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COP 21 : La Via Campesina action against Danone
by La Vía Campesina 11 Dec '15

11 Dec '15

COP 21 : La Via Campesina action against Danone [1] (Paris, December 9, 2015) The international peasant movement La Via Campesina and the French union Confederation Paysanne farmers protested on December 9th, 2015 outside the headquarters in Paris of the food multinational Danone, amid COP21 climate conference. WATCH THIS VIDEO PRODUCED BY ZINTV [2] This action at the headquarters of Danone denounced the role of the multinational in promoting false solutions to climate change. False solutions (including a policy of compensation and not of actual emissions reduction) endangering peasant farming. Watch many other videos [3] on what is happening at COP21 in Paris from Via CampesinaTV [4] More article about LVC delegation in Paris during COP21 : “WE HAVE NO OTHER WAY OUT THAN WINNING FOOD SOVEREIGNTY”, VIA CAMPESINA AT COP 21 [5] COP 21: MIGRANT JUSTICE ACTION: OVER 200 ACTIVISTS MARCH IN SOLIDARITY [6] COP21: SOCIAL MOVEMENTS AND ALLIES CALL FOR TRANSFORMATION OF FOOD SYSTEMS [7] More photos [8] and cartoons [9]. And Follow us on twitter and facebook: @via_campesina [10] and https://www.facebook.com/viacampesinaOFFICIAL [11] Links: ------ [1] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/actions-and-events-mainmenu-26/-climat… [2] http://tv.viacampesina.org/COP21-action-contre-Danone?lang=en [3] http://tv.viacampesina.org/La-Via-Campesina-action-against?lang=en [4] http://tv.viacampesina.org/?lang=en [5] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/actions-and-events-mainmenu-26/-climat… [6] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/main-issues-mainmenu-27/migrations-and… [7] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/actions-and-events-mainmenu-26/-climat… [8] http://tv.viacampesina.org/La-Via-Campesina-at-Climate-Action?lang=en [9] http://tv.viacampesina.org/Coups-de-crayons-a-la-Zone-action?lang=en [10] https://twitter.com/via_campesina [11] https://www.facebook.com/viacampesinaOFFICIAL

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Peasant agriculture-a true solution to climate crisis
by La Vía Campesina 04 Dec '15

04 Dec '15

Peasant agriculture-a true solution to climate crisis [1] Published on Friday, 04 December 2015 15:12 [2]_Peasant Agriculture and Agroecology_ Political projects from La Conf' and La Via Campesina, peasant agriculture and agroecology are approaches that address social, societal and environmental issues. They promote cultivation methods that: are in line with natural environments, preserve biodiversity, improve soil fertility, aim to achieve farm autonomy and where the number of animals correlate to the size of the farm. _Is it true?_ Of course it is! Some people would have you believe that industrial production methods release less Green House Gases because they are more concentrated. In fact, these systems consume a substantial amount of energy, (due to chemical inputs, export and import transportation, high levels of mechanisation etc.) and have a devastating effect on the climate. 50% of all Green House Gas emissions on the planet are caused by the global industrial food system. Given this, peasant agriculture and agroecology are considered economical, favouring both the environment and peasants. They promote autonomous farms, thus reducing imports significantly, which, for example, come from animal feed produced on the other side of the world. They also encourage the maintenance of meadows and pastureland, which are real carbon sinks. Finally, they advocate relocating production and marketing, thereby considerably reducing the need for both consumers and products to travel. All in all, the real solutions to stop Green House Gas emissions coming from agriculture and the food system are peasant agriculture and agroecology. While our leaders openly welcome multinational companies and their false solutions, we must urgently change the direction where agriculture is headed, to achieve a real positive approach for the climate! _"Peasant agriculture is a true solution to the climate crisis"_ More info here : "small-scale farmers cool down the earth [3]" Follow us on twitter and facebook: @via_campesina [4] and https://www.facebook.com/viacampesinaOFFICIAL [5] Also join the global movement with the hashtag: #PeasantsCoolThePlanet #FoodSovereigntyForClimateJustice #COP21 #FoodSystemChangeNotClimateChange Links: ------ [1] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/actions-and-events-mainmenu-26/-climat… [2] http://viacampesina.org/en/images/2015-12-04-agro-cologie%20engl.jpg [3] http://viacampesina.org/dl/click.php?id=14 [4] https://twitter.com/via_campesina [5] https://www.facebook.com/viacampesinaOFFICIAL

