Ang Pahayagan

QUEZON CITY — Peasant and climate justice organizations have called on the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) to address longstanding agrarian issues affecting 7,887 agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) across 19 areas nationwide.

The groups, operating under the banner of the “June 10 Land Rights Committee,” submitted a letter to the DAR Central Office seeking a high-level dialogue with DAR Secretary Conrado Estrella III to discuss unresolved agrarian concerns and the implementation of the World Bank-funded Support to Parcelization of Lands for Individual Titling (SPLIT) Project.

Among the organizations involved are Kilusan para sa Repormang Agraryo at Katarungan Panlipunan (KATARUNGAN), Philippine Movement for Climate Justice (PMCJ), Pambansang Koalisyon ng Kababaihan sa Kanayunan (PKKK), Alter Trade Foundation Inc., Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino (BMP), Pambansang Kaisahan ng Magbubukid sa Pilipinas (PKMP), Makabayang Alyansa ng Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (Makabayan-Pilipinas), Aniban ng Manggagawa sa Agrikultura (AMA), and Focus on the Global South.

In their letter, the groups cited more than 19 land-related cases that they said have remained unresolved within the DAR bureaucracy for years. They also raised concerns regarding the US$370-million SPLIT Project loan and called for government action amid the impacts of Super El Niño, worsening rural poverty, and alleged land-grabbing incidents affecting farmers.

KATARUNGAN President Claro Pasion said the increasing violations of farmers’ rights reflect what he described as the state’s continued preference for corporate interests over the land and food rights of farmers.

“Ang papataas na antas ng mga paglabag sa karapatan ng mga magsasaka ay bahagi ng patuloy na pagkiling ng estado sa mga korporasyong tubo ang hinahangad at patuloy na pagwawaksi sa karapatan sa lupa at pagkain ng mga magsasaka at karaniwang Pilipino,” said Pasion.

The committee said it has documented various issues confronting agrarian reform beneficiaries and farming communities, including large-scale land conversion, delays in land distribution and redistribution, cancellation of certificates of land award, harassment of ARBs, and inadequate support services.

According to the groups, these issues have contributed to the loss of agricultural lands, displacement of farming communities, reduced livelihoods, food insecurity, and deepening poverty among affected beneficiaries.

The organizations are seeking to hold the dialogue on June 10, coinciding with the 38th anniversary of the signing of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law.

Meanwhile, PMCJ National Coordinator Ian Rivera emphasized the link between agrarian reform and climate resilience, saying farmers without secure land tenure and adequate agricultural support services are more vulnerable to droughts, floods, and increasingly unpredictable weather conditions.

Rivera said genuine agrarian reform should go beyond land titling and address the structural causes of inequality and landlessness in rural communities, adding that climate justice cannot be achieved if farmers do not have secure rights to the land they cultivate.

As of press time, the DAR had yet to issue a statement on the groups’ concerns and request for dialogue. (Ang Pahayagan Reportorial Team)

📸 PMCJ