KARACHI: The government is not inefficient but they do not show their efficiency in matters related to public interest, said Azra Talat Sayeed, who is an activist and the executive director of Roots for Equity.
She was addressing the audience at a discussion on ‘Food Justice and Farmers’ Rights’ held at The Second Floor on Sunday. Sayeed works for an organisation that fights for the rights of small and landless farmers, especially female farmers. The discussion focused on the increasing issue of agricultural change ever since the passing of the Seed (Amendment) Act, 2015 and Plant Breeders’ Rights Bill, 2016.
The majority of parliamentarians are landlords and the poor farmers are their slaves, Sayeed claimed, while accusing them of not standing up for the rights of these farmers. Recalling her first trip to a village when she got to hear stories of farmers and their families living there, Sayeed said it was difficult for her to believe that even though the farmers worked for 12 to 18 hours a day they still owed millions of rupees in loans.
“We have started looking for organic seeds, not scientifically grown ones,” said Sayeed, while referring to genetically modified (GM) seeds being replaced with organic seeds. It is hard to find even five varieties of wheat seeds in Pakistan, she added. Speaking about the issues that the farmers are facing since the bills have been passed, Sayeed said promoting GM seeds is the capitalist and corporate interest of the landlords.
Yasir Husain, who is an urban farmer and co-founder of Organic City, said he feels that Karachi is isolated from the rest of the country, with its people being indifferent to nature. He added that Karachiites have a concrete life and they live in that same bubble.
Talking about how people can be closer to nature, Husain said that every child should know how to grow plants. “Students should be taught in schools about kitchen gardening,” he said, adding that it is not necessary for one to have a garden to grow plants. Rooftops and galleries can also be used for planting purposes, he said.
“Seeds have changed and so has the variety,” said sociologist and Karti Dharti founder Nosheen Ali, while launching a report titled ‘Seed Inc: Food Sovereignty, Farmers’ Rights and New Legal Regimes in Pakistan’. While speaking about her time living abroad, Ali said she found the taste and colours of various fruits to be different compared to fruits here. With the ongoing hunger crisis that the world is facing and increasing use of GM seeds, we will face drastic changes, Ali said, adding that the government will never stand up for farmers’ rights.
“It is a common misunderstanding in the country that farmers are an impediment to the growth of the country because they are illiterate and the country can only grow economically with GM seeds,” she said, adding that such modified seeds will bring more misery in the farmers’ lives.
Ali was accompanied by Amna Tanweer Yazdani as the moderator of the session, who is an anthropologist and senior social scientist at Aga Khan University.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 29th, 2016.