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Climate: Real problem, false solutions. No.4: Climate-Smart Agriculture
by La Vía Campesina 03 Dec '15

03 Dec '15

Climate: Real problem, false solutions. No.4: Climate-Smart Agriculture [1] Published on Thursday, 03 December 2015 22:00 TO SOLVE THE GLOBAL WARMING CRISIS, MULTINATIONALS ARE SUGGESTING FALSE SOLUTIONS. FAR FROM SOLVING THE PROBLEM THEY ARE CONTRIBUTING WITH THEIR SHARE OF DAMAGES. THIS ARTICLE IS THE 4TH IN A SERIES OF FIVE TO APPEAR THIS WEEK. _ [2]__4/Climate-Smart Agriculture_ On 23 September 2014, at the UN Climate summit convened by Ban Ki-moon in New York, the FAO and World Bank launched the Global Alliance for Climate-Smart Agriculture. This should enable agriculture output to be increased, agricultural systems' resilience to be strengthened and greenhouse gas emissions to be reduced all at the same time! So, this is what could solve three of the major challenges we are dealing with: feeding the global population, fighting climate change and guaranteeing the sustainability of agricultural systems _Really?_ Using chemicals and GMOs is allowed, as is producing industrial agrofuels. Multinational companies such as Yara (the world leader in fertilizer), Monsanto or Syngenta are indeed major stakeholders in this new international alliance. It is therefore easier for us to understand that Northern and Southern industrial agricultural systems, which are more harmful for the environment, are spared. This alliance supports the development of an agriculture that eliminates peasants by stripping them of their land, their practices and their knowledge. In short, the real objective is to continue and speed up the industrialisation and financialisation of agriculture. Climate-Smart Agriculture is a new tool from multinational companies to generate even more money out of agriculture! Corporate solutions are false solutions, and will not solve the climate crisis. Follow us on twitter and facebook: @via_campesina [3] and https://www.facebook.com/viacampesinaOFFICIAL [4] Also join the global movement with the hashtag: #PeasantsCoolThePlanet #FoodSovereigntyForClimateJustice #COP21#FoodSystemChangeNotClimateChange Links: ------ [1] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/actions-and-events-mainmenu-26/-climat… [2] http://viacampesina.org/en/images/2015-12-03-agriculture%20climato-intellig… [3] https://twitter.com/via_campesina [4] https://www.facebook.com/viacampesinaOFFICIAL

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COP 21 : Hundreds of the world’s farmers join together
by La Vía Campesina 03 Dec '15

03 Dec '15

**************************************** EN : Dear all, Please find attached the press release, the biographies of some members of our delegation, as well a the program for our activities during the COP21. Press Officer: Elina Bouchet, Communications Officer Confederation Paysanne (FR) : 06 95 29 80 78 Solenne Garin, Communications Office Via Campesina (EN, ES) : 06 10 04 83 69 solenne.garin(a)viacampesina.org or ebouchet(a)confederationpaysanne.fr

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Climate: Real problem, false solutions. No.3: REDD+
by La Vía Campesina 03 Dec '15

