THE RAIDERS OF THE SULU SEA FILM REPORT PDF

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THERAIDERSOF THESULU SEAPresented by Elijah Ruth Catan and Gabriel BeniegoC A S 2 0 4 W I T H M R S. M O J A R E SCONTEXT: THE RAIDERS OF THE SULU SEADOCUMENTARY FILM founded by Zaihirat Banu Codelli (CEO) along with Lim Suat Yen (COO), and Jason Lai (Director of Content) in 1996. They produce docum...

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CAS 20 4 WI TH M R S . M O JAR E S

THE RAIDERS OF THE SULU SEA Presented by Elijah Ruth Catan and Gabriel Beniego

CONTEXT: THE RAIDERS OF THE SULU SEA DOCUMENTARY FILM An Oak3 film production • founded by Zaihirat Banu Codelli (CEO) along with Lim Suat Yen (COO), and Jason Lai (Director of

Content) in 1996. • They produce

documentaries, educational films, tele-movies,

corporate films with film companies from different countries throughout the year

• Directed by Mr. Idzwan

Othman. • A product of a co-

• First released in 2007 for Q

channel Korea and distributed internationally

production agreement

by Looking Glass

between Media Authority

International through

of Singapore and Korean

Discovery Channel and

Broadcasting Commission

History Channel (for Asia)

• Running time: 48 minutes and 43 seconds

in 2008.

A historical documentary (2008) that depicts the slaveraiding activities perpetrated by the Samal-Balanguingui and the Illanun/Iranun under direction of the Sultanate of Sulu which was headed by the Tausug clan at the time.

CONTEXT: THE RAIDERS OF THE SULU SEA DOCUMENTARY FILM

KEY INFORMANTS • A 7th generation direct descendant of Vicente Alvarez the hero of Zamboanga City during the Spanish American War, and does an an extensive research in the arts and culture of Zamboanga. Educational Background • 1st Degree at the Western Mindanao State University

and finished Bachelor in Science major of Home Economics

• 2nd Degree at the UP College of Fine Arts major in Art History

KEY INFORMANTS

• Sama-tausug-Chinese Filipino born in Sulu, an authority on the issue of Moro history, armed struggle

and quest for self determination. • MA in History Degree in UP Diliman and PhD in Interdisciplinary Studies in Syracuse University, NY,

USA. • Published author and serve as chair of UP Diliman Department of History. • An authority on the issue of the Moro history.

KEY INFORMANTS

• Christianity and religious change in Southeast Asia, ca. 1500-present, Women and gender in early modern Southeast Asia, Social issues in contemporary Southeast Asia • She is Professor of Asian Studies at the University of Hawai’i and Director of the Center for Southeast Asian Studies Educated at the University of Sydney (BA, Dip, Ed), and obtained her MA in history at the University of Hawaii.

KEY INFORMANTS

• An Associate Professor at the Center for Southeast Asian Studies, Kyoto University, Japan. He was previously a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Southeast Asian Studies at the National University of Singapore. • He obtained his PhD in Southeast Asian Studies (anthropology and cultural history) at the Australian National University. • Subsequently published on religious practice in Asia, with a focus on Christian iconography, religious piety, and the relationship between religion and the state.

KEY INFORMANTS

• • • •

A Tausug, member of educated Abubakar clan. Former city councilor of Jolo, Sulu. Exponent of the martial art of silat. Shares the sentiment of his people at Tausug and the moral community in general who resents their characterization by Western Colonial and Filipino Historiography as pirates.

KEY INFORMANTS

• is a Filipino politician, philanthropist and socialite. She was the former Chairman of the Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino (Kampi) party and a member of the Council of Philippine Affairs (COPA), she is a columnist in The Philippine Star, and was a candidate for a seat in the Senate in the 2013 Philippine Senate Election. • She was the Governor of Tarlac (March 10-September 24, 2004) • She studied at University of Santo Tomas and finished her Master in National Security Administration (MNSA) at the National Defense college.

Iranun/Illanuns - they were portrayed as “merciless” in the

documentary, inhabited the Hana bay area in Southwestern Mindanao whose language is intelligible with Maranaw. They were fierce marine force of the Sultunate of Sulu.

WHO ARE THE RAIDERS OF SULU SEA?

Samal Balanguingui - One of the Sama communities that

originally inhabited the Tongkil island group, they were relocated to Zamboanga peninsula coast and islands as a result of the 1848 military campaign.

WHO ARE THE RAIDERS OF SULU SEA?

