Philippines: Right to food of 300 coconut farmers on the Matias hacienda is violated, municipality of San Francisco, Quezon Province

For rural population in the Philippines, land is the major means of subsistence. Yet, many farmers across the country do not have access to land and are working as tenants or share-croppers under appalling conditions on large estates. In the municipality of San Francisco, Quezon Province, around 300 coconut farmers at the Matias hacienda have been struggling for the past several years for their right to land. Although the area has now been covered by the national agrarian reform program, the land has not yet been redistributed and the land owner still controls the area. Recently, the peasants were attacked by the landlord’s gunmen and four peasant leaders were injured.

An urgent international action is necessary to support the peasant families’ struggle for land so they will be able to feed themselves adequately. Please send a letter to Mrs. President, Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, asking her to install the farmers onto their land as soon as possible.