The Commission on Human Rights (CHR) fully supports programs of the government that push for improving the lives of communities while providing access to justice when there are human rights violations committed.

The CHR welcomes the action of the National Commission on Indigenous Peoples (NCIP) in Davao Region as they are already building up cases to pursue individuals responsible for the rampant sale of ancestral lands within ancestral domains.

Reiterating the indigenous concept of ownership based on the NCIP Administrative Order No. 1 series of 2020, ancestral domains are the private but community property of Indigenous Cultural Communities or Indigenous Peoples which belong to all generations and therefore cannot be sold, disposed, or destroyed.

The Commission cannot underscore further that ancestral lands are inseparable from the Indigenous Peoples, their culture, and their identity as a nation. Having a secure and effective collective property rights are fundamental to their physical and cultural integrity; economic and social development; and livelihood and sustenance.

As an independent national human rights institution, the CHR is always open for dialogue and collaboration with government and non-government institutions in ensuring that the rights of the Indigenous Peoples are protected and respected at all times. We hope that through NCIP’s commitment, individuals and groups accountable for the illegal sale of ancestral lands will be immediately dealt with in accordance with the law. ###