The UP Asian Center will be holding the online lecture "Decolonization and Imperial Agenda: The Philippine South in the 1920’s" on 26 June 2026, at 2:00 PM, PHT (GMT+8), Online via Zoom. The event is free and open to the public, but signing in to a (free) Zoom account is required.
ABOUT THE LECTURE
Nearly a century ago, the Philippine South stood at the center of a little-known but consequential geopolitical debate—one that could have permanently altered the region’s fate. In June 1926, the proposed Bacon Bill sought to detach Mindanao, Sulu, and Palawan from the rest of the Philippines and place them under direct United States rule. Framed as a project of “decolonization,” the measure promised to protect Muslim (Moro) communities from perceived domination by Christian Filipinos at a time when the Philippines was moving toward independence.
But what did “protection” truly mean in this context? This talk revisits Congressman Robert Bacon’s controversial proposal, revealing how humanitarian rhetoric intersected with strategic and economic ambitions. Rich in natural resources—especially rubber—the region to be known as “Moro Province” drew significant American interest, exposing the deeper imperial agenda behind the bill. Although the Bacon Bill ultimately failed, the debates it generated shed light on enduring questions about power, identity, and sovereignty. They also foreground early tensions between Moro and Christian populations, tensions that continue to shape the Philippine South today. By revisiting this overlooked episode, the presentation reveals decolonization as not merely liberation, but a contested and contradictory political project.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
FEDERICO V. MAGDALENA, Ph.D.
Faculty Specialist, UH Manoa Center for Philippine Studies
Fred Magdalena (PhD Sociology, UH Mānoa) is an Associate Specialist at the UH Center for Philippine Studies and an Affiliate Faculty, Department of Asian Studies. He has taught courses in Sociology and Asian Studies, including an online course on sovereignty movements, with the Ateneo de Zamboanga University and MSU-Iligan Institute of Technology as partners. He recently obtained two grants from Fulbright-Hays projects to train American K-12 teachers on Philippine languages in 2022 and 2023 in cooperation with the University of San Carlos and De La Salle University-Dasmarinas. He has published several articles, lectured in webinars, and organized panels in international conferences. His recent writings include: “Jose Rizal’s Legacy in Mindanao,” edited by Serafin P. Colmenares, Jr and Raymund Ll. Liongson; Struggle in the Sphere of Ideas: Critical Reflections on Rizal. Knights of Rizal-Aloha Chapter, Amazon Books (2024); “Enrique de Malacca: Malay or Cebuano?” Tugkad: A Literary and Cultural Studies Journal, Vol 3, 2023; “Bridging Literature and Peace: Reflections on Folk Narratives and Peacebuilding,” Tugkad: A Literary and Cultural Studies Journal, Vol 3, 2023; “The 1902 Battle of Bayang from the American Perspective,” Langkit: Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vol. 11, 2022; Book review of Electoral Dynamics in the Philippines: Money Politics, Patronage and Clientelism at the Grassroots, Allen Hicken, et al. (eds.) Singapore: NUS Press, 2019. Journal of Southeast Asian Studies, Volume 52, March 2021; and “Muslims in the Philippines: Between past and present.” In Turki Bin Abdallah al-Dakhil (ed.), The Siege of Marawi in the Philippines: The Roots of Extremism and State Fragility (November 2020), Al.-Mesbar Research Center, Dubai.
ABOUT THE REACTORS
ZAINAL DIMAUKOM KULIDTOD, JD, Ph.D.
Faculty, Department of Political Studies, Mindanao State University - Marawi
Doc Zai Kulidtod has been a faculty of the Department Political Studies, Mindanao State University, Marawi City since 1996. With a PhD in Philippine Studies and an MA in Public Administration, all earned in MSU-MC, his interest in research includes, Mindanao/Moro conflict, Mindanao peace process, Philippine government and politics, federalism in the Philippines, among others.
ARIEL C. LOPEZ, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Asian Center, UP Diliman
Dr. Ariel C. Lopez is an Associate Professor at the Asian Center of the University of the Philippines Diliman, where he also serves as the Assistant to the Dean for Research, Extension, and Information. He earned his Ph.D. in History from Leiden University, the Netherlands. He specializes in Indonesian Studies, colonial and maritime History, Philippine History, and Southeast Asian History. One of his most recent publication is "Christian Conversions and Dutch Colonialism in Minahasa in the nineteenth century," published in Archipel: Études interdisciplinaires sur le monde insulindien.
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