03 Dec '15

Climate: Real problem, false solutions. No.3: REDD+ [1] Published on Wednesday, 02 December 2015 20:37 TO SOLVE THE GLOBAL WARMING CRISIS, MULTINATIONALS ARE SUGGESTING FALSE SOLUTIONS. FAR FROM SOLVING THE PROBLEM THEY ARE CONTRIBUTING WITH THEIR SHARE OF DAMAGES. THIS ARTICLE IS THE 3RD IN A SERIES OF FIVE TO APPEAR THIS WEEK. [2]_3/ REDD+_ "Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation" a very worthwhile aim, and a + too which is the icing on the cake! The system is simple: the country (or local population, associations etc.) owning any substantial resources located within forests assesses the financial loss of not carrying out deforestation and the quantity of carbon that will therefore not be introduced into the atmosphere. Then industrialised countries (or collectives, NGOs, multinationals etc.) pay these forested nations to avert the destruction of their forests. In exchange for their forest saving investment, they are offered a means of offsetting their emissions and/ or carbon credits. A fair deal then! And the + is for when we're also talking about the enhancement of carbon stocks, sustainable forest management and forest conservation. _ Really?_ On closer inspection it becomes clear that REDD+ serves as little more than the means of concealing the negotiated disappearance of forests that occurs during a COP, instead of anyone posing the question of how greenhouse gases resulting from the use of fossil fuels can be effectively reduced. This covers no more than potential deforestation, and therefore nothing concrete. In contrast, the carbon credits on offer are very real indeed, and represent a license to emit greenhouse gases at will. Furthermore, peasant populations who call these forested areas home, often find themselves obliged to reduce their food production in order to plant trees, thereby reducing their food sovereignty. Conservation agreements can also result in their loss of access to areas routinely used for the harvesting of plants, hunting or shifting cultivation. Now climate negotiations are examining the possibility of making agricultural land eligible for these carbon offsetting systems and compensation. This would be an open door for land grabs by multinationals eager to secure opportunities to continue disrupting the environment without this process ever being redressed. Corporate solutions are false solutions, and will not solve the climate crisis. Link to the Grain report https://www.grain.org/article/entries/5322-how-redd-projects-undermine-peas… [3] Follow us on twitter and facebook: @via_campesina [4] and https://www.facebook.com/viacampesinaOFFICIAL [5] Also join the global movement with the hashtag: #PeasantsCoolThePlanet #FoodSovereigntyForClimateJustice #COP21 #FoodSystemChangeNotClimateChange Links: ------ [1] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/actions-and-events-mainmenu-26/-climat… [2] http://viacampesina.org/en/images/2015-12-02-REDD.jpg [3] https://www.grain.org/article/entries/5322-how-redd-projects-undermine-peas… [4] https://twitter.com/via_campesina [5] https://www.facebook.com/viacampesinaOFFICIAL

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Climate: Real problem, false solutions. 2: Agrocarburants
by La Vía Campesina 03 Dec '15

03 Dec '15

Climate: Real problem, false solutions. 2: Agrocarburants [1] Published on Wednesday, 02 December 2015 10:30 [2] TO SOLVE THE GLOBAL WARMING CRISIS, MULTINATIONALS ARE SUGGESTING FALSE SOLUTIONS. FAR FROM SOLVING THE PROBLEM THEY ARE CONTRIBUTING WITH THEIR SHARE OF DAMAGES. THIS ARTICLE IS THE SECOND IN A SERIES OF FIVE TO APPEAR THIS WEEK _ 2/ Agrofuels_ For those advocates of false solutions, they are known as "bio" fuels. The goal is to produce something that would have the very worthy benefit of reducing our dependence on oil, and in so doing lower greenhouse gas emissions, through the creation of energy derived from plants, a limitless resource by all accounts, which is certainly not the case with fossil fuels! _Really?_ The truth is that producing agrofuels involves the use of vast swathes of agricultural land at the expense of food production. Thousands of hectares of fertile land once destined to provide nourishment are repurposed, jeopardising local populations' right to food sovereignty. Furthermore, the expulsion of peasant farmers from these lands, occasionally by violent means represents a denial of people's dignity and rights. As has always been the case, land is being sought everywhere, now the decision has been made to fell the trees of the Amazon and elsewhere. The destruction of these areas, often recognised as major carbon sinks, leads to significant CO2 emissions. Add to that a means of ultra-intensive agriculture, heavily reliant on chemical input, well so much for "bio"… Lastly, the food crisis of 2007-2008 and the food riots they triggered, brought things into sharp focus: agrofuels put intense pressure on food product prices, and multinationals have wasted no time in sizing up the potential rewards. With a notably large presence in this market is the French company Sofiprotéol-Avril managed by Xavier Beulin (President of France's largest agricultural union). Links: ------ [1] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/actions-and-events-mainmenu-26/-climat… [2] http://viacampesina.org/en/images/2015-12-2-agro-carburants%20en.jpg

