Here's a thought.
The US in the Spanish-American War primarily focused on the island of Luzon, and the rebellion that the US supported mainly controlled Luzon and Mindoro by the end of the Spanish-American War.
Here, the US keeps Luzon and Mindoro. The Spanish proceed to sell the remainder of the islands to Germany in 1899, but the United States gets a bit testy about the idea. The result is a brokering in which the Federal State of the Visayas is recognized as an independent country (and convenient buffer state), the eastern Visayas and Busuanga come under American control, and the Germans gain Mindanao and Palawan.
American Luzon and East Visayas becomes independent as the Tagalog Republic, the Federal State of the Visayas is jealous of its sovereignty and thus opts against becoming part of any wider federation, and Mindanao (whether it be German, Japanese, American, or British come decolonization time) becomes independent as well (whether or not it includes Palawan, I am not sure).
One interesting knock-on effect would be that there wouldn't be the sizable migration of people from Luzon and Visayas to Mindanao TTL.
The US in the Spanish-American War primarily focused on the island of Luzon, and the rebellion that the US supported mainly controlled Luzon and Mindoro by the end of the Spanish-American War.
Here, the US keeps Luzon and Mindoro. The Spanish proceed to sell the remainder of the islands to Germany in 1899, but the United States gets a bit testy about the idea. The result is a brokering in which the Federal State of the Visayas is recognized as an independent country (and convenient buffer state), the eastern Visayas and Busuanga come under American control, and the Germans gain Mindanao and Palawan.
American Luzon and East Visayas becomes independent as the Tagalog Republic, the Federal State of the Visayas is jealous of its sovereignty and thus opts against becoming part of any wider federation, and Mindanao (whether it be German, Japanese, American, or British come decolonization time) becomes independent as well (whether or not it includes Palawan, I am not sure).
One interesting knock-on effect would be that there wouldn't be the sizable migration of people from Luzon and Visayas to Mindanao TTL.