Tag: david martinez

A Bangsamoro state is only possible in a fully-federalised Philippine republic

June 3, 2015 benign0 16 Comments

The trouble with all notions of an autonomous Muslim state is that it implies that Muslims are “special” Filipinos deserving of special treatment. The Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) and, now, the proposed Bangsamoro “state” by their very nature are both tainted by that ill-conceived specialness. Worse, both entities were created under threat of…

Development, Government, Politics

The Philippines’ feudal politics: How ‘different political backgrounds’ proved fatal to Typhoon Haiyan’s victims

December 10, 2013March 30, 2016 benign0 20 Comments

Accounts of how the Philippines’ renowned brand of feudal politics came into play in the virtual paralysis of relief efforts in the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan (a.k.a. Yolanda) are emerging. Tacloban City mayor Alfred Romualdez testifying before Congress reported how red tape and stonewalling from Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) Secretary Mar Roxas…

Crime, Development, Government

Should the Sultanate of Sulu demand full independence from the Philippines and Malaysia?

February 25, 2013 benign0 28 Comments

At the end of the day, what exactly is ‘the Philippines’ to begin with? The way things are going, it seems it will remain no more than the bunch of tropical islands around which the 16th Century Spanish crown drew a ring and named after their king. To this day, Filipinos suffer from the same…

Government, Politics, Religion, The South

After Bangsamoro: Do the Cordilleras, Visayas, and the rest of Mindanao have equal claim to autonomy?

October 11, 2012October 11, 2012 benign0 57 Comments

Peace at last in Mindanao — or so people hope in the advent of greater autonomy granted by the government of President Benigno Simeon “BS” Aquino III to rebellious Muslim groups there. The Framework Agreement covering the terms of this autonomy is set to be signed on the 15th of October this year between the…

Culture, Development, Economy, Government, Politics

Should Mindanao secede from what could be turning into a failed state?

July 7, 2011June 16, 2013 benign0 37 Comments

Seems like the whole Media fiesta that is raging around the the Duterte’s of Davao City, specifically on-leave Mayor Sara’s fists and the Duterte father-and-son fingers is opening up old raw emotions about the subjugation of Mindanao to the 100-year-old elephant in the room — the legacy of colonial rule, Imperial Manila. Many Davao folk…

Government, Politics, Society