UP CIDS Discussion Paper 2020-05-1
UP CIDS Discussion Paper 2020-05-1
UP CIDS Discussion Paper 2020-05-1
PAPER
SERIES
Understanding the
diversity of cultural and
religious learning institutions
for Muslim Filipinos
Yusuf Roque Morales and Sheryl Morales
Understanding the
diversity of cultural and
religious learning institutions
for Muslim Filipinos
Yusuf Roque Morales and Sheryl Morales
This discussion aims to present the roles and influences that cultural
and religious institutions provide in the context of cultural and religious
education and their role in strengthening multiculturalism and religious
pluralism in the Philippines.
Introduction
Southeast Asia is a mosaic of cultures, a melting pot of civilizations and
religious traditions. As these traditions were passed from generation
to generation, innovations took place and shaped the expression of a
Southeast Asian nation.
³ Edmond Malinvaud and Louis Sabourin, eds., Globalization: Ethical and Institutional
Concerns (Proceedings of the Seventh Plenary Session of the Pontifical Academy of
Social Sciences) (Vatican City: The Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, 2001).
U P C I DS DI S CUSSI ON PA P ER 2 0 2 0 -0 5 3
Context
⁴ This information was provided by the Ateneo Center for Community Extension Services
of the Ateneo de Zamboanga University.
⁵ “School of Living Traditions,” National Commission for Culture and the Arts, accessed
December 3, 2018, http://ncca.gov.ph/school-of-living-traditions/.
U P C I DS DI S CUSSI ON PA P ER 2 0 2 0 -0 5 5
(2) Shariah. This is the legal system that a Muslim adheres to,
which defines the rights-based approach (haqq) and governs
the relationship of man towards other creations and towards
his God. Shariah refers to a set of rules and guidelines of
how man is to engage his transactional activities with all
forms of creation, whether this may involve his relationships
with family, friends, or other people and their relative
engagements. It is also defined as
(PCID), explained the concept of the manhaj during the Multi-stakeholders Meeting on
the National Action Plan on Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism (NAP PCVE)
held on December 14, 2018 at Cebu City.
8 M O RA L E S a n d MOR A LE S
⁹ Guru Nuh Musa (Indigenous Muslim religious teacher), interview, Zamboanga City,
September 2018.
¹⁰ Ibid.
¹¹ Aliazer Abdurajim (Erthul Mustafa Philippines), interview, September 2018.
¹² Ibid.
U P C I DS DI S CUSSI ON PA P ER 2 0 2 0 -0 5 9
¹³ Ustad Parmanan Hajul (Mahad Shafii, Marhalika, Taguig City), interview, September
2018.
¹⁴ Ibid.
¹⁵ Sheikh Abduljabbar Mahmoud (Mudir, Mahad al Loom Islami at Tabuk, Tabuk, Basilan),
interview, October 2018.
¹⁶ Sheikh Kadzaji Tapsi (Amir Sabiel al-Muhtadien Foundation), interview, August 2018.
10 M O RA L E S a n d MOR A LE S
²⁰ Yusuf Roque Morales, “Signifikansi Syiah Periode Alawi Pra-Hispanik Hingga Itsna
Asyariyah Modern di Filipina” (The Significance of Shiism from Pre-Hispanic Alawi to
Modern-day Ithna Ashari in the Philippines and Its Historic Relevance), in Sejarah &
Budaya Syiah di Asia Tenggara (History and Culture of the Syiahs in Southeast Asia), ed.
Dicky Sofjan (Yogyakarta: Universitas Gadjah Mada, 2013).
²¹ Salman Galang (vice president of ABPIA), interview, September 2018.
12 M O RA L E S a n d MOR A LE S
(5) Salafi Manhaj. The Salafi Manhaj arrived and started their
rise to influence during the 1980s when students were sent
abroad for religious scholarships to Salafi educational
institutions like Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and Sudan among
others. 23 Their religious educational institutions differ as
follows:
(a) Regular madrasah. This may (or may not) offer multi-
level classes from elementary, secondary to college-
level.24 Examples of this model are the Mahad Moro al-
Islami in Sta. Barbara, Zamboanga City and the Mahad
Quran wal Hadith in Talon-Talon, Zamboanga City.
