La Via Campesina Political Declaration: 30 years of collective struggle, hope and solidarity
by La Via Campesina
LA VIA CAMPESINA POLITICAL DECLARATION: 30 YEARS OF COLLECTIVE STRUGGLE,
HOPE AND SOLIDARITY
15 APRIL 2022 FOOD SOVEREIGNTY [1], KEY DOCUMENTS (FOOD SOVEREIGNTY)
[2], WHAT ARE WE FIGHTING FOR? [3]
This 17th April, the International Day of Action for Peasant Struggles,
we commemorate the 26 years of the Eldorado dos Carajás massacre of
peasants in Brazil and resist the criminalization, oppression and
repression of our struggles for life. On this day, we also commence a
moment to celebrate 30 years of building collective struggles, hope and
solidarity in service of humanity.
We, La Via Campesina, the international peasant voice of the millions of
peasants, women and men, youth, small and medium-size farmers, family
farmers, landless, indigenous people, migrants and agricultural workers
from 182 local and national organisations in 81 countries from Africa,
Asia, Europe and the Americas refuse to disappear but continue grow in
strength. Through persistence, perseverance and hope, we have harvested
major victories: food sovereignty recognised and adopted by some
countries, agroecology recognised and supported by Food and Agriculture
Organisation (FAO) and United Nations Declaration of the Rights of
Peasants and Other People working in the Rural Areas (UNDROP) adopted by
UN General Assembly. We continue to occupy important multilateral spaces
of global food governance to influence debate and contribute in support
of food sovereignty, agroecology and popular agrarian reform.
We are alert to the current global context and the need to strengthen
our struggle. The worsening geopolitical conflict as the liberal
international order led by US collapses, the imperialist offensive
against the masses and criminalisation of social movements. The
corporate media are increasingly involved in the violation of democratic
systems and human rights through censorship and surveillance.
Big corporations recently joined forces to capture of global
multilateral food governance and climate change spaces in the United
Nations. The ongoing conflicts and wars in Africa, Americas, Asia and
Europe. The worsening climate crisis and health crisis due to COVID-19.
All these have aggravated the suffering. Thus, we witness record high
levels of poverty, hunger and inequalities globally and increased
criminalisation for demanding social justice and dignity. Thus, millions
of people are forced to abandon their territories and migrate to other
countries, where some face more injustices.
We reject this neoliberal model that runs counter to our collective
vision of harmony with nature, unity and peace. We affirm our commitment
to continue to build democratic societies against imperialism. Over the
last 30 years, together with our allies, we have been collectively
building hope and solidarity through food sovereignty putting humanity,
Mother Earth and social justice at the centre. We stand firm in
internationalist solidarity with all who struggle for life, rights and
dignity.
Last year, in 2021, we celebrated a quarter century of building of and
pushing for food sovereignty and also initiated debate to critically
reflect on our achievements, victories and propose actions for the
future including participating in the Global Nyeleni Forum planned in
2023.
WHAT DO WE NEED FROM GOVERNMENTS AND INSTITUTIONS TO CONTINUE FEEDING
THE WORLD?
* Implement a democratic and extensive agrarian reform which allows
the peoples to have sovereignty over their natural resources and over
their food on both the production and the distribution processes.
* Recognize the work we are already doing and promote successful
examples of our ability to feed people. While we produce and exchange
the majority of the world's food, our markets are largely ignored in
policy of governments and institutions. Trade is needed but a different
kind, which does not exploit people, nature and benefits communities and
not corporations.
* Scale out and up Peasant Agroecology as a solution to climate
crisis, loss of biodiversity and soil fertility. Due to unsustainable
industrial agricultural practices, we see a unique opportunity for
agroecology as many countries want to transition to "sustainable farming
methods" and reduce use of toxic agro-inputs.
* Implement UNDROP through creating a UN special procedure and
mainstreaming the declaration in FAO, other Rome-based agencies in
relation to food and agricultural policies, and also the UN Decade of
Family Farming. This would allow referencing of UNDROP in policies to
reshape and transform our societies.
HOW DO WE ADVANCE OUR STRUGGLES FROM LA VIA CAMPESINA?
* Roll out massive training and awareness, among members, on UNDROP so
that they lead the wide promotion of essential components of public
policies in their countries in favour food sovereignty, agroecology and
the recognition and respect of rights of peasants.
* Build and strengthen diversity and inclusiveness against violence
and oppression. Embracing diversity is key to _"Building the Movement to
change the world". _Today our movement the youth, women, cultural and
gender diversities (LGBTQI) are the majority and in leadership.
