Detroit evening times. (Detroit, Mich) 1921-1958, 1944-07-14

nerce PRIDE ana their utter dis
taste for rule over them
selves by the peoples Of Brah-
man religion have defeated the
progress of India toward an
independent status and make
It's realization dangerous.
Gandhl's new proposal would
seem TO comprise two future
Indian states or "domlnlons'
based upon the religious and
cultural separation b tween
Indian peoples.
TASTY and uniform d
IL critics OF British rule in
India are accustomed 10 charge
this problem of disunity 10 a
British policy OF divide and
rule " Certainly The British did
not create this diSunity.
II existed long before their
arrival And the effects Of Brit
iSh administration are more VS.
ible IN creating a unIflcatlon of
the Indian peoples than in Scpa-
rating them and inflaming the
hostility between them.
This India problem is a very
great one, involving A country
which IN size and numbers "a
almost continent IN itself Bat
II finds illustrations IN other
countries. even small ones,
where the native population,
rarely homogeneous IN race. Gull
ture and degree Of Advancement,
likewise asplreS 10 independence
and will have It's ambition
greatly enhanced by TINS war.
4 MERICANS have an iden-
"A teal problem IN the Phil
lpplne Islands. Nlne-'en'hS ~
the Filipino peoples are Chris
tanned and while different Ma
layan languages are still their
mother tongues. they have re-
celved a common language. Eng
lish. through nearly IS years Of
public instruction.
This developing unlicstlon
applies 10 the Filipino peoples
Of Luzon and the BlSayan
Islands. but ~ is not true OF the
southern part Of this archlpel-
ago The natives Of southern
Minanao. the Sulu Islands and a
large part OF tho long island If
Palawan are MohammedanS, or.
10 use the Spanish term they
are 'MoroS
They were Northumberland
long before the northern islands
were chriStlanlzed. This sepa-
rated tncm from tho Filipino
peoples 10 the north. While geo.
graphically they lie in the Phil
ipplne Archipelago. they are
united culturally with the Mo-
hammedanlzed Malayans OF In
doneSia.
ER three centuries the Sui
L tanatcS OF Mlndanao and
Sulu successfully resisted Span
ISL conquest. For two centuries
and half the MoroS carried out
offensive operations OF piracy
and raid against the Philippine
Islands inhabited by Christian
peoples They were only finally
conquered in the carly years of
this century by American
troops.
tilipinos proper have no active
part in this military unlfication
of the Philippines. But, as
the policy of independence
developed. Philippine leaders IN
sisted that the Philippine COM
monwealth receive full luriSdlc-
ton over these Mohammedan
tribes, as well As over them
, selves. This gnored the
preferences and the rights Of
the Moros TO he independent OF
the rule of the Filipinos whom
they still diStruSted and re-
garded as enemies.
lust how the result of SUBJ
d jecting the Moros 10 The
jurisdiction OF the Christian
Filipinos has worked out | am
unable 10 say But IL would
seem probable that the Moros
have not advaniaged by an
autonomy granted 10 the Fill
pinos but not To themselves. are
still mistaken in their devotion
to the creed and culture Of
Islam, and insistent, AS they
always have been. upon a politi-
cal status of their own. I
II now seems fairly certain
that Gen. MacArthurs return
to the Philippines will begin
with the reconquest Of Mon
danao and Sulu. The Moros
will be the first peoples lib
erated" from the Japanese con-
querors. In the fighting task
of driving out the japanese the
a 4