Some 400 farmers in Lupang Ramos, Dasmariñas City, Cavite received the best news this Christmas: they won’t be homeless this holiday season.
Previously, the threat of eviction hang on their heads on account of the projected construction of a transmission tower in the land they are occupying presently.
According to a statement posted on the Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas’ (KMP) Facebook page, government officials retracted the threat of evicting them after a dialog on December 20.
“The campaign is a resounding success,” the KMP said, referring to the #DefendLupangRamos campaign that held protest marches and pickets, as well as an online solidarity drive with several youth supporters at the helm.
The week-long series of events was a response to the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines’ (NGCP) threat of eviction.
The NGCP and the National Power Corporation (NAPOCOR), proponents of the project, served a “Notice to Vacate” to the farmer-residents of Lupang Ramos on October 23.
The letter gave the farmer households of Lupang Ramos until December 22 to vacate the 372-hectare land.
Instead of facing eviction, the farmer families of Lupang Ramos celebrated yesterday their success.
They began the day with a solemn mass, followed by a human chain protest over Lupang Ramos’ productive lands. They moved the protest along the side of the road where several peasant advocates also spoke.
The group also held a Christmas party for the Lupang Ramos children before ending the day with an “educational discussion.”
“Time and again KASAMA-LR proves the invincibility of a people united,” the statement said.
KMP earlier said that the farmers have rights over the lands they have been tilling “for centuries.”
Miriam Villanueva of the KASAMA-LR community, a local chapter of KMP, shared that their community upgrades their skills and farming practices.
The farm’s products, mainly rice, sweet potato, and other vegetables, have provided food and income even during the pandemic and earlier lockdowns.
The victory, however, is short-lived.
The NGCP said it will come back in January 2021 with officials from the agriculture department.
“Just come here, anytime, we are here with the land we are tilling. They cannot shake our resolve that we have a right to this land,” Villanueva said in Filipino.
READ MORE: 400 farmers face eviction in Dasmariñas City