ABSTRACT
This chapter reconsiders the fundamental problems writing about Philippine political development from the perspective of national politics when political actors, processes, and institutions in “unsafe” frontiers where minorities are prevalent are factored in. It examines this dilemma through the eyes of a Muslim woman of Chinese lineage who is a smuggler and whose family members are “spread” all over the world as overseas workers. However, it suggests that there are indications that these fissiparous tendencies can be reversed due, ironically, to the outcome of a drawn-out war.
