Via-info-en October 2015

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Silence the Guns, Stop the Killings!
by La Vía Campesina 29 Oct '15

29 Oct '15

Silence the Guns, Stop the Killings! [1] Published on Thursday, 29 October 2015 18:16 (Turkey, October 29, 2015) We peasants are the ones who watch over a plant as it comes into leaf and grows tall; who plant seeds, seedlings and saplings in the earth; who are filled with joy when we observe their healthy progress; who lose sleep when they fall sick; who care for our animals like our children. Yet now, we are losing sleep over events in the Middle East and Turkey, we are following developments with great concern. Why? Because war strikes small farmers first. Peasants are being forced to abandon their villages and land. Peasant families are not only losing their land, but also their lives, and they are being forced to migrate. Forests are now being destroyed, the water is being polluted and nature faces ruin. Each new dawn brings more news of massacres. News of massacres in Turkey have been added to the already devastating news of massacres in Syria and Iraq. In June, a bomb exploded in Suruç the midst of a gathering of young people who wanted to take some toys to children in Kobanî, and 33 of them lost their lives. Instead of finding and capturing the perpetrators of the Suruç Massacre by the government, we observe an increasing of police operations targeting progressive and democratic forces. Young people are dying: It makes no difference whether they are soldiers or civilians, Kurdish or Turkish. The peace process has now been declared to have been put "on ice". The policies of the current government are dividing the people in Turkey along lines of race, nationality and religious denomination. Every single social demand, every step for democratic progress is being stifled under oppression. The AKP government and the President have failed to accept the outcome of the June 7, 2015 general election, taking advantage of anti-democratic laws and legal loopholes. The formation of a new government has been blocked; and the President has announced a new snap election. Then, bombs exploded on 10 October in the midst of a peace rally that opposed the policies that rapidly polarize the country and lead to a civil and international war. The rally aimed to raise the voice of peace over war and was organized by DISK (Confederation of Revolutionary Trade Unions), KESK (Confederation of Public Workers Unions), TMMOB (Union of Chambers of Turkish Engineers and Architects), and TTB (Turkish Medical Association). Dozens of mass organizations, including Çiftçi-Sen, and left political parties supported the rally. According to official figures, 97 peace defenders were murdered and 400 were injured in the capital city of the country in front of the eyes of the state authorities. In light of recent events, we demand that the international community and everyone across the world who cares for justice and peace put pressure on the AKP government and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan to abandon their policy of war and anti-democratic practices to Silence the Guns and Stop the Killings! _Çiftçi-Sen (Small Farmer Unions Confederation in Turkey)_ Links: ------ [1] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/main-issues-mainmenu-27/human-rights-m…

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La Via Campesina - Electronic Newsletter, September 2015
by La Vía Campesina 21 Oct '15

21 Oct '15

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"Together, we can cool the planet!" - full video
by La Vía Campesina 16 Oct '15

16 Oct '15

"Together, we can cool the planet!" - full video [1] Published on Friday, 16 October 2015 14:55 [2](Harare, October 16, 2015) For many years, La Vía Campesina and GRAIN have been telling the world about how the agroindustrial food system causes half of all greenhouse gas emissions. But the world's governments are refusing to face these problems head on, and the Paris Summit in December is approaching without any effective commitment to doing so on their part. This new video (Together, we can cool the planet [3]!) by La Vía Campesina and GRAIN gives you the information you need to understand how the agroindustrial food system is impacting our climate, and at the same time what we can do to change course and start cooling the planet. And every single one of us is part of the solution! In the Americas, Asia, Europe and Africa, for many years, we have been criticizing false solutions to climate change like GMOs, the "green" economy, and "climate-smart" agriculture. No two ways about it: the solution to the climate crisis is in the hands of small farmers, along with consumers who choose agroecological products from local markets. This is the message we're taking to the Paris Climate Change Conference this December. Join the campaign! Share this video! Together, we can cool the planet! [3] More information at: http://tv.viacampesina.org [4] http://viacampesina.org [5] http://www.grain.org [6] Food and Climate: https://www.grain.org/article/categories/526-food-and-climate [7] Follow us on Facebook and Twitter: https://www.facebook.com/viacampesinaOFFICIAL [8] @via_campesina [9] facebook.com/GRAIN.org [10]; @GRAIN_org Links: ------ [1] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/actions-and-events-mainmenu-26/-climat… [2] http://viacampesina.org/en/images/2015-10-15%20GrainLVC%20videoccen%201.png [3] http://tv.viacampesina.org/Together-we-can-cool-the-planet?lang=en [4] http://tv.viacampesina.org/ [5] http://viacampesina.org/ [6] http://www.grain.org [7] https://www.grain.org/article/categories/526-food-and-climate [8] https://www.facebook.com/viacampesinaOFFICIAL [9] https://twitter.com/via_campesina [10] http://facebook.com/GRAIN.org

