They’re mad and they want the land they’ve been promised. Then again, it’s not as simple as that.
“Around 100 Hacienda Luisita farmers forced their way into the compound of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) in Quezon City yesterday, the second anniversary of the Supreme Court (SC) decision ordering the distribution of Hacienda Luisita,” reports Rhodina Villanueva in The Philippine Star.
The report revealed that the militant group Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) are claiming that “two years after the SC decision ordering the distribution of Hacienda Luisita, President Aquino’s relatives—the Cojuangcos of Tarlac province—still control the more than 6,000-hectare sugar estate.”
This is allegedly why the farmers at the DAR compound yesterday, some of them members of Ambala or Alyansa ng mga Manggagawang Bukid sa Asyenda Luisita, are “demanding the complete distribution of Hacienda Luisita.”
For his part, DAR Secretary Virgilio de los Reyes said that “the more than 300 hectares that have not yet been distributed to farmers were issued a Notice of Coverage as of December last year.”
But the report countered that “the Tarlac Development Corp. or TADECO is reportedly opposed to its distribution, saying that the particular area has been classified as commercial-residential.”
The matter is still subject to further discussions.
