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.
Philippine revolts against Spain
The Lakandula and Sulayman Revolt, also known as the Tagalog Revolt, was an uprising in 1574 by Lakandula and Rajah Sulayman in Tondo, Manila. The revolt occurred in the same year as the Chinese pirate Limahong attacked the palisaded yet poorly defended enclosure of Intramuros. This revolt was caused by losing Soliman and Lakandula's kingdom when they were defeated by Miguel Lopez de Legazpi to accept the Spanish sovereignty on the promise that they would be well-treated by the Spaniards and would still retain some of their royal and political powers. When Guido de Lavezaris replaced Legaspi as Governor General of the Philippines, he revoked their exemptions from paying tribute and confiscated their lands. Father Martin convinced Lakandula and Soliman to abort the revolt and promised to grant their privileges. Nevertheless, Soliman continued his revolt which was brutally crushed in 1574.