Module 10: Commonwealth Period in MINSUPALA

As soon as Filipinos thought that they have won the battle against spain after 333 years of colonization,
Filipinos were excited to imagine the United States returning their stolen independence. This was what
the United States made clear when President McKinley said in the Benevolent Assimilation Proclamation
that the Philippines are not theirs to exploit but to develop, civilize, educate and train in the science of
self-government.

Thus, as early as 1902, the United States had to pass a Philippine Bill which promised independence to
Filipinos “as soon as a stable government is established in the Philippines”.But more than 10 years had
already passed; yet, there seemed to be no serious move on the part of the American government to
really grant Philippine Independence. Filipino politicians realized that the word “soon” was very
ambiguous as it was not clearly defined in the bill how soon was “soon”.

Thus, Filipino leaders lobby once more to pressure the American government to stand by their promise
of independence. Along with other factors, Filipino pressure eventually succeed in convincing the United
States to pass the Jones Law in 1916

Jones Law - created the first fully elected Philippine legislature. The law was enacted by the 64th
United States Congress on August 29, 1916, and contained the first formal and official
declaration of the United States Federal Government's commitment to grant independence to
the Philippines.

However, the Jones Law simply reiterated what the Philippine Bill of 1902 promised, to grant Philippine
independence “as soon as a stable government is established therein”.

For quite some time, Filipino politicians would content themselves with the Jones Law. Yet again, they
suspected that the Americans were not serious in their promise of independence after seeing another
decade with no tangible actions. Thus, two successive independence missions were sent to the United
States: one led by Sergio Osmeña and Manuel Roxas in 1931; the other would be headed by Manuel L.
Quezon in 1933.

The latter mission eventually result to the Tydings-McDuffie Act which created the Philippine
Commonwealth.
Tyding McDuffie Act-The Tydings– officially known as the Philippine Independence Act, is a United
States federal law that established the process for the Philippines, then an American colony, to
become an independent country after a ten-year transition period

Commonwealth period- is the period in which the Philippines has been independent from the American
colonizers. This was headed by President manuel L. Quezon way back 1935 to 1945

Purpose of creating the commonwealth

The purpose of creating the Philippine Commonwealth was actually anchored on the self-proclaimed
American mandate of “educating and training the Filipinos in the science of self-government”.

The commonwealth was deemed to be a transition period where the administrative skills of the Filipinos
are honed before they could be granted “absolute” independence.

It was supposed to last 10 years, from 1935 to 1945, however due to World War II, independence was
only granted in 1946 after the Japanese colonization.

Varied Reactions of Moros Toward Philippines Independence

Moro reaction towards the Commonwealth and the issue of Philippine Independence was actually
varied. Some favored independence with the Christian Filipinos while others wanted separate
independence. Some suggested to stay under American protection for a while others wanted to be
under the United States forever.

1. Moros who wanted independence with the Christian Filipinos

 leaders who had benefited from the Philippine State system, having been appointed to
national or provincial offices
 who had been closely associated with Christian Filipinos in politics or business.
 Moros who realized that resistance was futile; and that they should “make the best out of
the situation they were powerless to change”
 Some also really favored independence with the Christian Filipinos as it was their sincere
conviction to be so.

Example: Datu Auraya Dianalan

Datu Facundo Mandi

Datu Ibra, Lanao delegate to the House of Representatives

2. Moros who did not want the idea of becoming independent with the Christian Filipinos
 those who considered the latter as their traditional enemies
 those who feared Moro interests and concerns would not be heard or addressed once
they were merged with the Christian majority.
 Examples: Datu Sacaluran and Hadji Abdul Kamid Bogabong

3. those who wanted to stay under American rule forever

Hadji Abdullah and Datu Dimaampao must have thought that only the Americans could provide
the Moros an impartial and disinterested leadership. Thus, one possible interpretation of these
statements is that these Moro leaders did not even want the Moros to govern themselves taking
into consideration the traditional loyalties and sociopolitical organization of the various Moro
groups.

Example: Hadji Abdullah and Datu Dimaampao Dangcal are representative of this:

Quezon’s policies towards Mindanao and how did these affect the Moros and Lumads?

When Manuel L. Quezon assumed the Commonwealth presidency, he identified three major priorities,
namely:

1.) Development of Mindanao for the sake of the National Economy

In other words, the first priority of the Quezon administration meant that Mindanao was to be
developed, not necessarily for the sake of Mindanao and its native inhabitants but for the sake of
the national government and economy which then was Luzon or Manila-centered. Indeed,
describing Mindanao as the “Land of Promise” could not simply be appreciated by many of the
indigenous inhabitants like, Moros and Lumads, of the island.

