agrarian Disputes 73
m^m
[22
9
li fi [p3i
Qtaas> conquistador - a Spanish conqueror
CHAPTER 6 caballeria - a small tract of land included in a land grant
canon - annual rent paid by the inquilino
cavan - a measure equal to 75 liters
AGRARIAN hacienda ~ large estates that were used for raising livestock and
DISPUTES agricultural production
inquilino - a tenant who rented land from the friars and subleased the
land to sharecroppers
principales - ruling elite class
n 1891, Jose Rizal was in Hong Kong when he received distressing
news about his family who were, at that time, embroiled in a litigation sharecropper(kasama)- an individual who rented the land from an
IS case concerning the Hacienda de Calamba. He heard that the inquilino and worked the land
Spanish authorities were summoning his mother, Dona Teodora, and sitio de ganado mayor-a large tract of land included in a land grant
two younger sisters, Josefa and Trinidad, for further investigation. In
a show of support, he wrote to his family, “I am following your cavalry
step by step, Do not be afraid, I am doing all I can... Patience, a little
patience. Courage!”
Scholars and students of history agree that the conflict between his
Brief History of Friar Estates in the Philippines
family and the Dominicans over the hacienda greatly affected Rizal.
The origin of the friar estates can be traced back to land
This chapter will attempt to show the historical context behind this
incident that played a pivotal role in Rizal's life. It will first provide a brief grants awarded to the early Spanish cojtqiiistadores who arrived
history of friar estates in the Philippines and will then look closely into in the Philippines during the late sixteenth and early seventeenth
the Hacienda de Calamba conflict. centuries. Approximately 120 Spaniards were given grants that
were often composed of a large tract of land known as sitio de
iU -iu; ganado mayor (measuring 1,742 hectares) and smaller tracts of
land known as caballerias (measuring 42.5 hectares).
At the end of this chapter, the students should be able to:
In time, the Spanish hacenderos failed to develop their
/ examine Rizal's life in the Philippines within the wider context of
lands for three reasons. First, the Spanish population in the
the developments in the nineteenth century;
Philippines was transient. It was a common practice for Spanish
/ explain how the Hacienda de Caiamba issue serves as an administrators to return to Spain after having served in the
exemplary illustration of agrarian conflicts in the late nineteenth
country. Second, the market for livestock products, which
century; and
haciendas offered, remained relatively small until the latter
describe the interplay of several factors that contribute to the part of the Spanish colonial period. Third, the Galleon Trade
changing landscape of Philippine society and economy.
74 THE LIFE AND WORKS OF lOSE RIZAL agrarian Disputes 75
annual rent, which was usually a fixed amount of harvest and in
i
that was based in Manila offered bigger economic rewards and
later centuries, money.
attracted more Spaniards. Because the Spanish hacenderos lacked
the interest and inclination to develop their lands, the religious By the mid-eighteenth century. an expanding economy
orders soon took over the task, based on exporting agricultural crops ushered in change and
gradually put into place an inquilinato system. Under this
Land was acquired by the religious orders through various
donated by Spaniards seeking system, an individual rented land for a fixed annual amount,
means. Often, the lands were
in which estates that known as canon. Aside from the rent, the inquilino or lessee
spiritual benefits. There were cases, too, in was also expected to render personal services to his landlords. If
had been heavily mortgaged to the ecclesiasttcs were eventually
the inquilino failed to satisfy these requirements, he could face
purchased by the rel.gious orders themselves. Records reveal
that a number of Filipino principales also contributed to the expulsion from the land. Usually, the inquilino^ in turn, would
formation of the friar estates through donations and sa es sub-lease the land to a kasamd or sharecropper who would
then take on the task of cultivating the soil. Thus, a three-tiered
Despite these methods, there persisted a commonly held belief
among the Filipinos that the religious orders had no titles to system emerged with the landlords at the top, the inquilinos at\
the middle, and the sharecroppers at the bottom.
their lands and that they had acquired these lands through
usurpation or other dubious means. Nevertheless religious By leasing the land to an inquilino, the religious
estates in the Tagalog region continued to grow that by the hacenderos freed thenlselves from the social responsibilities
nineteenth century, they constituted approximately 40 percent borne from a direct interaction with the sharecroppers since
it was now the inquilinos who dealt directly with the kasamd.
