Cruz and Europa v. Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources

may be impaired by the legitimate exercise of police power. I cannot agree. The text of the provision of the 1935 Constitution invoked by the Solicitor General, while embodying the theory of jura regalia, is too clear for any misunderstanding. It simply declares that "all agricultural, timber, and mineral lands of the public domain, waters, minerals, coal, petroleum, and other mineral oils, all forces of potential energy, and other natural resources of the Philippines belong to the State."[99] Nowhere does it state that certain lands which are "absolutely necessary for social welfare and existence," including those which are not part of the public domain, shall thereafter be owned by the State. If there is any room for constitutional construction, the provision should be interpreted in favor of the preservation, rather than impairment or extinguishment, of vested rights. Stated otherwise, Section 1, Article XII of the 1935 Constitution cannot be construed to mean that vested right which had existed then were extinguished and that the landowners were divested of their lands, all in the guise of "wrest[ing] control of those portions of the natural resources [which the State] deems absolutely necessary for social welfare and existence." On the contrary, said Section restated the fundamental rule against the diminution of existing rights by expressly providing that the ownership of lands of the public domain and other natural resources by the State is "subject to any existing right, grant, lease, or concessions." The "existing rights" that were intended to be protected must, perforce, include the right of ownership by indigenous peoples over their ancestral lands and domains. The words of the law should be given their ordinary or usual meaning, [100] and the term "existing rights" cannot be assigned an unduly restrictive definition. Petitioners concede that Congress is mandated under Section 5, Article XII of the 1987 Constitution[101]to protect the rights of indigenous peoples to their ancestral lands and ancestral domains. Nonetheless, they contend that the recognition and protection under IPRA of the right of ownership of indigenous peoples over ancestral lands and ancestral domains are far in excess of the legislative power and constitutional mandate of the Congress,[102] since such recognition and protection amount to the alienation of lands of the public domain, which is proscribed under Section 2, Article XII of the Constitution. Section 5, Article XII of the Constitution expresses the sovereign intent to "protect the rights of indigenous peoples to their ancestral lands." In its general and ordinary sense, the term "right" refers to any legally enforceable claim.[103] It is a power, privilege, faculty or demand inherent in one person and incident upon another.[104] When used in relation to property, "right" includes any interest in or title to an object, or any just and legal claim to hold, use and enjoy it.[105] Said provision in the Constitution cannot, by any reasonable construction, be interpreted to exclude the protection of the right of ownership over such ancestral lands. For this reason, Congress cannot be said to have exceeded its constitutional mandate and power in enacting the provisions of IPRA, specifically Sections 7(a) and 8, which recognize the right of ownership of the indigenous peoples over ancestral lands. The second paragraph of Section 5, Article XII also grants Congress the power to "provide for the applicability of customary laws governing property rights or relations in determining the ownership and extent of ancestral domains." In light of this provision, does Congress have the power to decide whether ancestral domains shall be private property or part of the public domain? Also, does Congress have the power to determine whether the "extent" of ancestral domains shall include the natural resources found therein? It is readily apparent from the constitutional records that the framers of the Constitution did not intend Congress to decide whether ancestral domains shall be public or private property. Rather, they acknowledged that ancestral domains shall be treated as private property, and that customary laws shall merely determine whether such private ownership is by the entire indigenous cultural community, or by individuals, families, or clans within the community. The discussion below between Messrs. Regalado and Bennagen and Mr. Chief Justice Davide, then members of the 1986 Constitutional Commission, is instructive: