This journal provides accounts on Moro history through the lenses of Lloyd G. Van Vactor, Mamitua Saber, and Michael Sullivan. It imparts how culture and conflict evolved in the Moro community through time, as the journal combines both personal narratives from the authors as well as historical data from various sources. In “My Twenty Longest Days,” Van Vactor talks about his story of being held captive by Moro rebels while being President of Dansalan College. Such level of tension only proves not only how conflict riddled throughout Moro history, but also how this same conflict victimizes anyone who is seen as a threat. His personal account of the kidnapping also illustrates the early years of the MNLF through his interactions with his kidnappers. Meanwhile, in “A Jihad in Defense of Ancestral Land at Camp Amai Pakpak,” Saber shares how his own grandparents, father, and uncle participated in the historic resistance against Spanish soldiers in the Battles of Marawi in 1891 and 1895. It articulates beautifully the valor of Muslim Maranaos in a time of subservience. Lastly, in “Facing the Future in a Maguindanaon Village,” Sullivan speaks about Maguindanaon culture and traditions, focusing mainly on dialects and sociopolitical organization with bits and pieces from his own interviews with residents of a Maguindanaon village regarding their take on the future. The residents shared how their lack of access and opportunities results in alienation–something they know to be wrong and unjust. In sum, this journal sheds light on the early years of armed conflict and Moro resistance, and how it affected the Moro people of Mindanao.

Please email dansalan.quarterly@dcfi.edu.ph to request a copy of the issue.