of the provinces ofBulacan,Tondo (presently Rizal), Cavite, and
Laguna. The sharecroppers, on the other hand, benefitted from the
in the estates was varied during the arrangement because their labor obligations to the religious
The preoccupation
colonial rule. In the sixteenth and estates allowed them to be exempted from the responsibilities
early centuries of Spanish as cattle
seventeenth centuries, the estates primarily served of forced labor demanded by the Spanish government. The
ranches as well as farms of subsistence crops. Rice sugar downside to this type of arrangement, however, was that two
later served as main commodities produced m the haaendas non-cultivating groups further diminished the income of the
and became important sources of income for the religious orders sharecroppers. After the inquilino paid his rent to the religious
hacenderos and deducted his own share, the remaining amount
especially during the nineteenth century.
of income would then be divided among all the sharecroppers.
Agrarian relations in the haciendas developed m the time.
The change in the social structure and land tenure practices
In the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, the social structure
found in the haciendas was primarily composed of lay brother would eventually render the haciendas as sites of contestation
administrators at the top and cultivating tenants below. Althougn among the Spanish religious hacenderos, the inquilinos, and the
under the direct authority sharecroppers. It is not surprising, then, that when the Philippine
the lay brother administrators were
relatively free to Revolution broke out in 1896, the abuses in the friar estates were
of the heads of their religious orders, they were
administrative affairs. The tenants, often identified as one of the main causes that instigated the
make their own decisions on
revolt.
on the other hand, were 'expected
_ to work the land and pay an
76 The life and works of |ose rizal Agrarian Disputes 77
tenants for not
Hacienda de Calamba Conflict paying the rent, the Dominicans declared the
lands vacant and invited residents of other towns to take over
Not much is known about the Hacienda de Calamba prior the tenancies. Because only a few outsiders responded to the
to 1759 other than it was owned by several Spanish laymen. In Dominican’s invitation, the friars weakened their position. Most
1759, a destitute Spanish layman, Don Manuel Jauregui, donated tenants, except for four or five, were spared from eviction.
the Hnds to the Jesuits on the condition tha^ he would be
The charges against the friars continued with Rizal’s brother-
allowed to live in the Jesuit monastery for the rest of his life. The
in-law, Mariano Herboso, specifically complaining about the
Jesuits would claim ownership to the land for a mere eight years
yearly increase in rentals, faulty irrigation systems, and failure
before they were expelled from the Philippines through a decree
to issue receipts. Coupled with these problems was the fact that
issued by King Charles III on February 27, 1767. As a result of
at this time, the price of sugar continued to decline in the world
the expulsion, Hacienda de Calamba, along with other Jesuit
market. The situation became so dire that Paciano, at one point,
properties, were confiscated by the government and put under considered giving back his lands to the friars and clearing land
the management of the Office of Jesuit Temporalities. elsewhere.
to a Spanish
In 1803, the government sold the property
. When he Problems continued to escalate when in 1887, the colonial
layman, Don Clemente de Azansa, for 44,507 pesos
government demanded from the tenants of the hacienda a
died in 1833, the Hacienda de Calamba, which measured 16,424
report on the income and production of the estate because they
hectares, was purchased by the Dominicans for 52,000 pesos. By
suspected that the Dominicans were evading payment of their
this time, many families from neighboring towns had migrate taxes. The tenants complied and submitted report, but they also
to the hacienda in search of economic opportunities. Among t e
attached a petition authored by Jose Rizal. The petition presented
families that arrived at the hacienda were Rizal’s ancestors, w o
a list of grievances against the hacienda owners including a
eventually became one of the principal inquilinos in the hacienda.
complaint on the increasing amount of rent. To show resistance,
Calamba were leased to several some of the tenants began to withhold rents.
Although the lands in
families, it was Rizal’s family that rented one of the largest leased
main As a form of retaliation, the friars began to evict tenants who
lands, measuring approximately 380 hectares. Sugar was a y “
refused to pay rent in 1891. Those who persisted still in resisting
CO mmodity planted in the hacienda as there was a demand tor
the friars were eventually expelled. Among those who were exiled
the crop in the world market. Much of the wealth of Rizal’s
to remote areas in the country were Rizal’s parents, brother, and
family came from these lands; hence, it is but natural that when
sisters. Although Rizal had worked on reversing the decision
the conflict began to manifest itself as early as 1883, there was
of the Philippine courts, his family’s exile would only be lifted
much for the family to be concerned about.
upon the issuance of a decree from another governor-general.
