Guards of the Yulo owned Laguna Estates Development Corporation (LEDC) stormed and violently dismantled the peasants’ huts and protest camp in Sitio Veinte-Veinte Cuatro, Barangay Casile, Cabuyao, Laguna on February 7. They carried out the assault and dispersal deceitfully at 11 p.m. and accosted 21 peasants.

According to Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (Bayan) Laguna, LEDC and Emirates Security Services guards blocked all entry and exit routes in the barangay before launching the dispersal. A video posted on Facebook shows guards firing guns to terrorize the farmers.

Acting under LEDC’s orders, the guards and Philippine National Police (PNP)-Cabuyao arrested the peasants, including elderly and ailing residents. They also held officials of the Samahan ng mga Magsasaka ng Casile–Pagkakaisa’t Ugnayan ng mga Magbubukid sa Laguna (Samaca-Pumalag, or Casile Peasants Association-Unity and Coordination of Laguna Peasants). The detained group, dubbed the Casile 21, were jailed at the Cabuyao Police Station.

With help from Karapatan-Laguna, the Casile 21 were released from detention on the night of February 9 after the prosecutor dismissed the trespassing charges against them. “The prosecutor’s decision was favorable but repression and harassment [against them] persist,” Bayan-Laguna said.

The group declared that the incident exposes the neglect of the local government, particularly of Cabuyao Mayor Dennis Hain and the Casile Barangay Council, toward the rights and welfare of the farmers. “They remain willfully blind to the ongoing land grabbing and human rights violations against Casile’s residents and farmers,” it said.

Land conflict in Barangay Casile

Barangay Casile residents and farmers began asserting their rights in September 2024 after the likewise Yulo owned Sta. Rosa Realty and Development Corporation (SRRDC) fenced off their farmlands. The company claims ownership of 24 hectares in the barangay.

Farmers reportedly could no longer reach their crops inside the fenced area. Eleven families living within the property were allowed entry but faced threats from armed guards. The guards also put up an additional outpost at the entrance of the fenced land.

At the height of the fencing, Samaca-Pumalag immediately confronted the corporation’s security personnel to demand their right to the land. The group said the guards could not present any document or permit justifying the fencing.

The farmers were shocked when their Certificates of Land Ownership Award (CLOA) were suddenly cancelled in September 2024. This sparked deep anxiety over the continuing land disputes that have plagued the community since the 1980s.