PEASANT STRUGGLE FOR GENUINE AGRARIAN REFORM IN FORT MAGSAYSAY MILITARY RESERVATION (FMMR)
Fort Magsaysay Military Reservation
Members:
FMMR Campaign Coordinating Body: Alyansa ng Magbubukid na Nagkakaisa sa 3,100 Ektarya ng Fort Magsaysay Military Reservation (ALMANA 3,100), Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP), Alyansa ng Magbubukid sa Gitnang Luzon (AMGL), Tanggol Magsasaka, Rural Missionaries of the Philippines (RMP), Promotion of Church People's Response (PCPR)

It has been a traditional situation for peasants to be under the control of landlords who owns vast agricultural lands that they till. In addition, it is usually the landlord that requests the service of the military to quell any form of peasant unrest. At Fort Magsaysay Military Reservation (FMMR), it is quite odd and worse, it is Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) who act as the landlord, even charging the peasants with ground rent at about 2 to 3 cavans of palay during the 1960s.

Now, though the 3,100-hectare lands is under CARP with Agrarian Reform Communities (ARCs) and farmers awarded with Certificate of Land Ownership Awards (CLOA), the military has yet to give the lands and instill to the farmer-beneficiaries that they do not own the land and the military has the right to whatever they decide to do with the land.

Brief Background
 

As early as the 1930s, farmers were already cultivating the lands at the area of FMMR. It encompasses 73,000 hectares of land, reaching across Nueva Ecija, Bulacan and Aurora provinces as per Proclamation 207 of President Ramon Magsaysay in 1955. The lands are being used for military exercises, bombing runs and other military activies.

The 3,100-hectare land in Laur, Nueva Ecija, supposedly awarded to Mt. Pinatubo victims in 1991, is where the base of the Philippine Army 7th Infantry Division is located. About 6,000 peasants live and cultivate at the area, farming rice, vegetables and other agricultural products.

With developments of legal battles and private groups and individuals landgrabbing and claiming they own the land, the 3,100 hectares lands were finally decided by the Deed Of Transfer of DND to DAR based on EO 407 and EO 448 (Series of 1990), signed by then DAR Secretary Benjamin Leong and former DND Secretary Renato de Villa on November 5, 1991.

The Deed Of Transfer mainly discuss about the following:

* Identification of the 3,100 hectare which is located at Bgy. San Isidro, Laur town of Nueva Ecija province;
 

* DAR officials will coordinate with camp officials on surveying the land to define exact location and boundaries;
 

* A buffer zone of 20 meters around the camp will be set and no permanent structures shall be built for security purposes
 

* DAR will be responsible and have jurisdiction on what ever issues that may arise (judicial, quasi-judicial)
 

* The transfer by DND to DAR will be free, as well as the transfer of lands by DAR to legitimate farmer-beneficiaries

Though the existence of the Deed of Transfer signed by both Department Secretaries, the military, particularly the PA 7th Infantry Division does not recognize such order and continue to pose as the owner or has the right to control over the lands. Commander Maj. Gen. Ralph Villanueva even sent a letter to the Provincial Agrarian Reform Office to cancel all CLOAs involving the 3,100 hectares.

On October 10, 2007, DAR Secretary Nasser Pangandaman reminded DND Secretary Gilbert Teodoro that the military could never claim the 3,100 hectare as it was already decided on the Deed of Transfer of the two agencies.

Human Rights Violations
 

The road of land distribution to farmers were twisted and rough. Different private groups, corporations and individuals have attempted to landgrab the lands that should be given to legitimate farmers, most of them are retired military personnels or private firms with strong connection to the military and police.

* On May 30, 2001, elements from Palayan Municipal Police, Provincial Police and 309th Provincial Mobile Group (PMG) led by a goon of landlord Martin Tinio raided houses of farmers, robbed them of their private properties and illegally arrested some of the residents. This is to scare the farmers off the lands to compel them to leave the area. The victims were members of the Agrarian Reform Beneficiaries Association or ARBA.
 

