ABSTRACT
The chapter examines secessionist wars by groups of Muslim minorities of the southern Philippines (who self-identify as Moros) and the Philippine state, among the longest in Southeast Asia. It explores the historical antecedents and consequences of Moro-state conflict, the process of Moro identity formation and Bangsamoro nation-building, and investigates the competing perspectives of the state and the Bangsamoro. The right to self-determination is likewise appraised within the provisions of international law. The chapter argues that political settlement of armed conflict fundamentally rests with the expansion of democratic space in which governance can function and thrive for Muslims and non-Muslims alike. The conflict between the state and Bangsamoro was sparked and prolonged more by structural restraints generated by the unitary state which constrained the self-governing power of the Bangsamoros in southern Philippines as well as other aspiring minority groups in other parts of the country. The chapter concludes by suggesting that conferring a semi-sovereign status, resembling a federal structure of governance, would enhance the process of nation-state building not only of the Bangsamoros in particular but of the Philippines generally.
