Lawmakers in the Philippines Want to Regulate Large Scale Foreign Investments on Land
Targeted News Service -- PASAY CITY, PHILIPPINES -- April 20, 2012 -- Lawmakers have urged Congress to pass a measure regulating the land ownership of foreign investors in the country.Reps. Kaka Bag-Ao and Walden Bello (Party-list, Akbayan) said House Bill 6004 seeks to ensure that negotiations and agreements entered into by any Filipino entity with foreign entities will be beneficial to Filipinos and local communities.
"The advent of increasing interest on land investments in the Philippines fuelled by the rising global demand for food and raw materials for agro-fuel production, tourism and mining calls for a strong and fair regulatory mechanism to address the large scale land ownership by foreign investors in the country," Bag-Ao said.
Bag-Ao said foreign investment in the country is highlighted by the fact that in the last five years the government has been involved in numerous transactions involving the lease of large tracts of land nationwide for the production of biofuel feed stocks, food crops and mariculture investments.
"The influx of foreign investments in our country has exposed the basic sectors, particularly the farmers, fisher folk and indigenous peoples, to the threat of displacement and loss of control, ownership and possession over their lands," Bag-Ao said.
According to Bello, the State's intervention is crucial in regulating large scale foreign investments on land.
"This is based on the premise that the Filipino population, especially the basic sectors, should have preferential use of and benefit from our land resources, and that our national interest, food security, cultural integrity, healthy environment and right to self determination be protected and upheld in any investment agreement entered into between the Philippine entity and its foreign counterpart involving the use of land in the country," Bello said.
The bill otherwise known as the "Large Scale Foreign Investment on Land Regulatory Act," provides for guidelines and criteria for the regulation of transactions involving vast tracts of lands.
It further aims to ensure that any such agreement will not result in food insecurity, degradation of the environment and displacement of communities.
Under the measure, all contracts, agreements, negotiations, talks and deals involving foreign investment on land exceeding an aggregate of five hectares shall be publicly disclosed. It shall be approved by the National Regulatory Board on Foreign Land Investments before it is legally implemented.
The regulation covers all investment deals on land between Philippine registered private entity with a foreign entity; or with a foreign national or local government or its instrumentality; or Philippine national government or instrumentality with a foreign entity; or Philippine national government or instrumentality with a foreign national or local government or its instrumentality; or Philippine local government unit or its instrumentality with a foreign entity; or with a foreign national or local government or its instrumentality.
The measure creates the National Regulatory Board on Foreign Land Investments which is directly under the Industry Development and Trade Policy Group of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI). It has the power to approve and disapprove Large Scale Foreign Investment agreements on land based on the guidelines it will formulate.
A Congressional Oversight Committee on Foreign Land Investments shall be created to monitor the performance of the Board and propose legislative actions in relation to foreign land grabbing.
Under the bill, foreign land grabbing is prohibited and punishable with a penalty of $1,000,000 as fine and confiscation of its assets in the Philippines.
Violators shall be penalized with life imprisonment not exceeding six months or fined not more than P1,000,000 or both, at the discretion of the court.
Author: Lorelei V. Castillo, MRS-PRIB
(c) 2012 Targeted News Service
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