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Climate: Real problem, false solutions. 1. GMOs
by La Vía Campesina 01 Dec '15

01 Dec '15

Climate : Real problem, false solutions. 1. GMOs [1] Published on Monday, 30 November 2015 23:43 TO SOLVE THE GLOBAL WARMING CRISIS, MULTINATIONALS ARE SUGGESTING FALSE SOLUTIONS. FAR FROM SOLVING THE PROBLEM THEY ARE CONTRIBUTING WITH THEIR SHARE OF DAMAGES. A BRIEF OVERVIEW FOLLOWS. THIS ARTICLE IS THE FIRST IN A SERIES OF FIVE TO APPEAR THIS WEEK. According to those who promote them, they are a wonderful dual-power technology. To start with, GMOs would have the ability to slow down climate change by: reducing the use of pesticides, which constitute a significant source of Green House Gases when they are produced and used; and by reducing tillage, which releases carbon emissions. What's even better is that GMOs would allow us to have plants that resist droughts and floods, which therefore adapt to climate change! REALLY? In fact, GMOs' tolerance to one (or many) herbicides or insecticides quickly develops resistance and makes plants adapt, which leads to many unwanted plants and pests appearing in fields. You therefore have to use even more pesticides to get rid of them! Regarding the issue of no-tillage, it doesn't make any sense and doesn't have an impact if it is carried out using an industrial agriculture approach; which favors systems that don't use crop rotation and where herbicides are widespread. In Argentina, no-tillage using Monsanto's Round Up Ready soya beans has destroyed hectares of meadows and forests, therefore needing carbon sinks. Adapting to climate change is the ultimate decoy. It is genetic complexity and rich natural biodiversity that allows nature to adapt, not its destruction! GMOs belong to an industrial agri-food system that patents living beings, monopolizes peasants' knowledge, halts and destroys peasant agricultural practices and the whole chain significantly releases Green House Gases and is devastating for the climate. So it is a great way to make profit off climate change whilst despising peasants! Links: ------ [1] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/actions-and-events-mainmenu-26/-climat…

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La Via Campesina struggle against femicide and violence against women
by La Vía Campesina 25 Nov '15

25 Nov '15

La Via Campesina struggle against femicide and violence against women [1] Published on Wednesday, 25 November 2015 18:40 [2](Harare, November 25, 2015) On the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women on November 25th, La Vía Campesina will be mobilizing to strengthen the struggle and resistance around our capitalist, patriarchal system. Taking into account how this system endangers the lives of women, how it treats them as objects, how it exploits women and removes them from their homes, creates wars and militarizes civilian territories, it is urgent to build new human relationships that are founded on gender justice and equal rights. La Vía Campesina is reaffirming its commitment to the "Global Campaign to End Violence Against Women" undertaken in 2008 as a tool for debate and education within the peasant movement. Additionally, it aims to call out the structural violence in society that threatens women around the world. This violence manifests itself in every arena, including the physical, psychological, economic and the political one and it is reinforced daily as if it were something natural and normal. This year, standing together as La Vía Campesina, we raise our voice in opposition to all forms of violence and oppression while bringing attention to the global increase in femicides. We witness with great indignation and anger how the current historical conditions created by the capitalist, patriarchal system promote social practices that permit attacks on women. This happens both in the city and countryside, regardless of social class, political beliefs, religion and age. In addition to a patriarchal, capitalist society where violence is normalized and women's bodies are objectified, the lack of legal protections, breach of laws and lack of public policies worsens the problem. This creates an insecure living situation for women that puts lives at risk and promotes impunity and silence. We are being murdered! Therefore, on this day of action we call on our organizations and our allies to participate in the World March of Women and ask our friends to collectively make visible all forms of violence and oppression that women face. Our goal is to strengthen our collective efforts as well as our hopes to build a new society based on gender justice and dignity for everyone. More information: Photos and audio: Check Out our New Postcard Collection: No More Violence Against Women! [3] Primer: No More Violence Against Women! here. [4] Video: No More Violence Against Women! [5] Links: ------ [1] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/main-issues-mainmenu-27/women-mainmenu… [2] http://viacampesina.org/en/images/2015-11-25-No%20Violence%20against%20wome… [3] http://tv.viacampesina.org/Cunas-Radiales-Basta-de-Violencia?lang=es [4] http://viacampesina.org/downloads/pdf/sp/Cartilla_Basta_de_Violencia_contra… [5] http://tv.viacampesina.org/Basta-de-violencia-contra-las-72?lang=es

