As we anticipate the global Day of the Landless, join us for a street conference at the Central Luzon farmers’ protest camp to expose the economic and political agenda behind land use conversion, strengthen grassroots resistance, and demand genuine agrarian reform.

The issue of land use conversion (LUC) and land grabbing remains a significant threat to farmers and indigenous communities in the Philippines. Despite President Bongbong Marcos Jr.’s posturing, genuine land reform remains absent. Infrastructure and commercial projects continue to drive the displacement of farmers and agrarian reform beneficiaries, especially in Central Luzon.

Land use conversion is not merely a matter of land management; it is a tool of economic and political control. Historically, the ruling class—composed of landlords, comprador bourgeoisie, and bureaucrat capitalists—has dictated land use patterns to serve their narrow economic interests, often at the expense of farmers and rural communities. The result is a deepening agrarian crisis marked by displacement, loss of livelihood, and increased rural poverty.

The government’s current land use policies, including the Enhanced Land Sector Development Framework (2019–2040) and the continuation of infrastructure projects under Build Better More (2023–2028), have intensified land grabbing and dispossession. Cases in Hacienda Luisita and other areas of Central Luzon illustrate how farmers are systematically driven off their lands through violent evictions and legal manipulation, while agricultural land is converted for industrial and real estate development.

In particular, land use conversion and land grabbing have intensified under the Marcos Jr. regime, threatening the livelihoods and food security of farmers, fisherfolk, and indigenous communities. Central Luzon, known as the “Rice Granary of the Philippines,” has become a focal point for large-scale land conversion, driven by government-backed infrastructure and urban-commercial projects under the Build, Build, Build (Duterte administration) and Build Better More (Marcos Jr. administration) initiatives.

#StopLandUseConversion

#ResistLandGrabbing

#SaveTheRiceGranary

#LandToTheTillers

#CLKampuhan2025

#46GabrielaWomensParty

#54DaniloRamos

#6RonnelArambulo