Agrarian Reform

 refersto a series of government-initiated

programs and policies aimed at redistributing
land ownership and improving agricultural
productivity, especially in areas where land is
concentrated in the hands of a few landowners,
often to the detriment of small farmers and rural
workers.
 Theprimary goal of agrarian reform is to address
issues of land inequality, improve the living
standards of peasants or small landholders, and
ensure that land is more equitably distributed.
 In many countries, agrarian reform includes:
1. Redistribution of Land: Government acquisition of large
estates (haciendas, plantations) to redistribute smaller
parcels to landless farmers or tenants.
2. Support for Beneficiaries: Providing financial assistance,
technical support, and access to credit for new landowners
to help them become productive and self-sufficient.
3. Land Tenure Security: Strengthening the rights of
tenants and small landholders by offering legal ownership
or secure lease agreements.
4. Agricultural Modernization: Introducing better farming
practices, infrastructure development, and technology to
enhance productivity on redistributed lands.
The History of Agrarian Reforms
in the Philippines
Pre-Spanish Period
 “This land is Ours God gave this land to
us”
 Before the Spaniards came to the
Philippines, Filipinos lived in villages or
barangays ruled by chiefs or datus.
 However, despite the existence of
different classes in the social structure,
practically everyone had access to the
fruits of the soil. Money was unknown, and
rice served as the medium of exchange.
 Spanish Period
 When the Spaniards came to the Philippines, the
concept of encomienda (Royal Land Grants) was
introduced.
 Maura Decree (also known as the Royal Decree of
1894), was a land reform law named after Don
Antonio Maura. The decree was aimed at organizing
land ownership and formalizing the claims of
landowners by requiring the registration of all lands
under individual or communal ownership in the span
of one year.
 Pueblo was a local administrative center governed by
a gobernadorcillo (a local Filipino) and the principalia
(the town’s elite or ruling class). These officials were
responsible for implementing Spanish colonial
 Spanish Period
 Reducción, where scattered rural populations were
forcibly resettled into centralized towns or villages.
 Church-Centered Design: Pueblos were typically
organized around a central plaza, with the church
and the municipal hall (tribunal) being the focal
points of the community. Surrounding the plaza were
the homes of the principalia, and farther out were
the common people’s houses. This layout
symbolized the central role of the Church and
Spanish authority in the life of the town.
 Inquilinos were a class of tenants or leaseholders
who rented large tracts of agricultural land, often
from religious orders or Spanish landowners, and
managed the cultivation and production of these
 First Philippine Republic

 The First Philippine Republic was established on

January 23, 1899. It is also known as the Malolos
Republic, named after the town of Malolos, Bulacan,
where its constitution was drafted and proclaimed. The
First Philippine Republic was the first independent
republic in Asia, marking a significant moment in
Philippine history as it declared independence from
Spanish colonial rule.
 Gen. Emilio Aguinaldo declared in the Malolos
Constitution his intention to confiscate large estates,
especially the so-called Friar lands.
 However, as the Republic was short-lived, Aguinaldo’s
plan was never implemented.
American Period
Significant legislation enacted during the American
Period:
 Philippine Bill of 1902 – Set the ceilings on the
hectarage: 16 hectares for private individuals and
1,024 hectares for corporations.
 Land Registration Act of 1902 (Act No. 496) –
Provided for a comprehensive registration of land
titles under the Torrens Title System (Sir
Robert Richard Torrens).
 Cadastral Act - need of certification/title as
registered land. (The word "cadastre" is derived
from the French word cadastre, which itself comes
from the Greek word katástikhon, meaning a
American Period
 Public Land Act of 1903 – introduced the homestead
system in the Philippines.
- Under the Homestead Act, individuals were
allowed to apply for public agricultural land up to 24
hectares. The applicants had to cultivate the land and
make improvements over a specific period (often five
years) to gain full ownership.
 Tenancy Act of 1933 (Act No. 4054 and 4113) –
regulated relationships between landowners and tenants
of rice (50-50 sharing) and sugar cane lands.
