“Nothing about us without us”, say peasants as the Farmers’ Rights Global Consultation begins in Bali
by La Via Campesina
PRESS RELEASE:
"NOTHING ABOUT US WITHOUT US", SAY PEASANTS AS THE FARMERS' RIGHTS
CONSULTATION BEGINS IN BALI [1]
[2]AT FARMERS' RIGHTS GLOBAL CONSULTATION IN BALI, GLOBAL PEASANTS'
MOVEMENT LA VIA CAMPESINA TO DEFEND PEASANT-SEED SYSTEMS AND INSIST
PEASANT PARTICIPATION IN DECISION MAKING.
BALI, 27 SEPTEMBER 2016:
A delegation comprising peasants, women and men, indigenous people and
youth from various regions of the world will represent La Via Campesina
at the Farmers' Rights Global Consultation, to be held between 27-30 of
September in Bali, organized by the Government of Indonesia with support
from The Government of Norway and The International Treaty on Plant
Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA).
Serikat Petani Indonesia (SPI), the Indonesian Peasants' Union and a
member of La Via Campesina is hosting the movement's delegation coming
from Asia, Africa, Europe and Latin America.
The Treaty, which is housed inside the Food and Agricultural
Organisation (FAO) and despite its decade long existence, has done
little to advance 'farmers' rights', which is one of its key provisions.
In this regard, the delegation of rural peasants and indigenous people
representing La Via Campesina will be calling upon the Treaty and the
contracting parties (governments) to recognize and implement peasants'
rights and to reject the Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) legislations
and patent laws that endanger food sovereignty.
The selected seeds kept by peasants in their fields are one of the
irreplaceable pillars of food production. Peasants all over the world
have been aware of this throughout the centuries. It is one of the most
universal and basic understandings that all peasants share. Except in
those cases where they have suffered external aggressions or extreme
circumstances, almost all peasant communities know how to save, store
and share seeds. Millions of families and farming communities have
worked to create hundreds of crops and thousands of varieties of these
crops. The regular exchange of seeds among communities and peoples has
allowed crops to adapt to different conditions, climates and
topographies. This is what has allowed farming to spread and grow and
feed the world with a diversified diet.
Therefore, peasants' unconditional and unrestricted access to a diverse
range of peasant seeds and their right to keep, use, exchange and sell
farm seeds is the first condition necessary for feeding the world. In
defense of the peasant-seed systems, at the consultation, La Via
Campesina delegation will speak for the right to protect traditional and
modern peasant knowhow and defend it from the assault of IPR laws.
Right here in Indonesia where the consultation is taking place, peasants
in East Java have been criminalised for allegedly infringing the rights
of a company called BISI, the subsidiary of Thai seed company Charoen
Pokhpand. Although BISI has produced no evidence, farmers have been
summoned to court and fourteen of them have been prosecuted; there have
even been short jail sentences[1] [3]. In most cases, these farmers did
not have a lawyer to represent them and they did not understand what
they had done wrong. There are numerous such examples worldwide, of
criminalization of peasants by the industry in the name of patents and
intellectual property. It is this blatant violation of peasants' rights
that La Via Campesina will challenge at the Global Consultation.
The delegation will also emphasise that the peasant participation in
decision making must not be reduced to the inclusion of a few
organisations who bow to pressure from the industry and accept decisions
already made. Furthermore, participation must not also not be reduced to
just big landholders, but must include women, indigenous people,
landless peasants, landless agricultural workers, fisherfolk and
pastoralists.
La Via Campesina urges the Treaty and the Contracting parties to look at
progressive laws that are passed in various regions of the world, the
most recent being the one passed by the Government of Venezuela[2] [4]
early this year, which upholds national food sovereignty, regulate the
production of hybrid seed, and rejects the production, distribution and
import of GMO seed. Governments of Indonesia, Mali, Nepal and several
others have already adopted food sovereignty as a principle, some of
them even enacting this into law (e.g. Indonesia).
La Via Campesina also demands that the 'Benefit-Sharing Fund' must not
finance research institutions and other institutions devoted to
collecting peasant seeds and knowhow and other genetic information aimed
at facilitating the excise of patents. Instead, it must directly finance
small peasant organisations that select, produce and conserve their
seeds locally, the best peasant conservation field or long duration
techniques (for example without electricity), researchers who
collaborate in this collective work under the direction of these farmers
and exchanges of associated peasant knowhow on a national and
international level.
~Ends~
-------------------------
[1] [5]
https://www.grain.org/article/entries/5142-seed-laws-that-criminalise-far...
Asia struggles
[2] [6]
http://www.gmwatch.org/news/latest-news/16602-venezuela-passes-national-a...
