IN the heat of the recent political exchanges between President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and his predecessor, former president Rodrigo Duterte, the latter threatened that he would move for the separation of Mindanao from the Philippines. There is nothing new to this because there were other attempts in the past to sever Mindanao from the Philippine Republic.

The earliest was during American colonial rule when big American corporations lobbied the US Congress to declare Mindanao, Sulu and Palawan as a separate territory. This was to purportedly protect its predominantly Muslim population and allow foreign investors to develop its rich agricultural lands. The move (i.e., the Bacon Bill) was successfully thwarted by Filipino politicians.

It took another 40 years for the Mindanao independence call to again erupt, in the aftermath of the infamous Jabidah Massacre of 1968 that saw scores of young Muslim soldiers murdered.

Datu Udtog Matalam, former governor of Cotabato province, established the "Muslim Independence Movement" with the goal of ensuring that his fellow Muslims would not suffer discrimination from the island's dominant Christian population. He later renamed it the "Mindanao Independence Movement" to secure wider sympathy.

The banner of establishing an independent Mindanao was later carried on by the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) under Nur Misuari. In the early 1970s, a wholescale rebellion led by the MNLF broke out. The rebels demanded a separate state for Muslims so that they could exercise their customs, beliefs and religion, free from discrimination and oppression by the Christian government holding office in Luzon.

Misuari eventually signed a peace deal with the government in 1996 but the rebellion continued, this time led by the Moro Islamic Liberation Front led by Hashim Salamat and later by Murad Ebrahim.

Ebrahim also signed a peace pact with the Aquino administration in 2014 but it was during the presidency of Duterte that the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) was established. The BARMM enjoys autonomy as it has its own parliamentary system, whose members are mostly Muslims, to govern the region.

But why does the idea of independence or separation from the Philippines continue to re-echo in Mindanao leaders' rhetoric whenever they are disgruntled over policies enunciated in Metro Manila? Foremost is the fact that their island has long been treated as a mere appendage by "Imperial Manila." A cursory examination of Mindanao's history will reveal that its development classically followed the colonial pattern.

Mindanao was treated as a supplier of food and raw materials to the industries and inhabitants of Luzon. Roads were built to access plantation, mining or forestry enclaves and which led to the nearest ports where ships were waiting to transport food and raw materials elsewhere. Inter- and intra-regional was hardly promoted as there was no connectivity within Mindanao to speak of.

The budgets allocated to Mindanao, for the bulk of its history, never reached the size of its contribution in terms of land area, population, poverty, potential for growth, and contribution to the national economy. Underinvestment for Mindanao development is the rule rather than the exception.

Mindanao covers a third of the Philippines' land area. It is home to a quarter of the country's people. It produces around 60 percent of total corn output, another 60 percent of total coconut yield, a quarter of total rice harvest, has 60 percent of our total mineral resources, and is the leading producer of rubber and palm oil. The BARMM, in particular, is the second-biggest contributor to total fish catch, is the main producer of banana and pineapple for exports, and contributes nearly 40 percent to the Philippine food supply.

On the downside, it is also in Mindanao where poverty is the worst. The long history of conflict in the island and the presence of private armed groups undeniably contributed.

Then there are policies formulated in "Imperial Manila" that have adversely affected the development potentials of Mindanao. For instance, there is the Cabotage Law, which stipulates that only domestic shippers can bring goods from one local port to another. This prevents foreign vessels docking in Manila from picking up cargo destined for Mindanao, which results in higher shipping costs for Mindanao producers and entrepreneurs. This explains why agricultural products from Mindanao, like corn and vegetables, are much more expensive compared to those sourced from Thailand, China or the US.

There is also the issue of agrarian reform, which originally was meant to address the insurgency problem in Luzon. It was later applied nationally but the belief of indigenous communities (including Muslims) in Mindanao is quite the reverse. They subscribe to communal land ownership instead of individual ownership, as they treat themselves as mere "trustees" of the land, which is owned by their Supreme Being.

I could go on and on citing examples such as policies prohibiting the export of corn, which benefits feed millers mostly located in Luzon, to having to secure various types of permits from offices in Manila just to convert small waterfalls into energy sources and develop coastal areas for mariculture, etc.

I lived in Davao for almost five years during the Ramos administration. There was a time when we met a group of investors who were curious that there was no electric fan factory in Mindanao despite the tropical weather. When they asked how much an electric fan cost, they were amazed at the exorbitant price. They immediately offered to produce it for half the price by establishing a factory in Mindanao and allowing lower tariffs on certain parts. Unfortunately, it could not happen because the policy was to protect industries in Luzon. (There was practically no heavy industry in Mindanao to protect.)

This led us to think: "Why is such a policy being applied to Mindanao when it is obvious that it is inimical to the island's development interest?" Someone from the group gave a simple answer: "Imperial Manila!"

(fdadriano88@gmail.com)