The Pambansang Katipunan ng mga Magbubukid (PKM, or National Federation of Farmers)-Lanao del Sur lauded the peasant and indigenous masses for their brave action in Amai Manabilang, Lanao del Sur against the land grabbing by the fake environmental company EcoPlanet Bamboo, which is supported by the ruling Manabilang dynasty and the US-Marcos regime.
“We commend your determination in defending your right to the land and in ensuring your rights to cultivate,” the revolutionary peasant organization said. The farmers resolutely stood for their land. Recently, they stealthily uprooted the bamboo shoots the company planted on their farms.
Since 2022, American company EcoPlanet Bamboo has taken over lands owned by Moro, Lumad, and settler farmers in seven sitios across six villages in Amai Manabilang. The company planted the bamboo cuttings despite the farmers’ opposition.
This land is part of the 18,000 hectares claimed by the Southern Philippines Development Authority or SPDA, a government corporation directly under the president’s office. In collusion with the Manabilang dynasty, the regime’s military forces are now evicting thousands of long-time residents to grant the land to foreign companies.
In May, the company began planting bamboo even on farms. To clear the area of resistance, 1st ID soldiers terrorized the communities.
“Instead of cowering, you showed resistance. The secret movement to uproot the bamboo planted on your farms spread—you achieved protecting your livelihood,” the PKM said.
It also demonstrated the farmers’ courage to face harassment and repression from the military and Manabilang dynasty.
Nevertheless, the struggle should not stop here, according to the group.
“We must understand that our main enemy as farmers is the reactionary Marcos government that empowered the SPDA to seize land,” it stated. The group also noted that the overt brutality of the Manabilang family stems from their supremacy over the local government.
“Therefore, this long-standing problem requires our protracted struggle until we overthrow the government that protects big landlords and foreign agribusiness corporations and implement genuine land reform.”
The PKM called for stronger unity among farmers and for outreach to all villages and sitios affected by the anti-people and pro-foreign projects of the SPDA and the Marcos government. This includes farmers affected by the land grabbing of Kennemer Foods, Inc., Asia-Pacific Precision Agriculture, SUMIFRU, MKAVI, and others.
The PKM also urged farmers in Amai Manabilang to unite with those facing land grabbing within the 42,000-hectare Camp Kibaritan military reservation of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, which is now also being used as a training ground for foreign troops.
The PKM further called on farmers to join the New People’s Army to strengthen the defense of land against land grabbers from the bureaucracy, foreign corporations, and landlord class.
