GE2-AGRARIAN-REFORM

GE2 AGRARIAN REFORM

Agrarian reform

  • It is essentially the rectification of the whole system of agriculture, an important aspect of the Philippine economy because nearly half of the population is employed in the agricultural sector, and most citizens live in rural areas.
  • It is centered on the relationship between production and the distribution of land among farmers.
  • It is also focused on the political and economic class character of the relations of production and distribution in farming and related enterprises, and how these connect to the wider class structure.

Landownership in the Philippines under Spain

  • When the Spaniards colonized the country, they brought with them a system of pueblo agriculture, where rural communities, often dispersed and scattered in nature, were organized into a pueblo and given land to cultivate.

What is Pueblo Agriculture?

  • Pueblo agriculture refers to the traditional farming practices and agricultural systems used by the communities in the Philippines.

Palayamanan system

  • The Palayamanan system is a traditional agroforestry approach in the Philippines. It involves the cultivation of various crops, trees, and livestock in the same area.

Kilawin Farming

  • Kilawin is a traditional farming practice in the Visayas region that involves intercropping, the planting of different crops in the same field.

Ladang System

  • The Ladang system is a traditional swidden or shifting cultivation method practiced in some indigenous communities, particularly in Mindanao. It involves clearing and burning small patches of forest for farming and then leaving the land to fallow and regenerate while cultivating other plots.

Carabao Farming

  • It is used for plowing fields, transporting farm produce, and various other farming tasks. Carabao farming remains an integral part of traditional agricultural systems in rural areas.

Landownership in the Philippines under Spain

  • Families were not allowed to own their land-the King of Spain owned the land, and Filipinos were

assigned to these lands to cultivate them, and they paid their colonial tributes to the Spanish authorities in the form of agricultural products.

Friar lands for the religious orders

Repartimientos

  • for lands granted to the Spanish military as a reward for their service

Encomiendas

  • These are large tracts of land given to Spaniards (encomiendero) to manage and have the right to receive tributes from the native tilling it.
  • Natives within these areas became mere tillers working for a share of crops. They did not even have rights to the land.
  • Filipinos were not given the right to own land, and only worked in them so that they might have a share of the crops and pay tribute.
  • The encomienda system was an unfair and abusive system as "compras y vandalas“. Filipino farmers working the land-they were made to sell their products at very low price or surrender their products to the encomenderos, who resold this as a profit.
  • Filipinos in the encomienda were also required to render services to the encomienderos that were unrelated to farming.

Example:

  • Construction
  • Maintenance of Structure

Hacienda System

  • The hacienda system developed inthe beginning or the nineteenth century as the Spanish government implemented policies that would fast track the entry of the colony into the capitalist world.
  • The country’s economy was opened to the world market as exporter of raw materials and importer of finished goods.
  • In the 1860s, Spain enacted a law ordering landholders to register their landholdings, and only those who knew benefitted from this.
  • Lands were claimed and registered in other people's names, and many peasant families who were "assigned" to the land in the earlier days of colonization were driven out or forced to come under the power of these people who claimed rights to the land because

LANDOWNERSHIP IN THEPHILIPPINES UNDER THE AMERICANS

  • The Americans were aware that the leading cause of social unrest in the Philippines is landlessness, and they attempted to put an end to the deplorable conditions of the tenant farmers through several land policies to increase the small landholders and distribute ownership to a more significant number of Filipino tenants and farmers.

Philippine Organic Law of 1902

  • It provided regulations on the ownership of public lands.
  • A private individual may own 16 hectares, while corporate landholders may have 1,024 hectares.
  • Americans were also given rights to own agricultural lands in the country.

Philippine Commission Act No. 496

  • Land Registration Act
  • It introduced the Torrens system to address the absence of earlier records of issued land titles and conduct accurate land surveys.

In 1903, the homestead program was introduced, allowing a tenant to enter into agribusiness by acquiring a farm of at least 16 hectares.

The said program, however, was limited to areas in Northern Luzon and Mindanao, where colonial penetration has been difficult for Americans, a problem they inherited from the Spaniards.

Possession was limited to those who could afford to buy, register, and acquire fixed property titles.

Not all friar lands acquired by the Americans were given to landless peasant farmers, as some lands were sold or leased to U.S. and Filipino business interest.

Many were forced to return to tenancy, and wealthy Filipino hacienderos purchased or forcefully took over lands from farmers who could not afford to pay their debts.

