Philippines

One of my most memorable international trips was to the southern Philippines in August 2005. I was there to attend an international Muslim-Christian Solidarity Conference that was organized by a Moro alliance network -- a group of organizations representing Moro indigenous peoples, many of whom are Muslim -- and the National Council of Churches of the Philippines.

More than 95% of the people of the Philippines are Christian, and the small Muslim community is based mostly in the south (primarily on the island of Mindanao) and in the urban area around the national capital of Manila, on the main island of Luzon. For more than a quarter-century, Moro and other Muslim minority groups have fought for self-determination in their home areas as land and water rights have been given to multinational corporations and natural resources have been taken. I was one of about a dozen international participants at the conference, and the Filipinos we met described in depth how the Philippines military has targeted and oppressed many local communities as a result of this long-running conflict.