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The signals Mindanao sends to the rest of the Philippines and the rest of the world, are nothing if not mixed. This massive island at the foot of the archipelago is in many ways the cultural and artistic heart of the country, a place where tribalism and capitalism clash head on, and where refugees from Manila's pollution have fled in search of cleaner air and greener pastures. This has led to something of a cultural and economic boom in cities such as Davao , Mindanao's de facto capital. Yet Mindanao has also been a nagging thorn in the side of successive governments, with repeated attempts by the island's Muslims to break away from the governance of Manila and establish their own autonomous regions on the island. Mindanao's Muslim (or Moro) and indigenous Lumad peoples, now outnumbered by majority Filipinos - the largely Christian descendants of twentieth-century settlers from the northern and central Philippines - are asserting rights to their traditional lands and to self-determination. The Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) resorted to a war for independence in the 1970s. Meanwhile, a communist-led rebellion spread from the northern Philippines to Mindanao, drawing many majority Filipinos, particularly among the rural poor, and some Lumads into the New People's Army (NPA). In 1996, the Philippine Government signed a peace pact with the MNLF granting a certain degree of autonomy to four provinces on condition of a plebiscite. But this peace is by no means final or universal, and splinter groups are still engaged in conflict. Tourists are generally safe, but those who venture towards Muslim strongholds in the south should be aware that there have been a number of kidnappings in recent years. Most of the major tourist activities are based around the north and east coasts of Mindanao where there have been few problems. Davao is the gateway to Mindanao, but from Cagayan de Oro in the north you can also explore Bukidnon , the country's only landlocked province, as well as Camiguin , a small island of white beaches and brooding volcanoes. Access by plane to Mindanao is usually through one of five airports on the island: Davao, Cagayan de Oro, General Santos, Cotabato and Zamboanga City. Philippine Airlines has daily flights to all five and also has a daily flight between Cebu and Davao. Mindanao Express has flights from Cebu and Davao to various destinations on Mindanao, though the airline's schedules are soon set to change and new flights are being added (and old ones dropped), so check with its Manila office for an update. It's a long journey to Mindanao by ferry from Manila, with some services stopping off at other ports of call on the way. When you book a ferry ticket it's worth checking if it's direct or not: direct voyages take about eighteen hours, but if the ferry calls at other ports, you will find yourself at sea for a couple of days. WG&A Superferry sails to the following places in Mindanao: Davao, Cagayan de Oro, General Santos, Zamboanga, Dipolog, Iligan, Ozamis, Surigao, Nasipit and Cotabato. Negros Navigation serves the same routes, with the exception of Dipolog. There are numerous ferry services, big and small, connecting Mindanao to other provincial destinations in the Visayas.
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