Krivenko v. The Registry of Deeds of Manila GR L-630 Nov. 15, 1947 C.J.

Moran FACTS: Alexander Krivenko, an alien, sought to register a lot he bought from the Magdalena Estate, Inc. A war disrupted his registration in December 1941, so he sought registration in 1945. The RD of Manila denied registration because Krivenko was an alien and thus cannot acquire land in this jurisdiction. Via a consulta, he brought the case to the CFI, which sustained the RD. He is arguing that the land is private residential land, and thus does not fall within the ambit of public agricultural land ISSUE: Whether or not an alien under our Constitution may acquire residential land HELD: NO 1. According to Sec. 1 of Art. XIII of the 1935 Constitution, lands are classified into agricultural, timber, and mineral. The term public agricultural lands has acquired a technical meaning, which is those public lands acquired from Spain which are neither mineral nor timberlands (Mapa v. Insular Government). Since residential lands are neither timber nor mineral lands, such lands are classified as agricultural. Another test employed by the court is ascertaining whether such lands are susceptible to cultivation for agricultural purposes. By virtue of Sec. 1 of Art. XIII, only citizens of the PH may own private residential lands. 2. The members of the constitutional Convention had in mind the technical meaning of public agricultural lands when they drafted the Constitution. American Jurisprudence provides that technical terms employed shall be construed according to the meaning which they possessed at the framing and adoption of the Constitution. 3. The National Assembly revised the Public Land Law and passed CA 141, the pertinent provisions of which are as follows: a. Sec. 58, 59, and 60 permit the sale of residential lots to Filipino citizens or associations/corporations controlled by such citizens. This is a solemn declaration that residential lots are agricultural lands, because only agricultural lands may be alienated under the constitution. b. Sec. 9 classifies public agricultural lands into agricultural, residential, commercial, industrial, and for other purposes. This means that public agricultural lands has a broad meaning (which embraces lands neither timber/mineral) and a particular meaning in Sec. 9. Because these lands are alienable and disposable under CA 141 in favour of Filipino citizens, there is a conclusive indication of their character as public agricultural lands under said statute and under the Constitution 4. Previous laws allowed aliens to acquire public agricultural lands, but the Constitution and Secs. 23 and 60 of CA 141 took away the rights of aliens to acquire public agricultural lands, and limited their right to possess via lease 5. To prevent Filipino citizens from alienating agricultural lands in favour of aliens, the framers included Sec. 5 in Art. XIII, which closes the only remaining avenue through which agricultural resources may leak into aliens hands. Sec. 5 i intended to insure the policy of nationalization contained in Section 1, and both provisions must be read together because of their similarity of purpose and subject matter. 6. Prior to the Constitution, Secs. 120 and 121 of Public Land Act No. 2874 granted aliens the right to acquire private lands by way of reciprocity. With the advent of Secs. 122 and 123 of CA 141, the

right to reciprocity granted to aliens is completely stricken out to conform to the policy embodied in Sec. 5 of Art. XIII. DISPOSITIVE: Judgment AFFIRMED