²² Sheik Denil Anawari (principal and rector, Ahlul Bayt Islamic School), interview, August
2018.
²³ Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada, “Egypt: The International
Islamic Relief Organization (IIRO) and Whether it is Involved in Funding Terrorist
Activities,” Refworld, January 28, 2003, https://www.refworld.org/docid/3f7d4d901c.html.
²⁴ Sheik Abduljabbar Mahmoud, (Mudir, Mahad al-Loom Islami al Tabuk, Tabuk, Basilan),
interview, October 2018.
²⁵ Ibid.
U P C I DS DI S CUSSI ON PA P ER 2 0 2 0 -0 5 13
²⁷ Hajj Alfrazer Ahalul (Tabligh elder, Zamboanga zone), interview, September 2018.
²⁸ Maulana Abdulfattah Tanog (National Tabligh Zonal elder), interview, September 2018.
²⁹ Hadji Almubdi Salaam (member, Jamaah Tabligh, Zamboanga City), interview,
September 2018.
U P C I DS DI S CUSSI ON PA P ER 2 0 2 0 -0 5 15
³⁰ Dr. Cihangir Arslan (former president, Turkish Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines),
interview, November 2018.
³¹ Dr. Mehmet R. Derindag (International Office, Istanbul Gelisim University), interview,
November 29, 2018.
³² Ibid.
16 M O RA L E S a n d MOR A LE S
³³ Ibid.
³⁴ Imam Talha Ali (Ahmadiyyah Missionary), interview, July 2018.
³⁵ Ibid.
U P C I DS DI S CUSSI ON PA P ER 2 0 2 0 -0 5 17
³⁸ Director Laman Piang (Bureau of Muslim Cultural Affairs, NCMF), interview, January
2018.
³⁹ Harris Tanjili (Coordinator for Volunteers, Madaris Volunteers of the Philippines),
interview, November 2018.
20 M O RA L E S a n d MOR A LE S
The National Commission for Cultural and the Arts. The program for
Schools of Living Traditions (SLT)41 was anchored on the mandate of
NCCA to:
communities which would serve as the basis for policy and plans
formulation and program and project implementation.42
⁴² Republic Act No. 9997 ("National Commission on Muslim Filipinos Act of 2009," Section
11, Paragraph b), The LawPhil Project, accessed November 2018, https://lawphil.net/
statutes/repacts/ra2010/ra_9997_2010.html.
U P C I DS DI S CUSSI ON PA P ER 2 0 2 0 -0 5 23
⁴³ National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START),
“Debates among Salafi Muslims About Use of Violence: Religious Concepts Central to
Arguments For and Against Violence (Summary Report),” May 2017, https://www.start.
umd.edu/pubs/START_DebatesAmongSalafiMuslimsAboutViolence_SummaryReport_
May2017.pdf.
26 M O RA L E S a n d MOR A LE S
Among the things that the researchers have noted that need to be
addressed are the following:
(1) Cultural education and its preservation. There has been lesser
support in the guise of a provision of support for Muslim
religious education; however, due to the support Salafi
religious educational institutions receive over others, this has
led towards Arabization, continuous de-indigenization and
lesser importance given to Filipino Muslim cultural traditions
and practices.
⁴⁵ Datu Fadh Jaljalis, Tabligh (elder and Muslim scholar from Basilan), interview, December
13, 2018.
U P C I DS DI S CUSSI ON PA P ER 2 0 2 0 -0 5 31
References
Publications and Online Sources
National Commission for Culture and the Arts. n.d. “School of Living
Traditions.” Accessed December 3, 2018. http://ncca.gov.ph/school-
of-living-traditions/.
