Peasant Struggles | June 24
by La Via Campesina
*|MC_PREVIEW_TEXT|*
Edition: June 2024
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La Via Campesina's 'PEASANT STRUGGLES' brings to you a monthly synthesis
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Read, share and help us globalize the struggle!
[2]
La Via Campesina: Climate Catastrophes require urgent global attention
and response! Enough of False Promises and False Solutions!
-------------------------
In the face of this grave crisis, La Via Campesina has been calling on
states and governments to adopt concrete and resilient alternatives for
affected populations. It insists that the fight against climate change
must have political will but also ensure that communities have control
over their territories, not transnational corporations. It's urgent to
change the system and transform food systems, identifying the
responsible parties and their responsibilities, and implementing clear
solutions such as the UN Declaration of Rights of Peasants (UNDROP),
Peasant Agroecology and Food Sovereignty, which create dignified
conditions, healthy nutrition, and regenerate life and nature.
READ THE FULL STATEMENT [3]
On June 25th, over 400 Kenyan officers arrived in Haiti as part of a
neo-colonial strategy to undermine Haitian sovereignty. The deployment
of Kenyan police forces in recent weeks has not prevented recent
incidents of insecurity, such as the takeover of a police station in
Port-au-Prince and attacks on food transporters on provincial roads,
such as National Route 1 where gangs massacred civilians in the
agricultural areas of Lower Artibonite, resulting in numerous
casualties. READ THE REPORT [4].
Urgent Appeal to Save the Revolution and the Sudanese People [5]
-------------------------
This war has resulted in an appalling humanitarian tragedy, costing the
lives of over twenty thousand people, injuring another fifty thousand,
and displacing over 8.5 million from their homes. In addition, the war
has led to the almost total destruction of infrastructure, the looting
of markets and farms, and the disruption of livelihoods,
catastrophically worsening living conditions.
Sri Lanka: Social movements decry large-scale land grab in Kilinochchi
[6]
-------------------------
The People's Alliance for the Right to Land, an umbrella network of
social movements, civil society organizations, and land rights activists
in Sri Lanka, has warned of a large-scale land grab in Kilinochchi
district for mineral exploration purposes. Tokyo Cement Company's
controversial project involves acquiring 3,000 acres of land for
limestone excavation and cement factory construction.
Neoliberalism and repression of social movements explain the rise of
the far right in Europe [7]
-------------------------
The far right has no answers to the multiple social crises facing rural
areas in Europe. Everything they are proposing - which includes
combating migration, limiting the rights of migrant workers, rolling
back environmental measures, and so forth - will not improve the
situation of people living in rural areas.
UK: The Landworkers' Alliance's Top Five Demands for the New Government
[8]
-------------------------
As part of its efforts to put food and farming higher on the political
agenda, the Landworkers' Alliance has set out its top five demands for
the next government. Emphasizing the urgent need for sustainable
practices and increased support for farmers, the Alliance's demands
highlight critical issues impacting the sector.
Uganda: Making a business case for agroecology and empowering
small-scale farmers [9]
-------------------------
Members of the Eastern and Southern Africa Small-scale Farmers' Forum
(ESAFF) explain how the new Agroecology Business Hub (ABH) is helping
tackle three key factors for small-scale food producers; Access to
Credit, Linkages to Local Markets and Building Capacities.
Another Blow to Kenyan Government as High Court Extends Ban on GMO to
October 2024 [10]
-------------------------
The statement by KPL also noted that the matter was significant because
it touched on very critical issues affecting the Kenyan society; the
right to quality and acceptable food, the right to health and not in the
least, the economic & social rights of peasant farmers who produce over
80% of the food consumed locally in the country
La Via Campesina mobilizes for the defense of Democracy in Bolivia!
[11]
-------------------------
We stand in solidarity with and join the resistance of our Cloc - Vía
Campesina Bolivia Organizations. We call on all our organizations
worldwide to remain vigilant against these destabilizing strategies in
Bolivia and the region.
Landless Women Building Free Territories: 40 Years of Struggle for
Agrarian Reform in Brazil [12]
-------------------------
To think about the MST's organizational process is to think about the
meaning of women's protagonism. The MST's organicity is only the way it
is due to the feminist outlook addressing topics of human existence,
like education, health, child care, the fight against gender-based
oppressions, building agroecology, food sovereignty.
