Persecution of Muslims
The Philippines is predominantly a Christian society with a complicated history of relations between Islam and Christianity. Despite historic evidence of Islamization spreading throughout the islands in the 13th–16th centuries, the archipelago came under Spanish rule in the 16th century. The Spanish proselytized many natives, and labelled those who remained Muslims as "Moro", a derogatory term recalling the Moors, an Islamic people of North Africa who occupied parts of Spain for several centuries. Today, this term "Moro" is used to refer to the indigenous Muslim tribes and ethnic groups of the country. When the Spanish came to the Philippine islands, most of the natives in Luzon and Visayas were pagans with Muslim minorities, and while Spanish proselytized many natives, many Muslims in Luzon and Visayas were not exempted by the Spaniards from the Spanish Inquisition, wherein Muslims to become Catholics or die for their faith. Those who remained Muslims are only the natives of Mindanao and Sulu which the Spaniards did not invade or had control of only briefly and partially.
History of Spanish slavery in the Philippines
When Spaniards conquered the archipelago, the Laws of the Indies served as a compilation of royal decrees for the Spanish colonies including the Philippines. This included a law stating that Spaniards were forbidden to hold Filipinos as slaves since they were under the subjection of King Phillip II. Observing the widespread practice of slavery among the native tribes, the Law was sometimes ignored by soldiers, some acting on their own and seizing natives in various parts of the country. Governor-General Legazpi, upon discovering this, freed the slaves and punished those who took them under the jurisdiction of the monarchy.