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CHR calls for genuine agrarian reform on 34th anniversary of Mendiola massacre
CHR calls for genuine agrarian reform on 34th anniversary of Mendiola massacre
The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) called for genuine agrarian reform as well as an end to the killings and culture of impunity in the country as it observed the 34th anniversary commemoration of the Mendiola Massacre Friday.
The Mendiola Massacre, which took place on Jan. 22, 1987, claimed the lives of 13 farmers and injured several others as alleged anti-riot State forces opened fire during a protest rally consisting of 10,000 peasants on Mendiola St., San Miguel, Manila.
"Filipino farmers are crucial in ensuring food security in the country yet they continuously become victims of land dispossession and unscrupulous landlord-tenant relationship. The biggest contradiction persists as the people who toil the land are the same people who are most likely to experience hunger and food insecurity," CHR spokesperson Atty. Jacqueline Ann de Guia said in a statement.
“As these farmers protest for land rights and better working conditions, they continue to be met with both State and non-State repression. They are left with no other choice but to take their concerns on the streets,” she said.
Unfortunately, the CHR said that their expressions of grievances are not even given proper solutions by the state, and these peasants also have to deal with brutality.
"How the State crafts policies about agricultural reforms and land use seem to run inconsistent with the best interest of our farmers," lamented De Guia.
“The bleak situation faced by these peasants is further aggravated because of the spread of the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic last 2020. The health crisis has opened up the sad and cruel realities these farmers are subjected to.”
"Apart from the common problems such as high cost of inputs, low price of crops, lack of capital, and labor problem among others, there seems to be a slow and insufficient response given to them to cope with the crisis," said De Guia.
As the country's independent national human rights institution, the CHR stressed its full support to genuine agrarian reform and protection of the constitutionally-enshrined rights of the people to life, food, and free speech.
"We remain firm in calling an end to all killings and impunity in the country. CHR shall continue to do its work in furtherance of the protection of the plight of our farmers in steadfast coordination with the government as the primary duty-bearer of our rights," said De Guia.