PHILIPPINES: 28 families are exposed to life insecurity after their houses and farms are illegally demolished by the Sheriff in Mindanao 

Dear friends,

The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has received information from Task Force Detainees of the Philippines-Mindanao (TFDP) that the houses and properties, including the farms and trees of 28 families (137 villagers) were illegally demolished from the land they had lived on for more than 50 years in Bukidnon Province, Mindanao. The sheriff who commanded the destruction of all 28 families ignored a court order to exclude 11.5 out of 16.9 hectares, and furthermore he did not inform the villagers before the demolition. Consequently, all the victims currently suffer from lack of food and livelihood and are living in make-shift shelters. In particular, the children are extremely exposed to food and health insecurity. The victims filed complaints with the law enforcement agencies as well as other relevant government authorities. However their right to life is under threat and they are being neglected by the government.

CASE DETAILS:

In the early morning of February 18, 2010, Sheriff Alejo Clerigo accompanied by members of the Police Provincial Mobile Group and a demolition team, or approximately one hundred persons commanded the demolition of the houses and properties of 137 villagers (28 families) living in Sankanan village of Bukidnon.

They destroyed 22 houses, agricultural plants and trees, including 49 fruit trees, supplies, stockrooms, fertilizers, and water tanks. In addition, the bulldozer destroyed 7.5 hectares of land on which the villagers had grown cassava, corn and vegetables and which were ready to be harvested. The estimated value of the houses and property demolished alone amounts to PHP 7,539,500 (USD 166,447); PHP 6,425,000 (USD 141,847) for the houses and PHP 1,114,500 (USD 24,600) for other agricultural property.

One of the inhabitants, Ms. Glorai Penar, begged the sheriff not to proceed, arguing that they were waiting for the Court of Appeals to examine their case. The sheriff deliberately ignored her objection and ordered the demolition. On the following day, Sheriff Alejo Clerigo accompanied by approximately fifty persons both from the Police Provincial Mobile Group and from the demolition team, came back to remove the farm plants with a bulldozer and complete the demolition of the houses.

Before the demolition, some villagers were tilling their farmland and planting corn, vegetables and other cash crops. Other were raising chickens and goats. Those who work in the 4.5 hectares farmland cultivating squashes as plantation labourers expected to harvest their produce later in the month. However, everything was destroyed.

The children are particularly exposed to the most vulnerable situation. As the diurnal range from day to night is stark-with vast differences in temperature as the day progresses, the children get cold and may be exposed to the unhygienic environment which will in turn weaken their immune systems if the current situation lasts much longer. The victims who lost their farmland, which is their only source of income and those who worked at plantation find it difficult to manage daily food and life. Some work as contractual labourers in the Del Monte plantation and others work in nearby farms. The victims manage to work three days per week from which they manage PHP 100 (USD 2.2) per day.

According to the legal documents collected, 11.4 out of 16.9 hectares are not included in the lawsuit on the land that has been furthermore suspended by the Declaratory Relief with prayer for the issuance of Preliminary Injunction or Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) by the villagers. A total of 13 families composing of 61 persons are hence victimized irrespective of the lawsuit. Ignoring the legal process, Sheriff Alejo Clerigo destroyed everything in those areas resulting in the threat to the right to life of the villagers who have lived in the area for more than 50 years.

By March 22, 2010, all victims were reportedly remaining in the area and had built shanties within their demolished properties but had not received any relief.

Meanwhile the victims with the help of the TFDP filed complaints — at the Office of the Internal Affairs Service of the Philippine National Police (PHP), against the police officers who carried out demolition escorting the Sheriff on neglect of duty; at the Ombudsman requesting investigation against the head of the Registry of Deeds on his approval allowing the transfer of the land title while the case is ongoing; at the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) requesting investigation with regard to the illegal cutting of trees including the narra tree which is a national tree of the Philippines without permission. In addition, the villagers also wrote a letter to the Philippine Coconut Authority (PCA) regarding the illegal cutting of their coconut trees.

The appeal of the case along with the affidavits has been also filed at the Supreme Court.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION:

Some of the evicted families had been living in Sankanan village since the 1950s and the most recent settlers arrived in 2002. Some of the victims held a Deed of Sale, bought from Vicente Gano-ay holder of a Homestead Patent over 16.9 hectares of land. The victims claim that Vincente Gano-ay never tilled nor took possession of the land. One of the victims rented this property from him.