FOR MEDIA ENQUIRIES CONTACT;
1. Indonesian Media: (English, Bahasa) - Zainal - zainal(a)spi.or.id
2. Global Media: Abhilash Babu - abhilash(a)viacampesina.org
EDITOR'S NOTE:
The following organisations are part of the La Via Campesina Delegation
in Bali; Zimbabwe Small Holder Organic Farmers' Forum (ZIMSOFF),
Movimento dos Pequenos Agricultores (MPA, Brazil), Movement for Land and
Agriculture Reform (MONLAR, Srilanka), Serikat Petani Indonesia,
Confédération Paysanne (France), Indian Coordination Committee of
Farmers' Movements (ICCFM), Assembly of Poor (Thailand), Coordinador
Nacional Agrario-CAN (Colombia).
To know more about La Via Campesina visit: www.viacampesina.org [7]
Links:
------
[1]
https://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/main-issues-mainmenu-27/biodiversit...
[2]
https://viacampesina.org/en/images/2016-09-27%20Bali%20Seeds%20Meeting%20...
[3] cid:part4.989534EE.7FAB0B10@viacampesina.org
[4] cid:part5.BA57954D.5F55617C@viacampesina.org
[5] cid:part6.C4386805.255145C8@viacampesina.org
[6] cid:part7.76E3FF62.C291E7AD@viacampesina.org
[7] http://www.viacampesina.org/
8 years, 3 months
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La Via Campesina | e-Newsletter | August 2016
by La Via Campesina
La Via Campesina | e-Newsletter | August, 2016
Donate [1]
This edition of the newsletter is the result of a collective effort of
organisations, which are part of_ La Via Campesina_ movement worldwide.
To subscribe click here [2]
'TTIP STALLS, WTO AND FTAS MUST FALL' | PRESS RELEASE: INTERNATIONAL DAY
AGAINST WTO AND FTAS
-------------------------
On September the 10th, the International Day of Action Against WTO and
Free Trade Agreements, La Via Campesina, the International Peasant
Movement that brings together over 200 million peasants from 164 member
organisations in 73 countries, commemorates the death of Lee Kyung Hae
and continues to struggle to END WTO.
[3]
We call upon, on this day, our member organisations, allies and social
movements of the world to mobilize against the neoliberal agenda of the
WTO which promotes corporate power over humanity. We must continue to
struggle to build a world based on food sovereignty. Read full press
release [3]
NEWS FROM AROUND THE WORLD
MORE FARMERS, BETTER FOOD - A FRAMEWORK FOR BRITISH AGRICULTURAL POLICY
-------------------------
The Landworkers' Alliance today announces eight key recommendations that
will form the foundation of our post-Brexit representations to Defra and
the Government's Environmental Audit Committee. Read More [4]
WORLD SOCIAL FORUM 2016 | DAY 1 HIGHLIGHTS
-------------------------
Several delegates comprising women, men, youth, and representing
peasants and migrant agricultural and rural workers from several regions
of La Via Campesina, are carrying messages of global solidarity and food
sovereignty at the 2016 World Social Forum being held at Montreal,
Canada. Read More [5]
SOUTHERN AFRICA PERMANENT PEOPLES TRIBUNAL (PPT) ON TRANSNATIONAL
CORPORATIONS
-------------------------
The time has come to unite our struggles in Southern Africa - the
campaigns, networks, movements and organizations that are combating
transnational corporations - the way they are exploiting our destinies,
natural heritage and human rights, dismantling public services,
destroying the commons, fomenting violence and endangering food
sovereignty in every corner of the continent. Read More [6]
PRESS INVITATION: NYÉLÉNI EUROPE
-------------------------
Up to 1,000 people from 42 countries - small-scale farmers, fishers,
pastoralists, consumers, urban gardeners, indigenous peoples,
researchers, agricultural workers, environmentalists, human rights
defenders and trade unionists - will converge from all over Europe for a
series of workshops and discussions on how to take back control of the
farming and food system. Read More [7]
SHASHE AGROECOLOGY SCHOOL: A TRUE CENTRE OF AGROECOLOGY AND PRACTICAL
FOOD SOVEREIGNTY
-------------------------
Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has hosted on it's Family
Farming Knowledge Platform profiles of successful agroecology, carried
out by members of La Via Campesina(LVC). This joint effort comes as part
of the collaboration between FAO and LVC to promote agroecology. Read
More [8]
LA VIA CAMPESINA DISCUSSES THE CRIMINALIZATION OF MOVEMENTS AND THE
RIGHTS OF PEASANTS
-------------------------
About 60 participants from 18 countries of Africa, Asia, Europe, and the
Americas participate in this Via Campesina Conference on Human Rights.
