The Moro Crater Massacre

“I congratulate you and the officers and men of your command upon the brilliant feat of arms wherein you and they so well upheld the honor of the American flag.”  This was cabled by then United States President Theodore Roosevelt to Major General Leonard Wood, concerning the first Battle of Bud Dajo (as the Americans termed), which occurred on March 7, 1906. The Battle of Bud Dajo would later be called the Moro Crater Massacre.

The shooting incident of February 4, 1899 marks the start of the Philippine-American War (to the Americans it would be the Philippine Insurrection). On February 5, General Arthur MacArthur ordered his troops to attack. Upon hearing of the incident, Emilio Aguinaldo sent an emissary to General Emil Otis with the message:

“…the firing on our side the night before had been against my order.”

General Otis replied: “Fighting having begun, must go on to the grim end.”

Within a 24-hour period 3,000 Filipinos were dead. The Americans were remarkably well-prepared for the outbreak of hostilities. Reports vary with regards to casualties ranging from 1899-1902. Official US estimates listed 20,000 Filipino soldiers dead, with an additional 300,000 Filipino civilian casualties. The Philippine-American War Centennial listed 510,000 civilian deaths. Others have pegged 1,000,000 to 1,500,000 Filipino deaths during that period. Curiously, the ratio of dead to wounded is 15 Filipinos dead for every 1 wounded: wars typically have a ratio of 5 dead to every 1 wounded. Taking the low estimate, 300,000 Filipinos died in 41 months. During the 56 month period that the Americans were involved in World War II, 400,000 Americans died. The Philadephia Ledger would report: “The present war is no bloodless, opera bouffe engagement; our men have been relentless, have killed to exterminate men, women, children, prisoners and captives, active insurgents and suspected people from lads of ten up, the idea prevailing that the Filipino as such was little better than a dog....”

Officially, the US declared the hostilities over in 1902: Pockets of resistance all over the country went on for almost ten years; the fiercest in Mindanao. With the pacification of the north, the Americans, led by General Wood turned their attentions to the south. Wood would say of the Moros: “…nothing more than nor less than an unimportant collection of pirates and highwaymen”. He intended, “The Moros would either submit or suffer harsh consequences.” Fierce resistance was offered by the Moros which came to a head on Jolo Island.

Bud Dajo is an inactive volcano on Jolo. Starting in 1905, many Moros began to take refuge in the peak, at the time of the Moro Crater Massacre there were 800-1000 Moros, many women and children. In 1906, it was decided that their congregation was a threat. Over 600 American troops were dispatched to, as General Wood termed it, clean up the problem. Hostilities started on March 5, 1906 with a bombardment  of the crater, they ended on March 7, 1906. The US reported fifteen killed and approximately thirty-two wounded. Close to one thousand were dead.

The US press got wind of the massacre and the Anti-Imperialist league (lead by Mark Twain) would latch on to the event. The New York Times would run the headline: “WOMEN AND CHILDREN KILLED IN MORO BATTLE PRESIDENT WIRES CONGRATULATIONS TO TROOPS.” Mark Twain would add about Roosevelt: ”He knew perfectly well that our uniformed assassins had not upheld the honor of the American flag, but had done as they have been doing continuously for eight years in the Philippines — that is to say, they had dishonored it.”