 The Torrens system, which the Americans instituted for
the registration of lands, did not solve the problem
completely. Either they were not aware of the law or if
they did, they could not pay the survey cost and other
fees required in applying for a Torrens title.
Commonwealth Period
 President Manuel L. Quezon espoused the "Social
Justice" program to arrest the increasing social unrest
in Central Luzon.
 The Social Justice Program in the Philippines refers
to a series of policies and initiatives aimed at
addressing social inequalities and promoting the
welfare of marginalized and disadvantaged groups. It
encompasses various sectors, including land reform,
housing, education, health, and labor rights, with a
focus on uplifting the living conditions of the poor and
ensuring equitable access to resources and
opportunities.
Commonwealth Period
 Commonwealth Act No. 178, enacted on November
30, 1936, is a significant piece of legislation in the
Philippines that pertains to agrarian reform. It is also
known as the Agricultural Tenancy Law. The act was
introduced to address the issues surrounding land
tenancy and the rights of tenant farmers in the country.
 (50-50 tenant-landlord relation)
 Regulation of 10% interest
- This regulation helped ensure that tenants could
manage their debts and maintain their livelihoods without
being overwhelmed by high-interest obligations.
 No dismissal of tenants
 Contract for 1 year only
Commonwealth Period
 National Rice and Corn Corporation (NARIC), 1936 –
Established the price of rice and corn thereby help the
poor tenants as well as consumers.
 Commonwealth Act. No. 461, 1937 – Specified reasons
for the dismissal of tenants and only with the approval of
the Tenancy Division of the Department of Justice.
 Rural Program Administration, created March 2, 1939
– Its primary goal was to promote rural development by
addressing issues related to poverty, landlessness, and
agricultural productivity. It aimed to uplift the lives of rural
residents and enhance agricultural output.
Japanese Occupation
 Upon the arrival of the Japanese in the Philippines in
1942, peasants and workers organizations grew
strength. Many peasants took up arms and identified
themselves with the anti-Japanese group, the
HUKBALAHAP (Hukbo ng Bayan Laban sa Hapon).
 Hukbalahap controlled whole areas of Central Luzon;
landlords who supported the Japanese lost their lands
to peasants while those who supported the Huks
earned fixed rentals in favor of the tenants.
 Unfortunately, the end of war also signaled the end of
gains acquired by the peasants.
Philippine Republic
 After the establishment of the Philippine Independence in
1946, the problems of land tenure remained. These became
worst in certain areas. Thus the Congress of the Philippines
revised the tenancy law.
 President Manuel A. Roxas (1946-1948) enacted the
following laws:
 Republic Act No. 34 -- Established the 70-30 sharing
arrangements and regulating share-tenancy contracts.
 Republic Act No. 55 -- Provided for a more effective safeguard
against arbitrary ejectment of tenants.
 Elpidio R. Quirino (1948-1953) enacted the following law:
 Executive Order No. 355 issued on October 23, 1950 --
Replaced the National Land Settlement Administration with
Land Settlement Development Corporation (LASEDECO)
 Philippine Republic
 Ramon Magsaysay (1953-1957) enacted the following laws:
 Republic Act No. 1160 of 1954 -- Abolished the LASEDECO and established
the National Resettlement and Rehabilitation Administration (NARRA) to
resettle dissidents and landless farmers. It was particularly aimed at rebel
returnees providing home lots and farmlands in Palawan and Mindanao.
 Republic Act No. 1199 (Agricultural Tenancy Act of 1954) -- governed
the relationship between landowners and tenant farmers by organizing
share-tenancy and leasehold system. The law provided the security of
tenure of tenants. It also created the Court of Agrarian Relations.
 Republic Act No. 1400 (Land Reform Act of 1955) -- Created the Land
Tenure Administration (LTA) which was responsible for the acquisition and
distribution of large tenanted rice and corn lands over 200 hectares for
individuals and 600 hectares for corporations.
 Republic Act No. 821 (Creation of Agricultural Credit Cooperative
Financing Administration) -- Provided small farmers and share tenants
loans with low interest rates of six to eight percent.
Philippine Republic
 President Carlos P. Garcia (1957-1961)
 Continued the program of President Ramon Magsaysay. No new
legislation passed.
