The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) has expressed its full support to the government in its efforts against certain individuals who reportedly violate the rights of the country’s indigenous peoples (IPs).

It offered its assistance to the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) which has been building up cases against persons “who are rampantly selling” the IPs’ ancestral land in the Davao Region.

“The CHR fully supports the programs of the government that push for improving the lives of communities while providing access to justice when there are human rights violations committed,” said Spokesperson and lawyer Jacqueline Ann de Guia.

De Guia said that ancestral domains are the private but community property of Indigenous Cultural Communities or IPs, which belong to all generations. “These cannot be sold, disposed of, or destroyed, according to NCIP Administrative Order No. 1 series of 2020,” she said.

“Having a secure and effective collective property rights are fundamental to their physical and cultural integrity; economic and social development; and livelihood and sustenance,” she added.

Also offered by the CHR was its assistance through dialogues and collaborations to both government and non-government institutions in order to ensure that the rights of the IPs are protected and respected at all times.

“We hope that through NCIP’s commitment, individuals and groups accountable for the illegal sale of ancestral lands will be immediately dealt with in accordance with the law,” De Guia said.