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The power and impunity of the transnationals are stifling the voices of the world’s peoples
by La Vía Campesina 10 Jul '15

10 Jul '15

Power and impunity of transnational corporations stifles people's voices [1] Published on Friday, 10 July 2015 13:57 _The power and impunity of the transnationals are stifling the voices of the world's peoples_ (Harare, 9th of July 2015) La Via Campesina strongly decries the fact that _international policies and legislative processes_ which supposedly are decided upon democratically and by the citizens are increasingly _dominated by the interests of large multinational corporations_,with the connivance of the governing classes [2][1]. Furthermore, while existing structures allow the crimes committed by these same transnationals to go unpunished, there is a growing incidence of criminalisation of those who are struggling in defence of human rights. At the international, regional, national, and local levels, it is more and more apparent that_legislative frameworks are being designed, interpreted, and implemented so as to respond to the interests of large transnational companies _- to the detriment of the common good and despite the resistance of social movements and organisations that are seeking different paths. This situation is compounded by a lack of transparency towards civil society. For example, _the international trade agreements_, of which the TTIP, the TPP, the CETA, the EPAs and the TISA are some current examples - with their investment protection clauses, the deregulation of trade and production, and the jettisoning of social, health, and safety standards - respond to the requests of the transnational companies rather than to the interests of the world's peoples. _A permanent confusion is created in the roles_ of the entities representing civil society and the public interest and the entities that are defending private interests. The multinationals are treated as though they were social actors, when in reality they do not represent anyone other than the shareholders for whom they seek to gain profits. Consequently there is a considerable reduction in the public space. In addition, new mixed entities are created and accorded active support: the round tables or platforms that are composed of multiple actors such as governmental institutions, research bodies, donors, NGOs, and civil society organisations. These new spaces provide no guarantees, and even less support, for the autonomy of social movements; positions necessarily become diluted and what is really happening in the field is hidden. We can cite the example of the ILC (International Land Coalition), an organisation that has received an increase in funding in recent years and which, in an opportunistic manner, presents itself alternatively as a research body, a donor, or a representative of civil society. In fact, it calls for mitigating the negative effects of landgrabbing, rather than insisting that landgrabbing be stopped. As a social movement of peasants and farmers, farmworkers, landless people, and indigenous peoples, we are confronting _a short-sighted and ultra-capitalist vision of the world based on the paradigms of growth at any cost_, the capacity of the market to control and resolve everything, and the imposition of a Western development model. This model includes the privatisation and commodification of common goods and of fundamental rights such as the rights to water and food. It includes the denigration of social movements and the cult of business as the only "useful" social actor. The _quest for private profit_ is the dominating factor in decision making and in its vision of the world. A patriarchal, capitalist, individualistic and Western vision of well-being is being actively promoted, bringing in its train uniformity in a global market. In this way, the responsibility and the role of States are reduced and seen as obsolete. There is a corresponding reduction in the capacity for action and influence of grassroots actors. _New markets_ are being established, supposedly in order to resolve the problems that the market itself has created. A simple example of this are the (REDD) carbon emissions markets, which, rather than reducing carbon emissions, have led to speculation, the forced displacement of communities, and more pollution. Techno-fixes such as GMOs and fertilisers are being actively promoted, and there is a lack of analysis of the powers and interests at play as well as a lack of a long-term vision. Markets for social problems are created, for instance the social register markets involving people who have been negatively affected by dams. These show how even social