‘You Can’t Have Our Land’: Land Grabbing and the Feminization of Resistance in Aloguinsan, Cebu

Citation:

Author: Leny G. Ocasiones

Abstract:

Land grabbing has been present in the Philippines for the past decades. It occurs when local communities and individuals lose access to land that they previously used, thus threatening their lives and livelihood. Civil society organizations that are skeptical toward the growing trend of large-scale acquisitions by foreign corporations, however, argue that land grabbing can be committed by domestic actors and sometimes in cooperation with foreign actors. Land grabbing raises important questions about the welfare, livelihood, and land security of farmers in the Philippines. Using archival sources, key informant interviews, and focus group discussions, this study investigates women's experiences of land grabbing and resistance among farmers of Aloguinsan, Cebu. This study reveals that land grabbing has profound impacts on the lives of the farmers and that women farmers are affected differently than men because women are generally considered a vulnerable group. Further, land grabbing generated fierce resistance from farmers, especially from women who developed creative ways to defend their lives, land and community. The study concludes that the resistance put up by the Aloguinsan farmers is gendered, and serves as a case of the feminization of resistance.

Keywords: land grabbing, feminization, resistance, women

Topics: Civil Society, Gender, Women, Gendered Power Relations, Land Grabbing, Livelihoods Regions: Asia, Southeast Asia Countries: Philippines

Year: 2018