READ ALL ARTICLES FROM JUNE 2024 [13]
FEATURED PODCASTS
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For more news and updates from peasant movements worldwide, subscribe
to our Monthly Newswrap Podcast. Tune in Now! [15]
[14]
Chengeto Sandra Muzira, a young peasant from the Zimbabwe Smallholder
Organic Farmers Forum (ZIMSOFF) and a member of the International
Coordination Committee of La Via Campesina, recently spoke on IFAD's
Farms-Food-Future podcast. She highlighted the importance of sustainable
land use in agroecological practices. Tune in Now! [16]
FEATURED PUBLICATION
[14]
NYÉLÉNI NEWSLETTER: CHALLENGING THE FINANCING BEHIND GREEN AND BLUE
GRABBING
This edition of the newsletter explores some of the varied and
bewildering array of new schemes that financialize oceans, soils,
seaweed, and forests.
DOWNLOAD NOW [17]
You are an important part of the autonomy of our movement
-------------------------
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La Via Campesina Urges UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) to support a Food Sovereignty-Based Global Trade Framework
by La Via Campesina
*|MC:SUBJECT|* *|MC_PREVIEW_TEXT|*
Afficher ce courriel dans votre navigateur
<https://viacampesina.org/fr/kit-de-presse-8e-conference-internationale-de...>
La Via Campesina Urges UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) to support a
Food Sovereignty-Based Global Trade Framework
4 July 2024
*In an open letter* addressed to Ms. Rebeca Grynspan Mayufis,
Secretary-General of UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD), La Via Campesina
extends regards for UNCTAD’s 60th anniversary, recalling its founding
ideals for fair global trade. The letter points to current times,
reveals failures in global trade governance, and urges UNCTAD to embrace
new solutions promoting food sovereignty and social justice worldwide.
Here is the full text of the letter:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
To:
*Rebeca Grynspan Mayufis,*
*Secretary-General,*
*UN Trade and Development*
Greetings,
>From La Via Campesina, one of the world’s largest networks of
small-scale food producers, comprising 180 peasant and indigenous
peoples’ organizations in 81 countries, we convey our best regards and
wishes for the 60th anniversary of the UN Trade and Development, UNCTAD.
*We recall the noble intentions behind the creation of UNCTAD*: the
drive for independence among many Southern countries and the aspiration
to overhaul the world trade order inherited from colonization, aiming
for trade that benefits people, particularly in the Global South.
However, we find ourselves in extraordinary times that betray these
intentions, and we hope that UNCTAD @ 60 is mindful of the realities
confronting humanity today.
Global geopolitics is shifting towards multipolarity, a consequence of
the longstanding hegemonic foreign policy of Western superpowers and of
the increasing power of transnational companies. This policy dictated
global trade rules crafted to benefit and expand the economic interests
of a small oligarchy, enabling them to firmly control the finite
resources of countries around the world. This multipolar world emerges
amidst recurring climate catastrophes, stemming from an extractivist
model of industrialization initially devised in the Global North and
systematically exported to the South. Structural adjustment programs,
free trade agreements, and economic partnership frameworks perpetuate
this model, exacerbating the loss of lives, livelihoods, and
exacerbating global hunger and malnutrition.
*We contend that globalization has failed to deliver on its promise of
inclusivity and prosperity, both for people and the planet.* La Via
Campesina emerged in 1993 as a response to globalization’s perceived
cover for the neocolonization of our territories. We warned against the
expansion of capital, commodification of resources, and the erosion of
rural economies, advocating for cooperation over competition in
international trade. Repeatedly, we sounded alarms against institutions
like the World Trade Organization, the World Bank, and the International
Monetary Fund, which promoted privatization, deregulation, and
financialization of ecosystems. We cautioned against the commodification
of seeds and crops, dismantling of public food programs, and the rise of
factory farms and global agrifood transnational companies foreseeing the
concentration of the global food chain and its catastrophic consequences.
*Since 2023, protests have erupted in nearly 90 countries, led by
marginalized groups disillusioned by the false promises of
globalization.* Governments of the Global South, long deceived by these
promises, are awakening to the reality of their resentment. The desire
to integrate into the WTO, once seen as a solution, has proven illusory,
as the trade order has consistently favored transnational corporations
and Northern oligarchies. Even those Southern governments that have
demonstrated the political will to implement public agricultural
policies that promote better market regulation, price support and
poverty reduction programmes are being insidiously trapped by the global
financial institutions into huge external financial debts – limiting
their ability to implement meaningful public policies.