problems end up by becoming markets. We must also mention the public-private partnerships (PPPs) in which companies replace states through obscure arrangements that only benefit those same companies. By means of orchestrated land and seed laws, the common goods managed by the communities, land, water, seeds, and our territories, are turned into commodities under the dictate of land titling programmes and patents on life. Thus people are dispossessed of the very rights that guarantee the future of the planet and of humanity. Initiatives claiming to contribute to "the fight against hunger in the world", such as the New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition (Nasan) which is supported by the G8, and the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA), are taking place with the complicity of Western states and through pressure on many countries. These initiatives are integrated in an insidious manner into national and subregional agricultural development programmes, in order to impose a Western model of agriculture and the introduction of GMOs and products that are prohibited in the countries concerned - and to monopolise their natural resources such as land and water. Due to pressure to maintain the status quo or to a fear of restricting the profits of the few, there is a _continuous lack of structural and sustainable solutions._ We are seeing an_ increase in the criminalisation_ of trade unionists, environmentalists, and peasant farmers who are struggling for their human rights or for the rights of Nature. In Honduras alone, hundreds of women and men peasants have been put on trial for defending their rights. In recent years, there has been a marked upsurge in incidents of violence against environmentalists [3][2]. _We note the importance of opening up the international policy spaces _to grassroots organisations, and of developing mechanisms, to be led by these same social movements, for consultation, the provision of transparency, and the dissemination of information. At this point, let us mention the positive example of the Declaration of the Rights of Peasants and people working in rural areas that is being drawn up by the United Nations Human Rights Council [4][3]. We need new transparent,_ participatory, processes of democratisation_ that are open and clear to all, and that, instead of oppression, allow the expression of the sovereignty of the peoples in the world of today. We need _legally binding national, regional and international mechanisms to put an end to the crimes against humanity perpetrated by transnational companies._ In this sense, we welcome the initiative in the United Nations Human Rights Council, which aims to adopt a binding Treaty, and we support the Campaign to Dismantle Corporate Power [5][4]. We recognise that the role of States is to represent the interests of their peoples. Therefore, the State has an obligation to oppose any policy or international treaty that diminishes human rights and undermines its own sovereignty. The sovereignty and responsibility of States need to be strengthened and not undermined at the international level. _We in La Via Campesina have chosen food sovereignty as a utopia in rebellion against this exploitative system. Day by day, we are building our alternatives in solidarity and from the grassroots._ Contacts: Marina Dos Santos (PT, ES): +55 21 981850558 Unai Aranguren (ES, PT, EN):+34 636 369361 Ndiakhate Fall (FR): +221 77 5508907 ------------------------- [6][1] https://www.tni.org/en/briefing/state-power-2014#infographics [7] [8][2] http://www.democracynow.org/2015/4/22/how_many_more_116_environmental_defen… [9] [10][3] http://defendingpeasantrights.org/ [11] [12][4] http://www.stopcorporateimpunity.org [13]/ Links: ------ [1] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/actions-and-events-mainmenu-26/stop-tr… [2] file:///C:/Users/nyoni/Downloads/position%20paperTNCsEN%20(1).doc#_ftn1 [3] file:///C:/Users/nyoni/Downloads/position%20paperTNCsEN%20(1).doc#_ftn2 [4] file:///C:/Users/nyoni/Downloads/position%20paperTNCsEN%20(1).doc#_ftn3 [5] file:///C:/Users/nyoni/Downloads/position%20paperTNCsEN%20(1).doc#_ftn4 [6] file:///C:/Users/nyoni/Downloads/position%20paperTNCsEN%20(1).doc#_ftnref1 [7] https://www.tni.org/en/briefing/state-power-2014#infographics [8] file:///C:/Users/nyoni/Downloads/position%20paperTNCsEN%20(1).doc#_ftnref2 [9] http://www.democracynow.org/2015/4/22/how_many_more_116_environmental_defen… [10] file:///C:/Users/nyoni/Downloads/position%20paperTNCsEN%20(1).doc#_ftnref3 [11] http://defendingpeasantrights.org/ [12] file:///C:/Users/nyoni/Downloads/position%20paperTNCsEN%20(1).doc#_ftnref4 [13] http://www.stopcorporateimpunity.org