* Build Peasant and Popular Feminism to define and shape gender
relations in our movement, and as a political tool against all forms of
violence.
* Strengthen the Migrant and Waged Agricultural Workers' Collective as
a space to increase visibility to their issues.
* Advance work against the impunity of transnational corporations
(TNCs) and contribute to the binding treaty process to regulate TNCs
* To understand the complex and fluid world and adapt our strategies,
we are:
- Building new alliances and strengthening the existing ones to learn
and share experiences through collective analysis and formation, and
defend a future based on food sovereignty.
-Increasing and strengthening political and technical formation. We will
promote popular peasant methods and technologies that engage women and
youth in the defense of rural livelihoods. Again, we should master new
ways of communication in service of humanity to reach many people
defending their rights and in support of food sovereignty.
#LVC30YEARS #17APRIL2022 _#NoFutureWithoutFoodSovereignty
#FoodSovereigntyNOW_
EN-Final-April-17th-Declaration-14-04-2022-1 [4]DOWNLOAD [4]
Facebook [5]Twitter [6]WhatsApp [7]Telegram [8]Email [9]
Featured [10] LVC30Years [11]
Links:
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[1]
https://viacampesina.org/en/what-are-we-fighting-for/food-sovereignty-and...
[2]
https://viacampesina.org/en/what-are-we-fighting-for/food-sovereignty-and...
[3] https://viacampesina.org/en/what-are-we-fighting-for/
[4]
https://viacampesina.org/en/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2022/04/EN-Final-A...
[5] https://viacampesina.org/#facebook
[6] https://viacampesina.org/#twitter
[7] https://viacampesina.org/#whatsapp
[8] https://viacampesina.org/#telegram
[9] https://viacampesina.org/#email
[10] https://viacampesina.org/en/tag/zoom-on-featured/
[11] https://viacampesina.org/en/tag/lvc30years/
2 years, 8 months
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Call for Global Solidarity Actions | #17April2022 | International Day of Peasant Struggles
by La Via Campesina
THIRTY YEARS OF OUR COLLECTIVE STRUGGLE FOR JUSTICE, PEACE, LIFE AND
DIGNITY!
CALL FOR GLOBAL SOLIDARITY ACTIONS | BAGNOLET | 01 APRIL 2022 [2]
-------------------------
17 April is the International Day of Peasant Struggles, commemorated by
La Via Campesina every year to remember the Eldorado do Carajás massacre
[3] in 1996 and to highlight the continued criminalization, oppression
and repression of peasants, workers, and indigenous people communities
worldwide.
This year also marks a special milestone in the life of La Via
Campesina. We are entering the fourth decade of our collective struggles
for food sovereignty, popular agrarian reform and dignity. Peasant and
indigenous peoples' organizations sowed the first seeds of the global
movement at a gathering in Managua in 1992. La Via Campesina took its
formal birth in 1993 at the first international conference in Mons,
Belgium.
The world is in a difficult place at the moment. The food crisis
continues to deepen while hunger and social injustices worsen each day,
further aggravated by a COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, conflicts,
wars, and financial speculations. It highlights the absolute failure of
the transnational capital and agribusiness system enabled by free trade
agreements and industrialized monoculture soaked in toxic agro-inputs.
This industrial system displaces peasants and degrades the environment
and productive resources while supplying our countries with expensive,
imported and unhealthy foods. Rising global food prices and costs of
farm inputs push peasant communities everywhere deeper into hunger,
poverty and debt.
We, La Via Campesina - the peasants, indigenous peoples, rural
populations, agricultural workers, and youth in urban and rural areas,
propose and promote Food Sovereignty as a solution to build the national
productive capacity. Food Sovereignty is a principle rooted in the
peasant and family farm sector through supportive public policies,
guaranteed prices, credits, and other support forms--including direct
marketing between producers and consumers and genuine agrarian reform.
_Peasant Agroecology and the United Nations Declaration of the Rights of
Peasants and other People Working in the Rural Areas (UNDROP) are tools
to build better societies with justice. _Our local food production,
self-determination with dignity, peace, feminism, and people's
sovereignty are possible only with these tools. There is no future
without food sovereignty!
THIS 17 APRIL, AS WE ARE LAUNCHING OUR THIRTY-YEAR CELEBRATIONS, LET US
MAKE THIS MOMENT TO REMIND AND TAKE PRIDE IN THE LONG AND ARDUOUS
JOURNEY THUS FAR.
On this road to justice, we have also lost our people to repression and
criminalization. It is essential to keep alive their memories, struggle
for their freedom and highlight the victories inspired by our historical
struggles.