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Brazil: MPA holds a historic peasant congress to build food sovereignty
by La Vía Campesina 15 Oct '15

15 Oct '15

Brazil: MPA holds a historic peasant congress to build food sovereignty [1] Published on Wednesday, 14 October 2015 20:58 [2] More than 4 thousands people, from all Brazilian States, have left their homes and farms to join caravans from different regions of the country towards Sao Paulo, to attend the First National Peasants Congress of MPA, the Small-Farmers Movement of Brazil, member of La Via Campesina. The symbolic Pavilion of Vera Cruz, the same place where the biggest trade union in Brazil, the CUT, and the Workers Party (Partido dos Trabalhadores) were founded, decades ago. MPA has mobilised thousands of rural women and men to come together and consolidate all the work the movement has been doing in the last 20 years and reaffirm their class identity as peasants. MPA is re-affirming at this congress the strategic alliance between rural peasants and urban workers. "This congress has the task to put together what we have built so far in various areas such as health, food production, work on seeds, youth and organisational strengthening. Now, we want to take a great step and consolidate our understanding as a peasant class that we need to articulate with the workers class", said Isabel Ramalho, from MPA National Board. For Deolinda Carrizo, representative of CLOC-Via Campesina, this Congress represents the strength of an organised peasantry, not only in Brazil, but in the world. "This congress represents the struggle for Food Sovereignty, represents the call and action in defence of land, in order to fulfil the social mission of feeding the world. It is an inspiring event", said Carrizo. Former Brazil president, Inacio Lula da Silva, attended the opening of the Congress. Lula started by stressing that the congress is a gold moment in the history of Brazil. In his speech, Lula reminded the participants that the Peasant (and workers) struggle is not only a struggle for land and food. "As small-scale producers you are a social, economic but also political agents. Your struggle is in fact a political one". Lula said that, to call on Brazil Social Movements to take clear positions when it comes to defend what he called "social revolution" that Brazil is reported to have achieved in the last decade, by alleviating poverty in millions of people. Lula mentioned the Bolsa Familia programme that is believed to have taken 36 million people out of poverty in ten years. One of the "achievements" Lula and the current minister of agrarian development, Patrus Ananias, spoke about in the opening of the Congress is the famous Food Purchase Programme, in Brazil known as Programa de Aquisição de Alimentos, that requires that municipalities and federal facilities (hospital, military headquarters, prisons, university restaurants and care centres) purchase at least 30% of the total supply of foodstuffs from small-scale family producers. "This program is a clear signal that our government is strongly committed to your work as small-scale producers", stressed Lula. Although acknowledging the efforts of the former president's government in the social transformation, Isabel Ramalho of MPA seems not to be completely impressed. "It is true that so many people came out of poverty in Brazil, but social and economic inequalities are still scaring. Solving individual problems is not enough. We need a structural transformation in this country", she said. MOBILIZING THE PEASANTRY TO CHALLENGE AGRIBUSINESS MPA is mobilising peasants to take the task of building a peasant agricultural project that fights and challenges the agribusiness model that is still powerful in Brazil. "This same government has also allowed the progress of the capital and of the agribusiness model", said Isabel Ramalho. Brazil is one of the top agribusiness drivers in the world. The country has become the world´s top agricultural exporters. In 2012 Brazil surpassed the United State as the largest buyer of pesticides for its agriculture. Agribusiness, which includes biofuels, is responsible for 27% of the country's GDP and corresponds to at least 37% of the Brazilian export. The First National Congress takes place in a context of a political turbulence in Brazil. The gains that former president Lula talked about may risk being eroded Brazilian President, Workers Party Dilma Rousseff, is facing strong criticism from conservative right wing sectors. In the last years, many street protests called even for the impeachment of President Dilma Rousseff. Brazilian social movements, however, have taken the stand to support Dilma Rousseff since, although not always satisfied with the government policies, "we should not allow a step back on what we have achieved in this country", said Willian Clementino, from National Confederation of Farmworkers. _The communication team of the MPA Peasants Congress_ Links: ------ [1] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/news-from-the-regions-mainmenu-29/1882… [2] http://viacampesina.org/en/images/stories/agrarianreform/congress-mpa.jpg

