From Four Nodes of History: The Human Rights Challenge in the Philippine Security Sector that the entire non-Christian world were to be conquered and enslaved in perpetuity and all the spoils of war and the fruits of this enslavement were to be enjoyed by them as their reward from God. The Spanish Crown issued El Requerimiento 1513 summarizing this papal dogma which was to be read to inhabitants before their conquest. Following the directives of Dum Diversas, Spain conquered the gentle civilized peoples of the Americas (North, Central and South America) and instituted the slave system called the Encomienda, in which the American Natives were made to work in Spanish plantations and mine fields. In just a span of 50 years, 80 percent of the Native American population died from atrocities and fatal diseases that were often contracted when women were raped by conquistadores and returned to cramped labor camps. Faced with acute labor shortage, Spain started importing slaves from Africa through the Asiento system. Other European powers, following Portugal and Spain’s examples, also started importing African slaves. Starting from 1492, the Spain built an empire through conquests, royal inter-marriages and royal inheritance. 6 4. What were the crimes against humanity that occurred in the Philippines during the Spanish period? Spanish colonizers were able to conquer Luzon and the Visayas but failed to subjugate Mindanao. In areas where they succeeded, the Spaniards imposed a caste system categorizing the inhabitants as negritoes, Indios, Tomatras (mixed NegritoIndio-Mestizo blood), Mestizo de Sangley and Mestizo de Español, while the unconquered Muslims were called Moros. Spain enforced the same colonial policies it used in Central and South America, with one central common colonial administrator, the Viceroy of Mexico. Under El Requerimiento 1513, the islanders had to convert to the Catholic faith or suffer the consequences: be killed or enslaved. Foremost of these policies was the brutal slave system called the encomienda system. In the first 30 years of Spanish occupation in the Philippines, about 35% of the population perished, presumably from diseases and the atrocities committed. One estimate puts the toll on human life at more than 50% during the 17th century, before the Philippine population started to pick up after the removal of the encomienda system.