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La Via Campesina - Electronic Newsletter June 2015
by La Vía Campesina 09 Jul '15

09 Jul '15

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On both sides of the Pacific, peasants, family farmers, and rural workers reject the extension of neoliberal policies
by La Vía Campesina 29 Jun '15

29 Jun '15

Both sides of the Pacific- Via Campesina members oppose TPP [1] Published on Monday, 29 June 2015 16:19 [2]JOINT PRESS RELEASE AGAINST TRANS-PACIFIC PARTNERSHIP (TPP) _On both sides of the Pacific, peasants, family farmers, and rural workers reject the extension of neoliberal policies_ (June 15, 2015): We, members of La Via Campesina on both sides of the Pacific, jointly express our opposition to the TPP. This so-called partnership is in fact an extension of the neoliberal policies that are being promoted by transnational corporations (TNCs) with the support of the governments at their service. Neoliberal policies and trade agreements have already caused catastrophic damage to peasants and family farmers and to agricultural workers, who are more and more at the mercy of the transnational corporations. The increasing control of global commodity markets exercised by these corporations constitutes a threat to the livelihoods of peasants, family farmers and rural workers, to the well-being of indigenous communities, and to the health of consumers. Their power is an affront to food sovereignty and social justice, and a threat to ecological integrity. As more than twenty years of experience with neoliberal trade agreements has shown, increases in agricultural exports serve only to increase the profits of transnational corporations; they do not raise the net incomes of peasants and farmers. Furthermore, the TPP is not simply an agreement about trade. Its provisions infringe upon the national sovereignty of the countries concerned, subjecting their citizens to rules that are dictated by the transnational corporations and leading to a deterioration in living conditions for the great majority - especially for family farmers, workers, and small business owners. By strengthening the intellectual property rights of pharmaceutical companies, the agreement will deprive poor people of prescription drugs. The Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) provision enabling corporations to sue national governments for alleged loss of profits will lead to the modification, or even the abandonment, of health, environmental, and social programmes. The provisions regarding competition, state-owned enterprises, and government procurement will prevent member countries from implementing economic policies that are suited to their particular situation. Rising opposition on the part of the public, who are becoming more aware of the dangerous nature of the TPP's provisions, has so far prevented the negotiators from reaching an agreement. _Now is the time for the negotiations to be stopped. In Japan, in Korea, in Canada, and all over the world, what we urgently need is to bring the policies and practice of neoliberalism to an end, and to build an alternative international trading system that has as its foundation food sovereignty, the protection of the environment, and the well-being of our peoples._ Globalize the Struggle--Globalize hope! National Farmers Union (NFU), Canada Union Paysanne Quebec, Canada Korean Peasant League (KPL), South Korea Japan Family Farmers Movement (NOUMINREN), Japan Links: ------ [1] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/actions-and-events-mainmenu-26/10-year… [2] http://viacampesina.org/en/images/2015-06-29%20Anti%20TPP%20protest.jpg

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From: deymirie@gmail.com
by La Vía Campesina 29 Jun '15

29 Jun '15

Hello http://shika-jimucho.net/informal.php?evening=8qf4gqu6xfm5n deymirie(a)gmail.com Sent from my iPhone

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New Nyéléni Newsletter on Nutrition and Food Sovereignty is now online!
by La Vía Campesina 17 Jun '15

17 Jun '15

NUTRITION AND FOOD SOVEREIGNTY [1] Published on Wednesday, 17 June 2015 15:06 [2]THE NEW EDITION OF THE NYÉLÉNI NEWSLETTER IS NOW ONLINE! Human nutrition refers to the interaction between food and the human body, and the resulting health and wellbeing of individuals. The best source of nutrition continues to be breastfeeding and diversified rich traditional foods developed by cultures throughout history. Nutrition is only one of the dimensions of eating linked to human health. The best way to guarantee adequate nutrition is through the provision of diversified, safe, and balanced diets, based on local fresh produce which is agroecologically produced, and prepared according to cultural practices. _Nutrition cannot be separated from food, production models, food systems or eating practices._ Click here to download the english edition [3] or read it directly in the website at www.nyeleni.org [4]! Links: ------ [1] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/publications-mainmenu-30/1826-nutritio… [2] http://viacampesina.org/en/images/2015-06-17-Nyeleni%20Newsletter%20.jpg [3] http://viacampesina.org/en/images/stories/pdf/2015-06-17-Nyeleni_Newsletter… [4] http://www.nyeleni.org/

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La Via Campesina - Bulletin Électronic May 2015
by La Vía Campesina 15 Jun '15

15 Jun '15

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Press Conference: World´s Farmers Speak on Expo 2015
by La Vía Campesina 02 Jun '15

02 Jun '15

PRESS CONFERENCE: WORLD´S FARMERS SPEAK ON EXPO 2015 [1] [2] JUNE 3RD 2015 ORE 1:30 – 2:30 PM Terra Room of Expo dei popoli. (Fabbrica del Vapore, Via Giulio Procaccini, 4, Milano) The international farmers movement La Via Campesina (LVC), one of the organizers of Expo dei Popoli 2015, presents its take on Expo Milano 2015 thanks to its representatives from. Africa, Europe and Latin America. This press conference will be an opportunity to directly listen to the voices of farmers and local communities about the central themes covered in Expo Milano 2015 : feeding the planet and energy for life. SPEAKERS: Elizabeth Mpofu, Zimbabwe, General Coordinator of La Via Campesina Hanny Van Geel, The Netherland, Member of La Via Campesina European Committee Esperanza de Jesus Ruiz Vallejos, Nicaragua, Secretary General of the farmers' organization ATC-Matagalpa Andrea Ferrante, Italy, Member of La Via Campesina European Committee Speakers will be availabe for interviews Official Hashtag: #peoplesexpo #laviacampesina #ecvc #foodsovereignty www.viacampesina.org [3] FOR FURTHER INFORMATIONS CONTACT: Elisa Caricato +32 495 345980 - elisa(a)eurovia.org Federica Toscano +39 333 7217660 - federica(a)eurovia.org Links: ------ [1] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/actions-and-events-mainmenu-26/1812-pr… [2] http://viacampesina.org/en/images/2014%20Logo.jpg [3] http://viacampesina.org/

