Monday, June 02, 2008 Arroyo transfers IP body supervision under DENR
PRESIDENT Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo transferred the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) from the supervision of the Department of Land Reform (DLR) to the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR).
A Malacañang statement Saturday said the move aims to preserve the cultural and natural heritage of the country's indigenous groups, and for them to enjoy all the rights and opportunities granted to fellow Filipinos.
The transfer stemmed from Executive Order (EO) 726 dated May 23.
"There is a continuing need to remain vigilant in protecting the rights and guaranteeing the respect for the cultural integrity of indigenous cultural communities and indigenous peoples," Arroyo said in the EO.
She cited a need for "ensuring that all members of indigenous cultural communities and indigenous peoples benefit on an equal footing from the rights and opportunities which national laws and regulations grant to other members of the population."
One of the powers of the DENR, which now has jurisdiction over the NCIP, "is the preservation of cultural and natural heritage."
Arroyo noted that one of DENR objectives is to conserve specific terrestrial and marine areas representative of the Philippine natural and cultural heritage for present and future generations.
The NCIP was later placed under the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) via EO 364, which also renamed the DAR into the Department of Land Reform (DLR) on September 27, 2004. (JMR/Sunnex)
