A fisherfolk group called on the national government to certify House Bill 1112 or the National Farmers’ Day bill as urgent.
The bill, which was filed by the Makabayan bloc, seeks to declare Jan. 22 of every year as a special working holiday to honor and remember the 13 farmers killed in Mendiola, Manila in 1987.
“The protest was the culmination of a week-long campaign of farmers led by the Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) to assert genuine agrarian reform,” said Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas (Pamalakaya) on Saturday, Jan. 21.
“This incident should be remembered and officially recognized as National Day of Farmers. This is to annually remind our countrymen, as well as the administration, of the martyrdom of our farmers in the name of genuine agrarian reform,” it added.
Apart from the enactment of this bill, Pamalakaya, together with KMP and other progressive groups in the Philippines, urged the Marcos administration to fasttrack the ratification of the Genuine Agrarian Reform bill which entails free land distribution to tillers.