Extraordinary times demand extraordinary solutions, from the people.
In 2016, we *cautioned
<https://viacampesina.org/en/lvc-declaration-on-trade-markets-and-developm...>*
UNCTAD against neoliberalism’s “free trade paradigm” and “market-driven
development” schemes, which consolidate corporate control over food
systems. Since the early 1990s, UNCTAD shifted its activities from
trying to build a fair international trade system to try to support
Southern countries in WTO negotiations. Its premises was that WTO could
be beneficial to Southern countries if they were able to get organized
and get the best of it.
La Via Campesina believes that this strategy has failed. *The WTO has
continued to be the tool of Northern oligarchies in order to increase
market access for transnational corporations. It has never been
beneficial for the people, in particular in Southern countries. *We call
on UNCTAD and all member countries to recognize this failure and to
reconnect with its original mandate: creating a fair international trade
framework towards people’s sovereignty and social justice. Today, as
UNCTAD marks its 60th year, we remind you that true solutions must arise
from those most affected by decades of neoliberal policies: peasants,
small scale-farmers, agricultural workers, indigenous peoples, workers,
rural and urban women, urban poor, in particular those in Southern countries
*We call on UNCTAD to heed the voices from the ground clamoring for food
sovereignty.* Food Sovereignty embodies the right of peoples to healthy,
culturally appropriate food produced sustainably. It places the needs of
small-scale food producers, distributors, and consumers at the
forefront, rather than the interests of markets and corporations.
*In 2022, La Via Campesina embarked on the creation of a global trade
framework in collaboration with peasant and indigenous peoples’
organizations across 80 countries. This framework is grounded in the
principles of Food Sovereignty, Internationalism, and Solidarity.*
It aims to address the social and ecological crises gripping our world
today. This framework empowers each country to determine its
agricultural and food policies, safeguarding and nurturing local food
systems through various regulatory measures such as minimum support
prices, public stocks, and supply management. The goal is to stabilize
agricultural prices over the costs of production and combat speculation.
Moreover, it pledges to prevent any country from being forcibly excluded
from international agricultural trade. It advocates for regulated
international trade in agricultural inputs, aiming to reduce dependency
on these inputs and transition towards peasant agroecology. This
framework strives for international trade free from geopolitical
pressures and prohibits practices like dumping and export subsidies for
agricultural and food products.
It upholds the highest standards of human rights, including the right to
food, UNDROP, UNDRIP, and ILO regulations protecting workers’ rights. It
defends the rights of agricultural workers, women, fisherfolk,
pastoralists, indigenous peoples, migrant workers, and others in the
food system. Additionally, it condemns the use of food as a weapon in
international conflicts.
*We invite UNCTAD and its member states to collaborate with us in
building this framework.* We propose a participatory process within the
UN, with active involvement from the Food and Agriculture Organization.
Our goal is to create a society where hunger is eradicated, and social
justice prevails.
A delegation from La Via Campesina eagerly awaits the opportunity to
discuss our proposals further. Together, we can pave the way for a
future where no one goes hungry, and where equity and justice prevail.
We anticipate your response.
*La Via Campesina*
*04 July 2024, Bagnolet*
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EMERGENCY: Declare Gaza a Famine-Stricken Area and End the Genocide NOW !
by La Via Campesina
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EMERGENCY: Declare Gaza a Famine-Stricken Area and End the Genocide NOW !
2 July 2024
Bagnolet: june 26 , 2024
Here below is the latest petition to declare Gaza Strip a FAMINE ZONE
and to end the genocidal war waged by the Israeli occupation against the
Palestinian people. Every action counts at this moment. We ask all our
members, allies, and friends to read the petition and sign it. *We must
act NOW. Read our declaration from La Via Campesina and sign the petition.*
*La Via Campesina, the international peasant movement, representing over
200 million peasants, calls on all social movements, civil society
organizations, human rights defenders and activists to support the
appeal to the United Nations and the Palestinian Authority to
immediately declare Gaza a famine-stricken area due to famine,
<https://viacampesina.org/en/recognize-gaza-as-a-famine-zone-la-via-campes...>
environmental pollution, and the spread of diseases and the severe
restriction of the humanitarian aid.* The United Nations and the
Palestinian Authority must adopt this declaration and coordinate global
and local efforts in partnership with Palestinian civil society to
develop an immediate plan to address these impacts, elevate emergency
relief levels for citizens in the sector, and push toward accountability
and prosecution of the occupation for committing war crimes and crimes
against humanity.
