MILITANTS belonging to peasant groups Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP) and National Federation of Sugar Workers (NFSW) on Wednesday challenged anew their stance on land reform demands.
The group urges the Department of Agrarian Reform (DAR) to listen to the voices of the poor farmers and the agrarian reform beneficiaries (ARBs) especially under the new leadership of Provincial Agrarian Reform Officer 2 Gideon Umadhay Jr.
NFSW Negros Occidental chairperson Isidro Castillo said they had so much against DAR's promises.
DAR had been consistently assuring the farmers and the ARBs uncompromising benefits of the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program Extension with Reform (Carper) law.
But Castillo said: "We want them to deliver the benefits, not words and promises."
In lieu of this, several farmers went on "indefinite strike" and would last until January 22, according to KMP-Negros spokesperson Ian Evidente.
Meantime, DAR-Negros said all the programs in Negros Occidental under the Carper law has been planned, and that they would make sure all the ARBs would reap a good harvest out of the extended Carp.
"But without visible actions made by DAR on farmers' struggle on lands, they (farmers) remain in big doubt whether DAR is meaning its words or just to make good image out of it," said Castillo.
A total of 60 percent of Carp lands will be distributed in Western Visayas with Negros Occidental to benefit the biggest slice.
The government is allocating a P59-billion budget for the Carp extension, which would take effect until 2014. (Jerson O. Coronica)