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La Via Campesina E-Newsletter November 2015
by La Vía Campesina 24 Nov '15

24 Nov '15

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Syngenta convicted in Brazil
by La Vía Campesina 19 Nov '15

19 Nov '15

HUMAN RIGHTS SYNGENTA CONVICTED IN BRAZIL [1] Published on Thursday, 19 November 2015 23:37 [2] JUSTICE FINDS COMPANY RESPONSIBLE FOR ARMED ATTACK ON ENCAMPED RURAL WORKERS. The court sentence, given by Judge Pedro Ivo Moreiro, of the 1st Civil Court of Cascavel, was published in the Paraná State Official Gazette this Tuesday (17). The sentence rules that the company shall pay compensation to Keno's family and to Isabel for the moral and material damage it caused. The case was taken to court in 2010, as an attempt to get a response from the State regarding Syngenta being responsible for the attack perpetrated by private armed militia. The sentence has been well received by social movements and human rights organizations, since making companies accountable for human rights violations is a challenge of global dimensions. "Transnational companies currently have considerable freedom to operate on a transnational basis, but there are no national or international norms or mechanisms sufficient to oblige companies to respect human rights or to hold them accountable for cases of human rights violations. In this case, Syngenta having been found responsible is an exception to the rule", explains Terra de Direitos' lawyer, Fernando Prioste, who has been accompanying the case. ABOUT THE SENTENCE The judge found that the fact that took place on Syngenta's property was nothing less than a massacre. In his sentence the judge states that "to refer to what happened as a confrontation is to close one's eyes to reality, since […] there is no doubt that, in truth, it was a massacre disguised as repossession of property". The version put forward by Syngenta was thus rejected by the Judiciary Branch. The company claimed that the attack that took place in 2007 was the result of a confrontation between militiamen and members of Via Campesina. In its defence, Syngenta acknowledged the illegality of the action of the private militia, as well as the ideological nature of the action against Via Campesina and MST. The company stated that "more than protection of farm properties, it is clear that the militia's objective was to defend an ideological position contrary to that of the MST [Landless Rural Workers' Movement], so as to propagate the ideia that every action results in a reaction." With this statement the transnational company attempted to avoid its responsibility, claiming that the attack was not made by the company it hired, but rather by militia acting on the orders of landowners. Notwithstanding, in his sentence the judge recognized that the "bad choice in outsourcing security services, as well as the indirect funding of illicit activities, is a factor that generates civil liability". Moreover, the judge vehemently condemned the attack by stating that "however reproachable and illegitimate the occupation of the property may have been, nothing justifies taking the law into one's own hands, imposing the death penalty on the occupants, rather the legal means for resolving the conflict should have been sought since, after all, the legal system considers the arbitrary exercising of one's own judgements to be a crime". As such the court sentence not only reaffirms the ideological nature of the militia's action, but also links Syngenta with that action. The court sentence is not definitive. Syngenta, through its defence lawyer René Ariel Dotti, can appeal to the Paraná State Court of Appeals. In the view of Terra de Direitos' lawyer, Fernando Prioste, the Appeal Court is expected to maintain the sentence in order to re-establish the truth about what happened in October 2007. "There is strong evidence against the company", he notes. "If Syngenta were to be absolved this would be tantamount to the justice system acquiescing to massacres like the one that occurred in this case". EXCEPTION TO THE RULE [3]When asked about the sentence, Isabel Nascimento dos Santos said she was pleased, much more than merely because of the financial compensation. Seriously injured during the attacked idealized by Syngenta in 2007, the rural worker highlighted