Agrarian Reform Bill is basically the blueprint of an agricultural law, which is accepted by different governmental authorities, to become a full-fledged law.
Characteristic features of an agrarian reform bill:
- An agrarian reform bill should look into the interests of the peasant class, by highlighting the needs for allocating agricultural lands among them, who are actually involved with the farming process.
- According to the agrarian reform bill, the huge plots of land are subject to mandatory annexations, without any compensation. In this case, the compensation comes in terms of leasing lands of foreign companies and “haciendas”, under the direct control of big land owners, in different parts of a country.
- The agrarian reform bills attempt to free the agricultural sector of a country, from the bondages of the feudal landlords, which will automatically reduce the overall agrarian suppressions in the country.
- The agrarian reform bills help in the promotion of the pro-corporate interest and pro-landlord land reform plans.
- Normally, an agrarian reform bill is framed and formulated by members on governmental levels, as well by influential political leaders.
- The framing and formulation of agrarian reform bill is closely associated with the nationalization of the cultivable lands in a particular country. This is followed by immediate and complimentary allocation of these lands, for benefiting the certified peasants only.
- One of the main functions of agrarian reform bill is to support conversion of cultivable lands, as well as their re-categorizations into fresh zones.
- An agrarian reform bill lays down that the landed properties of different families will be subjected to automatic confiscation, without any scope for compensation.
- Fair and compulsory reallocation of agricultural lands forms one of the primary objectives of agrarian reform bill.
Genuine Agrarian Reform Bill (GARB), implemented in Philippines, may be considered to be a good example of agrarian reform bill. Drafted very recently, this bill intends to allocate vast tracts of land among the cultivators, without compensating the landlords for the purpose.