered the following:

1. Al chickens and pigs were to be killed at once; otherwise these would devour their owners.
2. No more crops were to be planted
3. A good building for religious purposes was to be erected in each settlement.
4. In each settlement there was to be one priest, who must have received his power from Meskinan himself, and several assistants who were to help propagate the news and to perform the prescribed services in distant ‘churches.’
5. The service were to consisct of praying to Meskinan, performing sacred dances in his honor, and forwarding offerings to him.

The priests would be called punoan, or leaders, and the assistants, taytayan, which means bridge. From the Manobo of Libuganon, the Tungud rebellion spread to the nearby Mandaya, to the Mangguwangan, to the Dibabawon, and to the Manobo at the head of Agusan River, even among those who had become Christians.

John M. Garvan, who investigated the Tungud movement from Compostela in Davao immediately notices the changes in the lives of the Manobos and Mandayas. Lack of food was severe, since no one planted anything from the time the movement started. The people relied on root crops like camote and gabi. They lived in terror at all times, especially at night. But the best thing that happened was the cessation of quarrels and animosities. In the past, no Mangguwangan would visit Compostela but now they even did their worship there. Some even reached the remote places of the Mandayas who otherwise were their trasiditional enemies. The Dibabawons from Salug and Lubuganon could, without fear, freely travel to Karaga, Kasauman and Manay and return unscatched. This was because God or Magbabaya allegedly forbade enmity and revenge.

Unknown to the people, explained Garvan, religious rites were performed with deceit. The Punoan supposedly spoke to the Magbabaya, but in truth, one of his assistants would make his presence felt in different voices which the punoan alone could understand. Aside from the regular contributions, which included cherished spears, bows and arrows and bolos, commercialization attended the rites. One could become a punoan or taytayan for a fee of P30.00. Images and symbols were also on sale, or kerchiefs and what nots advertized as some form of cure-all for illness and other things.

The movement began to dissipate in December 1910. Nothing came of the supposed meltdown of the earth which had been postponed several times. The deceptions of the punoans and their taytayans were also exposed. Hunger stalked the land; nothing more could be spared for contributions, and it seemed that earlier forewarnings by the non-believing Bisayans had at last hit the mark. The frustrations of the people gradually turned into intense anger. Later, the Mandayas sent word that they were going to attack the Agusan people; the Manobos would raid the Dibabawon, and the Mangguwangan would terrorize the MAndayas in Tagum. The incidents never happen. What prevented the reign of terror was the existence of a government at the head portion of Agusan River, Garvan thought.

For Garvan, the Tungud movement was a movement of deceit and nothing more. However, Fay Cooper-Cole, who was then undertaking research with the Mandaya reached near Mati, saw another angle. According to him, the movement reached the Mayo Bay area, but it hardly had any effect at all. It was the Moro dwellers in the place who saw an opportunity to propagate their plan to expel the American planters there, including the Christians. They were in an angry mood and rather restive then. They invited the Mandaya leader to the house of Moro Pandita supposedly where the diwata would make an appearance. And so the following night, the diwata appeared in a dark room and exhorted the people to rise up in arms and annihilate the Christians in the place. A mixture of awe and confusion settled on the Mandayas who said that they were in fact ready to join the Moros. However, they were discovered by an American planter. Unknown to the Mandayas, Cole explained, the spirit was actually the son of the Pandita who appeared with his head and chest wrapped with white gauze draped with fireflies. Indeed, it was an awesome apparition in the dark. As soon as he would enter the room, the house would suddenly shake. Another brother did the shaking.

