ROXAS SENDS MORE COPS TO KEEP PEACE IN BORACAY’S ATI LAND

By: PNP Public Information Office

Interior and Local Government Secretary Mar Roxas has directed the Philippine National Police (PNP) to ensure the security of 30 Ati families who were recently awarded ownership of a 2.1-hectare property in Boracay Island through the Indigenous People’s Rights Act (IPRA).

Roxas issued the order after the National Commission on Indigenous People (NCIP), with the help of the PNP and the Armed Forces, began putting up last Sunday the perimeter fence marking the metes and bound of the newly-awarded Ati property at Barangay Manoc-Manoc in Malay town, Aklan.

“Inaasahan ko na sisiguruhin ng ating mga pulis na mananatiling ligtas mula sa anumang kapahamakan ang mga kapatid nating Ati sa Boracay,” Roxas said.

“Alam kong gagawin ng PNP ang lahat, maging maglagay ng PNP detachment sa Ati community kung kinakailangan, matiyak lamang ang katahimikan sa komunidad,” he added.

The NCIP, in a letter dated February 11, 2013, sought the assistance of Roxas to avert possible violence that could mar Sunday’s activity due to conflicting private claims on the Ati property.

 In her letter to Roxas, NCIP Executive Director Marlea Munez explained that the Commission issued a Writ of Execution on the 2.1-hectare property sometime in July last year to affirm the recognition of the right of Ati of Boracay Island to their ancestral domain.

Munez noted that NCIP representatives, however, had difficulty implementing the Writ as they encountered organized opposition from private persons and entities who have been claiming ownership of the land despite the Certificate of Ancestral Domain Title (CADT) that was issued in favor of the Ati.

“These private persons/entities have worked to make the implementation of the Writ of Execution not only difficult, but outright dangerous and risky for both the Ati and the government officials involved,” the NCIP official pointed out.

 “We believe that your agency is best equipped to aid communities at risk – communities such as the Ati who have been marginalized and oppressed for far too long. Thus, we would like to seek your good office’s able assistance in implementing the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) Writ of Execution,” Munez added.

After receiving the NCIP request, Roxas immediately ordered the PNP to dispatch more policemen in Boracay Island to maintain peace and order during the NCIP’s construction of perimeter fence for the Ati community.

“Tungkulin ng PNP na siguruhin ang kapayapaan sa nasabing lugar. Tungkulin din nila na bigyan ng proteksyon ang mahihirap na mamamayan na walang matakbuhan sa oras ng pangangailangan,” the DILG chief pointed out.

Roxas appealed to other private claimants to respect the CADT issued by NCIP for the Ati community and refrain from resorting to violence to stake their claim on contested properties in the island.

“Sana naman ay respetuhin ng ating mga kababayan ang mga Ancestral Domain Titles na ibinibigay ng pamahalaan sa mga kapatid nating Ati. Mas makabubuti kung sasamahan natin ang pamahalaan sa pagtatanggol, pangangalaga at pagpapaunlad ng mga Lupaing Ninuno,” Roxas said.