is an association of tausug professionals, students, cause oriented groups and concern citizen of former hashimite state of Sulu, founded in 2008 and governed by a private board of trustees. the Banuwa Suluk Association was organized by few Tausug professionals, students, religious groups, concern tausugs living in Mindanao, Sulu, Basilan, Tawi-Tawi, Zamboanga Peninsula and Palawan in January 2008
with the primary objective on the promotion of Tausug unity and cooperation,development, enhancement and improvement of the quality of life for each members. This organization is governed by member of board of trustees and the council of elders, and intend to expand its members to the outside world who wanted to join us in our quest for social, economic, political and cultural development. The meaning of Banuwa or Banwa is a tausug term which refers to Tribe, Community or a Nation with a political structure during the reigned of the Sultanate of Sulu in early part of 1400' up to the 1900'... till now this institution is still existing in some part of the community in Sulu with the designation of the descendants of Panglima, Maharajah, Nakib, in order to maintain peace, security and progress as a community. a disciple who resorts to remembrance of God by way of worship, prepares himself to rise to next stage called Tariqah or Sufi path. The Quran declares:
As for those who strive in us, we surely guide them to our paths...(29:69)
The conditions essential for shari'ah are sincerity (ikhlas) and true faith (Iman); those who reach this stage are ready to move on to the path of spiritual progress (Syr wa Suluk) and are able to attain spiritual and moral purification. the condition for advancing on this path is to have a guide, as the poet say:
Do not go on this path without the companionship of Khidr (guide), for it is a dark region; Beware of the danger of getting lost. Sulu: The Heart of a Trading Zone
The recent situation in Sulu depicted the southernmost tip of the Philippines as an area people should be aware of the root causes of problem of peace and underdevelopment. despite of final peace agreement between the Moro National Liberation Front and the Government of the Republic of the Philippines with the promise of rehabilitation of the war torn areas, the people still suffering from high incidence of poverty, illiteracy, unemployment, high mortality rate and malnourished children , and the low level of productivity. the life of people had never change for better since the coming of Spanish in 1560 and the Americans in 1900' via the treaty of Paris in 1898 which the Spanish government sold the Philippines including the Sultanate of Sulu and Mindanao in spite of the opposition of the people in the amount of 20 million us dollar. the people had never consulted that is why up to this day the moro people had never recognized the unlawful annexation of the moroland and instead continue their struggle for legal and historic right as a sovereign nation. The Sultanate of Sulu composed of Sulu, Basilan, Tawi-tawi, Zamboanga Peninsula, Palawan and Sabbah. The aspiration of the Tausug to regain their sovereign right thru legal and non-violence means is a just cause, in pursuing their goal and develop their potential as a center of trade, investment, agriculture, and marine resources including strategic minerals and shipping line destination. But today’s impoverished chain of islands was the center of international commerce during the height of Sulu’s glory. In the late 19th century, the Sultanate of Sulu took part in the bold European expansion throughout Southeast Asia, where the Dutch, British, and Spanish angled for a share of the highly profitable Chinese trade. When Manila and Cebu were yet small settlements, the isles of the Sulu archipelago were home to one of the richest and foremost settlements in Spanish-era Philippines. Sulu bridged two distinct worlds and lay at
the most strategic point for maritime trade. China, the Philippines, and Mindanao were situated to the north, Borneo to the southwest and, to the southeast, the Celebes and the Moluccas. A watershed on the landscape of insular Southeast Asia, Sulu separated the autonomous Muslim maritime world from the agrarian, Christianized Philippines administered by Spanish authorities from Manila. The political and commercial advantages of the Sultanate’s location were both enviable and unique. Being situated at the crossroads of international trade and politics offered Sulu opportunities for development and challenges for defending what was right and just. The Sultanate’s central position in relation to Asian routes of trade and exchange, as well as its abundant natural resources for export to China attracted the attention of the West, while Sulu’s sizable population attracted neighboring merchants. Sulu’s supremacy as a market center and regional power depended on expansive trade. The archipelago’s location and natural resources fit perfectly with the requirements of Europe’s trade with China. Sherhan Kahalan December 20 at 5:24pm Report
Posted by: "liz_sidani"Fw:
[Tausug_Islam] Digest Number 311
Sun Oct 21, 2007 9:19 pm (PST)
Greetings my Tausug Brothers! Sorry for the late reply on this article. I have long been a great admirer of the Tausug People. In my book,
