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THE PAPSRA PROJECT BACKGROUND
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The
Indigenous People (IPs) , also known as Indigenous Cultural Communities
(ICCs) have long been deprived of their over their ancestral domain
and were usually dislocated due to development activities by the dominant
forces in the society. They constituted 1.5 million (54 percent of
the 2.8 million poor families engaged in agriculture, forestry and
fishing. There were then total of 4.7 million poor families in the
country. This condition pushed the lawmakers to tenancy a law to protect
and recognize the IPs' rights over their ancestral lands and domain.
The 1987 Philippine Constitution under Section 22, Article 1 mandates
the State to recognize and promote the rights of Indigenous Cultural
Communities within the framework of national unity and development.
It further mandates the state (Section 5, Article XII), subject to
the provision of the Constitution and national development policies
and programs, to protect the rights of Indigenous Cultural Communities
to their ancestral lands to ensure their economic, social and cultural
well-being. This was reinforced with the enactment of Republic Act
No. 8371 also known as an Act to Recognize, Protect and Promote the
Rights of Indigenous Cultural Communities/Indigenous Peoples.
The Social reform Agenda launched during the Ramos Administration
(now under the National Anti-Poverty Commission by the virtue of Republic
Act No. 8425, an Act Institutionalizing the Social reform and Poverty
Alleviation Program of the government) further upholds the Indigenous
People's rights as identified marginalized sector that needs development
support and assistance. Under this program, the Department of Environment
and Natural Resources (DENR) is mandated to undertake and lead the
delineation, identification and recognition of ancestral domains and
help empower the Indigenous Peoples as a special sector. It is precisely
for these reasons that the Poverty Alleviation for Social Reform Agenda:
Support to selected Indigenous Communities and Agrarian Reform Communities
was Proposed. |
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FAPsO
2002©, All Rights Reserved. |
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