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Via Campesina denounces the takeover of the World Expo by corporate interests
by La Vía Campesina 28 May '15

28 May '15

Via Campesina denounces the takeover of the World Expo by corporate interests [1] Published on Thursday, 28 May 2015 20:08 [2](Zimbabwe, Harare,May 27th 2015) La Via Campesina (LVC), a worldwide movement representing millions of peasants, agricultural workers, indigenous villages and nomadic peoples, denounces the corporate takeover of the World Expo in Milan as well as the governmental complicity. The theme of the Expo is "Feed the planet; energy for life". The Expo in Milan serves as a showcase for multinational businesses that control the world market of food, genetic material of animals and plant seeds, pesticides and chemical fertilizers. These businesses work constantly to privatize and commercialize the public commons including the water, land, forests, minerals and seeds. They transform food into a commodity and reject the fact that food is a human right. Food is treated as a commodity, produced on a large scale using a lot of pesticides and GMOs for people of limited economic means while healthy food is only within the financial grasp of the economic elite. One highly visible company at the Expo is Coca-Cola. Aside from producing products with no nutritional value whatsoever, it is among others involved in killing Colombian trade unionists trying to protect water resources and labor rights [3][1]. McDonald's, known not only for their poor record on workers' rights and healthy food, also has a large presence at this Expo [4][2]. The Milan Expo clearly serves the interests of these companies in promoting their agro-industrial, elitist and capitalist model. Most of the participating governments have spent millions of Euros of public money to build a forum to "sell" their technological products. It is a space to promote the false solutions to hunger and climate change, for example, the climate-smart agriculture, REDD programs pushed by the new G8 Alliance, AGRA and others. Another contradiction is the fact that the Expo center was built in an area where farmland had previously existed, which is needed to assure fresh, healthy food for the urban population. [5][3] The theme of the Expo demonstrates a cynical lack of understanding of the political problem that is world hunger. The World Expo in Milan ignores the small-scale food producers who are responsible for growing 70% of food worldwide while creating employment without contaminating nature or exploiting their workers in the process. La Via Campesina denounces this vision pushed by the Expo and reaffirms that food sovereignty constitutes an alternative based on the people's right to ensure their livelihoods all while respecting the environment through agroecological practices that cool down the planet and provide healthy food in locally adapted food systems. LVC proposes a solution to the multiple crises that our societies are facing. LVC also urges a paradigm shift so that decisions about what people produce and eat, as well as how, where and for whom they do so are driven by the people who grow and consume said products and not by the corporate entities who sell them as commodities. La Via Campesina will participate in the People's Expo in Milan to propose real alternatives to the hopeless model suggested in the "official" Expo. CONTACTS Marina Dos Santos: +55 21981850558 Andrea Ferranti: +39 3480189221 Contact in Milan during the People's Expo (3-5 June): Tel: +32473300156 Email:idelforge@viacampesina.org ------------------------- [6][1] http://www.cetim.ch/es/interventions/383/violaciones-de-derechos-humanos-po… [7] [8][2] Terranuovaedizione.it [9][3] http://www.altreconomia.it/site/fr_contenuto_detail.php?intId=4579 [10] Links: ------ [1] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/actions-and-events-mainmenu-26/1810-th… [2] http://viacampesina.org/en/images/2014%20Logo.jpg [3] file:///C:/Users/nyoni/Downloads/Proofread_Milan-draftpositionLVCEnglish.doc#_ftn1 [4] file:///C:/Users/nyoni/Downloads/Proofread_Milan-draftpositionLVCEnglish.doc#_ftn2 [5] file:///C:/Users/nyoni/Downloads/Proofread_Milan-draftpositionLVCEnglish.doc#_ftn3 [6] file:///C:/Users/nyoni/Downloads/Proofread_Milan-draftpositionLVCEnglish.doc#_ftnref1 [7] http://www.cetim.ch/es/interventions/383/violaciones-de-derechos-humanos-po… [8] file:///C:/Users/nyoni/Downloads/Proofread_Milan-draftpositionLVCEnglish.doc#_ftnref2 [9] file:///C:/Users/nyoni/Downloads/Proofread_Milan-draftpositionLVCEnglish.doc#_ftnref3 [10] http://www.altreconomia.it/site/fr_contenuto_detail.php?intId=4579