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Peasants’ rights belong to peasants! Don’t take a single one away!
by La Vía Campesina 14 Oct '15

14 Oct '15

Peasants' rights belong to peasants! Don't take a single one away! [1] Published on Saturday, 10 October 2015 00:33 FINAL STATEMENT OF LA VIA CAMPESINA DURING THE SIXTH SESSION OF THE GOVERNING BODY OF THE INTERNATIONAL TREATY ON PLANT GENETIC RESOURCES FOR FOOD AND AGRICULTURE. ROME, OCTOBER 9TH, 2015 [2] _Thank you Mr. Chair. Ladies and Gentlemen,_ 30 years ago, in this very same room, civil society already suggested the debate on farmers' rights to the FAO. Now, 30 years have gone by; an entire generation. Finally, the Treaty was approved but in reality, its implementation is still incomplete. Together with many farmers' seed networks from across the world, La Via Campesina has warned about the risk of abuses created by the collaboration between the Secretariat and Divseek regarding the access to plant genetic resources and Farmers' Rights. The time has come to reiterate our warning: it must not be allowed that the violations of the principles and rules of governance of the Treaty lead to its destruction. Now, it seems that the Treaty is becoming a "gigabyte treaty" which does not defend farmers' rights, in situ conservation, nor peasant seeds. Given the speed at which the negotiations on the Global Information System are taking place, the Treaty must cease to cooperate with DivSeek. Within the next few years, all genetic material held in public germplasm banks will be sequenced and available for corporations to access without having to sign a SMTA (Standard Material Transfer Agreement). This is a violation of the Treaty. We take the Governing Body's decision to delve into this issue into account. However, we fear that once this will be done, damage will be irreversible. All resources, as they become "dematerialized" will end up becoming a part of the patenting game. La Via Campesina thanks the Governing Body for having permitted civil society to suggest a space which enables greater participation. However, we are outraged by the Governing Body's decision to leave it in the hands of agricultural research, UPOV and WIPO to define farmers' rights, without having foreseen participation of national and international peasants' organizations, which are the ones that keep and renew the diversity of seeds in their fields. La Via Campesina thanks the numerous countries which have supported our suggestions. We also thank the Indonesian government for offering to host the debate on farmers' rights. Nevertheless, we decry the behavior of two countries which have set stumbling blocks in the way of any positive decisions in favor of farmers' rights. Doors for increased peasant participation could be opened. But to do so, first, governments must assume their responsibilities, cooperate fully and open these doors in their own countries. The difficulty in realizing Farmers' Rights is due to the fear of corporations. But we, peasants, are not afraid. The agro industrial system is depleted. It is destroying our biodiversity, our local seeds and production systems. And they do not have a "Plan B". What will happen when all this comes to an end? For industry, the priority is to maximize profits, as quickly as possible. Quite to the contrary, the priority, for peasants' is to feed the world's population and maintain biodiversity, the basis of food production. Governments are responsible for making citizens, city dwellers, consumers and workers participate in this debate. But if governments do not fulfill their duty, La Via Campesina will take the initiative to raise awareness among citizens. La Via Campesina will take action in every country, so that peasants can participate in defining and implementing their own rights as stipulated in the Treaty. _PEASANTS’ RIGHTS BELONG TO PEASANTS!_ _DON’T TAKE A SINGLE ONE AWAY!_ Links: ------ [1] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/main-issues-mainmenu-27/biodiversity-a… [2] http://viacampesina.org/en/images/Foto%20LVC%20Semillas.jpg