the court's recognition of the company's guilt in the case. "Now I can hold my head up, and try to forget a little of the suffering we've faced. Is the battle over? Never! We shall carry on, continuing Keno's work as well". Eduardo Rodrigues, MST representative in the Cascavel region, stresses the importance of the sentence. According to him, the impunity of large companies that violate rights is common, and at the same time the movement's members are frequently criminalized for their struggle in opposition to the agribusiness model. "The attack did not take place unbeknown to the multinational company", the farm worker denounces. "They not only provided institutional support, but financial and logistic support as well." Eduardo hopes that this sentence will be extended to other cases in which companies will be held accountable for the attacks they commit. "I hope this sentence will strengthen our struggle, giving visibility to our companions". The many obstacles existing to ensure that companies respect human rights and are held accountable for the violations they commit, have lead the United Nations Organization (UN) to discuss the establishment of a binding international treaty creating prevention, redress and accountability mechanisms with regard to the issue of companies and human rights. The UN working group on the establishment of an international treaty regarding companies and human rights will visit Brazil in December. It is expected that the UN representatives will use case convicting Syngenta as a reference for holding accountable large companies that commit human rights violations through outsourced companies. ABOUT THE CASE On October 21st 2007 around 40 gunmen from the "NF Segurança" company attacked the Via Campesina encampment located at Syngenta's genetically modified food experiment site at Santa Tereza do Oeste (PR). The site had been occupied once more that morning by around 150 members of Via Campesina and the Landless Rural Workers' Movement (MST). The occupants were denouncing illegal experiments on genetically modified corn in a protective boundary zone of the Iguaçu National Park. Via Campesina members were also seeking to denounce biotechnology companies that work so as to impose a farming model that causes environmental harm through the use of genetically modified crops and pesticides, making it infeasible for self-employed rural workers, indigenous peoples and traditional communities to produce healthy foodstuffs. Heavily armed NF Segurança militiamen invaded the site firing their guns towards the people who were occupying it. According to information provided by Via Campesina, the attack had been arranged by Syngenta which used NF Segurança's services, together with the Western Region Rural Society (SRO), and the Rural Producers' Movement (MPR), which has links with agribusiness. There are signs that the security company was going to be closed down and that it hired security guards illegally to perform attack operations. In addition to Keno, the gunmen shot and beat up Isabel and injured a further three farm workers. With a 19% share of the agrochemical market and the third highest profits from seed sales worldwide, coming only after Monsanto and Dupont, Syngenta, along with other transnational companies, exacerbates the scenario of rural violence by imposing a farming model based on monoculture, gross exploitation of farm workers, environmental degradation, use of pesticides and private appropriate of natural and genetic resources. The Valmir Mota de Oliveira ("Keno") Agroecology Research Centre has been set up in the area where the facts occurred. >> Find out more about the case [4] >> Terra de Direitos has developed guide [5] on the issue of making companies accountable for human rights violations, to assist with assessing possibilities of taking legal action against companies on the international level. Links: ------ [1] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/main-issues-mainmenu-27/human-rights-m… [2] http://viacampesina.org/en/images/Syngenta%20Condenada.png [3] http://viacampesina.org/en/images/Keno.jpg [4] http://terradedireitos.org.br/2013/03/02/syngenta-parana/ [5] http://terradedireitos.org.br/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/Guia-transnacionai…

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