Tausug or “people (Tau) of the current (sug)’’ constituted the people of the Sultanate of Sulu or Lupah Sug and speak the Tausug language that is related to the Butuan dialect (T.Kiefer, 1974)

WHO ARE THE RAIDERS OF SULU SEA?

FORT PILAR

• Full name: Real Fuerza del Nuestra

Señora del Pilar de Zaragoza Royal, Royal Fort of our Lady of the Pillar of Zaragoza; considered to be the Intramuros in the South. • Forts like this is used for protection or for security of those people who are living inside away from the enemies. • Formerly: Real Fuerza de San Jose (Royal Fort of Saint Joseph) • Located in Zamboanga City; 2nd fort in the Philippines built by the Spaniards, the first one is the Fort Santiago in 1571.

ENTRANCE

FORT PILAR • 17th century military defense fortress built by the Spanish colonial government • 4 meters high, 2 acres wide

• Requested by Jesuit Priest and Bishop Fray Pedro of Cebu upon the approval of

the Spanish governor of the Philippines Juan Cerezo de Salamanca

• Architect: Father Melchor de Vera. SJ (1635) SHRINE

RAIDERS OF THE SULU SEA

• In the 16th century, Spaniards colonized Zamboanga because of its geographical advantage that made it valuable to the catholic Spaniards. To protect their interests, the Spanish built forts to discourage potential invaders. • Front line: Fort Del Pilar – a 10-meter high fortress that sprawled over 2 acres - one of the most celebrated attacks on Fort Pilar is the 1720 attack by the Maguindanao King Dalasi – the king of Bulig in Maguindanao at the time • Rajah Dalasi was planning to attack Zamboanga city together with the joint force of the Sulu sultanate. • Sulu and Maguindanao Sultanates – the two main kingdoms which control the Muslim colonies of the Southern Philippines. • On December 8, 1720, together with Rajah Dalasi, they launched a bloody attack on Fort Pilar, located in Zamboanga City. They attacked Zamboanga, burned the town around the fort, cut down the lines of provisions for the Spaniards, and began a war against the soldiers inside the fort. • Taking the fort wouldn’t be easy for Rajah Dalasi and his fighters. The fort has a structure designed to withstand even the destructive force of cannonballs. Spanish artillery rows defended every possible approach to the fort, but Spanish soldiers are vastly outnumbered even with these defenses and weaponry.

RAIDERS OF THE SULU SEA • Together with his army, Rajah Dalasi held only their sword to fight against the Spaniards’ cannon and firearms. Spaniards are desperate to defend the fort that they even use rocks and boiling water against the raiders as they scaled the fort’s walls. Rajah Dalasi’s fighters fight with the desire to rid Zamboanga against the Spanish. The Fort Pilar is the checking point on slaveraiding going to the North and coming back. That’s why raiders are desperate to suppress the Spaniard’s presence. • According to some historians, slave-raiding had been practiced among some tribes in the Philippines before Western powers arrived.

• The arrival of the Spanish and their desire to dominate trade in the region triggered an escalation in slave raiding. • The people of the Southern Sultanate defied a self-proclaim Spanish Masters by targeting Christian communities in the North. • The Spanish referred to the slave raiders as Moro.

RAIDERS OF THE SULU SEA Three different Muslim tribes who challenged Spanish authority throughout its occupancy and reigned during the 17th century / Raiders of the Sulu Sea • Samal Balanguingui/Balangingi (Raiding tribe) - They occupied the chain of the islands between Basilan and Sulu island • Illanuns (Raiding tribe) - Very important in the piracy history. - Known as fierce in marine force in the sultanate - They are nothing but barbaric for the Western Colonist • Tausug (Warriors) - Known for its fierce warriors and widespread political powers. - Controls the Sulu Sultanate in the South - Lineage of Rajahs

• The Illanuns and Samal Balanguingui were both long-standing seafaring communities. They often join forces with the Tausug, a tribe without maritime experience but known for its fierce warriors and widespread political power. • When Illanuns captured people, they would bore a hole through their palm of their victim and string through each person’s palm.

