Reading in Philippine History
- Secular priests belonged to religious orders.
QUIZ ANSWERS
TRUE OR FALSE
TRUE
- The privilege to vote was only given to the
curate and even the security of the Filipinos was
punt into danger.
- The controversy regarding this event stems from
the identification of the date and place where the
cry happened.
- The violation of human rights was rampant in
the religious aspect.
- Teodoro Kalaw, a Filipino historian, marks the
place to be in Kangkong, Balintawak, on the last
week of August 1896.
- The inconsistencies in Valenzuela’s statement
should be seen as a red flag when dealing with
primary sources.
- The cry of rebellion happened in the present-
day Quezon City?
- The eyewitness accounts presented an
agreement among historical witnesses as to the
place and time of occurrence of the Cry.
- Cry of Rebellion is an important marker in the
history of colonies that struggled for their
independence against their colonizers.
- The site of the monument to the Heroes of 1896
was chosen because this is the actual place where
the Cry of the revolution happened.
FALSE
- Based on different eyewitness accounts, it is
remarkable that there’s an agreement among
historical witnesses as to where and when the
occurrence of the cry.
- Regular priests did not belong to any religious
order
- In 1620, Pope Gregory XV declared the
recollects as a congregation, they started to
evangelize some parts of Mindanao.
INDIRECT TAX OR DIRECT TAX
INDIRECT TAX
- Market, vehicles, horses, stamps and
surcharges, the slaughter of cattle, river tolls, and
others
DIRECT TAX
- It consists of the personal cedula, urban tax,
industrial subsidy, and additional municipal tax,
provincial tax, and personal loan.
IDENTIFICATION
Andres Bonifacio
- He led the Katipunan to rose up against the
Spanish Colonial Rule
Pio Valenzuela
- In his first version, he said that the “Cry” was in
Balintawak on Wednesday of August 26, 1896
Pugad Lawin
- Based on the proclamation of NCHP, where did
the first cry happened?
Soledad Borromeo-Buehler
- She concludes that the “Cry of Pugad Lawin” as
know it today is a “hoax”.
Guillermo Masangkay
- He is an eyewitness of the historic event and a
childhood friend of Andres Bonifacio.4
Marcelo H. Del Pilar
- He published the La Soberenia Monacel en
Filipinas in Barcelona, Spain in 1889.
Santiagio Alvarez
Reading in Philippine History
- He was not an eyewitness of the historic event,
although he was at Cavite at the time and wrote
his version about the first “Cry”.
Georgia de Jesus
- She was the custodian of secret documents,
seal, and weapons of the secret revolution.
RELIGIOUS ASPECT/EDUCATIONAL ASPECT
/POLITICAL ASPECT/ECONOMIC ASPECT
RELIGIOUS
- Filipino priests are not allowed to ascend into
higher positions of the Catholic Church hierarchy.
ECONOMIC
- The Spaniards brought goods from the natives
at a cheap rate and sold these goods back to the
natives at a higher price.
MONASTIC SUPREMACY IN THE PHILIPPINES OR
MLA SOBERNIA MONACAL EN FILIPINAS
The Monastic Supremacy Document
Background
 The Monastic Supremacy of the Spanish friars
brought many political, religious and economic
conflicts and unresolved issues during the late
1800’s and violation of human rights was prevalent
in the religious and political aspect.
Intended Audience
 Spanish Government
 Friars
 Public
Date & Place of Publication
 1889
 Spain
Contribution to Philippine History
 Discussed the situations that showed how the
friars indirectly controlled the government during
the Spanish colonization in the country
 Denounced the friars for their wrong teachings
and abusive acts which had resulted in a life of
poverty and misery of the Filipinos
Historical Context
 One of the primary crusades was the Propaganda
Movement
 The friars in the Philippine government controlled
the status quo of the country
Marcelo H. del Pilar
 Marcelo Hilario del Pilar y Gatmaitan
 August 30, 1850 in Kupang, Bulakan, Bulacan
 Died on July 4 1896
 Pen names: “Piping Dilat”, “Plaridel”, “Pupdoh”,
“Dolores Manapat”
 A lawyer, propagandist
 Reform Movement in Spain, along with Jose Rizal
& Graciano Lopez Jaena
 Published La soberania monacal en Filipinas
Monastic Supremacy & La falocracia Filipina
The Religious Orders
Augustinian
 The founders and first apostles of the Catholic
faith in the Philippines
