In the Philippines, the transition from authoritarian to a national electoral regime in 1986 did not lead to complete democratization of the countryside, since entrenched political elites continue to dominate the rural polity today. But in recent years there has been a partial erosion of these authoritarian rural enclaves, in a political process which can be traced back to the series of highly constrained elections held during and immediately after the period of authoritarian rule.
Thus, even if the current electoral contests in the Philippines are short of being "free and fair," progressive social movement groups are, in various ways, intervening in the elite-dominated political exercise. This intervention varies from campaigning for local pro-reform candidates, supporting national candidates sympathetic to their cause, to lobbying with the various parties and candidates to adopt specific reform goals.
The Partnership for Agrarian Reform and Rural Development Services (PARRDS), a national coalition of NGOs, Peasant Organizations, and political organizations has its own electoral intervention campaign. The electoral intervention of PARRDS is distinctly anchored on the objective of further advancing and defending the gains of the peasants' continuing struggle for agrarian reform, rural development and democratization.
RA 6657
PARRDS is putting forward an electoral agenda dubbed: "RA 6657", which is a play of words on the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program of 1998, which is officially referred to as Republic Act 6657, or RA 6657. PARRDS' RA 6657, however, stands for: "Reform Agenda" (RA), that includes six (6) immediate "do-ables" from now until 30 June 1998, or before the next administration assumes office; six (6) policy agendas addressed to the next administration; five (5) senatorial candidates who will be included in the "hit list" of PARRDS (meaning, PARRDS will actively campaign against candidates who were proven to be anti-agrarian reform); and seven (7) senatorial candidates who will be endorsed by PARRDS because of their proven track record in supporting the struggle for agrarian reform, rural development and democratization.
This reform agenda aims to further defend the gains, and strengthen the positive aspects, of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP) or RA 6657. Although the details of the RA 6657 electoral campaign will only be finalized in early April after holding consultations with PARRDS local member organizations throughout the country, there are a number of issues that are already certain at the moment regarding the "RA 6657" campaign.
The six (6) immediate "do-ables" before 30 June 1998 include the already victorious struggle for the continuity of CARP beyond June 1998 with the signing into law of the Agrarian Reform Fund Law (RA 8532) that mandates the continuity of CARP implementation until 2008 and the allotment of a P50 Billion budget. Another demand is that the NGO-PO community should be allowed to meaningfully participate (including being given ample time to do so) in the process of finalizing the Implementing Rules and Regulations of the Agriculture and Fisheries Modernization Act (Republic Act 8435). RA 8435 is a seven-year medium-term program that seeks to make the Philippine agriculture globally competitive. P120 Billion has been allotted for its implementation. Other "do-ables" will be presented to the Ramos administration in April.
The six (6) policy agenda points that will be presented to presidential candidates, one of whom will be the next leader of the country, will include the following: First, commitment to continue the implementation of CARP and the allotment of regular and sufficient funding for the program.
Second, that a pro-reform person be installed as the next Secretary of the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR); the new DAR secretary should come from the NGO-PO community. Finally, a clear national land and water use policy should be formulated that would seek to achieve national food self-sufficiency. Other policy agenda for the next administration are expected to be finalized next month.
Topping the list of the five senatorial candidates who will compose the PARRDS `hit list' will surely be former Presidential Executive Secretary Ruben Torres. Torres is one of the senatorial candidates of the LAMMP. Torres proved to be a rabid anti-agrarian reform personality who, in several occasions during his stint as Executive Secretary, connived with big landlords to evade land reform. He was instrumental in the pro-landlord government decisions regarding the case of the Bukidnon farmers late last year. In this case, Torres overturned a DAR decision to award the Bukidnon farmers the land they tilled, and instead awarded it to its former landowner who wanted to convert it to industrial and commercial use. Another senatorial candidate whom PARRDS will actively campaign against will be John Osmena who consistently advocated anti-agrarian reform bills in the Senate and in the House of Representative for the past several years. The other three senatorial candidates who will complete the hit list will be publicly declared by PARRDS after its local consultations to take place soon.
The seven (7) senatorial candidates whom PARRDS will actively campaign for because of their solid track record in support of the fight for agrarian reform, rural development and democratrization will certainly include Aquilino Pimentel, Jr., Edcel Lagman, and Haydee Yorac. PARRDS will not endorse any presidential and vice presidential candidates.
At the local level --- from municipal to provincial levels --- PARRDS member organizations are supporting NGO-PO leaders, and other friendly and allied candidates. The main basis of this support is anchored on the principled stand and track record of candidates on the issues of agrarian reform, rural development and democrarization. The objective is to further erode the hegemony of anti-reform, conservative political elites in the rural areas, while enlarging the political space to be occupied by pro-reform forces both within the state and in society.
AKBAYAN: The Party for Agrarian Reform
Finally, member organizations of PARRDS are active in the party-list
campaign of Akbayan: Citizens Action Party. PARRDS member organizations contribute in providing widespread education campaign about the party-list system. They are also active in information dissemination about the basic principles of AKBAYAN, focusing mainly on the fact that AKBAYAN has the most comprehensive and well-defined program on agrarian reform, rural development and democratization. One of the peasant leaders of PARRDS, Romulo "Ka Muloy" Tapayan, is the number four in the AKBAYAN list of candidates. Ka Muloy, a small farmer from Agusan del Norte, is the Secretary General of Kalipunan ng Maliliit na Magbubukid sa Pilipinas (KAMMPIL, National Federation of Small Coconut Peasants and Farmworkers in the Philippines), a member organization of PARRDS.
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