The Israeli genocide in Gaza has been ongoing for more than eight months
and has intensified in Rafah, home to over a million internally
displaced people. The actions and policies imposed by the Israeli
occupation on the people of Gaza are causing untold suffering from
severe food shortages, a continuous decline in nutrition levels,
widespread malnutrition among children, and increased mortality rates
due to diseases caused by hunger and malnutrition, along with the
difficulty of accessing medical and healthcare services. The
environmental pollution resulting from the destruction of sewage
systems, the inability of municipalities to remove waste, the presence
of thousands of bodies under the rubble, and the weak humanitarian
response and provision of necessary aid to those in need, has worsened
the situation and suffering of the people of Gaza.
*According to the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) Gaza
Strip Targeted Analysis, May 31, 2024 report
<https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf36bU49jjyXFVoCsU_Wjjh8FazVEKZy...>*
*all three Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC)
thresholds for Famine (food consumption, acute malnutrition, and
mortality) were likely met or surpassed in northern Gaza in April. This
situation will persist through at least in July if there is not a
fundamental change in how food assistance is distributed and accessed
after entering Gaza.* While food aid and informal market supplies
increased in March and April, it is unlikely that over 80 percent of the
northern Gaza population averted catastrophic hunger. Amid severe
hunger, disease, and inadequate nutrition treatment and prevention, it
is possible that acute malnutrition and mortality levels were above the
IPC thresholds in April. Many children have died from hunger-related
causes and government decision makers should act urgently to mitigate
loss of life.
The situation in southern Gaza is critical too because of the ongoing
Israeli military offensive in Rafah which is seriously disrupting food
distribution channels and worsening access to food, bringing *the south
into Emergency (IPC Phase 4) and Catastrophe (IPC Phase 5) between May
and July*. The report asserts that food and nutrition assistance have
been key to preventing Famine (IPC Phase 5) in the south to date, and it
is possible a sustained, large-scale disruption of assistance would lead
to Famine in the period beyond July.
We, therefore, call on all organizations, movements, human rights
defenders, and supporters to sign this petition
<https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf36bU49jjyXFVoCsU_Wjjh8FazVEKZy...>
to urge the United Nations and the Palestinian Authority to declare Gaza
a famine-stricken area and take the necessary measures to protect its
inhabitants.
SIGN THE PETITION
<https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf36bU49jjyXFVoCsU_Wjjh8FazVEKZy...>
*Long live the struggles of the Palestinian people! *
*La Via Campesina*
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La Via Campesina mobilizes for the defense of Democracy in Bolivia!
by La Via Campesina
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La Via Campesina mobilizes for the defense of Democracy in Bolivia!
28 June 2024
*Bagnolet, June 27, 2024*: In response to the failed coup attempt
against the Plurinational State of Bolivia on June 26, La Vía Campesina
and its member organizations worldwide call for the defense and
stability of democracy, and respect for constitutional rights.
Likewise, we repudiate military and imperialist actions that clearly
interfere in political power, attacking the democratic values of a
sovereign country and defying the will of its people. Such actions
promote the destruction of the Plurinational State, which has a growing
and stable economy based on a productive community social economic
model. The Constitution of Bolivia cannot be trampled upon, nor the
people’s mandate disobeyed, for the sake of transnational and
imperialist economic interests!
We stand in solidarity with and join the resistance of our Cloc – Vía
Campesina Bolivia Organizations. We call on all our organizations
worldwide to remain vigilant against these destabilizing strategies in
Bolivia and the region. As social and peasant movements, we acknowledge
the significant efforts of the Government of Bolivia, led by Luis Arce,
in supporting various initiatives for peasant rights and social justice.
As President Luis Arce stated, “We need the people to mobilize against
the coup d’état. We cannot allow coup attempts to return. We salute the
organizations for their mobilization for democracy. Long live Bolivia.
Long live democracy!”
Mobilize to defend democracy and oppose imperialism!
This post is also available in Español
<https://viacampesina.org/es/la-via-campesina-movilizada-por-la-defensa-de...>
and Français
<https://viacampesina.org/fr/la-via-campesina-mobilise-pour-la-defense-de-...>.
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