My roommate and I don't have a TV. However, we can hear the TV in the next room since it is placed against our (very thin) wall. I (over)heard the other night a feature story on ABS CBN about the bombs used in many Islamic terrorist-connected bombing incidents around the world having been made and first tested in the Philippines, more specifically on my home island of Mindanao. Also, about the JI (Jema'ah Islamiyah) claiming that the MILF (Moro Islamic Liberation Front) is connected with them, although the MILF vehemently claims otherwise.

Filipinos will know what I'm talking about, but for those who don't, I will elaborate a bit. Mindanao has three distinct cultural groups (refer to my previous entry, My Mindanao ), Christian, Muslim and Lumad
. In the late 1960's the Muslims, angry at the perceived discrimination against their culture, mobilized for independence in Mindanao. In time, the group split into two ideologies and hence two factions... the MNLF (Moro National Liberation Front) headed by Nur Misuari, and the MILF headed by Hashim Salamat. The MNLF recently accepted amnesty with the Philippine government and reintegration into Philippine society. The MILF, on the other hand, has its own enclaves where Islamic law is the law and Islamic culture is the norm. It continues to be an insurgent group whose goal is Islamic dominance.

Then there is the Abu Sayyaf, now disclaimed by the other Muslims because of their terrorist activities. Even we in Mindanao are not sure of its origins, it is said to be a "lost command" of the original rebel group that turned radical and uses kidnapping, bombing and other terrorist activities in its bid for Muslim independence and Islamic dominance in the island.

This is a scary proposition, first and foremost because majority of the people in Mindanao are non-Muslims (yours truly included). Filipino law gives Muslims a semi-autonomy wherein Islamic law, or Shari'ah, is recognized to a degree. (My Shari'ah classes are paying off!) Muslims in the Philippines can get married in Muslim rites, inherit under Muslim laws, and divorce according to Muslim law notwithstanding the fact that the Philippines, a mainly Catholic country (the Bastion of Catholicism in Asia) has no divorce laws and does not recognize divorce.

However, Muslim penal laws are considered too harsh and run counter to the principles enshrined in Philippine laws, thus they are not recognized. Theft, for example, is penalized by cutting off the offending hand; adultery by stoning both parties to death. Since adultery in Muslim law includes fornication, that is, sexual intercourse between two parties who are not married to each other, even if they are not married to anyone else... well, there would be drastic consequences for many people. (A lot of politicians would be the first to outlaw such a law should it be recognized.)

Speaking as a Mindanaoan born and bred, it is all right with me that the laws, tradition and culture of the Muslims in Mindanao are recognized. Hell, I respect them for their obstinacy in refusing to be converted from their Muslim religion come hell, fire, high water or cannonballs or any other means used by the Spanish conquerors to convert the rest of the archipelago. I admire their artworks, their heritage. Theirs is a proud heritage of royalty and freedom.. as it was said of Sultan Kudarat, "conquered but fighting to the end, never surrendering". (BTW, I read in the Mindanao section of a national daily some time ago the name of one of my former college classmates. She was being crowned as a Princess... a real-to-life, honest-to-goodness Princess of the Sultanate of Buayan in General Santos City... because her father was being crowned the new Sultan.) Then for Christian upstarts to come and settle on what they rightly consider their ancestral lands, and later for these same upstarts to claim ownership of these lands based on a piece of paper that the Muslims didn't know they had to have in order to be called owners... it would get anybody's blood up. They had a legitimate grievance. And in some way or another my forebears and the forebears of every other Christian on the island had something to do with that affront.

But we are not our ancestors. They are not their ancestors.

If they send us back to the homelands of our ancestors, what will we do there? We were born and raised in Mindanao... a different lifestyle, a different culture. Couldn't we just co-exist in peace, respecting each other's cultures and religions, working together for progress for the one island where we live, neither of us seeking dominion over the other? Do not tell me it cannot be done, because it has been done, on a smaller scale, in mixed Muslim and Christian communities all over the island.. I spent my childhood in one such place. Hell, my dad's elementary-school best friend was a Muslim... I had Muslim roommates in my college dorm, Muslim friends, even Muslim relatives thanks to my grandmother's sister who married a village datu (chief). Looking at me askance? Purity of blood, my foot... we are all Filipinos and share the same common ancestry under our veneers of tribal culture and religion. And even if not... we are all people.

I know they have habits we consider "dirty" or "different". One of the most annoying habits of my college roommates was to have their friends in our room at any time of the day or night... some of them just walked in and drank out of our pitcher or combed their hair with whoever's comb was left beside the mirror. And that was because of their cultural concept of community property... what belongs to one belongs to all. Solution: those things you don't want to share, keep them in your locker!!

We also have habits that they consider repugnant, like eating pork, or not washing our feet before going into a house of worship. Solution: do not eat pork when likely to associate with them or when using utensils they are liable to use, too. No ham, no bacon, no pork barbeque. Since Christians are not forbidden to eat anything, I just conformed to what they have to eat. After all, when I am not with them I can still eat what I want. All in all, no religious wars erupted in the two years I spent with my Muslim roommates, and I got a fascinating glimpse into their culture to boot.

Nota bene: In my two years of studying Shari'ah law, I learned that basic Muslim ideology mandates respect of the other religions which have been given God's teachings through a book which is the foundation of their religion. There are three such religions: Islam with the Qur'an, Christianity with the Bible, and Judaism with the Talmud. Such peoples are called "peoples of the Book" and are to be treated as "different but equal". Rationale: God gave versions of His Word to different peoples via a Prophet for that people. Jews have their Prophet, we have Jesus, the Muslims have Muhammad. But Jesus, Mary and Joseph, Abraham and Moses are in the Qur'an, too (translate their names into Arabic then look for yourself). Sort of like, I sent them theirs, I sent you yours. Therefore don't discriminate against your brothers, because I gave to each of you your due.

So what in the damn hell is all the shooting in the Middle East, Israel and Lebanon all about????

Anyway, so...

...when someone says "damn the Muslims", I wonder whether he knows what he's talking about. There's no denying most of the horrifying terrorist acts perpetrated nowadays are attributed to Muslims, but is that sufficient reason to damn the whole? My own island has suffered bombings and war, but in the small communities with both Muslim and Christian residents, nobody says to his neighbor "damn you for being a Muslim" because you suffer together. The bombs killed Muslims as well as Christians. As my present roommate always says, "the bullet won't say to itself, this is not my target, this is not the enemy. It simply kills."

I wonder...

...if the Germans were responsible for the mass murder and genocide of many European Jews, an act condemned by the rest of the world, is that any reason now for Jews to yell at them "damn you Germans!!!!"

...if the Spaniards conquered and enslaved my people for 333 years (count them peepz!)... would that be reason for me to yell at every Spaniard I see, "damn you Spaniards!!!"

If the Japanese committed many atrocities in my country during World War II... mass murder, torture, genocide, rape... is that a reason for me to yell at every Japanese I see, "damn you Japs!!!"

If the Americans killed many of my countrymen and compatriots during the Fil-American War of the early 1900's, and still has an active hand in many political decisions affecting my country, would that be a reason for me to yell at all you Americans out there, "damn you GI's!!!!"

I thought not.