The official report of Lieut. Allen Walker, who took over from Governor Bolton, contained more details. He reported to General Bliss, Governor of the Moro Province, that in June 1908, 37 Moros were arrested by the PC in MAti due to alleged participation in the dances of Lavi, and that it was Datu Silatan and Pandita LAtibao who had induced them. The two Moros were to have told the people that they were serving the real god who would help them kill their enemies and who would help them plant and harvest without having to work. What they reported as their true god was actually a little child who was made to wear a transparent dress. fastened at the neck and waist to keep fireflies flying around inside. The god would make an appearance during moonless nights. The Moros and Mandayas in Mati were encourage to dance and chant the child’s name and kill the officials of the government. The 37 people mentioned earlier were part of the 44 who were said to have sworn to kill the municipal officials of Mati and other American planters.

The dance initiated by Compao and Tomaras was very similar to the dance of Lavi associated with the names of Datu Silatan and Pandita Latibao. The same is true of their aim to expel or annihilate the Americans and the Christians of the place. There was also the characteristic inducement of the inducement of the indigenous people from different tribes to join with them. But there was no concrete evidence that could connect the two Moro groups. Perhaps we have yet to discover such a relationship. But it must be noted that Sumlug and Mati are not far apart, and neither are the dates of the two stories. Cole added that the Tungud movement reached the border of Davao and Bukidnon. At this time, it was said, Governor Lewis happened to be urging the natives to build new communities over those which were recently abandoned. That was when he realized that this was part of a big movement.

Why did we consider the Tungud as an example of the Lumad’s resistance against the Americans and their local agents? Because this was not the first such incident in Mindanao. It will be recalled that in a letter from Baganga by Pablo Pastells, S.J., to his superiors on May 2, 1877, he mentioned a reaction from populace toward his efforts to build a reduccion among the Mandaya. The people told of an old woman who descended from heaven, and who exhorted them to return to the mountains after destroying their kaingin and killing their livestock. In the forest they could live without having to eat for a year, they were told, and they would all ascend to heaven together, body and soul. And if they would not obey her commandment, she would send soldiers in a sea vessel to Davao, and another one to Surigao, who would cut their heads off and take their children to Manila, there to be made into slaves for the Sultan of Jolo. Because of this, Pastells said, most of the Mandayas (in the reduccion) went back to the forests.

The Subanon Uprising in Zamboanga, 1909-1914

Elarth was Deputy Governor of Zamboanga and before long, within about a month, he had visited the tribes there, one after the other. He completed this in three weeks. But now he sensed something strange about the people; they seemed to be in a fighting mood. He notices that as the dialogue continued, the warriors became more restless, and he could hear shouts. Noting this, he conveyed to the Timuays that, under the circumstances, it was difficult to continue with the conference and that it would be best if the warriors positioned themselves some distance way. The four Timuays briefly convened themselves some distance away. The four Timuays briefly convened and then ordered the men to move back, and they obeyed.

Leading fifteen constables, Lieut. Elarth then conducted a conference among the Timuays (chieftains ) of the Subanons in the mountains of Malindang, inland from Dipolog Bay. This was supposed to be a peace conference between two big feuding Subanon groups. But the tension was great. A thousand men were present and they did not like the government’s intervention. The constabulary were positioned on a hill, in rally formation, firearms fully charged and with fixed bayonets. The soldiers, however, seemed relaxed. Some were conversing among themselves, other were smoking their cigarettes. One step away stood Elarth, in front of whom the Timuays were seated. Here they held their conference. They were all surrounded by one thousand men armed with bows and arrows, spears and bolos. Corporal Mira Leon whispered to Elarth: “Muy peligroso, mi Capitan”. (It is very dangerous, my Captain).

Elarth felt a little relieved but all so suddenly, a tall Moro warrior screamed: “Don’t, don’t! Stop, you fools!” At the same time, he rushed to the attack, wielding his kampilan in the direction of Elarth. With two of his comrades following, he screamed again: “Kill him!” Elarth fired. Three times. Three dead Moros fell at his feet. Spears flew from the tribal warriors, and they started to assault. The sky darkened with spears. Five soldiers were killed, falling even before they could fire their guns. One more was pulled out from formation and was hacked to pieces. The remaining ten riflemen fired without ceasing. Elarth was saves when a certain Sergeant Bernardo Ames sheilded him with his own body against a lance flying towards the officer. Then the warriors suddenly stopped and ran away, leaving behind their 68 dead. After quick assessment soon after the engagement, the soldiers discovered that only 60 shots had been fired by them and they were already out of ammunition!