 April 27, 1565: arrived in Cebu led by Andres de
Urdaneta
 San Agustin Church
 Orphanage and Industrial School at Romblon
 Augustinian Seminary and College, Vigan
Franciscans
 July 2, 1578: Ordo Fratrum Minorum (OFM)
Franciscans arrived in Manila
 Franciscans were able to established and/or
administer 207 towns/parishes
 San Juan de Dios Hospital (1580)
 Hospital of the Holy Waters in Los Baños (1592)
 San Lazaro Hospital (1580)
 Naga Hospital of San Diego (1586)
Jesuits
 1581: arrived in Philippines from Mexico
 1591 mission stations were established in Balayan
 Batangas, Taytay, and in Antipolo, Rizal
 1593 first Jesuit mission stations were established
in the Visayas in Tibauan, Panay.
 September 1595: College of Manila was opened
 August 25, 1601: College of San Jose opened
 1605 made the Philippine Vice Province into an
independent Province
 1768 Jesuits were banished from the Philippines
 Escuela Municipal de Manila, Intramuros
 Colegio de Manila
 Manila Observatory, Padre Faura Ermita
Dominicans
 The Order of Preachers/Order of St. Dominic was
confirmed an Order by Pope Honorius III in 1216
 1587:15 men arrived at the port of Cavite
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 1593: Doctrina Christiana published with different
versions
 1594: Dominicans evangelized the fertile Cagayan
Valley.
 . 1611 established University of Santo Tomas
 1619: extended their missionary work in the
Babuyanes
 1783: permanently set-foot in Batanes
 Sto. Domingo Church, Intramuros
 University of Santo Tomas, Manila
 Binondo Church, Manila
 Tumauini Church, Isabela
Recollects
 1606: arrived in Cebu
 1607: they took charge of Bataan, Zambales and
western Pangasinan
 1622: Pope Gregory XV declared the Recollects a
congregation & Bishop Pedro de Arce of Cebu
requested and they started to evangelize parts of
Mindanao
 1635: exchanged their small mission in Negros
 1679: Archbishop of Manila gave them Mindoro
 1687: took charge of Masbate
 San Sebastian Church, Quiapo
Functions of the Friars:
 Local school inspector, inspector of the accounts
of the gobernadorcillos and cabeza de barangays.
 His approval was required in census lists, tax lists,
list of army conscripts, and register of births,
deaths and marriages.
 Eventually, the friars became more powerful and
influential that even civil authorities feared them.
Frailocracia or frailocracy
 "a government by friars"
 The rise in power and influence of the friars can be
attributed to frequent changes in the top colonial
administration in the country from 1849 to 1895.
 Spain tightened her control over the country thru
the friars for fear of losing the Philippines.
 Owing to the fact that they remained in colony
every time a governor general was removed from
office, their advice on the proper management of
governmental affairs was sought by every new
governor-general.
 This eventually paved their way for control and
influence over colonial affairs.
The Secularization Controvery: The Discrimination
among Spanish and Filipino Priests
 Regular priests belonged to religious orders.
 Secular priests did not belong to any religious
order.
 Conflict began when the bishops insisted on
visiting the parishes that were being run by regular
priests.
 Archbishop Basilio Santa Justa
o accepted the resignations of the regular priests
in 1774
o assigned secular priests to take their place
 A royal decree was also issued on November 9,
1774
 The issue soon took on a racial slant.
 Monsignor Pedro Pelaez
o ecclesiastical governor of the Church, sided with
the Filipinos.
o After his death due to an earthquake, other
priests took his place in fighting for the
secularization movement. (ex. GOMBURZA)
Crusades Against Monastic Supremacy
Governors
 They complain to the Spanish Monarch
The King
 The crown tries to investigate the friars
Indios
 The lowest-ranked group in Spanish racial
hierarchy
Bishops
 Filipino priests were not allowed to ascend Into
the higher positions of the Catholic Church
hierarchy
GomBurZa
 Execution: February 17, 1872 in Bagumbayan
 Ordered by Gov. Rafael de Isquierdo
Propagandist
 Propaganda Movement:
-Led by Graciano Lopez Jaena, Marcelo H. del Pilar,
and Dr. Jose Rizal
-Desired reforms:
Equality of the Filipino & the Spaniards before laws
and Restoration of the Philippine representation in
the Spanish Cortes