they are among the bravest specimen of humanity..along with the
Spartans, Vietnamese and Gurkhas. I recently visited Malaysia (Malaysians, in my opinion are secretly
jealous of Sulu's history--having been subdued, conquered, colonized
and pillaged by the Brits--)for some research work. There, it never
fails to amaze me how rich Malays (the elite and educated kind)
will "somehow" manage to "trace" their roots to the Sultanate of
Sulu. In fact, some Datus there will claim they have Tausug blood. Several years back, I learned that some "heroes" in Malaysia are
actually Tausugs. But the Malaysians will always claim that its the
other way around. The Malaysian Datus were always "just in time"
to "save" their royal cousins. Frankly, if this were true, how come
Malaysia lost to Brunei when Sulu Datus entered the picture? In
fact, how come Malaysia succumb to Western invasion while Sulu
fought on for 300 years? After my inquiries, my Malaysian friend turned cold on me. Touche! AS for the Americans, they were never interested in occupying Sulu
at that time but they were challenged by these remarkable people. Perhaps, they wanted to instill their concept of "democracy" to the
Tausugs. After all, MOST SULTANATES/CALIPHAT ES IN THE WHOLE WIDE
WORLD--SAVE FOR SULU--IF I'M NOT MISTAKEN--were under the British
Empire. So in effect, the Americans wanted a feather on their cap. I would really like to know what the Tausugs felt when Sultan Kiram
abdicated and relinquished his powers. A Tausug friend of mine
claims that his great grandfather (RASUL) was instrumental in
convincing the Sultan to be friendly with the Americans.UNKNOWN to
most Tausug historians, the Brits were extending their friendship as
well. After all, the East India Company leased Sabah from the Royal
families...The Brits would have retained the Karatuan (royalty)
being a constitutional monarchy herself. Look what happened to
Arabian and Southeast Asian kingdoms. HOWEVER RASUL, AN AMBITIOUS
COMMONER, was lured by the Americans into becoming a PHILIPPINE
SENATOR (at that time, what's a Philippine senator compared to a
Sulu Prime Minister?) His progenies were proclaiming him as the
phrophet of peace. In fairness, he wanted to avert more bloodshed. But then again, after 300 plus years of war, the Tausugs couldve
survived the Americans! Rumor had it, Rasul was an American Puppy. I mean, why was he chosen
by the Americans to represent Sulu in the "Philippine government" ? In fact, a trivia to you Tausugs, do you know that his real name
was Abdul Baqui" and was later changed to Rasul after the American
came? Do you know why? Why was Kiram so dependent on Rasul if we
were to believe the written history? Why and what was he negotiating
with the British in Sandakan at the time the Spanish governor
general forced Sultan Al Rashid to sign an important piece of
document? Why didn't the Datus rallied behind the Kiram Sultans
(since 1884) Searching for the answer to these questions led me to
places like Palawan, China, Spain and Malaysia. Still, I am really curious about what the Tausugs of this generation
know about their past. How were you raised by your parents in so far
as "knowing" the truth behind your glorious history is concerned? Did your parents for instance "glossed" over the importance and the
role of the Datus in upholding Islam. Truth be told, if not for the
leadership of Datus and their panglimas, you would all be doing the
sign of the cross! Do you feel your leaders are fighting for your rights? What typifies
a Tausug leader these days as opposed to the leaders of the past? Do
most Tausugs feel hopeless and want to migrate to other places? Why
is it, there are no Tausug Associations in Manila? As for the injustices. Not only were you massacred, invaded,
constantly hounded by the 'infidels', YOU WERE DEPRIVED OF YOUR
RIGHTFUL PLACE IN HSTORY! I mean, the WORLD PITIED THE JEWS after
WW2 and rightly so. But what's the glory in being the victim?!?! At
least the Tausugs ( just like the Vietnamese, Armenians and Poles)
fought to the death!(Bud Dahu) My husband is Jewish and I used to
tell him, "5 million jews died, but save for the 40,000 Jewish
Poles in Warsaw, why the heck didn't your people try to fight the
germans even with bare hands and teeth?! why did they prefer a slow
death rather than a dignified death?! In some camps, there were less
than a hundred german soldiers as opposed to thousands of jews?! My
husband would often reply " they had no weapon! there were
children!" I would shot back, "the Tausugs in Bud Dahu were not only
men but women and children! they had no weapon except their bolos! they knew they will die!" My husband nearly divorced me! (just
kidding) I just tell him I was in Bud Dahu. I do believe I was a
Tausug warrior in my previous life. Anyways, before I turn this mail into a drama series, I wish you all
Tausug people the best. You have been through war, poverty and pain. And now, my favorite shopping place when I was still living there in
Manila had been "bombed." I know it in my heart that the Muslims are
not the guilty ones. You are being used again! I wish in my lifetime to see your place achieve peace and
prosperity. (and the Americans will not be the ones who will bring
those, TRUST ME!) There's always a lump in my heart when I hear the
word Sulu...
Blessed Be,
Lispeta