A few weeks later, some of the fugitive warriors were captured by the constabulary and, when asked why they ran in retreat, they replied that the incessant firepower shocked them; they could not stand it. It took another five years of hot pursuit before the remaining rebels surrended. Of the four Timuays present in the conference, only one remained. He surrendered together with his men at Margosatubig on October 14, 1914. They numbered 5,000 at the inception of the rebellion. In the end, only Timuay Romualdo was left and 75 of his followers. The fact about the exhausted ammunition was never revealed to them.

The investigation further disclosed that the uprising was instigated by certain Moro datus from Lake Lanao and assisted by Christian and non-Christian bandits from Misamis. News spread that two Misamis folk predicted the earth’s destruction by fire and water. They urged the Subanons to gather at Mt. Boburan from which they would ascend to heaven. Thousands responded to the call. At Boburan, the Moro leaders assumed defense positions. Around 175 houses were built. The warriors were armed with lances, kris and kampilan. There were no firearms.

The Langkat Rebellion in Cotabato, 1926-1927

Manobos of the present province of Cotabato were the ones involved in this rebellion and this is the only story that has an indigenous version from the people themselves. In 1926-1927, according to the Americans, Datu Mampurok, a Manobo, led an uprising in Cotabato which consisted of Manobo warriors, Tirurays, and Magindanaos. From the upstream region of the Pulangi River, it spread to Awang and Upi, the traditional territory of the Tirurays. There was a fundamental difference in the viewpoints of the colonialists and the Manobo. We shall look at both. First, the Manobo version.

The barrion of Palakat was officially established by a certain William Manyon in 1920. This formed part of Banisilan of Carmen municipality. Today, it has become a barrio of Pikit, another municipality of Cotabato. Manyon was a District Supervisor of the Banisilan school, and when he created Palakat he also built the school at the same time. All the children of age, including the 20-year olds, were obliged to enroll, starting from first grade.

Manyon appointed the barrio leaders, all Manobo. He did the same in Palakat which was a Manobo barrio. One of the headmen was the son of Datu Sapalaw, a Kerentekan, known by the name of Mampurok, some forty years of age. Some of the barrio leaders reported to Manyon that several children of Mampurok’s barrio were not attending classes. Manyon promptly sent the police who apprehended Mampurok and brought him to Banisilan. When asked to explain why the children were not in school, Mampurok replied that the children were afraid to go to school. Manyon gave him a dressing down, stressing that the children must go to school, or else, he, Mampurok, and the parents of the children would be jailed. Mampurok relayed the ultimatum of Manyon to the parents. As a result of this, the young men went into hiding in the forests. Only the children were left to attend school. But everybody knew those who were in hiding, and their hiding places, too. These were not far away and they always came home by stealth for their secret meals.

Himself afraid of imprisonment, Mampurok also fled into the forest with his family. Two of his children were supposed to be in school. His two sisters and their respective families, whose six children were all of school age, also joined them. They went to Mt. Kitubod. While there, Mampurok started to become a patutulus, someone who believed that he was a chosen one. This eventually spread among the people who consequently began to visit him. Before long, he became famous as leader of Langkat.

Among those who received the tidings were his relatives in Palakat, Barongis and Balogo. He was then already residing in Bintangan and his kin, young and old, went there. The one who narrated this tale, Demetrio Bangkas was among them. There they discovered that Mampurok indeed displayed strange behaviour. He would not eat for several days, yet, he remained healthy. He sang their stories in Ulahingan fashion and he never tired no matter long. The stories all told of their lives and exploits in the forests, where they had no dwellings, hardly any food clothing. Whenever the spirit entered him his body would smolder and turn red. (Bangkas said he never saw this; he just heard about it).

