n line with the avowed objectives of the Second National Rural Congress of listening to major woes of the rural poor, the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) in cooperation with the PARRDS/Rural Poor Solidarity and NRC II Lay Consultant Christian Monsod sponsored a Bishops-Peasants Forum held at the CBCP compound in Intramuros, Manila last September 13, 2007.
Six (6) prominent leaders of the CBCP and its Permanent Council came to listen and voiced their support in the persons of Archbishop Angel N. Lagdameo, D.D., (President); Archbishop Antonio J. Ledesma, SJ, D.D. (Executive chair of the National Rural Congress II); Bishop Broderick Pabillo (Auxiliary Bishop of Manila and Executive Vice-Chair of NRC II); Bishop Antonio P. Palang, SVD, D.D. of Mindoro; Bishop Vicente M. Navarra, D.D. of Bacolod and Bishop Paciano B. Aniceto, D.D. of Pampanga. Bishop Antonio R. Tobias of Novaliches who was not available was represented by Fr. Tony Labiao, Jr.
The religious community was also represented and joined in the discussion. Two (2) sisters from the Augustinian Missionaries of the Philippines (AMP) led by Sr. Tess Agualada and Fr. Archie Casey of the Xaverian Missionaries and JPICC-AMRSP were present. Both congregations have been witness to the sufferings of the deprived farmers and have extended their religious ministry as support groups.
Agrarian reform advocates like Christian Monsod of PARFUND/TFM, Ricardo Reyes of PARRDS and Steve Quiambao of Peace Foundation were also there to lend their support. Ms Belinda Formanes of PARRDS/Rural Poor Solidarity co-facilitated the forum with Archbishop Ledesma.
Representing the government side were Cabinet Secretary Ricardo Saludo and Director Ester Ceguena of the Office of Religious Affairs-Presidential Management Staff. Most importantly, the peasants asserting for agrarian reform were present to air out their miseries. Representatives of TFM led by ka Gerry Cahilig and UNORKA-Pilipinas led by Evangeline Mendoza and ka Maning Rosario of the Pambansang Katipunan ng mga Samahan sa Kanayunan (PKSK) presented the major agrarian related policy and implementation issues/problems from their respective organizations that were previously presented in national dialogues with the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) Secretary Nasser Pangandaman.
The UNORKA-Pilipinas and TFM are two of the biggest national farmers’ federation with continuing land tenure improvement and past distribution engagements with the DAR. UNORKA-Pilipinas is a national federation founded in the year 2000. It has 651 active local organizations in 40 provinces and has 90,000 members. It has already facilitated transfer of at least 200,000 hectares of land, with 100,000 farming household – beneficiaries. It currently has 773 pending cases with the DAR covering 191, 647 hectares and 50, 237 affected farming households.
TFM is a national federation of farmers, farm workers and individuals working for agrarian reform and rural development. To date, 3,896 farmer beneficiaries are installed and occupied 5,014 hectares of land covering 88 haciendas in Negros Occidental alone. It has claims over 469 landholdings nationwide covering 116,722 hectares and affecting 27,528 farmer-beneficiaries.
“Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves,
for the rights of all who are destitute.
Speak up and judge fairly;
defend the rights of the poor and needy.”
[Proverbs 30: 8-9, NIV]
The major issues presented during the Bishops – Peasants Forum were: (a) irregular and highly questionable decisions of the Office of the Secretary on applications for exemptions, exclusions and conversions filed by powerful landowners; (b) the utter lack of government protection to legitimate agrarian reform beneficiaries who are being killed, threatened, intimidated and harassed by big landowners as exemplified by the yet partially installed Hacienda Velez Malaga case of Negros farmers of the TFM; (c) failure to install farmer beneficiaries that has no legal impediments; (d) committing an estimated 500,000 hectares of CARP lands for the RP-China agri-business deals which is inherently anti-agrarian reform and unconstitutional; and, (e) violent dispersal by the police and security guards upon orders of the DAR last September 3-7, 2007 which resulted to various injuries among the peasants.
TFM and UNORKA-Pilipinas demands were the following: (a) hasten agrarian reform implementation; (b) review questionable decisions by the DAR; (c) policy review on livestock exemption and conversion issues; (d) reform and revamp of the DAR; and, (e) ample protection of farmer petitioners and claimants.
Finally, the peasant groups appealed that the Office of the President and the CBCP intervene by immediately organizing a dialogue where DAR officials, peasant organizations and NGOs will present their issues as well as seeking ways and options to break the impasse.
Hearing the farmers’ laments, the Bishops gave inspiring and supportive statements during the open discussion. Archbishop Ledesma, the Executive Chair of the National Rural Congress (NRC) II, suggested that the agrarian issues presented be tackled during the NRC II scheduled to be held in May 2008. He further said that these problems can also be posted on the NRC II website. He likewise invited the peasants to the CBCP Plenary Assembly Seminar on Rural Poverty and Agrarian Reform.
Archbishop Ledesma also proposed that “success stories” on agrarian reform implementation be documented to inspire peasant communities and the public about the positive impacts of agrarian reform.
Bishop Palang of Mindoro lauded the peasants for their work on improving the lives of the people through agrarian reform and expressed that he strongly supports them. He thanked the peasants for enlightening the members of the CBCP on the current agrarian situation.
The necessity of the dialogue was acknowledged by Fr. Labiao. For according to him, it would pinpoint the lapses and the loose points of the CARP implementation. The dialogue, he underscored, should be deepened so that both parties can find better solutions.
A “win-win” agreement that would provide immediate and lasting solutions was Monsignor Navarra’s appeal to the peasants, their supporters and the government. He further stressed that the four bishops of the Negros Island are very concerned about the violence confronting the peasants attributed to landowners’ stiff resistance.
Archbishop Lagdameo reminded the forum that the CBCP has already issued last January 2007 a pastoral statement, “The Dignity of the Rural Poor —A Pastoral Concern” where they called for the extension of CARP. But the law, he said, should be improved to genuinely respond to the needs of the peasants. He also clarified if what has just been presented has likewise been explained to the DAR, and on what they should do. When told that the peasants have exhausted all efforts during the two years of the Pangandaman DAR administration, Archbishop Lagdameo remarked that there might be something really wrong at the Department of Agrarian Reform. Once again, the CBCP President firmly reiterated that the “campaign for agrarian reform is still relevant and must be made to succeed”.
Cabinet Secretary Ricardo Saludo expressed the President’s desire for the agrarian reform law and CARP to continue and especially the Hacienda Velez Malaga agrarian reform case to succeed. He promised to immediately report to the President the major issues discussed during the forum and the peasants’ proposal for the CBCP and Malacañan to intervene by calling for a dialogue between DAR officials and the peasant organizations
At the moment, NRC II Executive Chairperson Archbishop Ledesma is closely working with the peasant groups to follow through on the UNORKA-Pilipinas and TFM cases. Along with it, his Excellency takes the helm in paving the way towards the Second Rural Congress and in actualizing the commitment to support the struggle of our poor but struggling peasant and rural communities.
(From http://parrds.listahan.org/ )