100 Luisita farmers storm DAR
Around Hacienda uisita farmers forced their way into the compound of the epartment of Agrarian eform A in ue on City yesterday, the second anni ersary of the Supreme Court SC decision ordering the distribution of Hacienda uisita.
The farmers, some of them members of Ambala or Alyansa ng mga anggagawang Bukid sa Asyenda uisita, are demanding the complete distribution of Hacienda uisita.
A Secretary irgilio de los eyes said the more than hectares that ha e not yet been distributed to farmers were issued a otice of Co erage as of ecember last year.
Howe er, Tarlac e elopment Corp. or TA C is reportedly opposed to its distribution, saying that the particular area has been classified as commercial-residential.
The matter is still being heard here at the A , said e los eyes in an inter iew o er GMA-7.
enato endo a of Ambala said buildings are already being constructed in the area.
arlier, the militant group ilusang agbubukid ng Pilipinas P said that two years after the SC decision ordering the distribution of Hacienda uisita, President A uino’s relati es the Cojuangcos of Tarlac pro ince still control the more than , -hectare sugar estate.
Control o er the lands remains with the Cojuangcos despite the go ernment’s payment of almost P million, said P chairperson afael ariano.
eanwhile, A ndersecretary for egal Affairs Anthony Parungao reported that there were indeed parts of the Hacienda owned by TA C , not by Hacienda uisita Inc., that are not co ered by the SC decision.
The TA C lands are being processed under rules and laws pertaining to land ac uisition and distribution of the Comprehensi e Agrarian eform Program or CA P, he said.
Parungao said that the processing will be subject to the general rules under the CA P law epublic Act , as amended , and not the principles laid down by the Supreme Court in the Hacienda uisita case.
Parungao also clarified that the SC decision to distribute the land of the Hacienda uisita estate did not fa or any single group, e en as it belied claims by the nyon ng anggagawa sa Agrikultura that the decision was solely in fa or of the Ambala.
He said that the SC decision was clear in ordering the distribution of the land to farmer-beneficiaries that meet the re uirements or criteria it had set in its landmark decision.
The official added that SC had ordered the A to distribute land to farmworkers of the hacienda in , which the department painstakingly followed.