Like Mampurok, the people felt that the government was cruel. Besides forcing them to send their children to school, the parents were also put in prison. They were further compelled to pay the imposed by the government, and the hated schools. When they became members, they, too, were possessed by the diwata, although they chanted their stories, epic style, in their own language. They translated their stories from the Ulahingan Language into their own togue in a manner that situated their tune and cultural tradition. The other Muslims who decided to join diverted from the precepts of Mampurok. They raided and fired at the cattle in Manyon’s ranch, they cut the telephone line between Pikit and Banisilan, and they robebd and killed the people. As these happenings reached the knowledge of the government, Bisayan soldiers, disguised in Muslim attire, were immediately sent to infiltrate the group. The government suspected it was Mampurok who was leading the Muslims. Mampurok’s group knew the newcomers were soldiers but welcomed them as members. They were merely asked to give a bottle of coconut oil and a tubao for Mampurok and these were readily given. The Manobos and the Muslims were delighted; they interpreted the soldiers’ gesture as a sign for the joining of many more. When, not long afterm the soldiers returned to Pikit, they placed landmarks rn route to the place of Mampurok.

At this time, there were more Muslims than Manobos and Mampurok could not control them anynmore. It was they who benefited from the little harvest of the remaining Manobos in their kaingin. This was why the Muslim datus of Pikit felt pity for Mampurok and the Manobos. They advised Mampurok to return to his former abode and do what the government wished. This was also what the PC officer in Pikit wanted to happen because there were already many incidents seeded in the name of Mampurok. A reward was posted for anybody who could induce Mampurok to go back to normal life. The muslims datu of Midsayap sent word to Mampurok for the latter to return to his former place. Mampurok did not listen. The Muslim cheiftain of Balogo also sent the same message. Mampurok refused. He was waiting for a message from the supreme diwata.

The soldiers tasked to finished off Mampurok finally arrived. gunfire started bursting. Mampurok was hit on the breast and on his two legs. Many Muslims were killed. Many drowned while crossing the river to escape the carnage. All the people in Bintangan left. Members of Mampurok’s family who survived were brought to Balogo, there to be taken care of by the Muslim datu. The latter was apprehensive that these people might be attacked by the relatives of the Muslims who were killed in Bintangan. The Langkat disintegrated. But they continued, Manobo and Muslim, in their Langkat worship, even in the hideouts. Inevitably, they had to obey the wishes of the government: attend classes, pay their sedula. The walian returned to their walian activities, but the dance disappeared from their rituals; only the song remained.

We accept the government version of the story from the book of Elarth. But we shall not repeat the details, only the points that support their particular viewpoint. Take note that they always refer to the “Alangkat tribe of the Manobo.” And it was supposedly because Mampurok referred to himself as god that thousands of “hill people” rallied to him. There were “pilgrimages from distant parts of Mindanao” which came to pay homage to him. Also, Colonel Stevens and Major Gutierrez, the governor of Cotabato, came to talk to him, courtesies which Mampurok reportedly established his own government, formed his own army, and started to collect taxes that the constabulary was compelled to enter the scene. MAmpurok and thirty of his men were slain on March 23, 1927. Some firearms and more than a thousand bladed weapons were confiscated. In another source, it was reportedly that the Muslims believed that their revered Datu Ali, who led the struggle against the Americans in the first decade of the latter’s occupation, came back in the person of Mampurok.

Bagobo Response to the Entry of the Japanese in Davao, 1916-1935

Before the Second World War broke out, abaca was already known in the international trading world, among big shipping companies, and others, as “Manila Hemp.” Abaca was a product of two regions in the Philippines, the Bicol area and Davao. It was the Japanese planters who made Davao famous as abaca country. The Japanese came to Davao as early as 1905. The first group consisted of workers who helped in the construction of Kennon Road to Baguio, the famous zigzag trek to the country’s summer capital. From 340 people in 1905, the Japanese who settled in Davao grew to 17,888 in 1939.