Land Ownership in the Philippines during Commonwealth Period

  • The situation further worsened during the years of the Commonwealth government as peasant uprisings increased, and the landlord-tenant relationship became more disparate.
  • Pres. Quezon laid down a social justice program focused on the purchased of haciendas, which were to be divided and sold to tenants.
  • During his administration, they created the National Rice and Corn Corporation (NARICC) that assigned public defenders to assist peasants in court battles for their rights to the land and the Court of Industrial Relations to exercise jurisdiction over disagreement arising from the landowner-tenant relationship.
  • Efforts towards agrarian reform by the Commonwealth government failed because of many problems such as budget allocation for the settlement program and widespread peasant uprising.

LANDOWNERSHIP IN THE PHILIPPINES UNDER THE JAPANESE

  • All attempts to address the issues of land ownership were suspended during World War II when the Japanese seized the nation.

POST WAR INTERVENTION TOWARD AGRARIAN REFORM

  • Rehabilitation and rebuilding after the war were focused on providing solutions to the problems of the past.

Manuel A. Roxas (1946 – 1948)

  • Republic Act No. 34 was passed by the Roxas administration in order to create a 70-30 sharing arrangement between the landlord and tenant, respectively, and to lower the interest rate on loans from landowners to tenants to six percent or less.
  • Additionally, the government tried to transfer hacienda holdings, but once more, small farmers who were sold lands received no assistance.

Elpidio R. Quirino (April 17, 1948 – Nov. 10, 1853)

  • Under the term of Pres. Elpidio Quirino, the Land Settlement Development Corporation was established to accelerate and expand the resettlement program of peasants.

Ramon F. Magsaysay (Dec. 30, 1953 – March 17, 1957)

  • The agency became the National Resettlement and Rehabilitation Administration (NARRA) under the administration of Pres. Magsaysay.
  • Pres. Magsaysay saw the importance of pursuing a genuine land reform program and convinced Congress, the majority of which are landed elites, to pass legislation to improve the situation.
  • Republic Act No. 1199
  • The Agricultural Tenancy Act
  • It was passed to govern the relationship between landholders and tenants, protecting the tenurial rights of tenants and enforced tenancy practices.

In 1955, the Court of Agricultural Relations was created to improve tenancy security, fix land rentals of tenanted farms, and resolve land disputes filed by the landowners and peasant organizations.

The Agricultural Tenancy Commission was also established to administer problems created by the tenancy, as well as the Agricultural Credit and Cooperative Financing Administration to provide warehouse facilities and assist farmers in marketing their products.

Diosdado P. Macapagal (Dec. 30, 1961, Dec. 30, 1965

  • A significant stride in land reform was taken during the term of Pres. Macapagal through Republic Act No. 3844 or the Agricultural Land Reform Code.
  • Agricultural Land Reform Code abolished share tenancy in the Philippines and prescribed a program to convert tenant-farmers to lessees and later on owner-cultivators.
  • The said code also aimed to free tenants from tenancy and emphasized owner-cultivators and farmer independence, equity, productivity improvement, and public land distribution.

Ferdinand E. Marcos (Dec. 30, 1965 – Feb. 25, 1986)

  • On September 21, 1972, Proclamation No. 1081 marked the start of the New Society period in the Philippines. Just five days later, Martial Law was declared, and the entire country was designated a land reform area. This led to the implementation of the Agrarian Reform Program.
  • Republic Act No. 6389, (Code of Agrarian Reform) and RA No. 6390 of 1971 -- Created the Department of Agrarian Reform and the Agrarian Reform Special Account Fund. It strengthen the position of farmers and expanded the scope of agrarian reform.
  • Presidential Decree No. 2, September 26, 1972 – Declared the country under land reform program. It enjoined all agencies and offices of the government to extend full cooperation and assistance to the DAR. It also activated the Agrarian Reform Coordinating Council.
  • Presidential Decree No. 27, October 21, 1972 -- Restricted land reform scope to tenanted rice and corn lands and set the retention limit at 7 hectares.

Corazon C. Aquino (February 25, 1986 – June 30, 1992)

