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What do rockista Bamboo (Marohombsar), ABS-CBN’s Singing Bee lead
singer Sue Castrodes and Genuine Opposition Spokesman Adel Tamano
have in common? They are proud Maranaos of Lanao del Sur.
Lanao del Sur can stand proud of a culture that
has been preserved despite the impact of pop culture in global media
and cyberspace. Home of the Sultanates, sarimanok and Islam,
visiting Lanao del Sur province in Central Mindanao is a walk back
in time when women walked around gracefully in their malongs
(wrap-around clothing) and men with betel-stained golden teeth
played chess all day. Although being transported to a place that
seems stuck in time could be soothing to a frazzled urbanite, the
truth is Lanao del Sur is that way largely because it is one of the
poorest provinces in the country.
As Lanao del Sur, the second-largest province in
the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) with a population of
almost 700,000, celebrated its 49 years of being chartered on July
4, it faces security challenges due to recent kidnappings of
non-natives, including a Mindanao State University Professor on June
26 in Saguiaran town.
Where is Lanao del Sur?
Because of this negative image, few know about
the tourism potentials of the province. Lanao comes from the word
ranao, meaning “lake.” On the basin of the majestic Lake Lanao,
a mountain shaped like a lady called Sleeping Beauty catches
visitors in awe. Lanao del Sur forms the western portion of Northern
Mindanao. It is bounded on the north by Lanao del Norte, on the east
by Bukidnon, on the west by Illana Bay, and on the south by
Maguindanao and Cotabato.
Three hours away from Cagayan de Oro’s Lumbia
airport, the drive to Lanao is breathtaking. The landscape is
dominated by rolling hills and valleys, placid lakes and rivers. The
climate in the province is characterized by even distribution of
rainfall throughout the year, without a distinct summer season. The
province is located outside the typhoon belt.
Filipino’s last samurai
Few also know the rich history of the province.
When the Spaniards first explored Lanao in 1689, they found a
well-settled community named Dansalan at the lake’s northern end.
In 1895, Lanao was created as a district of Mindanao. In 1903, Lanao
was incorporated into the Moro Province by the American government.
In 1914, the province of Lanao was born with the organization of the
Department of Mindanao and Sulu.
Hundreds of natives, who use the traditional
defense system building kota (fortresses), battled thousands of
American troops in the bloody wars in the towns of Taraka and Bayang.
Because of the need for strategic American presence here, Americans
set up the Amai Pakpak Fort in Marawi.
On May 2, 1942, the former Chief Justice of the
Supreme Court of the Philippines Jose Abad Santos was killed by the
Japanese Imperial forces by firing squad at Malabang. Maranao
guerrilla units used the infantry weapons together with the Maranao
Kris, Barong and Kampilan swords against the Japanese forces during
in the Battle of Lanao.
When Lanao was divided into two provinces (Sur
and Norte) under Republic Act No. 2228 in 1959, Marawi was made the
capital of the Muslim-dominated Lanao del Sur. Christian-dominated
Lanao del Norte will also celebrate its 49th anniversary on the same
day, July 4.
Lanao was also the site of several uprisings led
by the Bangsamoro Liberation Organization in the 70s against the
national government.
As a result of peace agreements between the Moro
National Liberation Front and government, Lanao del Sur voted, in a
plebiscite, to join the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao in
1989.
To this day, many Maranao senior citizens
identify themselves as Filipinos and look to central government as
gobierno a sarwang, (government of unbelievers). Wary of outsiders,
activists mobilized the locals to rally against the presence of
American troops two months ago. The American soldiers were
conducting humanitarian medical missions in several towns of Lanao,
part of the RP-US Balikatan Exercises.
Warrior-turned trader
The Maranaos are said to be the most
conservative and religious yet the most mobile and business-minded
among the 13 ethno-linguistic Muslim cultural communities. After
martial law, thousands of Maranaos migrated across the country and
the Middle East to work and help their poor families back home. From
Batacto Jolo, Maranao traders selling DVDs, jewelry and clothing can
be found in all of the public markets and shopping centers in the
country. They have also set up mosques in the mostly
Christian-dominated towns where they have settled.
-- Samira Gutoc
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