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Leaps
and
Milestones |
Ordeals
and
Sacrifices |
Ideological
Stance |
National
Milieu |
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1953
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Jeremias
Montemayor establishes the Federation of Free
Farmers in San Fernando, Pampanga to provide a
radical but peaceful alternative to semi-feudal
conditions in the countryside. The FFF issues its
manifesto, which calls upon the Filipino peasantry
to unite and fight for genuine liberation and
development. 53-56. FFF
chapters are organized in 28 out of 53 provinces,
with a total membership of 40,000. |
One of the first cases of Jerry
Montemayor as a new lawyer is a tenancy case
involving his own mother and her tenants in his
hometown in Bisocol, Alaminos, Pangasinan. The
founder ends up defending the tenants against his
own mother.
53-65. The FFF pioneers face many difficulties.
Organizing peasant farmers has been associated with
the subversive movement or with corrupt operators
out to take advantage of farmers
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The first leaders of the FFF are
imbued with the Christian principles of service to
the farmers and dedication to a noble cause. They
endeavor to offer a Christian alternative of
thoroughgoing but non-violent reform. |
Early 50s. Agrarian unrest grips the
rural areas, especially in Central Luzon. Soon,
however, President Ramon Magsaysay will break the
back of the HUK rebellion with a combination of
military and socio-civic initiatives and reforms.
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1954 |
FFF works out the resettlement of
2,500 landless families through the National
Resettlement and Rehabilitation Administration and
the Land Tenure Administration.
FFF contributes to and supports the
enactment of the Agricultural Tenancy Act (Republic
Act No. 1199). The law, among others, strengthens
the security of tenure of tenant-farmers and
institutes a 70-30 sharing scheme in their favor.
FFF signs a pioneering master
contract with landlord association Ding Macabalen of
Concepcion, Tarlac. Though weakly implemented, the
contract aims to regulate tenancy relations between
FFF members and their landlords. |
desperate with land-related problems.
Working as volunteers, the leaders of the Federation
have to spend time away from their families and to
sacrifice their own money to do organizing work in
the barrios.
The FFF’s
first national office is part of a World War
II-damaged building at the back of the old Ateneo
law school along Padre Faura, Manila.
Many farmers
see the organization as a provider of legal and
other services and do not see the necessity of
sustaining it financially. |
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1958 |
Late 50’s to early 60’s: FFF expands
into the Visayas, especially in Negros and Panay
islands. It organizes strikes and other mass actions
among the sacadas (seasonal workers), who are
working in sugarcane plantations in Negros, to
protest against their exploitative conditions. Some
hacienderos call the FFF as “Fire, Fire, Fire” for
allegedly burning their sugarcane.
The Junior Free Farmers (JFF),
FFF’s youth arm, is established. |
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1963 |
FFF files a class suit against
Victorias Milling Company, Asia’s biggest sugar
mill, and some 600 sugar planters in Negros
Occidental to nullify the respondents’ milling
agreement, which deprived some 30,000 sugar workers
of their mandated share in milling proceeds under
the Sugar Act of l952 (R.A. No. 809). The amount the
workers seek to recover in the “Swindle of the
Century” case reaches P500 million, the largest in
Philippine judicial history.
President Diosdado Macapagal
appoints FFF President Jeremias U.Montemayor as
member of the presidential committee that will draft
the proposed Agricultual Land Reform Code. The bill
becomes law (R.A. No. 3844) on August 8, and (among
others) converts sharehold tenants into lessees on a
“proclaimed area” basis and created the Land Bank of
the Philippines. |
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Early 60s. As the leaders gain
experience in dealing with the peasantry, they
realize social welfare activities and legal services
are not enough to achieve lasting reform. The FFF
must also engage strongly in socio-political action.
Towards this end, they begin to reach out to other
sectors, particularly the religious and the
studentry. Grounded in the social doctrine of the
Catholic Church, FFF leaders begin to apply these
teachings to national concerns, such as the role of
farmers in Philippine society, social justice,
agrarian reform, economic development, and farmers’
empowerment. |
Early 60’s: While the Philippines
ranks second to Japan in economic development,
semi-feudal conditions fester in the countryside.
President Macapagal prevails upon Congress to enact
the Agricultural Land Reform Code. |
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1964 |
The FFF, together with other national
farmers and farmworkers organizations, sets up the
Philippine Council for Agrarian Workers (PCAW).
Jeremias Montemayor is elected President. |
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1966 |
The Free Farmers Cooperative, Inc. (FFCI)
is founded as the FFF’s economic arm.
Jeremias Montemayor’s book, Ours
To Share, seeks to apply Catholic social teachings
to Philippine socio-economic conditions. Together
with another book, Philippine Socio-Economic
Problems (published in l97l), they become the
“bible” of many social activists. |
66-72. The involvement of young
activists and the religious brings new vigor, ideas
and resources into the organization. As the FFF
expands rapidly, it has to deal with a mushrooming
list of legal and organizational problems and
challenges. In the early 70s, the divide between the
so-called “technocrats” and some veteran leaders
becomes more pronounced. |
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