Read More [9]
BUILDING GLOBAL ALLIANCES AND CONVERGENCES FOR ALTERNATIVES TO
CAPITALISM
-------------------------
La Vía Campesina Youth Participate in Brazil's 2016 'International
Summit for Struggling Youth': Building global alliances and convergences
for alternatives to capitalism. Read More [10]
THANK YOU NICOLAS; FARMWORKER, FRIEND AND TIRELESS FIGHTER FOR HUMANITY
-------------------------
On the occasion of the death of our dear friend Nicolas Duntze, the
Coordinating Committee and Working Group on Migration and Rural Workers
of ECVC would like to extend our deepest sympathies to both his family
and the Paysanne Confederation of France. Read More [11]
DECLARATION OF LVC DELEGATION TO THE 2016 WORLD SOCIAL FORUM
-------------------------
We, representatives of member organizations of La Vía Campesina from the
North America Region (Union Paysanne from Quebec, National Farmers
Union, Canada, National Family Farm Coalition, Rural Coalition and
Border Agricultural Workers Project from United States), accompanied by
LVC members from Europe, Palestine and Brazil took part in the World
Social Forum in Montreal, Quebec from August 9-14, 2016. Read More [12]
THE STRUGGLE FOR DEMOCRATIC REPRESENTATION IN QUEBEC GETS A BOOST AT THE
2016 WSF
-------------------------
For years, Union paysanne members have been organizing to break the
monopoly of the Union of Agricultural Producers (UPA) over the
representation of farmers in Quebec. Read More [13]
STATEMENT FROM THE POPULAR UNIVERSITY OF SOCIAL MOVEMENTS WORKSHOP HELD
AT HARARE
-------------------------
>From July 12-14 2016, various social movements and academics from
Zimbabwe, Mozambique, South Africa, Ivory Coast, Spain and Portugal
gathered in Zimbabwe's capital, Harare to discuss and debate the state
of land, seeds, food, climate and people in Southern Africa. Read More
[14]
OVER 15 YEARS' STRUGGLE FOR THE RECOGNITION OF PEASANTS IN THE
INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS SYSTEM
-------------------------
The current draft Declaration is the result of the work undertaken by La
Via Campesina (LVC) over more than 15 years, supported by FIAN
International and CETIM (Europe Third World Centre), with the support of
other social movements. Read More [15]
ZERO BUDGET NATURAL FARMING IN INDIA
-------------------------
Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has hosted on it's Family
Farming Knowledge Platform profiles of successful agroecology, carried
out by members of La Via Campesina(LVC). This joint effort comes as part
of the collaboration between FAO and LVC to promote agroecology.
Featured here is the profile of Amritabhoomi in Karnataka, that promotes
Zero Budget Natural Farming.. Read More [16]
"WE SHALL NOT REST UNTIL WE'VE FREED ALL OUR POLITICAL PRISONERS",
AFFIRMS VIA CAMPESINA
-------------------------
Between 18th and 20th August, La Via Campesina held a Conference on
Human Rights at the Florestan Fernandes National School (Guararema, São
Paulo) in which people's lawyers, rural movements and organisations
discussed the criminalisation of the worldwide struggle borne by social
movements. They brought forth a multitude of proposals aimed at
strengthening, expanding and substantiating LVC's Collective of Human
Rights.. Read More [17]
[18]
WSF 2016: Carlos Marentes from La Via Campesina, Pat Mooney ETC group,
Lise-Anne Leveille Union Paysanne-La Via Campesina, Eric Holt-Giménez
Foodfirst, debating about corporate strategy to control the food system.
Watch Now [19]
Video Credit: Focus Puller / WSF TV
[20]
WSF 2016: Dena Hoff from La Via Campesina North America, spoke at the
session on "Climate Change - Crisis or Collapse?" held at Université du
Québec à Montréal. In this video, she speaks about the movement's
efforts of setting up agroecology schools around the world. Watch Now
[21]
Video Credit: Focus Puller / WSF TV
[22]
WSF 2016: Youssef Nasser, from the Union of Agricultural Committee in
Palestine speaks about the dispossession and lack of access to land and
water under the Israel regime. Watch Now [23]
Video Credit: Focus Puller / WSF TV
[24]
WSF 2016: Several delegates comprising women, men, youth, and
representing peasants and migrant agricultural and rural workers from
several regions of La Via Campesina, carried messages of global
solidarity and food sovereignty at the 2016 World Social Forum that was
held at Montreal, Canada from 9-14 August. Watch Now [23]
Video Credit: Focus Puller / WSF TV
[24]
WSF 2016: Several delegates comprising women, men, youth, and
representing peasants and migrant agricultural and rural workers from
several regions of La Via Campesina, carried messages of global
solidarity and food sovereignty at the 2016 World Social Forum that was
held at Montreal, Canada from 9-14 August. Watch Now [23]
Video Credit: Focus Puller / WSF TV
[25]
WSF 2016: Carlos Marentes of La Via Campesina North America explains
what is Popular Agrarian Reform. He was talking in a panel organized by
WhyHunger with the participation of First Nation representative, Food
First in the World Social Forum, Montreal, Canada. Watch Now [26]
Video Credit: Focus Puller / WSF TV
[27]
WSF 2016: Farmers from Union Paysanne Quebec and La Via Campesina
readout the final declaration of the AgroEcology Alliance, at the World
Social Forum in Quebec. The forum took place from 9-14 August 2016.
