THE LAW ON NATURAL RESOURCES

LAWS COVERING THE SUBJECT

Public Land Act (C.A. No. 141) The Phil. Mining Act of 1995 (R.A. 7942) The Petroleum Act of 1949 (R.A. 387) The Coal Land Act and P.D. 972 Revised Forestry Code (P.D. 389 & 705) The Water Code of the Phil (P.D. 1067) Fisheries Code of 1998 (R.A. 8550) IPRA (R.A. 8371)

WHAT ARE NATURAL RESOURCES?

Refer

to the material objects of economic value and utility to man produced by nature.
constitute the patrimony of the nation

They

MANILA PRINCE HOTEL v. GSIS & MANILA HOTEL,ET.AL[GR No. 122156, Feb. 3 1997]

When

the Constitution speaks of national patrimony, it refers not only to the natural resources of the Philippines, as the Constitution could have very well used the term natural resources, but also to the cultural heritage of the Filipinos

DOCTRINE OF CONSTITUTIONAL SUPREMACY

* If a law or contract violates any norm of the Constitution, that law or contract whether promulgated by the legislative or by the executive branch or entered into by private persons for private purposes, is NULL AND VOID and without any force and effect. * Since the Constitution is the fundamental, paramount and supreme law of the nation, it is deemed written in every statute and contract.

ARTICLE XII National Economy and Patrimony Section 1.

The goals of the national economy are a more equitable distribution of opportunities, income, and wealth; a sustained increase in the amount of goods and services produced by the nation for the benefit of the people; and an expanding productivity as the key to raising the quality of life for all, especially the underprivileged.

The State shall promote industrialization and full employment based on sound agricultural development and agrarian reform, through industries that make full and efficient use of human and natural resources, and which are competitive in both domestic and foreign markets. However, the State shall protect Filipino enterprises against unfair foreign competition and trade practices. In the pursuit of these goals, all sectors of the economy and all regions of the country shall be given optimum opportunity to develop. Private enterprises, including corporations, cooperatives, and similar collective organizations, shall be encouraged to broaden the base of their ownership

THREE FOLD GOALS OF THE NATIONAL ECONOMY :

EQUITY GROWTH PRODUCTIVITY

STRATEGIES TO ACCOMPLISH GOALS:

To develop a self-reliant and independent national economy effectively controlled by Filipinos; Promote industrialization and full employment; Protect Filipino enterprises against unfair foreign competition; To give all economic sectors optimum opportunity to develop Encourage private enterprises, cooperatives and similar collective organization

THE REGALIAN DOCTRINE

It is the foundation of the 1st sentence of Sec. 2, Art. XII, 1987 Constitution. Generally, under this concept, private title to land must be traced to some grant, express or implied, from the Spanish Crown or its successors, the American Colonial Government, and thereafter, the Philippine Republic

JURE IMPERII vis--vis JURE GESTIONIS

JURE IMPERII (Imperium) * government authority possessed by the State which is expressed in the concept of sovereignty; JURE GESTIONIS (Dominium) * capacity of the State to own or acquire property.

A principle in law which means that all natural wealth - agricultural, forest or timber, and mineral lands of the public domain and all other natural resources belong to the state.

PRESUMPTION OF STATE OWNERSHIP OVER PUBLIC LANDS

OH

CHO vs. DIR. OF LANDS, 75PHIL 890: All lands that were not acquired from the government either by purchase or grant, belong to the public domain.
possession since time

EXCEPTION:

immemorial.

DOES THE REGALIAN DOCTRINE NEGATE NATIVE TITLE?

NATURE OF POSSESSION BY THE NATIVES(Cruz v. Secretary, GR 135385,Dec. 6, 2000) Ancestral domain and ancestral lands are not part of lands of the public domain. The right of natives does not include natural resources. What is given is priority rights, not exclusive right. State not precluded from entering into agreements with private entities.

Ancestral Domain
All embracing concept which refers to lands, inland waters, coastal areas, and natural resources therein. Includes: Ancestral lands, Forests land, Pasture land, Residential lands Agricultural lands, and

 Other

lands individually owned whether alienable or not; Hunting grounds; Burial Grounds; Worship Areas; Bodies of water; and Other natural resources

Ancestral Lands

Narrower in concept; Refers to those land held under the same conditions of ancestral domain BUT LIMITED TO LANDS THAT ARE NOT MERELY OCCUPIED AND POSSESSED BUT ARE ALSO UTILIZED BY CULTURAL COMMUNITIES UNDER THE CLAIM OF INDIVIDUAL OR TRADITIONAL GROUP OWNERSHIP. Includes [but not limited to]: Residential lots, Rice terraces or paddies, private forests, farms and tree lots.