The Tausug people are an indigenous group from the Sulu Archipelago in the Philippines. They established their own political and social structures prior to Spanish colonization in the 15th century. The arrival of Muslim missionaries in the 1380s introduced Islam, and sultanates emerged as a form of governance. Under Spanish rule in the late 1800s, the sultan's powers were eroded. In the 1900s, independence movements like the MNLF and MILF fought for self-determination amid shifting autonomy agreements. Recent negotiations aim to finally achieve lasting peace by 2013.

1. The Political History of Tausugs
Of The Philippines

2. The Tausug, belongs to one
of the indigenous tribes in
the Philippines falling under a
larger ethnic group and
Muslim minority in the
Philippines which were the
Moros.
They came from the
Polynesian and Malay race
and are noted to be good sea
farers, they are considered as
the original inhabitants of
Sulu.
The term Tausug comes
from the word "tau "meaning
man, and "sug" meaning
current and translates as
"people of the current”

3. Pre Colonial Period
During the pre-colonial
period, communities were
already thriving called the
banuas or the kauman,
smaller groups of more or
less composed of 10 up to Balangay
100 tausug are called
balangays ( meaning
Kauman
sailboat). Laws were
passed orally by a
patriarch concerning
marriage, crime and
punishment, contracts and
anything that deal with
their daily lives. Their
rituals and folklores are
called the Adat.

4. A political structure was already in place
before the Spanish came in 1521. It was
segmentary instead of being a centralized
form of rule, which is less complex
Sultan
the highest among the ranks, He is politically and
ritually empowered member of the society
Salip
is then the Islamic
DATU spiritual leader
they are the headman controlling smaller
segments of the regional population and they
also perform some religious functionaries

5. Muslim
missionary
came to Sulu in
1380 to teach
Islam and also
to trade
(this image is from boxer codex)
These Arab scholars got married with
the royal family and became the
rulers of the lands hence the
Sultanate was born

6. In the early 15th century led by
Ferdinand Magellan a
Portuguese explorer, the
Spanish started to colonize the
Philippines. He was killed in the
battle of Mactan led by a chief
named Datu Lapu-lapu.(in some
written historical articles he
was a Tausug).
http://www.markmaranga.com/mactan-
shrine-magellan-and-lapu-lapu-in-battle-of-
mactan/
. Inthe
Late 1800's Spanish lost many
of its colony and they sold
the Philippines to the
Americans in the treaty of
Paris. On May, 1899 the
Spaniards left Sulu
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7. on August 22, 1899 general Bates concluded a
treaty with Sultan Jamalul Kiram. In 1915 the
status of Sulu has changed. The Sultan was
stripped off his temporal powers and was
left the title of Sultanate and some religious
jurisdiction. After the death of Sultan Jamalul
Kiram in 1936, the Philippine government did
not recognize the Sultanate and thus it
ended.
In 1972, Ferdinand Marcos declared
martial law, thus an underground
separatist, movement was established.
The ideological struggles of the
movement were not Islamic but rather
nationalist and the Bangsamoro was
conceived .
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9. It all started on March 1968, when a military mission named “Project
Merdeka” was hindered by a mutiny against military superiors and has left
28-64 moro youths that were recruited dead in Corregidor Island.
Nur Misuarri, a Tausug from Sulu and a son
of a very poor commoner, 1972 he founded
the Moro National Liberation Front (or
MNLF). The national goal was to establish a
single independent homeland for the Moros.

10. An agreement signed in Tripoli, Libya
between the MILF and the Philippine
Government on December 1976, has led to
creation of two provisional autonomous
regions that will include 13 Muslim areas in
Southern Philippines.
ARMM(Autonomous Region in Muslim
Mindanao) was created by RA6734 in
1989,and was officially inaugurated on Nov.
6, 1990, making Cotabato as its capital.
Nur Misuari was elected as Governor of
ARMM when a peace agreement was signed
on Sept. 2, 1996.
From then on there are still discontent
among the MILF and ARMM region as the
struggle moves on, agreement upon
agreement was signed here and there ,until
President Arroyo announced that a peace
deal with MILF is near completion in Feb.
8, 2008.

11. The Hope
After 4 decades of failed negotiations and outbreak of 3 major wars
between the Philippine Government and MILF Filipinos are optimistic
that peace can be achieved. The year 2012 is crucial according to MILF
because they have taken bold step in closing a lasting peace agreement
with the current president Noynoy Aquino.
The government has plans that the first quarter of this year as its
timetable for concluding negotiations for a political settlement with the
MILF.
This is consistent with President Aquino’s time frame to come to political
terms with the country’s insurgencies, if possible by 2013.