Abstract:
Ever since the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Law was enacted, and
the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program implemented, landlords have
utilized various methods to prevent their vast haciendas from being awarded to
their tenants. Of these, the most effective means is through land use conversion,
or converting the once agricultural land into industrial or commercial areas. This
thesis paper, however, presents a new kind of landgrabbing. Instead of the
landlords asserting their ownership over the land, it is the rich capitalist class who
want to use the land for their business enterprises.
In particular, this thesis paper studies the situation of the farmer-residents
living in Sitio Calumpit-Seedling. They experienced numerous and gruesome
human rights violations under the Blue Guards (private security guards of
MWSS), who prevent them from tilling the land and thus cutting off their source of
livelihood. The reason behind all of these is the planned Nature Park of Bantay
Kalikasan, an ecotourism project.
This research study then hopes to expose the acts perpetrated by the
Lopez family and their ally, MWSS, on the farmers of Sitio Calumpit-Seedling; all
in the name of environmentalism.