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La Via Campesina in Milan: joining the peasant farmer's expo
by La Vía Campesina 21 May '15

21 May '15

La Via Campesina in Milan: joining the peasant farmer's expo [1] Published on Friday, 22 May 2015 01:53 [2] LA VIA CAMPESINA - MEDIA ADVISORY (Brussels, 21st of May 2015) - The international peasant's movement La Via Campesina will take part in People's Expo in Milan, at the Fabbrica del Vapore, from the 3rd to the 5th of June 2015. The People's Expo is the international forum of the civil society and farmers' movements organised to defend the principles of Food Sovereignty and Environmental Justice, to fight against the commodification of the right to food promoted by Expo 2015 and to state aloud, once again, that it is the peasant agriculture that feeds the world, not the multinationals or the agribusiness. La Via Campesina denounces the Milan Expo as a great "world showcase" that deliberately chose to hide one of the largest ongoing world conflict: hunger, land and energy grabbing at a global level. >From the 1st of May to the 31st of October 31 2015, Milan is hosting the Universal Exposition with the theme 'Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life'. Expo 2015 has been described by the organizers as 'the biggest event ever organized on Food and Nutrition [with intent to] give a concrete answer to a vital need: being able to guarantee healthy, safe and sufficient food for everyone, while respecting the Planet and its equilibrium' [3][1]. However, Expo 2015 is sponsored and financed by some of the most important multinationals of food and agriculture, such as McDonald's and Coca Cola. According to Andrea Ferrantes of La Via Campesina Europe: 'Expo 2015 is hiding behind a green-washed façade that doesn't show us the violent face of the corporate interests which are controlling the whole food chain, grabbing the land , controlling seeds and patenting life. The narrative of Expo 2015 does not speak of the stories of farmers and peasants starving because they being expulsed from their land, of the indigenous people expulsed from their territories, of the fishermen and fisherwomen who are being denied access to the seas in which they have always fished, of the nomadic pastoralists forced to live a sedentary life or of the consumers forced to eat junk food'. Expo Milano 2015 is not a neutral event, as some would have liked us to believe. On the contrary, it is an event promoting the industrialisation of agriculture and the financialisation of agricultural markets. Agribusiness concentrates food production and distribution in the hands of the few big companies, regardless of the producers and consumers' needs. Expo 2015 goes in the opposite direction from the path on which food producers and citizens march together, claiming their right to food sovereignty through agroecological models of production and consumption. To propose real alternatives to the agro-industrial model supported by Expo 2015 and to give voice to those who cannot tell their own story in its "showcase", a delegation of Via Campesina farmers from around the world will be present at the People's Expo in Milan, along with other international networks and many non-profit Italian associations that defend peoples' rights. #peoplesexpo #laviacampesina #ecvc #foodsovereignty PRESS CONFERENCE: "Peasants from around the world: views on Expo 2015" 2nd of June 2015 - 18h00 - La Stecca, Via Gaetano de Castillia 26, 20124 Milan MEDIA CONTACTS Federica: +39 333 7217660 Elisa: +32 495 34 59 80 ------------------------- [1] [4] Expo Milano 2015 official website: http://www.expo2015.org/it/cos-e [5] Links: ------ [1] http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/actions-and-events-mainmenu-26/1809-la… [2] http://viacampesina.org/en/images/banners/lvc%20ecvc.jpg [3] file:///C:/Users/nyoni/Downloads/EN%20Media%20advisory.docx#_ftn1 [4] file:///C:/Users/nyoni/Downloads/EN%20Media%20advisory.docx#_ftnref1 [5] http://www.expo2015.org/it/cos-e

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La Via Campesina - Newsletter April 2015
by La Vía Campesina 07 May '15

07 May '15

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