IN PHOTOS: Ramadan, Bangsamoro law usher in new beginnings

MANILA, Philippines — “O ye who believe! Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those before you, that ye may (learn) self-restraint…” (Al – Qur’an, 2: 183)

Muslims are united in celebrating Ramadan. Bonded with a purpose of purifying themselves and establishing a deeper link between the people and Allah, they perform intimate prayers, fasting, and profound spiritual war against all forms of worldly matters.

“[Ramadan] aims to develop oneself in terms of values, discipline, and the other one is cleansing or purification. But is not just spiritual or value formation – it has physical and therapeutic benefits,” said Julkipli Wadi, dean of the University of the Philippines (UP) Institure of Islamic Studies.

“Fasting in the month of Ramadan is an opportunity for new beginnings because as a person, you are reinvigorated, you are enlightened,” Wadi said.

“Hindi iyan konsepto na parang pinahihirapan mo ang sarili mo. Sa halip, tinatanggal mo ang mga masasamang impurities sa katawan.” (It’s not that you are punishing yourself. It is actually cleansing yourself of impurities.)

During Ramadan, Muslims are expected to exert more effort in following the teachings of the Quran. Its principle is to develop one’s self-restraint which needs to be adopted by Moro leaders and lawmakers in pursuing the Bangsamoro Basic Law – restraint from self interest, ambition, and biased judgment.

“So, if it (Ramadan) is a new beginning, in a sense, the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) should also serve as a new beginning in addressing the Mindanao conflict,” Wadi said.

Right side of history?

Historically, Muslims in Mindanao and other parts of the country have displayed unity and strong determination to defend their territory and freedom, even years before the Spanish colonialism reached Mactan. It is the same kind of unity that the Filipino Muslims should pursue the BBL in order to win the struggle for self-determination.

“Let us remember that even during the time of Aguinaldo and Bonifacio, when they molded the so-called Philippine revolution, and when they were conceptualizing the Filipino nation, they had difficulty building unity. In fact, their history was bloody. The Magdalo and Magdiwang, for example – who ordered Bonifacio’s execution?” Wadi said in Filipino.

Given on a sliver platter

Wadi also pointed out that there is a “qualitative difference” between the Bangsamoro formation and the Philippine republic. 

“At least for the Philippines, independence was given on a silver platter, and history was on the side of the Filipinos. Whereas the Moros, they were tossed from one colonial power to another, and the Philippines was the last country to do that to them,” Wadi explained.

In a Pulse Asia survey that was released on March 19, 62% of the Mindanao residents opposed the passage of the bill. Various ethnic groups and tribes in the Southern Philippines complained they were not consulted about BBL. They also said they will not gain from the proposed measure because the government is only talking to the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).

Wrong people?

“Let us not look at fasting simply as a tradition of the Muslims; it is a tradition of all religions. But you cannot define fasting if you are not practicing it. Just like BBL, you cannot address the problem in Mindanao if you don’t know the place, the people, culture and its history,” said Wadi

Questions on the credibility of the government’s representatives were raised when people saw loop holes in the draft BBL. The attempt of the Congress to railroad the bill worsened public speculations that the bill itself is not complete and will not serve the interest of the majority of Muslims in Mindanao.

“Mali ang mga taong inilagay nila (They put the wrong people),” said Hajji Moh’d Ersad Malli, administrator of the Manila Golden Mosque and Cultural Center.

“Even before the start of the negotiations between the government panel and the MILF, everyone should have been represented. Talk to the Tausug, the Maranao, the Sultanate of Sulu, the MNLF. Even if you say that the MNLF has lost its strength, they are still creating problems; remember the Zamboanga siege? Who are the victims? We civilians,” Malli said in Filipino. 

Greater Jihad

Ramadan tests one self’s strength against his own evil. It teaches every Muslim who performs fasting to win the Greater Jihad or the ‘spiritual war’.

Omar Ballesteros, a 35-year-old Filipino-Chinese who converted to Islam in 2013, said that the Philippines will only achieve peace and prosperity if people will learn the lessons of Ramadan.

It is easy to fool other people. It is easy to show others that we fast for an hour or two or observe  Ramadan but secretly eat food inside our rooms. We are not doing this just to blend in. I am doing this to gain self-respect,” Ballesteros said Filipino.

BBL should not only provide for the sentiments of a specific sector or faction. It must favor the people of Mindanao and resolve the protracted war that victimized countless civilians. – Rappler.com