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An Open Letter - Threats in Colombia: Serious Concern regarding lack of guarantees
by La Vía Campesina 13 Oct '15

13 Oct '15

An Open Letter - Threats in Colombia: Serious Concern regarding lack of guarantees [1] Published on Tuesday, 13 October 2015 17:02 TO THE PRESIDENT OF COLOMBIA TO THE GOVERNMENTS OF THE EUROPEAN UNION, THE COUNTRIES OF EUROPE, AND THE UNITED STATES TO PUBLIC OPINION October 13th, 2015 _Subject: Threats in Colombia: Serious Concern regarding lack of guarantees_ The government of Juan Manuel Santos and the FARC guerrilla movement recently announced that they had reached an agreement on the topic of Justice, one of the subject under discussion in their ongoing talks in Havana. This is an important step, allowing us to look forward with optimism to the possible signature of an agreement that will bring to an end the armed conflict between the Colombian government and the FARC guerillas after more than 60 years of war, we believe that this is a possibility that must not be lost. Furthermore, we hope that talks, leading to an eventual agreement, will soon be started with the ELN guerrilla movement. At the same time, we see with grave concern that, although there is talk of peace, there are no safeguards for the activities of the social organisations that are working to defend social rights and to oppose an economic model that is deepening inequality and that violates fundamental rights. We observe that human rights defenders, leaders of social movements, parties of the Left, people who are trying to recover their land, and independent journalists continue to be the victims of threats, acts of harassment, attacks and assassinations that are perpetrated by paramilitary groups such as the Urabeños, the Rastrojos, Aguilas Negras or Autodefensas Gaitanistas de Colombia, and others. As was noted in the latest report on attacks against human rights defenders from Front Line Defenders, in 2014 Colombia was the country where there were the most assassinations of human rights defenders, with a total of 42 victims. The "We are Defenders" programme has signalled the fact that in the first 6 months of 2015 alone 399 acts of aggression were committed against human rights defenders and leaders of social movements; 34 human rights defenders were assassinated. We particularly want to draw attention to the following recent incidents: On October 6th, 2015, a threat signed by the paramilitary group Águilas Negras was sent to 8 people and 3 organisations. We want to stress the targetting of Eberto Díaz, member of Fensuagro and a leader of La Via Campesina International, and of several leaders and spokespeople of the Agrarian, Peasant, Ethnic, and Popular Summit, as well as of representatives of the trade union movement and social organisations, and independent journalists - including: Javier Betancourt, Andrés Gil, Carlos Ancízar Rico, Guevara Robert Daza, Jaime Cortez Suarez, la Guardia indígena, Prensa Rural, Julio Roberto Gómez, Jesús Elkin Rodríguez Moya and the CGT (General Confederation of Labour). This is not a question of an isolated incident. At the end of September, a pamphlet was circulated bearing the signature of "the capital bloc of the águilas negras". The pamphlet contained threats against recognised communications media, but its main message concerned more than 100 members of social and human rights organisations, members of the office of the Mayor of Bogotá, and other people connected with local peace processes - all of whom were declared to be military targets. To the foregoing must be added: assassinations, disappearances, and threats against social movement leaders in different regions of the country. These incidents raise the question as to whether the limited security measures offered by the government are sufficient or effective. Conversely, the incidents are evidence of the absence of safeguards for the essential work of human rights advocacy. This situation confirms the existence of important anti-peace forces which want to maintain a state of permanent conflict, in order to further their own interests. If these criminal groups, whether they be called paramilitaries or "bacrim" (criminal bands), are not disbanded and brought before the law - together with those members of the public security forces who maintain ties with them -- we are certain that they will become the seed from which renewed conflict will grow. Only a Peace with guarantees of respect for human rights, and real guarantees for the work of social organisations in the defence of human rights, is a Peace with prospects of lasting. It is imperative that the Colombian State take decisive action and that it disband the paramilitary groups. In addition, the international community of friends of the Colombian peace process: Governments, representatives of civil society, churches, and international organisations, must state firmly and clearly their opposition to the actions of these groups and their support for the legitimate and democratic activities of the different political forces and social movements. We invite the European Union, in accordance with its own commitment to human rights, to observe and accompany the work of human rights defenders in Colombia. _Signing Organisations:_ * Alianza por la Justicia Global * All Nepal Peasants' Federation * Alliance Against Hunger and Malnutrition * Asociacion Sindical de Trabajadores Bananeros Agricolas y Campesinos * Attac * Canadian Community Economic Development Network * Centro de Documentación en Derechos Humanos "Segundo Montes Mozo S.J." * Centro Internazionale Crocevia * Confederación Sindical de Trabajadores/as de las Americas * Confédération Paysanne * Consejo Latinoamericano de Iglesias * Convergence globale des luttes de la Terre et Eau Ouest Africaine * Convergence malienne contre les accaparements de terres * Ecologistas en Accion * Farmworker Association of Florida * FOS Andes * Fundacion Mundubat * Global Forest Coalition * GRAIN * Grupo Sur * Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy * La Vía Campesina * México vía Berlin * Mouvement contre le Racisme et pour l'Amitié entre les peuples * Plataforma Interamericana de Derechos Humanos, Democracia y Desarrollo * Réseau Maghrébin d'Associations de Développement Local en milieu Rural * Sindicato Galego Labrego * SOA Watch Austin * SOLdePaz-Pachakuti * Solidaridad Suecia - America Latina * Transnational Institute * Union Paysanne * Uniterre * World Forum of Fisher Peoples Links: ------ [1] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/main-issues-mainmenu-27/human-rights-m…