* On August 18, 2007, retired Col. Feliciano Sabite, accompanied by armed men, harassed a group of farmers who were preparing their farms. Sabite, armed with M-14 rifle and Cal. 45 handgun, poked at farmers, cursing them and telling them to leave the place that he has already bought the lands. The victims were members of Guardians Brotherhood.
 

* The next month, September 27, 2007, about 3pm, Col. Sabite strafed houses of farmers and stolen some of their belongings. The farmers sought the help of the Philippine Army at the camp, who then found Sabite but only talked with him and never arrested him.
 

* On October 25, 2008, about 34 of 36 houses farmers were demolished by the soldiers from PA 7th Infantry Division without warning, not considering the value that farmers invested in building them. This was after they attended the caravan and protest actions against CARP in Manila
 

* Up to now, communities are militarized, soldiers are camped in Barangay Halls, without the proper consent of local officials, sowing fear and impeding in the free mobility of farmer-residents in the area.

Peasant Efforts and Actions

* Peasants from the Fort Magsaysay Military Reservation are organized as the ALMANA 3,100 or Alyansa ng Magbubukid na Nagkakaisa sa 3,100 Ektarya ng FMMR (United Peasant Alliance in 3,100 Hectare of Fort Magsaysay Military Reservation). They have already held numerous inter-agency dialogues involving the Department of Agrarian Reform and Department of Environment and Natural Resources. They have always invited the Department of National Defense but always ignored the invitation. It was only in November 17, that the DND accepted the request and the dialogue was held at Camp Aguinaldo. Still, the DND never committed to anything and it was apparent that they do not recognize the Deed of Transfer signed even by the DND Secretary in 1991.
 

* As the experience of the peasants in FMMR with the implementation of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program has not been beneficial, their case is a living example of the bankruptcy of CARP. They were legitimate farmer-beneficiaries formed in Agrarian Reform Communities(ARCs) but still faced with landgrabbers, harassments, military intrusion, fake beneficiaries and more. Though they were given CLOAs, these never guaranteed land distribution. They were only able to keep on working with the lands through their unity and struggle.
 

* In light of their life-long goal to own the lands they have tilled for decades, they fully support the House Bill 3059 or Genuine Agrarian Reform Bill (GARB) proposed by Anakpawis Partylist. They believe that this bill would deliver their interest of free land distribution and security from being displaced.

What can you do to help?

* Join and support the campaign for genuine agrarian reform in FMMR
 

* Send appeal letters to DND to abide the Deed of Transfer
 

* To lawmakers, LGU officials, create bills, resolutions that implement the Deed of Transfer or distribute the lands in FMMR
 

* Give financial and material support for the campaign of ALMANA

STRUGGLE FOR GENUINE AGRARIAN REFORM IN FORT MAGSAYSAY!
STOP HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS AND JUSTICE TO VICTIMS!

ALYANSA NG MAGBUBUKID NA NAGKAKAISA SA 3,100 EKTARYA NG FMMR
(ALMANA 3,100, United Peasant Alliance in 3,100 Hectare of Fort Magsaysay Military Reservation)
KILUSANG MAGBUBUKID NG PILIPINAS (KMP)
ALYANSA NG MAGBUBUKID SA GITNANG LUZON (AMGL)

PRESS STATEMENT
May 16, 2009

GARB – It’s now or never

The peasant movement in Southern Tagalog is challenging the Macapagal-Arroyo administration to enact the House Bill No. 3059 or Genuine Agrarian Reform Bill (GARB) before the 14th Congress ends on June 3, 2009 to prove to the Filipino people that her regime is serving the interest of the majority of the country’s population comprised by the landless and poor peasants in the countryside.

While the first committee hearing of GARB is set on May 20, it is about time for the Philippine Congress to give full consideration on the proposed law without allowing the resurrection of a dead law – the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program or R.A. 6657 that is desperately trying for another 5-10 years extension.