2.) Strengthening security in Mindanao as part of national security

Regarding the second priority, the government of Quezon perceived two major threats to
national security in Mindanao: First, was the existence of many non-Christian populations
(Moros and Lumads) in Mindanao and Sulu; and second, was the existence of a growing colony
of Japanese agriculturists and entrepreneurs in Davao. The first was considered a threat because
the non-Christian tribes were perceived to be not loyal to the Philippine government while the
second was considered bothersome because Japanese expansionism in Asia was common
knowledge already as early as the late 1920s.

To address these threats, the Commonwealth government of Quezon encourage substantial

numbers of Christian natives from Luzon and Visayas to migrate to Mindanao and Sulu. In this
vein, the Commonwealth government contribute to make the Mindanao situation worse. The
Moros found themselves at a disadvantage because of differences in the enlightenment
between themselves and the newcomers.
3.) The advancement and integration of the Moro population
Regarding the third priority, the Commonwealth government’s efforts/moves seemed to do
more harm than help. For instance, Quezon seemed to view integration as attainable only
through applying the same rules to Christians and non-Christians, which somehow transgressed
the limits of cultural sensitivities of many Moro and Lumad groups. Quezon was talking of laws
 that would be applied to Christians and non-Christians as if they were a homogeneous people.
He was somehow insinuating that what is “okay” to the Christian majority will also be “okay” to
the non-Christian minority. Quezon never realized that he has collided with cultural institutions
of the Lumads and the Moros. For instance, if the state recognizes only monogamous marriages
because the culture of the Christian majority dictates, the Moros and Lumads will certainly be
alienated because it makes their second and succeeding marriages illegal. Consequently, second
and succeeding wives and the children of these women were also made illegitimate by the
uniform application of law.

Quezon and his government then proceed to abolish various laws, which somehow gave the
Moros and Lumads distinct treatment during the American colonial period. Some of these
abolish laws are
 Bureau of NonChristian Tribes- supposedly the only government agency that tried to
meet the special needs of the non-Christians administratively. He would also “end
official recognition of the civil titles held by Moros and valued by them as expressive of
their traditional social system”.
 Moro Board- which was established to settle some religious disputes according to
traditional laws.

(The justification of Quezon was that its abolition would force Moros “to take their cases
to the regular courts of justice or bring extra-judicial cases for amicable settlement to
the local mayors or other officials”. What Quezon failed to realize was the fact that he
had totally scrapped the traditional system of governance that was functioning well and
most appropriate to the local culture. He also failed to realize that by replacing the
traditional leaders with salaried officials, he was also corrupting the concept of
leadership among moros

Because of the many benefits received by salaried officials, the new positions even
become a source of conflict and violence between families, clans or even individuals
who are related by blood. In other words, there are certain features of the new system
of governance which radically altered the notion of “governance and leadership” among
the natives)

Conclusion

The original concept of the Commonwealth government was actually to provide a good training ground
for Filipino leaders in preparation for their eventual independence. It is supposed to be a training for
homegrown locals who will eventually lead their own people and communities after American
departure. It was supposed to be a learning opportunity for all, not only for a specific group but for all
Filipinos, regardless of religious and ethnic affiliations. Yet, while the “Christian” Filipino politicians were
happy about this development, the Moros and Lumads however felt they were largely excluded in the
exercise because apparently most of the key positions both in the national and local levels were given to
“Christian” Filipino leaders
Quezon’s policies towards Mindanao were understandably to strengthen a starting central government.
He ought to demonstrate power and will in the hope of earning the obedience and respect of his
constituents. This kind of policy cannot be expected to promote national solidarity and cohesiveness. If a
government ought to exploit the natural resources of a certain community, it should return the benefits
to that community if it wants to earn the latter’s respect and loyalty.

All in all, Quezon’s policies became a source of insecurity for many of the Moros and Lumads.

If we read through the lines in their petitions, the growing political maturity is evident. If only there were
consultations, where people’s opinions were seriously taken into consideration before imposing a highly
unitary and centralized form of government, perhaps rebellion, secessionism and armed conflict is not a
problem today.

If there are ultimate lessons to learn from this part of our history, it would be the lesson of “multi-
stakeholders approach” and “inclusive governance and development”. By those terms, we actually mean
that for major issues to be resolved, we need to consult the various stakeholders in order to come up
with compromises and win-win solutions for all.