Members of a farmers' association protest the installation of fences in disputed property in a barangay of Calapan City, Oriental Mindoro. Samahan ng mga Magsasaka sa Guinobatan, handout

MANILA — Farmers and residents of Barangay Guinobatan in Calapan City, Oriental Mindoro, held a prayer rally Friday night to oppose the construction of a fence on disputed land and the threat of forced eviction of more than 300 families.

A fence constructed Thursday along the barangay’s highway frontage has sparked outrage among members of the Guinobatan Farmers’ Association, who claim it was erected without their consent and despite unresolved legal battles.

"Nagulat na lang kami nagbabakod na sila. Sinasabi nilang may clearance sila galing sa barangay pero hindi man lang kami kinonsulta tungkol diyan," said Fely Macalalad, President of Guinobatan Farmers’ Association.

(We were surprised they just put the fence up. They said they have clearance from the barangay, but we weren't even consulted on this.)

Editha Zamora, 64, said the fence has disrupted not only access to their land but also their livelihood.

“Ito pong palayan na nabakuran ay anihin. Nagtira lamang po sila ng mismong daanan ng harvester. Ito pong mga tindahan po namin dito, hindi po makapagtinda mula pa po ng Huwebes dahil nga sarado nga po,” she said.

(The fields that were fenced off are due to be harvested. They just left a narrow path for the harvester to pass through. Our stores have been cut off from our customers.)

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Zamora is one of 64 recipients of the Certificate of Land Ownership Award (CLOA), granted in 1998 for the 158-hectare land in Guinobatan.

The CLOA, issued by the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR), grants land ownership to farmers under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP).

She argued that the fence infringes on their rights as rightful occupants, as they have not been legally evicted and court proceedings over the land dispute are still ongoing.

“Hindi po aalis ang mga tenants hangga’t hindi malinaw ang usaping korte, at hangga’t hindi po malinaw ang posibleng paglilipatan at karampatang pangsimulang kabuhayan,” said Zamora.

(The tenants here will not leave until this has been settled in court and until we get a clearer picture of the issues of relocation and compensation.)

ABS-CBN News is seeking the corporation’s statement on the matter.

CLEARANCE WITHOUT CONSENT?

Macalalad believes the newly built fence is a deliberate attempt by the private corporation to seize their land and displace the farmers.

“Ito ay isang malinaw na pagtatangka na pigilan ang kanilang kabuhayan at araw-araw na pamumuhay at higit pang takutin ang mga tumututol sa pagpapalayas.”

(This is a clear attempt to keep us from our livelihoods and further intimidate those opposing eviction)

In response to allegations that he is favoring the private corporation over his constituents, Barangay Guinobatan Captain Pedro Ilagan Jr. said he had no grounds to reject the company’s request to build a fence, as they presented a land title verified by the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG).

“Andon po yung posibilidad na pwede po ako masampahan ng kaso ng korporasyon kung di po ako magbibigay ng kaukulang clearance,” he said.

(There is a risk that the company will sue me if I don't issue the clearance.)

He also claimed the barangay made multiple attempts to engage residents in discussions about the issue.

“Nung nakaraang taon, dumating po sa lungsod ang PCUP (Presidential Commission for the Urban Poor) para makipag-ugnayan po sa kanila. Sila po ay hindi dumalo,” Ilagan said.

(Last year, the PCUP came to Calapan to meet with them but they did not attend.)

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However, Zamora argued that their group was not properly notified about the meeting, which coincided with their scheduled seed collection in another barangay.

Ilagan said he urged the corporation to avoid putting up fencing in front of houses and instead place barriers on vacant lots to minimize disruptions to residents’ livelihoods. He also recommended using wooden materials instead of metal sheets, which he acknowledged would make the area unbearably hot.

He added the barangay is working on the issue of relocation, preferably within the same barangay.

DECADES-LONG BATTLE

Farmers had tilled the land in Guinobatan for decades, but, in 1999, the original landowners claimed it was industrial land that should not be covered by agrarian reform.

This was contested by farmers through years of legal appeals until the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the original landowners in 2013.

In 2017, the Register of Deeds (RD) in Calapan was ordered to cancel the beneficiaries’ CLOAs and return the land to the family that the land was originally titled to.

The following year, the title was transferred to the construction corporation responsible for building the fence.

However, the beneficiaries continue to assert ownership over their CLOAs and DAR-issued titles and refuse to turn them over to the Registry of Deeds.

In February 2020, the farmers filed a motion with then-DAR Secretary John Castriciones, who ruled the following year that they could not be forcibly evicted as bona fide occupants and were entitled to proper disturbance compensation.

“Sa kabila ng kanilang patuloy na mga pagsisikap, patuloy pa rin nilang nararanasan ang pwersahang pagpapalayas, pang-aagaw ng lupa, at hindi makatarungang pagbabakod sa mga ari-arian na kanilang pinagtatrabahuhan sa loob ng maraming dekada,” said Macalalad.

(Even though the farmers here have worked hard, they still experience forced eviction, land-grabbing and the unjust fencing off of property they have tilled for decades.)