Government Policies
• Executive Order No. 67, s. 2018 (“Rationalizing the Office of the
President through the Consolidation of Its Core Mandates and
Strengthening the Democratic and Institutional Framework of the
Executive Department”), October 31, 2018
• DepEd Order No. 41, s. 2017 (“Policy Guidelines on Madrasah
Education in the K to 12 Basic Education Program”), August 11,
2017
• Presidential Decree No. 1083 (“Code of Muslim Personal Laws of
the Philippines”), February 4, 1977
• Republic Act No. 7356 (“Law Creating the National Commission
for Culture and the Arts”), April 3, 1992
• Republic Act No. 7722 (“Higher Education Act of 1994”), May
18, 1994
• Republic Act No. 7796 (“Technical Education and Skills
Development Act of 1994”), August 25, 1994
• Republic Act No. 8371 (“The Indigenous Peoples’ Rights Act of
1997”), October 29, 1997
• Republic Act No. 9997 (“National Commission on Muslim
Filipinos Act of 2009”), February 18, 2010
• Republic Act No. 10533 (“Enhanced Basic Education Act of
2013”), May 15, 2013
34 M O RA L E S a n d MOR A LE S
Respondents
The Editor-in-Chief and the Program Editors ensure that the discussion papers contain research
findings on issues that are aligned with the core agenda of the research programs under the
University of the Philippines Center for Integrative and Development Studies (UP CIDS).
The responsibility of the Editor-in-Chief and the Program Editors is towards high standards of
scholarship, the generation of new knowledge that can be utilized for the good of the public,
and the dissemination of such information.
EDITORIAL BOARD
PROGRAM EDITORS
EDUCATION AND CAPACITY BUILDING Antonio Miguel L. Dans
CLUSTER Jose Rafael A. Marfori
Program on Health Systems Development
Dina S. Ocampo
Education Research Program
SOCIAL, POLITICAL, AND CULTURAL
Fernando DLC. Paragas STUDIES CLUSTER
Program on Higher Education Research and
Policy Reform Maria Ela L. Atienza
Jorge V. Tigno
Marie Therese Angeline P. Bustos Program on Social and Political Change
Assessment, Curriculum, and Technology
Research Program Macrina A. Morados
Islamic Studies Program
Fidel R. Nemenzo
Jalton G. Taguibao Herman Joseph S. Kraft
Program on Data Science for Public Policy Aries A. Arugay
Strategic Studies Program
DEVELOPMENT CLUSTER Marie Aubrey J. Villaceran
Karl Robert L. Jandoc Frances Antoinette C. Cruz
Annette O. Pelkmans-Balaoing Decolonial Studies Program
Program on Escaping the Middle-Income
Trap: Chains for Change LOCAL-REGIONAL STUDIES NETWORK
Antoinette R. Raquiza Leah E. Abayao
Maria Dulce F. Natividad Cordillera Studies Center
Political Economy Program University of the Philippines Baguio
Eduardo C. Tadem Belinda F. Espiritu
Karl Arvin F. Hapal Central Visayas Studies Center
Program on Alternative Development University of the Philippines Cebu
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THE PROGRAM
As Muslim Filipino communities thrive in various parts of the country,
there is a need to both celebrate their diverse cultures and traditions
and confront the multifarious issues affecting them. The Islamic
Studies Program (ISP) seeks to take the lead towards an active role
for the academe in advancing the role of Islam in nation-building.
It aims to encourage the wider Filipino community to know Islam
deeper, and, consequently, deal with existing stereotypes against
Muslims.
ABOUT UP CIDS
Established in 1985 by UP President Edgardo Angara, the UP Center
for Integrative and Development Studies (UP CIDS) is the
policy research unit of the University that connects disciplines and
scholars across the several units of the UP System. It is mandated
to encourage collaborative and rigorous research addressing issues
of national significance by supporting scholars and securing funding,
enabling them to produce outputs and recommendations for public
policy.