In 1883, Paciano Rizal wrote that the friars were collecting The experience affected Rizal deeply and the increasing despair
rents without issuing the usual receipts. Two years later, the he felt from the
event would be reflected in his second novel,
tenants failed to pay their rents because the rent had supposedly El Filibusterismo.
increased while sugar prices had remained low. To punish the
agrarian Disputes 79
WORKS OF JOSE RIZAL
78 THE LIFE AND
that invisibly extends the land or a natural power
ACtiyitY V
that shortens the measure of the official, who after
Tenant Grievances and Rizal’s Petition
all is neither an expert nor a surveyor, though he
Petition of the Town of is very venal indeed. Without this trick, the rent is
Read the following excerpt from
1888. Answer the also raised when the tenant makes improvement in
Calamba” written by Jose Rizal in January
the lot, or when he replaces the bamboo fence with
worksheet found at the end of the text.
interviewed, it turns a stone one, or builds a wooden house,for comfort
From the declaration of the tenants , are to and public embellishment; therefore, many do not
out that the products of the Estate-if by-products—have improve their dwellings even if they have the means
be understood everything that the land produces to do so...
increased for the Estate and diminished remarkably for
(4) Because ricefields that are planted with only 3 or
the tenants, not only in the years that have passed but
4 cavanes of seed, pay as if they have a capacity
also in the last three, as the enclosed account proves,
for 9.5 and 14 cavanes, on pain of being declared \
Such a statement needs to be explained. The products
vacant and given to others... The products for
increase to the benefit of the Estate:
to the the tenants have decreased considerably in spite
(1) Because the wild forests which are given of continuous labor, not only before but also
tenants for a low rent at the beginning according
these last years as proven by the large number
as the tenants clear and clean them, investing
of ruined farmers, indebted and dispossessed of
large capital in them, according as the fortune of
their property... On the other hand, the desperate
the farmer becomes involved in them, the contrac ones who wish to return parcel of land that
is arbitrarily altered by the Estate, the rent rises is unproductive will not be allowed to do so and
enormously, there being a case when 45 pesos
annual they face ruin as they will be threatened of being
became 900 in a few years through an
despoiled of all their other parcels. It arouses
forced imposition. suspicion that they do not want to write in the
twice for two harvests of
(2) Because some lands pay receipts the amount paid as rental and the total
are found, the
rice, where some bamboo groves absence of any record, especially in these last
farmer pays for'the land and for each bamboo years...
grove besides, regardless of whether it is useless Source; Rizal. J. 2007. “Petition of the town of Calamba." In Political and Historical Writings
Manila; National Historical Institute, pp, 37-41.
or It has been felled. In the lands where huts have
been erected for the workers, one has to pay for the
lots and the huts besides.
lots where houses
(3) Because the rent of the town
or warehouses are erected increases every time an
them.
official or servant of the Estate measures
There seems to exist either a supernatural power
Agrarian Disputes 81
WORKS OF )OSE RlZAL
80 the life and
6. Why was this document written? Cite pieces of evidence
Written Document Analysis Worksheet in the document that support your answer.
Provide the required information on the given spaces
1. Type of document(Encircle the letter that corresponds to
your answer.)
a. newspaper
b. letter
c. map
d. report
e. diary
7. List two things that tell you about life in the Philippines,
f. others; please specify: at the time the document was written.
2. Date of the document; _
3. Author of the document; —
4. Who is the audience of this document?
8. Write a question to the author that is not answered by
the document.
5. List three things in the document that are importanti
Agrarian disputes 83
WORKS OF lOSE RIZAL
82 the life and
Rubric
ACTIVITY 2
4 3 2 1
Writing a Petition
The introduction The introduction The introdu^ion There is
of three members. Choose is inviting, states includes the includes the main no clear
Form yourselves into groups the goal or thesis, goal or thesis
pick from the list goal or thesis. introduction,
one issue prevalent in society today. You may and provides an and provides an Most information structure, or
overview of the overview of the is presented in conclusion.
provided below or propose one of your own. I, you choose o issue. Information
C
issue. Information a logical order.
issue that is not listed, please get your teacher’s approval. m is presented in is presented in A conclusion is
N
C
a logical order a logical order included, but it
Abortion Gay Marriage n and maintains
oi but does not does not clearly
O the interest of always maintain state a personal
Global Warming the audience. the interest of
AXDS opinion.