Of the overall list of abaca plantations in Davao in 1918, which totalled 164, sixty-nine were Japanese, thirty-seven were American, forty-two were Filipino and sixteen were of other nationalities. The combined total of more than 50 thousand hectares, occuoied by all the Japanese plantations, constitued fifty-seven percent of the total in Davao. Twenty of these Japanese plantations were in the central portion of Davao, which were Bagobo lands. This does not mean that only the Japanese entered into the territories of the Bagobo. There were also Americans and Filipinos, except that now we have more data about Bagobo response to the Japanese planters than to any other.

In 1910, just five years after the arrival of the first batch of Japanese, the opposition of the Bagobo was already evident. For example, five Bagobo chieftains formally lodged their opposition to the program of the Mindanao Development Company to expand the landownership of a certain Saburo Akamine. According to them, they had long been owners of the lands being claimed by the company. In fact, they said, more than one-third of the lands were occupied by the Bagobos. They were forcibly ejected by a combined contingent of Japanese nationals, government officials, and Philippine Constabulary troops. The first confrontation resulted in the drawing of a gun by Furukawa, one of the most influential Japanese in Davao at that time. After this, the PC and the inspectors from the Bureau of Public Lands entered into the scene, until finally the case reached the office of Governor Causing of Davao. The Governor persuaded Angalan, one of the datus Furukawa threatened with his gun, to sing an agreement. Much against his will, Angalan signed.

To those who understood the Bagobo custom of land ownership and the land laws of the government, the agreement was both a joke and a mockery. Angalan was supposedly allowed by Saburo Akamine to retain the ownership of 24 hectares withing the lands leased to the Mindanao Development Company. Angalan would also allow the company to plant abaca in his land. He also agreed thay neither he of anybody else would build a store within his land. Lastly, it was agreed that the company would not claim ownership of Angalan’s 24 hectares.

Angalan’s case was one of many. The Japanese employed various methods in possessing Bagobo lands. On the part of the Bagobo, the loss of their land was the most compelling reason for their opposition to the Japanese. It is important to understand how a Bagobo felt at that time. In 1930, a datu remarked that they used to be wealthy. They had cattle and horses. They had lands which gave them food and clothing. But now they were impoverished. Foreigners had encroached into their land; they were brought to court for them to prove their ownership; and then the lawyers collected their animals for fees. It was much better during the period of the American governors as they could still ride on horses. Now , they lamented, they had to walk in order to reach Davao.

The laws did not respect the Bagobo’s communal ownership of lands, and the Japanese normally employed lawyers the lands of their abaca plantations. Fruit trees that naturally grew on Bagobo lands, like Durian, lansones, betel, coconut, abaca, and others were never respected by the foreigners as landmarks of the indigenous people’s ownership. And so, when the small pox and influenza epidemics occured in 1917 and 1918, respectively, at the Guianga district, many Bagobos left and transferred to other places. These mass migrations were exploited by the foreigners to possess large tracts of land. Events like these which in Bagobo custom were cause for war, intensified thier anger.

The foreigners had no inkling of the intensity of the anger that boiled in the Bagobo’s breast on account of the inordinate felling of trees such as lansones, durian, and others. Between 1918 and 1938, around 600 Japanese were slain by the Bagobos. These killings followed a periodic pattern. In times when the Japanese agressively needed more lands for their abaca, many were killed. But during production lags, the killing subsided. The first boom in abaca production in Davao was 1918-1921. Some 100 Japanese were slain then. The next boom occured in 1928-1930 and in 1935-35. The first boom, coincided with the occurence of the small pox and influenz epidemics, which contributed to accelerating the landgrabbing activities of the foreigners. But there was a cultural dimension tothe explanation given to this situation. For among the trees felled by the Japanese were the big trees believed by the Bagobos to be the abode of spirits. The epidamic for them was a manifestation of the spirits’ wrath, and this was reason for them to act to appease the spirits.