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16th October - International Day of Action for Peoples’ Food Sovereignty and against transnational corporations
by La Vía Campesina 13 Oct '15

13 Oct '15

16th October - International Day of Action for Peoples' Food Sovereignty and against transnational corporations [1] Published on Monday, 12 October 2015 19:32 CALL FOR ACTION: _AS THE WORLD MARKS WORLD FOOD DAY ON THE 16TH OCTOBER, WE CALL FOR TRUE SOLUTIONS TO CLIMATE CHANGE, FOR FOOD SOVEREIGNTY, AND FOR AN END TO THE CORPORATE CONTROL OF OUR FOOD AND OUR LIVES. _ [2](Watch the trailer of the video "Together we can cool the planet! [3]" to be launched this October 16) (Harare, October 12, 2015) La Via Campesina calls its members and allies, and civil society organizations to mobilize and organize actions on October 16th, THE INTERNATIONAL DAY OF ACTION FOR PEOPLES’ FOOD SOVEREIGNTY AND AGAINST TRANSNATIONAL CORPORATIONS (TNCS). The current climate, hunger and migrant and refugee crises affecting millions of peasants, small farmers, families, especially women and youth show that corporate solutions are false and won't yield human dignity. TNCs displace and dispossess millions of peasants and family farmers, women and men of their land, forests, water and territories to set up profit seeking destructive enterprises.Globally, over 1.2 billion peasants and their families : ensure food sovereignty and the right to food by providing up to 80% of locally consumed food and cool the planet and conserve biodiversity and seeds. On October 16th, let us raise our voices and resist land grabbing,_so-called climate smart agriculture_ laden with agro-toxins and genetically-modified seeds; and call for a radical transformation towards a fair and decent food system for all. _We continue to propose wider adoption of agroecology and the construction of people's food sovereignty._ The power and impunity of TNCs through _"bribery democracy"_ stifles peoples' voices in_policies and legislative processes_ at all levels. Democracy wanes as governing classes scheme with TNCs in search for more private profits. They use Free Trade Agreements (TTIP, CETA, TTP, EPAs etc.) to dominate, discriminate and monopolize in an attempt to survive the capitalist crisis. Neither nature nor humanity are respected but rather are destroyed and exploited to regenerate TNCs and create new markets for profits. Thus,millions of affected people leave their territories, migrate to developed industries countries. The recent surge in migrants from North Africa, the Middle East, Asia and Latin America is also a testament to the geopolitical conflicts and neo-liberal economic interests that cause wars and displacement. _We decry and denounce the current cruel migration policies, as well as all measures put in place to prevent or to complicate the free access to Europe [4][i],US and other developed countries. We denounce the incoherence of the neoliberal system that claims free access for goods but create borders for human beings. _We push for a system change that recognizes peoples' needs, accords dignity and respects nature, and people not profits! To globalize the struggle and the hope, share your actions by sending us (lvcweb(a)viacampesina.org) photographs and videos, marches, forums, stories and other actions, which we will share through our website (viacampesina.org/en/ [5]), TV (tv.viacampesina.org/ [6]) and social media. ------------------------- [7][i] The European Coordination Via Campesina in solidarity with migrants [8]; See also We who come from Africa, the Maghreb and other countries [9] Links: ------ [1] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/main-issues-mainmenu-27/food-sovereign… [2] http://viacampesina.org/en/images/2015-10-12%20Foto%2016%20Oct%20EN.jpg [3] http://tv.viacampesina.org/Together-we-can-cool-the-planet?lang=en [4] file:///C:/Users/nyoni/Downloads/2015-09-25%20Draft%20call%20for%20October%2016th%202015.docx#_edn1 [5] http://viacampesina.org/en/ [6] http://tv.viacampesina.org/?lang=en [7] file:///C:/Users/nyoni/Downloads/2015-09-25%20Draft%20call%20for%20October%2016th%202015.docx#_ednref1 [8] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/main-issues-mainmenu-27/migrations-and… [9] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/main-issues-mainmenu-27/migrations-and…

