The largest and most militant peasant organization in the country the Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) reacted to the uproar of Negros sugar barons over Sec. Jose Mari Ponce’s action over the temporary restraining orders issued by local courts blocking the installation of land reform beneficiaries. According to Danilo “Ka Daning” Ramos “agrarian cases should solely be handled by the Department of Agrarian Reform Adjudication Board and not by ordinary courts, because as we are experiencing there is an alarming rate of increase of criminalization of agrarian cases,”

“A concrete example of which is the case of the Mamburao 7, they were jailed on charges of murder but the only thing they did was to fight for their land. The killing of the Quintos brothers were done by the NPA, but Ricardo Quintos, a local despotic landlord and politician in Occidental Mindoro, who wished to grab the lands of the farmers charged them with the killings. Now, the Mamburao detainees have been incarcerated for more than 5 years,” added Ramos.

The group also stressed that in the DAR accomplishment report only 800,000 hectares have been left of their targets, what it is not saying is that most of their so-called distributed lands are still locked in court battles and have not been effectively taken over by the beneficiaries.

“If this continues DAR’s so-called accomplishments will be proven to be nothing but empty boasts. We now challenge the DAR to make good its threat and take this legal debacle to the Supreme Court, so that it would be settled. It should also be settled in favor of the farmers, because if not then the DAR’s and CARP’s existence and purpose would really be put in question,” concluded Ramos. # # #
 

KMP - 20 July 2004