The Bagobos relied on the fruits of the forest. When the plantations expanded, the felling of forest trees became uncontrollable. Several springs dried up; forest animals varnished; and the lansones, durian, betel and other fruits likewise disappeared. And so they retaliated against the Japanese who were destroying their sources of livelihood before their eyes. The Japanese lodged a diplomatic protest on account of the many killings. The government responded by ordering the PC to confiscate the weapons of the Bagobos: firearms (shotguns) which they used for hunting (if they were allowed to keep these, they were prohibited from buying ammunition); lances and other bladed weapons, including their decorative knives. Only those items which barely had functional value were allowed to be retained.

Still, the killing of the Japanese continued. It stopped only when the expansion of the plantations also ceased. Here was what a bagobo representative expressed in 1935 about their slaying of the Japanese nationals:

I wish to narrate to you how the Japanese came into our lands. In 1917 (sic), many Japanese were slain in our place. I can not remember how many killers were arrested by the government because it was hard to identify the culprits. When the situation worsened, Director Guingona came to our place, together with Deputy Governor de la Pena and officers of the Cosntabulary and we were disarmed. They took away our shotguns, bolos, lances, and Kampilan, including our tubaws. After we were disarmed, they came back and told us that we should not kill the Japanese. Instead, we were told as that we should be allowed to build their stores and to live peacefully in our midst. The Deputy Governor also warned us thay if we did nor stop slaughtering the Japanese, the government would burn our village. This was the reason we decided not to disturb them anymore.

We still have to ask why we included this phenomenon of the Bagobo’s reaction to the planting of abaca by the Japanese in the category of resistance. A straight answer is the we were sill on the period of American colonialism and it so happened that the Japanese were actual intruders. It was the Americans who established the Moro Province of which Davao was part and where the organization of the Tribal Ward was also implemented. They were the ones who permitted the Japanese and other nationalities to open plantation in Davao. They were the ones who enacted land laws which were the weapons of the foreigners to easily obtain the ancestral lands of the Bagobos. They owned the Philippine Constabulary that ran after the “violators” of the law, among the more celebrated of which were the Bagobo assassins of Japanese landgrabbers. The slaughter of the Japanese was a direct defiance of the colonialists’ law. The Bagobos may not have been conscious of this detail, but it was clear to them that the presence of the Japanese destroyed their life. And they merely acted according to their level of awareness.

Some Preliminary Analysis

There is no denying the fact that the uprisings launched by the Lumad were insignificant, even the supposedly major ones. They were pinches, so to speak. And this need not be debated upon. When we speak of smallness, it is only because, in comparison, there were big ones that occurred. And when we speak of pinches, it is because something happened that constituted a blow or even more. There is no need to split hairs over this, the supposed “smallness” of the Lumad resistance against colonialism calls for an explanation.

What was their experience in confronting their adversaries? Those they considered as enemies need not to be another tribe. They could be tribal compatriots but from another community. It was customary for the Lumad to have a bagani (magani to the Bagobos, lebe to the B’laan), tribal warriors whose manhood was measured in terms of the number of people he had slain. But these warriors were accustomed mainly to single, man-to-man combat, because big battles were rare. And it was not necessary that the adversary be defeated of killed frontally. Fatal blows could be executed treacherously from behind. Ot ir could be done by poisoning. What was important was that he could bring to the village the evidence of his victory, like the head or a lock of hair.

We must note the conformance of the level of livelihood to the social organization and to the level of experience in their manner of dealing with the enemies. And if we juxtapose these to the size, great or small, of their resistance to the Americans, then immediately we can see the appropriateness to the latter. In short, the resistance and struggle displayed by the Lumads adequately suited their internal and external capacities. Here lies the shininh jewel, the greatness of their struggle.