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Via Campesina and other social movements in Rome to warn against threat of new patents
by La Vía Campesina 06 Oct '15

06 Oct '15

VIA CAMPESINA AND OTHER SOCIAL MOVEMENTS IN ROME TO WARN AGAINST THREAT OF NEW PATENTS [1] Published on Tuesday, 06 October 2015 15:17 [2]MEDIA RELEASE (Rome, October 5, 2015) La Via Campesina and other social movements came to Rome from 5-9 October for the Sixth Session of the Governing Body of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (IT-PGRFA) to warn the Governing Body against the threat of new patents on native seeds. The Seed Treaty is the only international agreement that clearly recognizes the right of farmers to save, use, exchange and sell their seeds. The Member States of the Treaty have the responsibility of realizing farmers' rights, but so far nothing has been done. Until now, the Treaty has not been able to guarantee the promised sharing of benefits. The industry, which has been using our seeds for breeding, has never paid anything. Quite to the contrary, more than 10 years after it entered into force, we have seen a shift towards the patenting of our native seeds' genes, thereby turning the Treaty into a tool of biopiracy, serving industry's interests. This is why LVC decided to share its concern with the Governing Body of the Treaty by presenting the statement signed together with many other peasants' seed networks around the globe. You will find the full text of the statement here [3] _Contact in Rome_ Ivan Mammana 0039 3407801399 (ES-EN-FR-IT) Links: ------ [1] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/main-issues-mainmenu-27/biodiversity-a… [2] http://viacampesina.org/en/images/2015-10-06-GuyTIRPAA.jpg [3] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/main-issues-mainmenu-27/biodiversity-a…

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Victory of the peasants’ movement in the struggle for the recognition of their rights within the UN
by La Vía Campesina 06 Oct '15

