ONE of my pet peeves is hearing fellow Filipinos who always and habitually refer to and address people of Moroland as “kapatid na Muslims.”
Of course the word “kapatid” connotes brotherhood and fraternal kinship which is not the actual status in our attitude towards Filipino Muslims.
My perception is that we are intimidated and fearful of the “Moro” people so that calling them “kapatid” is a way treating them with respect and parity.
Politicians and ignorant newscasters cannot but address the subject people as “kapatid na Muslims” without considering their political and religious gaps. The truth is the local Muslims do not even consider us as cousins and we do not treat them as brothers whether genetically or as trading partners.
Local residents who love the Moro traders certainly benefit from cheap merchandise as well as from indulging with our patronizing attitude and tolerance. They do not get assimilated in Christian communities who had been brainwashed by Americans colonizers that only a dead Moro is a good Moro. Political science students cite the late Maute brothers, and Nur Misuari as an example for his long shelf life.
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Filipinos have a similar but less hostile and apprehensive attitude toward the indigenous Filipinos. The Aetas, original settlers of Kuliat had been pushed by the organized clans to the mountain ranges. They never enjoyed the social esteem and status as brother Filipinos. Yet we call them in public as “ding kapatad a baluga.”
US military mistook them as pigs to be shot at. They were also trained to be home defense forces.
Among them were conduits for fake gold bars. Others fronted for scalawags in quarry operations. In local polls their votes were manipulated or sold to the highest bidder.
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In recent decades the Cursillo was an exciting and ideal organization to join.
All the graduates of the course were taught to love and treat fellow Cursilistas with utmost honesty and fairness. They called each other as "Brods." Shopkeepers would tell their Cursillista customers who haggle that the buyer was given “a presyung brod” or the highest discount.
Time soon wears off the Cursillo ideal and business returned to normal. A backsliding Cursillista was notorious for overpricing his goods.
The esteemed brod was now known as “Burad.” I always suspect a motive when someone calls me Brod. The dead Castillo fratman was killed by his Brods.
The late Angeles City Mayor Antonio Abad Santos, a Holy Namer classified his friends into two. His supporters he called as brods. Those who cheated their wives and kept concubines he called burads.