  • The Constitution ratified by the Filipino people during the administration of President Corazon C. Aquino provides under Section 21 under Article II that “The State shall promote comprehensive rural development and agrarian reform.”
  • On June 10, 1988, former President Corazon C. Aquino signed into law Republic Act No. 6657 or otherwise known as the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law (CARL). The law became effective on June 15, 1988.
  • On July 16, 1987, ExecutiveOrder No. 228 granted full ownership to eligible farmers who were beneficiaries under Presidential Decree 27. This executive order also set the value for rice and corn lands not previously valued under PD 27. It outlined the payment process by the farmer-beneficiaries and established the compensation
  • Executive Order No. 229, July 22, 1987 – Provided mechanism for the implementation of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP).
  • Proclamation No. 131, July 22, 1987 – Instituted the CARP as a major program of the government. It provided for a special fund known as the Agrarian Reform Fund (ARF), with an initial amount of Php50 billion to cover the estimated cost of the program from 1987-1992.
  • Executive Order No. 129-A, July 26, 1987 – streamlined and expanded the power and operations of the DAR.
  • Republic Act No. 6657, June 10, 1988 (Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law) – An act which became effective June 15, 1988 and instituted a comprehensive agrarian reform program to promote social justice and industrialization providing the mechanism for its implementation and for other purposes. This law is still the one being implemented at present.
  • Executive Order No. 405, June 14, 1990 – Vested in the Land Bank of the Philippines the responsibility to determine land valuation and compensation for all lands covered by CARP.
  • Executive Order No. 407, June 14, 1990 – Accelerated the acquisition and distribution of agricultural lands, pasture lands, fishponds, agro-forestry lands and other lands of the public domain suitable for agriculture.

Fidel V. Ramos (1992-1998)

  • Republic Act No. 7881, 1995 – Amended certain provisions of RA 6657 and exempted fishponds and prawns from the coverage of CARP.
  • Republic Act No. 7905, 1995 – Strengthened the implementation of the CARP.
  • Executive Order No. 363, 1997 – Limits the type of lands that may be converted by setting conditions under which limits the type of lands that may be converted by setting conditions under which specific categories of agricultural land are either absolutely non-negotiable for conversion or highly restricted for conversion.
  • Republic Act No. 8435, 1997 (Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization Act AFMA) – Plugged the legal loopholes in land use conversion.
  • Republic Act 8532, 1998 (Agrarian Reform Fund Bill) – Provided an additional Php50 billion for CARP and extended its implementation for another 10 years.

Joseph M. Ejercito Estrada (June 30, 1998 – January 20, 2001)

  • Executive Order N0. 151, September 1999 (Farmer’s Trust Fund) – Allowed the voluntary consolidation of small farm operation into medium and large scale integrated enterprise that can access long-term capital.
  • During his administration, President Estrada launched the Magkabalikat Para sa Kaunlarang Agraryo or MAGKASAKA. The DAR forged into joint ventures with private investors into agrarian sector to make FBs competitive.

Gloria Macapagal Arroyo (January 20, 2001 – June 30, 2010)

  • The Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) is committed to actively carry out the land acquisition and distribution part of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP). The focus is on enhancing land tenure by distributing land and promoting leasehold arrangements.
  • Provision of Support Services - CARP not only involves the distribution of lands but also included package of support services which includes: credit assistance, extension services, irrigation facilities, roads and bridges, marketing facilities and training and technical support programs.
  • The Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) aims to turn agrarian reform communities (ARCs) into rural economic zones. This transformation is designed to bring integrated support services, boost local economies, and generate job opportunities in the countryside.
  • KALAHI ARZone – The KALAHI Agrarian Reform (KAR) Zones were also launched. These zones consists of one or more municipalities with concentration of ARC population to achieve greater agro-productivity.
  • Agrarian Justice - DAR plans to address agrarian justice by hiring more paralegal officers, supporting adjudicatory boards, and implementing a quota system to expedite agrarian cases. The focus is on respecting the rights of both farmers and landowners while clearing the backlog of cases.

Benigno Aquino III (2010-2016)

  • The administration established the Agrarian Reform Community Connectivity and Economic Support Services (ARCCESS) project to reduce rural poverty, particularly in agrarian reform areas, aiming for overall economic improvement.
  • The Agrarian Production Credit Program (APCP) offered credit support for crop production to newly formed and existing agrarian reform beneficiary organizations (ARBOs) and farmers' groups that couldn't access loans from regular bank channels.
  • The Legal Case Monitoring System (LCMS) is a web-based tool introduced to record and track agrarian cases across DAR offices. This system ensures quicker resolution and close monitoring of agrarian-related legal matters.
  • Aquino implemented Executive Order No. 26 in 2011, establishing the Department of Agriculture-Department of Environment and Natural Resources-Department of Agrarian Reform Convergence Initiative. This initiative aimed to create a National Greening Program in collaboration with other government agencies.

Rodrigo Roa Duterte (2016-2022)

  • The President instructed DAR to initiate the second phase of agrarian reform, focusing on granting undistributed lands to landless farmers under CARP.
  • Duterte plans to place almost all public lands, including military reserves, under agrarian reform.
  • The President also placed 400 hectares of agricultural lands in Boracay under CARP
  • The DAR, during his administration, formed an anti-corruption task force to investigate and address reports of wrongdoing by department officials and employees.
  • The Department is actively pursuing "Oplan Zero Backlog" to swiftly resolve cases and accelerate the implementation of CARP for agrarian justice delivery.