There is no more room for debate if CARP should be extended or not, instead the government should pass a new law on agrarian reform that is genuine and pro-farmer; and the House Bill 3059 is providing every assurance that it is indeed an agrarian reform that arouses from the legitimate demands of the landless peasant sector in the country.

It took 18-months before the Congress acted for a Committee hearing on the proposed law; in fact, if not for the on-going month-long protest camp-out of the farmers in Southern Tagalog in front of the House of Representatives (HOR), the landlord-governed Congress will remain dumb and numb.

 

The HOR is more concerned on the cleanliness of the façade of their compound than hearing the demands of the farmers camping-out and being exposed to heat and rain for 34-days now; in effect, farmers from Southern Tagalog that belong to kasama-tk are not allowed to enter the HOR compound to hold lobbying with their respective Representatives while the pseudo-pro-farmer partylist of Akbayan and its staged mobilization were warmly welcomed all-the-way inside the Congress building.

These circumstances are not surprising at all to the militant peasant movement in Southern Tagalog who has long been recognizing that the issue of land reform in the Philippines is certainly an issue of class interest.

Even if the Macapagal-Arroyo regime remains false-hearted in implementing a genuine agrarian reform, the farmers in Southern Tagalog and all-over the country already learned their lesson from the past bogus land reform program of the government and will never stop advancing for a genuine agrarian reform while actively defending the land that were never given to them for a long time, collectively farming it and making it productive – and now harvesting fruits of their struggle. ###

Koyang’s Puso at Isip

May 16, 2009

http://tatayk.wordpress.com/2009/05/16/koyangs-puso-at-isip/'

There are overtly ‘political’ songs like Panginoon for example, based on a poem that came out of his Usapang Kanto column in Pinoy Weekly, a stinging commentary against George W. Bush’s War on Terror. The song was written eight months before the US invasion of Iraq. Santiago’s activism through his music manifests further in compositions like Daloy, a song written as part of a river rehabilitation campaign and Salot, a song with a strong anti-corruption message. The ‘anthemic’ quality of Santiago’s songwriting is perhaps most evident in the songs bayan muna, his tribute to our country’s martyrs and heroes and Pagbabago, written for and originally recorded by ASIN, a contemplative song about the struggle for change in this country.

 

Santiago’s songwriting has also drawn inspiration from works of other artists and musicians. Included in the album are Eksenang tahimik, a 3-part poem inspired by a study made by the painter Antipas Delotavo, and Hamog sa Umaga, tagalog version of “achim iseul” (morning dew), a well-loved Korean song made popular by legendary South Korean singer-songwriter Kim Min’gi.

 

On a personal level, two songs stand out in the collection. 18, a beautiful song about a father’s recollections on his daughter’s 18th birthday; and Palatandaan, his tribute to veteran activists. These songs were originally conceived to be part of a concept album of “occasional songs” chronicling the different stages and moments in one’s life.

 

Then there is Laging Ikaw, a masterfully crafted modern Filipino love song; and Pagsapit ng Dilim, a solemn ballad of love and longing.

 

As in previous efforts, the new album features Jess Santiago collaborating with friends. Ronnie Quesada, Dodjie Fernandez, Joey Ayala, Cynthia Alexander, Popong Landero and Gary Granada, Noel Cabangon and the Radioactive Sago Project all contribute their talents to the album along with very talented session musicians and singers including Simon Tan on Bass and Rene “chong” Tengasantos on percussions.

 

Pusot at Isip is yet another “labor of love” album by Santiago produced on a shoe-string budget. In order to augment the limited funds for this album and to produce a companion EP of Asian Peoples Music, we are soliciting the support of friends and ‘friendly’ organizations and network who have loved and supported Jess Santiago’s music over the years.

Let’s support Koyang Jess and all pinoy musicians struggling to make their music heard. Tara na at bumili ng CD!