06 Oct '15

Victory of the peasants' movement in the struggle for the recognition of their rights within the UN [1] Published on Tuesday, 06 October 2015 15:33 PRESS RELEASE - LA VIA CAMPESINA (Geneva, October 5, 2015) On the afternoon of October 1st 2015, the United Nations Human Rights Council adopted by majority a resolution where it decides that the open-ended intergovernmental working group, with the mandate to negotiate, finalize and submit to the Human Rights Council a draft United Nations declaration on the rights of peasants and other people working in rural areas, shall continue the process for the next two years. The resolution was presented by the governments of Bolivia, Ecuador, Cuba and South Africa and sponsored among others by Switzerland, Brazil, Eritrea and Argentina, in a joint effort from all regions to support this decisive step. In the final vote, the US government was the only one to vote against. The governments of Europe have abstained from voting and have continued with the same bloc-voting position as in June 2014, in the vote on resolution 26/26. In total, 31 countries voted in favor, 15 abstained, and only one voted against.* La Via Campesina, an international movement which brings together more than 180 organizations from around the world and that represents approximately 200 million peasants, has together with FIAN and CETIM, taken a historic momentum to this process by positioning for the first time within a UN mechanism, a project intended to fill the gaps in human rights legislation of the rural population and rural fishing communities, nomadic peoples, pastoralists, rural workers, landless, rural women and indigenous peoples. The current draft statement submitted by the government of Bolivia in Geneva in February 2015 during the last working group, advocates for a universal charter containing a set of rights in order to improve the conditions of those who live in rural areas and produce 80% of the food in the world. In the days before the vote, leaders from all continents were present in Geneva in order to alert governments about the growing conditions of exclusion, land grabbing, repression and criminalization faced by peasants' organizations and the devastating effects of agrochemicals on the health of rural and peasant population. Meanwhile, national organizations supported the work done in Geneva by carrying out lobbying activities in the capitals. La Via Campesina and alliances redouble efforts to demonstrate that there is no North-South division in the violations of the rights of the peasants' population against the reluctance of many northern states to accept the need for such a statement. La Via Campesina advocates for a model of peasant agriculture in both the North and the Global South based on agroecology and equal relations between peasants. Finally, La Via Campesina wants to express its deep appreciation to the Governments of Bolivia, South Africa, Cuba and Ecuador for their continuous efforts within the Human Rights Council to carry out this initiative emanating from the peasant movement, highlighting an example of good governance, dialogue and involvement of farmers' organizations, civil society and governments. ------------------------- _*__ Results of the vote on the resolution_ In favor (31): Algeria, Botswana, Congo, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gabon, Ghana, Kenya, Morocco, Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa, Sierra Leone, Bangladesh, China, India,Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Maldives, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Vietnam, Argentina,Bolivia, Brazil, Cuba, El Salvador, Paraguay, Venezuela, Russia / Votes abstention (15): France, Germany, Ireland, Netherlands, Portugal, United Kingdom, Macedonia, Montenegro, Latvia, Estonia, Albania, Mexico, Qatar, Japan, Korea / negative Feedback(1): United States Links: ------ [1] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/main-issues-mainmenu-27/human-rights-m…

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Soon on your screen : Together we can cool the planet
by La Vía Campesina 01 Oct '15

01 Oct '15

TOGETHER WE CAN COOL THE PLANET [1] (Harare, October 1, 2015) GET READY TO WATCH A SHORT FILM ABOUT THE FOOD SYSTEM AND THE CLIMATE CRISIS! On October 16, World Day of Action for Food Sovereignty, Rosalía will tell us how "together we can cool the planet [1]"! The connections between the agro-industrial food system and the climate crisis are explained in a video by the small farmers of the world, along with the solutions that we can build together to respond to this crisis. Click here [1] to watch the trailer and spread the word! MORE INFORMATION AT: tv.viacampesina.org [2] viacampesina.org [3] grain.org [4] Follow us on Facebook and Twitter: facebook.com/viacampesinaOFFICIAL [5] @via_campesina facebook.com/GRAIN.org [6]; @GRAIN_org Links: ------ [1] http://tv.viacampesina.org/Together-we-can-cool-the-planet?lang=en [2] http://tv.viacampesina.org/ [3] http://viacampesina.org/ [4] http://www.grain.org/ [5] http://facebook.com/viacampesinaOFFICIAL [6] http://facebook.com/GRAIN.org

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Via-info-en October 2015