Composition of Philippine Religions
As of 2019 there are:
 Roman Catholic 80.6%
 Protestant 8.2% includes
o Philippine Council of Evangelical Churches 2.7%,
o National Council of Churches in the Philippines
1.2%,
o other Protestant 4.3%
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 Christian 3.4%
 Muslim 5.6%
 Tribal religions 2%
 other 19%
Traditions
 Fiestas
 Celebration of special days (ex. Christmas)
 Reenactment (ex. The Crucifixion of Jesus Christ)
Church during the Spanish Colonization
Reduccion Policies
 essentially meant a forced relocation of small,
scattered settlements into one larger town
 The policy also made it easier for a single Spanish
Catholic friar to 'train' Filipinos in the basic
principles of Christianity.
 to collect taxes from their Christianized converts
In the late Spanish period, in contrast, Spanish priests angry
many Filipinos for failing to:
a) Allow otherwise 'trained' Filipino priests to
ascend into the higher strata of the Catholic
Church hierarchy in the Philippines;
b) Return much of the land they had claimed as
friar estates to the Philippine landless farmers:
c) Recognizing nascent and emerging Filipino
demands for more autonomy and a greater say in
how the colony was to be managed.
Church: Then vs. Now
State of the Church: THEN
 In the political aspect, the government and the
status quo of the country were controlled by the
Spanish friars
 The privilege to vote was only given to the curate
and even the security of the Filipinos was put into
danger.
State of the Church: NOW Article II, Section 6
 The separation of Church and State shall be
inviolable
Philippine Organic Act of 1902, during the American period
 "No law shall be made respecting an establishment
of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,
and that the free exercise and enjoyment of
religious profession and worship, without
discrimination or preference, shall forever be
allowed"
Separation of the Church and Government
The respective standpoints of the Church and the
Government on contemporary issues:
 Annulment and Divorce
 Gender and Sexuality
 Reproductive Health Law
Friar Acquisition of Land
1. Royal Bequest
-Friars suggested that the King grant them some
estates in the native villages
2. Donations and Inheritances
-Priests were prohibited from inheriting property
by order of the King
3. Buying of Land
-Friars bought land from the natives using the
money obtained from church fees, trade, and
from profits gained from the produce of lands
4. Foreclosure of Mortgages
-Friars demanded that their advances be regarded
as loans payable at a fixed rate of Interest
5. Land-grabbing
-Priests claimed lands and had them titled
Discussions and Main Arguments
 The Document's Contributions to Philippine
History and its Historical Context
 Main Aspects of the Monastic Supremacy
a. Religious
b. Political
c. voteomic
 The Monastic Supremacy Aspects: Then vs. Now
Main Aspects of the Monastic Supremacy
1. Religious Aspect
• The municipal officials depended on the Parish priest
• A secularization controversy occurred
o The priests resented to assign Filipino secular priests
-Considered the Filipinos unfit for the priesthood
-Cited the Filipinos' brown skin, lack of education, and
inadequate experience
2. Political Aspect
• Priests were prohibited from inheriting property by
order of the King
• The basis of monastic wealth is the lack of union
between the people and the government
• The Filipinos paid direct and indirect taxes: Direct
taxes: Personal Cedula
▪ Indirect taxes Markets, Vehicles, Horses (Kalesa),
Stamps
3. Economic Aspect
• The economic position of the Orders was secured by
their extensive landholdings
o Donated to them for the support of their churches,
schools, and other establishments
o The largest landholders in the islands, with their
estates concentrated in the Central Luzon
Reading in Philippine History
*Additional*
Educational Aspect
• The Friars owned different schools from the primary
to the tertiary level and took charge in teaching,
controlling, and maintaining the rules and regulations
imposed to the students
▪ Emphasized the teachings of the Catholic religion
o The Christian Doctrines were taught
• The supposed Philippine education was privileged
only to Spanish students, where there was prejudice
against the Filipinos in the schools.

