Legal status of the Sulu Sultanate and the Mindanao principalities

Abstract

In the Philippines, where rapid political changes have taken place since World War II, it would seem apparent that the Sultanates have become politically anar chronistic. But the resiliency of these indigenous political institutions, particularly the Sulu Sultanate as a factor in international relations, has not really been obscured by contemporary political developments. In 1962, the Philippine claim of sovereignty, jurisdiction and proprietary ownership over North Borneo "as successor-in-interest of the Sultan of Sulu" called to attention once more the sultanate as a recurring issue in foreign policy, national security and peace in the geographic border area.