Reyes, Paolo Angelo
Federation of Coron v SDENR
G.R. No. 247866, September 15, 2020
Gesmundo,J:
Issues:
Whether or not Sec 3(a) is unconstitutional
Whether or not unclassified land would be classified as agricultural
Rules:
Sec. 3(a) of P.D. No. 705 states:
(a) Public forest is the mass of lands of the public domain which has not been the subject of the
present system of classification for the determination of which lands are needed for forest
purposes and which are not.
Regalian Doctrine (Jura Regalia), a legal concept first introduced into the country from the
West by Spain….all lands of the public domain belong to the State. The State is the source of
any asserted right to ownership of land, and is charged with the conservation of such patrimony.
All lands not appearing to be clearly under private ownership are presumed to belong to the
State. Also, public lands remain part of the inalienable land of the public domain unless the
State is shown to have reclassified or alienated them to private
In Director of Lands v. Intermediate Appellate Court
When a land of public domain is unclassified, it cannot be released and rendered open for
private disposition pursuant to the Regalian Doctrine and that the private applicant in a land
registration case has the burden of proof to overcome State ownership of the lands of public
domain, to wit:
P.D. No. 705 was enacted and Sec. 3(a) thereof essentially stated that lands of the public
domain which have not been the subject of the present system of classification are considered
as forest land.
Republic v. Heirs of Daquer
While it is true that the land classification map does not categorically state that the islands are
public forests, the fact that they were unclassified lands leads to the same result. In the absence
of the classification as mineral or timber land, the land remains unclassified land until released
and rendered open to disposition. When the property is still unclassified, whatever possession
applicants may have had, and however long, still cannot ripen into private ownership. This is
because, pursuant to Constitutional precepts, all lands of the public domain belong to the State,
and the State is the source of any asserted right to ownership in such lands and is charged with
the conservation of such patrimony. Thus, the Court has emphasized the need to show in
registration proceedings that the government, through a positive act, has declassified
inalienable public land into disposable land for agricultural or other purposes.
Analysis:
Petitioners Federation of Coron, Busuanga, Palawan Farmer's Association, Inc., (FCBPFAI) and
Sandigan ng Mambubukid ng Bintuan Coron, Inc., (SAMBICO) the petitioner have been farming
a piece of land even before the barangay sto. Nino was established.
The subject piece of land was placed under the CARP by the DAR. The lands placed under
CARP had titles in the name of Mercury Group of Companies, covering a total area of
1,752.4006 hectares. However, the implementation of the CARP was stopped because these
lands were unclassified forest land and thus, are inalienable land and belongs to the
government This classification places the subject land under the authority of the DENR and not
the DAR, thus, the land cannot be covered by CARP.
Arguments and Counter Arguments:
Federation of Coron:
1. Sec. 3(a) retroactively changed the unclassified lands into forest lands thus it deprived
millions of Filipinos of land
2. There is a presumption that land is agricultural unless the contrary is shown and that Sec.
3(a) makes the implementation of the land reform under CARP impossible
SDENR:
1. Sec. 3(a) of P.D. No. 705 is in accordance with the Regalian Doctrine; and that there is no
violation of the rights of petitioners because unclassified lands, which are forest lands, belong to
the State, hence, petitioners have no property rights to be violated.
Conclusion:
Sec 3 is not unconstitutional because it merely enforces the Regalian doctrine in favor of the
state; lands of public domain, whether unclassified, forest, or mineral lands, remain within the
ownership of the State and shall not be subject to alienation or disposition of private persons,
unless any positive act to classify it otherwise. When the property is still unclassified, whatever
possession applicants may have had, and however long, still cannot ripen into private
ownership. If SEC 3 would be declared unconstitutional it would make all lands in the
Philippines, except those already classified out of State ownership.