 President Diosdado P. Macapagal (1961-1965) enacted the
following law:
 Republic Act No. 3844 of August 8, 1963 (Agricultural Land
Reform Code) -- Abolished share tenancy, institutionalized
leasehold, set retention limit at 75 hectares, invested rights of
preemption and redemption for tenant farmers, provided for an
administrative machinery for implementation, institutionalized a
judicial system of agrarian cases, incorporated extension,
marketing and supervised credit system of services of farmer
beneficiaries.
 The RA was hailed as one that would emancipate Filipino
Philippine Republic
 President Ferdinand E. Marcos (1965-1986)
 Proclamation No. 1081 on September 21, 1972 ushered the Period of the
New Society. Five days after the proclamation of Martial Law, the entire
country was proclaimed a land reform area and simultaneously the
Agrarian Reform Program was decreed.
 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.
 Agrarian Reform Special Fund Act (Republic Act No. 6390) -- The Act aimed
to create a special fund to support various aspects of the agrarian reform
program, including land acquisition, distribution, development of
Philippine Republic
 President Corazon C. Aquino (1986-1992)
 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.
 Subsequently, four Presidential issuances were released in July
1987 after 48 nationwide consultations before the actual law
was enacted.
Philippine Republic
President Corazon C. Aquino enacted the following laws:
 Executive Order No. 228, July 16, 1987 – Declared full ownership to
qualified farmer-beneficiaries covered by PD 27. It also determined the
value remaining unvalued rice and corn lands subject of PD 27 and
provided for the manner of payment by the FBs and mode of
compensation to landowners.
 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.
Philippine Republic
 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.
Philippine Republic
 President Fidel V. Ramos (1992-1998)
 When President Fidel V. Ramos formally took over in 1992, his
administration came face to face with publics who have lost
confidence in the agrarian reform program. His administration
committed to the vision “Fairer, faster and more meaningful
implementation of the Agrarian Reform Program.
• Executive Order No. 363, 1997 – 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) – enacted to modernize the
agriculture and fisheries sectors in the Philippines to increase
productivity, profitability, and competitiveness.
Philippine Republic
 President Joseph E. Estrada (1998-2000)
 ExecutiveOrder 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.
Philippine Republic
 President Gloria Macapacal-Arroyo (2000-2010)
 Land Tenure Improvement - DAR will remain
vigorous in implementing land acquisition and
distribution component of CARP. The DAR will
improve land tenure system through land
distribution and leasehold.
 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.
Philippine Republic
 Infrastrucre Projects - DAR will transform the agrarian
reform communities (ARCs), an area focused and
integrated delivery of support services, into rural
economic zones that will help in the creation of 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 - To help clear the backlog of agrarian
cases, DAR will hire more paralegal officers to support
undermanned adjudicatory boards and introduce quota
system to compel adjudicators to work faster on agrarian
Philippine Republic
 President Benigno Aquino III (2010-2016)
 President Benigno Aquino III vowed during his 2012 State of the
Nation Address that he would complete before the end of his
term the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP), the
centerpiece program of the administration of his mother,
President Corazon Aquino.
 The younger Aquino distributed their family-owned Hacienda
Luisita in Tarlac. Apart from the said farm lots, he also promised
to complete the distribution of privately-owned lands of
productive agricultural estates in the country that have escaped
the coverage of the program.
 Under his administration, the Agrarian Reform Community
Philippine Republic
 Agrarian Production Credit Program (APCP) provided credit
support for crop production to newly organized and existing
agrarian reform beneficiaries’ organizations (ARBOs) and
farmers’ organizations not qualified to avail themselves of loans
under the regular credit windows of banks.
 The legal case monitoring system (LCMS), a web-based legal
system for recording and monitoring various kinds of agrarian
cases at the provincial, regional and central offices of the DAR to
ensure faster resolution and close monitoring of agrarian-related
cases, was also launched.
 Enacted Executive Order No. 26, Series of 2011, to mandate the
Department of Agriculture-Department of Environment and
Natural Resources-Department of Agrarian Reform Convergence
Initiative to develop a National Greening Program in