Main Arguments
Excerpt from Monastic Supremacy in the Philippines"-
primary source, book

 "The personal security of the citizens is equally

endangered by monastic power. "Is the
government sure of the sincerity of such
assistants? Is it sure that they will not debase their
commission?"
 "The danger to national integrity is the friars'
hobby of imposing their preponderance in the
Philippines. Does such a peril really exist? Is the
government sufficient to avert it? Is it thus that
the Spanish government would perish without
their support?"
 "Diversity of languages among the rulers and the
ruled, and to preserve that diversity to impede
popular education, and to avoid at any cost that
the people and the government come to
understand each other, are the best way of
keeping them in perpetual antagonism"
 "Public education is one of the common
aspirations of both the government and the
Filipinos. The government as well as the people
dream of a common language in the islands"

The Monastic Supremacy Aspects: Then vs. Now

Reading in Philippine History
TAXATION DURING THE SPANISH PERIOD
Tax reform of 1884
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AGRARIAN REFORM
- aggressive and gives instability to the Filipino
people
- regulated by setting up regulations
- align the markets
- including the clustering of small sectors
- MAIN PURPOSE: help the landless and improve
the economic status of the Filipino farmers
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. The datus comprised the nobility.
Then came the maharlikas (freemen), followed by
the aliping mamamahay (serfs) and aliping
saguiguilid (slaves).
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
“United we stand, divided we fall”
When the Spaniards came to the Philippines, the
concept of encomienda (Royal Land Grants) was
introduced. This system grants that
Encomienderos must defend his encomienda
from external attack, maintain peace and order
within, and support the missionaries. In turn, the
encomiendero acquired the right to collect
tribute from the indios (native).
The system, however, degenerated into abuse of
power by the encomienderos The tribute soon
became land rents to a few powerful landlords.
And the natives who once cultivated the lands in
freedom were transformed into mere share
tenants.
First Philippine Republic
“The yoke has finally broken”
When the First Philippine Republic was
established in 1899, 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
“Long live America”
Significant legislation enacted during the
American Period:
* Philippine Bill of 1902 – Set the ceilings on the
hectarage of private individuals and corporations
may acquire: 16 has. for private individuals and
1,024 has. for corporations.
* Land Registration Act of 1902 (Act No. 496) –
Provided for a comprehensive registration of land
titles under the Torrens system.
* Public Land Act of 1903 – introduced the
homestead system in the Philippines.
* 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
“Government for the Filipinos”
President Manuel L. Quezon espoused the "Social
Justice" program to arrest the increasing social
unrest in Central Luzon.
Significant legislation enacted during
Commonwealth Period:
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* 1935 Constitution – "The promotion of social
justice to ensure the well-being and economic
security of all people should be the concern of
the State"
* Commonwealth Act No. 178 (An Amendment
to Rice Tenancy Act No. 4045), Nov. 13, 1936 –
Provided for certain controls in the landlord-
tenant relationships
* 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 – Provided the purchase and lease of
haciendas and their sale and lease to the tenants.
* Commonwealth Act No. 441 enacted on June
3, 1939 – Created the National Settlement
Administration with a capital stock of
P20,000,000.
Japanese Occupation
“The Era of Hukbalahap”
The Second World War II started in Europe in
1939 and in the Pacific in 1941.
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.
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).
Philippine Republic
“The New 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) which
takes over the responsibilities of the Agricultural
Machinery Equipment Corporation and the Rice
and Corn Production Administration.
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
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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.
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 farmers from the bondage of tenancy.
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.
President Marcos enacted the following laws:
* Republic Act No. 6389, (Code of Agrarian
Reform) and RA No. 6390 of 1971 -- Created the
Department of Agrarian Reform and the Agrarian
Reform Special Account Fund. It strengthen the
position of farmers and expanded the scope of
agrarian reform.
* 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.
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.
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
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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.
* 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.
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.
President Fidel V. Ramos enacted the following
laws:
* Republic Act No. 7881, 1995 – Amended
certain provisions of RA 6657 and exempted
fishponds and prawns from the coverage of
CARP.
* Republic Act No. 7905, 1995 – Strengthened
the implementation of the CARP.
* Executive Order No. 363, 1997 – Limits the type
of lands that may be converted by setting
conditions under which 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) – Plugged
the legal loopholes in land use conversion.
* Republic Act 8532, 1998 (Agrarian Reform
Fund Bill) – Provided an additional Php50 billion
for CARP and extended its implementation for
another 10 years.
President Joseph E. Estrada (1998-2000)
“ERAP PARA SA MAHIRAP’. This was the battle cry
that endeared President Joseph Estrada and
made him very popular during the 1998
presidential election.
President Joseph E. Estrada initiated the
enactment of the following law:
* Executive Order 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.
However, the Estrada Administration was short
lived. The masses who put him into office
demanded for his ouster.
President Gloria Macapacal-Arroyo (2000-2010)
The agrarian reform program under the Arroyo
administration is anchored on the vision “To
make the countryside economically viable for the
Filipino family by building partnership and
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promoting social equity and new economic
opportunities towards lasting peace and
sustainable rural development.”
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.
Infrastructure 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 reform
cases. DAR will respect the rights of both farmers
and landowners.
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 Connectivity and Economic Support
Services (ARCCESS) project was created to
contribute to the overall goal of rural poverty
reduction especially in agrarian reform areas.
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.
Aside from these initiatives, Aquino also 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 cooperation with other
government agencies.
President Rodrigo Roa Duterte (2016 – present)
Under his leadership, the President wants to
pursue an “aggressive” land reform program that
would help alleviate the life of poor Filipino
farmers by prioritizing the provision of support
services alongside land distribution.
The President directed the DAR to launch the 2nd
phase of agrarian reform where landless farmers
Reading in Philippine History
would be awarded with undistributed lands
under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform
Program (CARP).

Duterte plans to place almost all public lands,

including military reserves, under agrarian
reform.

The President also placed 400 hectares of

agricultural lands in Boracay under CARP.

Under his administration the DAR created an anti-

corruption task force to investigate and handle
reports on alleged anomalous activities by
officials and employees of the department.

The Department also pursues an “Oplan Zero

Backlog” in the resolution of cases in relation to
agrarian justice delivery of the agrarian reform
program to fast-track the implementation of
CARP.