NOW IS THE TIME TO GIVE VISIBILITY TO THE TRIUMPHS, THE SACRIFICES, THE
ALTERNATIVES, THE BIG AND SMALL TRANSFORMATIONS THAT WE AFFECTED AND HOW
WE GREW TO BE PRESENT AND ORGANIZED IN 81 COUNTRIES. It is time to
advance our #25YearsOfFoodSovereignty struggles and convince the people,
governments and policymakers how this vision can solve the multiple
crises and build better and healthier societies with justice, dignity,
peace, and people's sovereignty.
-------------------------
MOBILIZATION PLANS, STARTING FROM APRIL 2022:
* MAIN SLOGAN:_ 30 years of collective struggle, hope and solidarity._
* MAIN HASHTAGS:
* #LVC30YEARS #17APRIL2022
* _#NoFutureWithoutFoodSovereignty #FoodSovereigntyNOW_
* OFFICIAL POSTER: La Via Campesina has released an Official Poster
for all our members and allies to mark our 30th anniversary. DOWNLOAD
THE FILES HERE [4]
* UNIFYING ACTION IN APRIL: Throughout April, we call upon all our
members and allies to PLANT NATIVE AND INDIGENOUS TREES in your farm,
neighbourhood, backyard or garden - as a symbol of our collective
existence, persistence and resistance.
> * Do share the details of the trees you plant and the images/video messages on social media with the hashtag #LVC30YEARS and tag La Via Campesina on Facebook (@ViaCampesinaOfficial), Twitter (@via_campesina) and Instagram (@la_via_campesina_official).
* SEEDS FAIRS AND MORE: Starting 17 April and through the next 18
months, we encourage all our members and allies everywhere to hold
events, food donations, workshops, seed fairs, film festivals, music
festivals that promote Food Sovereignty, Solidarity and Peasant
Feminism.
> * You can email the schedule of these local events to lvcweb(a)viacampesina.org, and we will plot it on a global map of events. Please mention the title of the event, location/date/time, event banner and contact details of the organizers. Alternatively, you can also add the information to this ONLINE FORM [1].
* PREMIERE OF FOOD SOVEREIGNTY ANIMATION FILM: La Via Campesina will
also release a short animation film on Food Sovereignty on 17 April
2022, premiere on the official Facebook page [5] in English, Spanish and
French. We encourage all our members to save the date, watch this film
together, share it widely and spread the message of Food Sovereignty.
* USE OUR TRAINING MODULES: La Via Campesina has already launched a
series of training kits on UNDROP [6], Peasant Seeds [7] and Peasant
Feminism [8]. There are also a SET OF POSTCARDS [9] that define the
different elements of our struggle for Food Sovereignty. We encourage
all our members and allies to use these materials and adapt, translate,
and disseminate them among all movement members.
* VIDEO LIBRARY: Visit La Via Campesina's VIDEO ARCHIVES ON VIMEO
[10], curate your collections and screen local film festivals to spread
the message of agroecology and food sovereignty.
* REGIONAL ACTIONS AND AMPLIFICATION: La Via Campesina also encourages
all our members and regional secretariats to use the national and
regional social media pages, instant messaging groups, blogs and
websites to highlight the history of struggles in each region.
* BLANK VERSION OF POSTERS: We are also RELEASING BLANK VERSIONS OF
POPULAR POSTERS FROM THE PAST [11] that members and allies could re-use
if they wish to during these celebrations.
-------------------------
_30 YEARS OF COLLECTIVE STRUGGLE, HOPE AND SOLIDARITY – VIVA LA VIA
CAMPESINA! _
#LVC30Years #17April2022
_#NoFutureWithoutFoodSovereignty #FoodSovereigntyNOW_
-------------------------
_ _
Links:
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[1] https://forms.gle/Ae5jnLxK6fpaR1sbA
[2]
https://viacampesina.org/en/thirty-years-of-our-collective-struggle-for-j...
[3]
https://viacampesina.org/en/massacre-at-eldorado-do-carajas-24-years-ago-...
[4] https://cloud.viacampesina.org/s/xKo729tfezAdYKd
[5] https://www.facebook.com/viacampesinaOFFICIAL/
[6]
https://viacampesina.org/en/training-modules-un-declaration-on-rights-of-...
[7] https://viacampesina.org/en/tag/lvc-seed-modules/
[8]
https://viacampesina.org/en/graphic-book-the-path-of-peasant-and-popular-...
[9]
https://viacampesina.org/en/the-1996-rome-food-sovereignty-declaration-in...
[10] https://vimeo.com/viacampesina
[11] https://cloud.viacampesina.org/s/sfz9HzR7fNdNmFr
2 years, 9 months
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