RAIDERS OF THE SULU SEA • Historians questioned whether the raiders in the Southern Philippines should be called pirates. Were they out for personal gain, or were they simply serving their local political masters? • According to the Historian, Professor Barbara Watson Andaya said, “All books that talk about piracy deal with the problem of terminology. Using the word English word pirate is actually misleading in some respects because it doesn’t cover raiders, it doesn’t cover people who acted on behalf of the state.” • These Philippine Moros, the raids to the North, and the Spanish force’s attack were an act of retaliation against the foreign occupier. • The sultanate also sanctioned most of these raids in the name of an even higher course, Islam. • According to the Historian, Dr Julius Bautista said, “There was certainly a great deal of pressure from the South for populations in the Visayas to become Islamicized, but the presence of the Spanish in the Visayas and Southern Luzon disrupted that spread of Islam. The Spanish colonial administrators thought it was their responsibility to prevent the spread of Islam from the South to the Christianized population in the North.” • For the Muslim Sultanates, eradicating the presence of Christian-Spanish in Zamboanga was one of their top priorities. Both sides used their ideology to spread its influence.

RAIDERS OF THE SULU SEA

• Butuan City – a small town located in the northernmost region of Mindanao • In 1977, they found evidence of maritime civilization in a pond. Carbon dating of artifacts found point to a maritime culture that existed in the 4th century. Seafarers inherited their navigational skills from the early • Southern Filipino seafarers, which helped them build a flourishing trade in sea’s bounty. • The mid-1700s, the ships evolved into a sturdier, more seaworthy craft. • Professor Barbara Watson Andaya said, “Increase in slave in the demand for slaves fed into a situation by the mid-18th century when something very unprecedented happened in the Malacca Straits region, and that was the seasonal arrival of very large numbers of raiders from the Southern Philippines.” • The Illanun slave raiders who landed at the Straits of Malacca were skilled warriors, and they sailed formidable ships. “They could go into shallow waters; they had compasses and cannons onboard their ships. They had many rowers.” – Professor Barbara Watson Andaya • The Illanun made long-range vessels called Joanga or Lanong. • These ships had a large wide keel for stability and three large cloth sails. These vessels were 24 to 27 meters long with 6-meter width, and each had cannon mounted at the bow with three mainsails, and 34 oars rowed each side by captured slaves. Each vessel carried between 100 to 150 men. They also captured local guides to help navigate unknown waters.

RAIDERS OF THE SULU SEA • The Illanuns used compasses and telescopes; they were also knowledgeable about the monsoon winds of the region and used them to travel extensity during the months between August and October, and the period called The Pirate Season. • By 1830, a single sailed ship with 25 meters long and 6 meters across, a smaller, faster, and more manoeuvrable form of raiding boat replaced the Lanong ship. They were the fast attack boat for the Samal raiding tribes called Garay. Its glass of vessels was built from bamboo, wood, and the nipa palm, and could carry more than 100 sails. With 30 to 60 oars on each side, the Garay was faster with any seagoing vessel of its time. • The raiding fleets also comprised of auxiliary vessels called Salisipan. These were small coats designed for coastal raids. On route to a powerful attack, the caravans would collect manpower and ships from friendly raiding bases along the way, eventually building a fearsome, organized sea force. • An Art Historian, Icelle Gloria B. Estrada said, “When they leave the shore on skeleton force, they pass by other bases and augment the labour into the ship, then when they reach the coast, they usually hide their big boats, because it can be seen from the shore, so they use the Salisipan, the smaller vessel, to row into the shorelines and pretend they are fisherman and harmless people.”

RAIDERS OF THE SULU SEA • “When Illanun captured people, they would bore a hole through their palm and put a string through the palm of his bosom. Europeans were unable to do anything about it at this stage. Their ships were not as fast as the Illanuns, they weren’t as manoeuvrable, and if they will be calmed, then they were fair game, and there weren’t enough of them.” – Professor Barbara Watson Andaya • Unlike the ships of the raiding tribes, Spanish galleons were slow and ungainly, while they were heavily armed, their deep keels prevented them from chasing raiding tribe into the shallows. Behind the religious doctrine war, the Spanish want to stop the raiders for the spoils of trades with orient something the Spanish wanted complete control. • The sea voyages of the ancient Filipino sailor of Butuan were not restricted to the Sulu Seas. Artifacts originating from China but were found in the Philippines are proof of the great distances they travelled and the trading activities they were involved in. There is further proof that Sulu Sultanate’s families visited the resource-rich regions of China for commerce.

