Colonial roots of the divide
Read the conflict by pressure point
Tap a force to see what keeps the conflict alive
Timeline
Five turning points that reshape Mindanao
Split roles
Christian actors did not move in one direction
Escalation
Settler fear + militia force
Christian settler politics often framed Moro claims as threats. Groups like Ilaga translated that fear into anti-Muslim violence.
- Land and office became communal battlegrounds
- Religion hardened into a security identity
- Violence fed further armed mobilization
De-escalation
Church networks + interfaith work
Other Christian actors used public authority, relief work, and dialogue to lower mistrust and make coexistence visible.
- Bishops-Ulama Conference modeled public cooperation
- NCCP-linked work focused on rights and displacement
- Peacebuilding addressed social mistrust, not only treaties
Escalation loop
Why local fear kept reproducing conflict
Peace architecture
Open a case to see how de-escalation actually worked
Takeaway
The key question is not whether Christians were involved, but how
Religion could be used to mark belonging, exclusion, or solidarity.
Land, security, status, and public legitimacy shaped behavior.
Visible Christian action shifts from coercion-heavy to peace-facing forms.
Dialogue matters, but it cannot replace structural political settlement.
Sources used in the project
Selected references from the paper
Continue exploring