The conclusion the audience.
Homosexuality strongly states a A conclusion
Alcohol and Drinking
personal opinion. states a personal
Human Rights
Animal Rights opinion.
Overpopulation There is one
Censorship V)
There is one A personal The personal
Pollution (A goal or thesis goal orthesis opinion is not opinion is
OJ
Child Labor JC that strongly and that states a clearly stated. not easily
Poverty o clearly states a personal opinion There is little understood.
Corruption n personal opinion and identifies the reference to the There is little or
o and identifies the
Sex Education O issue. issue. no reference to
Cyberbullying issue. the issue.
Terrorism
Death Penalty r Three or more Three or more Two reasons are Arguments
o
Traffic a excellent reasons reasons are stated but with are weak
a. are stated with
Drugs and Drug Abuse 3 stated, but the weak arguments. or missing.
M
Violence ■o
good support. arguments are Less than two
Extrajudicial Killings C
(0
It is evident that somewhat weak reasons are
(J1
c a lot of thought in places. stated.
o and research
As a group, write a petition to the president of the M
ni
01 was put into this
a
Philippines expressing and defending your ideas regarding is assignment.
issue. Present your petition m class.
d) Argument Argument Argument Argument
c demonstrates demonstrates demonstrates does not seem
01
■O
a clear a clear some
3
to target any
Q understanding understanding understanding particular
o of the potential of the potential of the potential audience.
c audience and audience. audience.
o
c anticipates
0> counter
< arguments.
84 THE LIFE AND WORKS OF JOSE RiZAL agrarian Disputes 85
There is evidence Word choice is .JcS^MMARy
Word choice Word choice
«u of attention to limited.
is creative and enhances the
o word choice. This chapter presented a brief history of the hacienda from
£ enhances the argument.
U
■Q argument. its beginnings as a royal land grant rewarded to Spaniards
O
2 who had rendered exemplary service to the Spanish Crown.
Visuals are Visuals are not
Visuals are Visuals are Later, these lands came into the possession of the friars by way
related to the directly related
appealing and of purchase or >
appealing, highly
topic. Delivery
to the topic. donation. Also pointed out in this chapter was
0) relevant, and add support to
> the argument. lacks some Delivery is not the change in landlord-tenant relationships from a two-tiered
<u add support to fl uent.
●o Delivery is fl uent. fluency. relationship between a religious administrator and a tenant to a
(A
the argurnent.
(0 Delivery is fluent.
3
in \«ith an engaging three-tiered one with landlords, inquilinos, and sharecropp ers .
> flow of speech.
Rizal’s family served as inquilinos in the Dominican’s
There are several There are
There are no There are few Hacienda de Calamba. By 1883, the family began to notice
errors in grammar, numerous
c errors in grammar, changes in the manner through which the Dominicans collected.,
errors in grammar, errors in
0> mechanics, and/ mechanics, and/or
a mechanics, and/or grammar, rent. The conflict reached its height towards the end of the 1880s ’
lA
or spelling, but spelling.
in
spelling. mechanics, when the farmers wrote a
u they do not and/or spelling. petition to the government detailing
c Interfere with
£
u understanding. their grievances against the Dominicans and with the priests
a> retaliating as a result. The conflict affected Rizal deeply and was
E
10 reflected particularly in his second novel, El Filibusterismo.
E
E
(0
0
. ^..
Aguilar, Filomeno V., Jr. 1998. Clash of spirits: The history of
power and sugar planter hegemony on a Visayan Island.
Quezon City: Ateneo de Manila University Press.
Bauzon, Leslie E. 1 December 1974. Philippine agrarian reform,
1880-1965: The revolution that never was (Occasional Paper
V)
c No. 31). Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies.
4)
E
E Coates, Austin (Translated by Nilo S. Ocampo). 1995. Rizal:
o
o Makabayan at martir. Q uezon City: University of the
Phil ippines Press.
Donesa, Robert John I. 2012. “The Hacienda de Calamba
agrarian problem (1887-1891): A historical assessment.
Master’s thesis. University of Santo Tomas. Accessed fro m
http://haciendadecalamba.blogspot.eom/2012_06_01
archive.html