RAIDERS OF THE SULU SEA

• International trade was already flourishing even before the entry of the western powers to the region. Professor Barbara Watson Andaya said, “When Europeans first came to this region, it was those products that attracted them, the products that couldn’t be found anywhere else. Not only spices, but woods, tin, pepper. By the 18th century, those products were important in the China trade, so before Europeans arrived there was already a pattern of trade between China and India, and Europeans simply entered into that pattern. The difference was the Europeans wanted to control it.” According to Dr Julius Bautista, “In many respects the Spanish wanted to be a part of this exchange in trade, but they wanted to do so in conjunction with conversion and colonization of the islands. This presented some important conflicts between the people in the South and the newly arrived Spanish.” • As the Spanish seized control of the Philippines, the influence of the Muslim South waived, the new western masters sought to dominate trades in Jolo, the seat of power of the Sulu Sultanate. Today, Jolo is a mere shadow of the great commercial and political power it once was. While the seafaring warriors salve raiders evolved along gone, their proud descendants still live here. • Halman Abubakar is a direct descendant of Tausug rulers, he is an exponent of the indigenous martial arts of Silat, practicing it is his way of keeping the heritage of his people alive. He is also a city councilor in Jolo, like hi Tausug predecessors, he champions the cause of his people, the Muslim communities of Mindanao in Southern Philippines.

RAIDERS OF THE SULU SEA

• “Maybe Spain only wanted to Christianize Jolo. Force feeding us with something that we don’t believe in is like oppression, so we go to war. When you call us pirates for doing that, it’s your decision, but to us, we are fighting for something that we believe in, we are freedom fighters. It is our fight for freedom, freedom from oppression, freedom from not losing your identity.” – Halman Abubakar Ancient Tausug weapons: • Barong, a thick blade used by the Tausug warriors to cut off an M-14, a carbine. It is a sword with a singleedged leaf-shaped blade made of thick tempered steel. It is a one-meter long weapon used in close combat battle to cut the Spanish firearms down. • Kris or Kalis, measuring up to 1.2 meters in length, was built a weapon of warfare and ceremony. It was not only carried by slave raiders but also but also by nobles and high-ranking officials of the Sultan Sultanate. It is double-edged with a wavy blade, it can make quick work of an enemy in close combat, the reason for its curvings is for easy slashing. The steel would penetrate the bone, and it would stick so it will be very hard to pull. The Tausug warriors made it curvy or wavy so they can pull it faster. • Kampilan, the longest sword used by the raiders, primarily the Illanun. It is a heavy single-edge sword that was often adorned with hair to make it look more intimidating, to indicate the number of lives it killed. At the tip of the blade are two horn projecting from the blunt side which is used to pick up the head of a decapitated body.

RAIDERS OF THE SULU SEA

• The wealthier raiders also protected themselves in battle with armor, this heavy armor made from Carabao horn or steel plates, was molded to fit the body and held together with chainmail. This armor could deflect the blows from a sword but were useless against Spanish firearms. The Spanish firearm called Musket had its limitation, it could fire its ball bearing projectile as far as 90 meters, but it was inaccurate and it several tiresome steps to reload. Even the best Musketeers could only manage three shots per minute, giving the raiders an ample time to come within striking range, even with Bayonet Mounted, Muskets were not efficient weapons for close combat. • The battle between the slave raiders and Spanish were clashes of ideology, Islam against Christianity. The indigenous way of life against the enforced values of the occupiers. The might of the sword against the destructive power of gunpowder. • In December 8, 1720, Rajah Dalasi led a 3000 strong coalition of warriors against 600 Spanish soldiers at Fort Pilar, Zamboanga City. The slave raiders attack on Fort Pillar was poorly conceived, as Musket fire cut through their ranks, there were no reinforcements to lend the raiders support. “The forces of the Sulu Sultanate came in a month after, so there was very poor condition.” (Icelle Gloria Estrada)

RAIDERS OF THE SULU SEA • Another factor that led to Rajah Dalasi’s eventual failure and his demise was the betrayal of his own brother. His betrayal would seal the fate of Dalasi’s raiders. “His younger brother, who was jealous of his position, turned traitor to Rajah Dalasi. His younger brother went to Tamontaka, he left the kingdom and wrote a letter or a warning to the Governor of Zamboanga, warning of the impending attack.” (Icelle Gloria Estrada) • There was no element of surprise in Rajah Dalasi’s assault on Fort Pilar, as they were warned, they were prepared for the attack. In the heat of battle, Rajah Dalasi was heavily wounded. Without a leader, their attack was in shambles as subsequent raiders were dispelled. • But the Spanish victory was not the end of hostilities. As an act of defiance, the raiders sought for more slaves in Southeast Asia. The Spanish were now hell-bent on ridding themselves of these people they called pirates. • “Piracy to them, to us it was culture. Nowadays it’s so hard to understand why there was slaveraiding, but during those days it was legal so we cannot compare now with those times. It’s different.” – H...