LGUs need to understand and take into consideration these laws and issuances that address eminent domain, compensation, responsible parties, public information and consultation and grievance redress. The key legal and administrative instruments currently in force in the Philippines relating to Involuntary Resettlement are given below:
A. The Philippine Constitution (1987)
1. Article III, Section 1: "No person shall be deprived of life, liberty or property without due process of law, nor shall any person be denied equal protection of the law"; Section 9: "Private property shall not be taken for public use without just compensation";
2. Article XII, Section 5: "The State···.shall protect the rights of indigenous cultural communities to their ancestral lands to ensure economic, social and cultural well-being. By an act of Congress, customary laws governing property rights or relations can be applied in determining the ownership and extent of ancestral domain."
3. Article XIII, Section 10: "Urban or poor dwellers shall not be evicted nor dwellings demolished, except in accordance with the law and in a just and humane manner. No resettlement of urban or rural dwellers shall be undertaken without adequate consultation and the communities where they are to be relocated."
B. Republic Act 7279 (1992) "Urban Development and Housing Act" mandates the provision of a resettlement site, basic services and safeguards for the homeless and underprivileged citizens.
C. Republic Act 7160 (1991) "Local Government Code" which allows the local government units to exercise the power of eminent domain for public use.
D. Republic Act 6389 (1971) describes disturbance compensation equivalent to five times the average of the gross harvests on landholding during the last five preceding calendar years.
E. Republic Act 7835 (1994) describes the National Shelter Program Implementation/Resettlement Program. The National Housing Authority shall acquire land and develop it to generate serviced home lots for families displaced from sites earmarked for government infrastructure projects, those occupying danger areas such as waterways, esteros, railroad tracks and those qualified for relocation and resettlement under RA 7279.
F. Indigenous Peoples' Rights Act (IPRA) 1997. "Consent" is required from affected indigenous peoples before any land taking and/or relocation from their ancestral domain by the Project. The IPRA, together with the Free and Prior Informed Consent (FPIC) Guidelines of 2006, will serve as the guiding framework on addressing IP issues.