Watch Now [28]
Video Credit: Focus Puller / WSF TV
[29]
WSF 2016: First Nation, La Via Campesina, WhyHungher and Food First
representative met to talk and share opinion and common future
struggles. Watch Now [30]
Video Credit: Focus Puller / WSF TV
[31]
What does it mean to be a peasant in Romania?
By Carlo Bolzoni and Guglielmo Del Signore for Eco Ruralis association.
Watch Now [32]
YOU ARE AN IMPORTANT PART OF THE AUTONOMY OF OUR MOVEMENT
-------------------------
As a supporter who has contributed financial resources to La Via
Campesina, and as an activist who joins us on the streets and in the
fields, your support is always welcome and put to good use.
You can renew your contribution to La Via Campesina by clicking on the
Donate button on our home page [33] and following the link to our PayPal
account. [34]
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[18] https://vimeo.com/178435106
[19]
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[27] https://vimeo.com/179296458
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[31]
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8 years, 3 months
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TTIP Stalls, WTO and FTAs Must Fall | Press Release: International Day Against WTO and FTAs
by La Via Campesina
Press Release: International Day Against WTO and FTAs
TTIP Stalls, WTO and FTAs Must Fall
[1]On September the 10th, the International Day of Action Against WTO,
La Via Campesina, the International Peasant Movement that brings
together over 200 million peasants from 164 member organisations in 73
countries, commemorates the death of Lee Kyung Haeand continues to
struggle to END WTO.
Last year in Kenya, Nairobi at the 10th WTO ministerial meeting
tradenegotiations had to be rescued on the last hour [2] to save face as
WTO sought to reinvent and seek legitimacy in Africa [3]. WTO members
held their first informal meeting of agriculture negotiations post the
Nairobi meeting on 8 March this year to discuss the way forward on
agriculture talks. We must increasingly mobilise to END WTO and to leave
agriculture out of the WTO as they prepare for the 11th ministerial
meeting in 2017.
On this 13th anniversary of Farmer Lee Kyung Hae's martyrdom, we reject
the bilateral and multi-lateral Free Trade Agreements that are
anti-people, anti-democracy and that which threaten people's control
over their own resources. His words continue to ring true _"My warning
goes out to all citizens that human beings are in an endangered
situation. That uncontrolled multinational corporations and a small
number of big WTO Members are leading an undesirable globalization that
is inhumane, environmentally degrading, farmer-killing, and
undemocratic. It should be stopped immediately. Otherwise the false
logic of neoliberalism will wipe out the diversity of global agriculture
and be disastrous to all human beings."_
The free trade agreements such as the Comprehensive Economic Trade
Agreement (CETA), Transpacific Partnership (TPP), RCEP are designed to
benefit big corporates while killing millions of family and smallholder
farmers. Since the adoption of FTAs we have witnessed drastic decline of
numbers of peasant farmers as their local markets and farmland are taken
over by big corporates. Mother nature has not been spared either as FTAs
compromise environmental protection and animal welfare. Food safety too,
affecting peoples' health. Moreover, FTAs through contentious
Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) mechanism erode state
sovereignty and leave them at the mercy of big transnational
corporations (TNCs). We call upon our governments to commit to build
robust public and institutional procurement programs which allow farmers
to access to stable, participatory and remunerative markets for farm
produce.
The controversial Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP)
deal between the EU and US is falling apart as negotiations have all but
stalled. This is significant step in our mobilisation against FTAs and
an opportunity to expose more their fallacies and bring an end to such
deals.
Farmer Lee wasn't just anybody. He had founded a cooperative and
farmers' association in Korea, served as a state legislator, and had
been recognized by the government of Korea and by the United Nations as
an outstanding farmer. Yet he lost his land, as did millions of other
Korean farmers, after his government signed the General Agreement of
Tariffs and Trade (GATT) in 1992, the predecessor of the WTO.
We call upon, on this day, our member organisations, allies and social
movements of the world to mobilize against the neoliberal agenda of the
WTO which promotes corporate power over humanity. We must continue to
struggle to build a world based on food sovereignty.
DOWN DOWN WTO
END WTO
STOP FTAS
FOOD SOVEREIGNTY NOW!
Links:
------
[1] https://viacampesina.org/en/images/2016-09-08%20Sept%2010%20PR.png
[2]
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[3]
https://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/actions-and-events-mainmenu-26/10-y...
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