The legal battle in the aftermath of which the families were forcibly evicted from their houses dates back to July 7, 1977 when the heirs of Vicente Gano-ay filed a case against Asuncion Gomonan and Alejandro Tonayan for the recovery of 4.5 hectares of land rented in 1955 and then bought in 1966 by Asuncion Gomonan.

On December 14, 1979, the lower court decided in favor of the defendants on the ground that Vicente Gano-ay’s heirs had lost their right to recover the possession of the land by reason of undue delay in seeking justice.

Nevertheless, on May 27, 1985, the Intermediate Appellate court reversed the judgment of the lower court on the ground that the initial transaction between Gano-ay and Gomonan was null and void since the approval of the chairman of the commission of cultural minorities had not been obtained beforehand.

The petitioner, Vincente Gano-ay got the title of the homestead patent in 1955 when he rented out the same land to the victims. Accordingly, the victims are not legally required to get the approval of the SAC or of anyone else.

On September 30, 1985, Asuncion Gomonan and Alejandro Tonayan filed a petition for certiorari to the office of the Supreme Court of the Philippines, to request the Supreme Court to issue an order directing the Intermediate Appellate court to send the record for review. No decision was taken before 2010.

On September 10, 2002, the Regional Trial Court (RTC), branch 11, of Manolo Fortich, Bukidnon issued a Writ of Execution. Subsequently, On January 4, 2005, the RTC issued a Writ of Demolition to enforce the writ of execution and amended it on January 24 by issuing an order excluding the 11.5 hectares of land owned by Vincente Gano-ay, which were not included in the transaction between him and Asuncion Gomonan.

Sheriff Alejo Clerigo issued a second notice of demolition on July 9, 2008, stating that the court ordered the removal of all the improvements and houses found within the area of 4.5 hectares by virtue of the writ of demolition issued by the court on November 14, 2007.

On February 3, 2010, however, the Court of Appeals, Cagayan de Oro City, granted the motion filed by the victims for Declaratory Relief with Prayer for the Issuance of Preliminary and/or Temporary Restraining Order. Under this legal injunction, the demolition should have been suspended until the court issued a final order.

On February 5, 2010, Sheriff Alejo Clerigo issued a third notice of demolition stating that the court had ordered the removal of all the improvements and houses found within the 4.5 hectares. Furthermore, abusing his power as well as infringing the law, Sheriff Alejo Clerigo illegally destroyed everything within 16 hectares including the 4.5 hectares.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS:

According to the statistics of the Task Force Detainees of the Philippines, five cases of illegal demolition for a total of 12,264 victims were reported in 2009.

Illegal practices while conducting demolitions are also frequently reported such as the excessive use of force, the non-respect of the limits of the court order or the non-notification of the concerned persons 30 days before-hand. In a previous Urgent Appeal, the AHRC had denounced the excessive use of force by policemen conducting an illegal demolition of shanties which resulted in the killing of three persons including a seven year old boy. (See UAC-159-2009)

In particular, the forced eviction created by development project or public purpose in the Philippines has been condemned by the international society. Reports of the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights expressing its concern regarding this issue can be found as early as 1995 when it communicated the worrying figures of 15,000 families forcibly evicted between June 1992 and August 1994, expressed its concern over ‘the scale of forced evictions and the manner in which they are carried’ and requested the government to ‘ensure that forced evictions are not carried out except in truly exceptional circumstances, following consideration of all possible alternatives and in full respect of the rights of all persons affected’. Nevertheless, the government of the Philippines did not act upon those recommendations as regretted by the Committee while it reiterated its concern in 2008 over the perpetuation of this practice.

As a signatory to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), the Philippines has an international obligation to take measures to guarantee the right of everyone to adequate housing. This includes obligations to provide adequate alternative housing, resettlement or access to productive land to those affected by evictions as reminded by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in 1997 in his General Comment on the ‘Right to Adequate Housing: Forced Evictions’.

SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please join us in asking the government to provide immediate relief to the victims and to investigate this case of demolition.

The AHRC writes a separate letter to the UN Special Rapporteurs on the Right of Adequate Housing and on Right to Food respectively.

To support this case, please click here: SEND APPEAL LETTER