Category Archives: Farmers

Farmers Reject GM Cotton/BT Cotton

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Press Release

August 31, 2016

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Pakistan Kissan Mazdoor Tehreek (PKMT) and Roots for Equity had organized a protest rejecting the promotion of Bt/GM in Punjab, Pakistan in front of Lahore Press Club. Farmers from various districts from Punjab participated in the protest.

Addressing to the protest PKMT secretary Wali Haider told that government is pursuing policies that advocate the production of genetically-engineered cotton; a policy which would ultimately allow hegemonic transnational seed companies such as Monsanto to take control and dictate the total agricultural cotton policy and production in the province, which surely will also spread to other provinces. The Amended Seed Act, 2015 has already been passed that was the first step in aggressively promoting hybrid and GM cotton; the next step is the passing of the Plant Breeders Rights Act, which is already in the final stage of approval in the National Assembly. All of these initiative are there to protect intellectual property rights of the TNCs in result Bt cotton business will have a legal cover.

PKMT firmly reasserts farmers collective right to seed, its free exchange among farmers; it is the farmers who have bred, preserved and passed on the genetic material of seed over many millennia and we will not allow profit-hungry corporations to control the most basic agricultural input – critical for maintaining life on our planet. The agro-chemical mega-corporations that thrive on ‘selling’ lies about higher yields has gained super profits while leaving farmers reeling under multi-pronged crises from suicidal debt, to ever-increasing cost of production, pests and super bugs infestation, falling yields, and destroyed lands and lives. Bt-cotton cultivation is a diabolical attack that will replace/reduce wheat production, the most critical food crop that ensures food security of the small and landless farmers.

According to PKMT National Coordinator Raja Mujeeb, Bt-cotton was initially illegally imported to Pakistan, has time and again wrecked havoc in the cotton fields of the country – last year’s very low cotton yields is testament. According to a research study by International Research on Cancer, Glysophate can probably cause cancer in human. This chemical is used extensively in Monsanto’s herbicide “Round-up Ready.”

PKMT Punjab coordinator, Zahoor Joya emphases that GM technology is being resisted by a vast number of countries across the World, including in very advanced countries such as France and Germany; in such an environment, where Pakistan does not have enough expertise to evaluate this technology, promotion of GM crops can result in many disasters impacting our environment, biodiversity, health and food security. The certified Monsanto seeds in India have already faced a failure creating havoc in the lives of farmers there. In this scenario, the Government must step back and put its efforts in promoting agroecological practices in the production of cotton which would yield high quality cotton. This has a vast market abroad and in the country and would ensure not only a livelihood for farmers but improve the health of the people and our agricultural land.

PKMT demands that instead of promoting TNCs interest and GM crops, the government must put a moratorium on GM technology so that national genetic resources, environment, biodiversity and most importantly right to seed for farmers can be protected.

Released by: Pakistan Kissan Mazdoor Tehreek (PKMT)

Urdu Press Release

BT Cotton Press Release Lahore 31-08-2016 copy

BT Cotton Dawn

BT Cotton Jurat News copy BT Cotton Pakistan Newspdf copy

Hungarians Just Destroyed All Monsanto GMO Corn Fields

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Hungary has taken a bold stand against biotech giant Monsanto and genetic modification by destroying 1000’s of acres of corn found to have been grown with genetically modified seeds, according to Hungary deputy state secretary of the Ministry of Rural Development Lajos Bognar.

Unlike many European Union countries, Hungary is a nation where genetically modified (GM) seeds are banned. In a similar stance against GM ingredients, Peru has also passed a 10 year ban on GM foods.

“Almost 1000 acres of maize found to have been planted with genetically modified seeds have been destroyed throughout Hungary, deputy state secretary of the Ministry of Rural Development Lajos Bognar said.

The GMO corn has been ploughed under, said Lajos Bognar, but pollen has not spread, he added.

Unlike several other EU members, GMO seeds are banned in Hungary. The inspections will continue despite the fact that traders are obliged to make sure that their products are GMO free, Bognar said.

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During the invesigation, controllers have found Monsanto products among the seeds planted.

The free movement of goods within the EU means that authorities will not investigate how the seeds arrived in Hungary, but they will check where the goods can be found, Bognar said. Regional public radio reported that the two biggest international seed producing companies are affected in the matter and GMO seeds could have been sown on up to the thousands of hectares in the country.

“Most of the local farmers have complained since they just discovered they were using GMO seeds.” said globalresearch.ca

As of May 2015, Hungary had not responded to the new EU legislation making GMOs legal in all countries unless they specifically opt out. Germany looks like they may opt out. Scotland has opted out within the UK.

GMO seeds are not considered worrisome and dangerous simply because they are modified, but it is that they are modified to handle massive doses of glyphosate (Roundup), and not die.  They are made to take baths in the chemical herbicide that is so dangerous for human consumption, and it is the fear that the buildup of glyphosate within crops is a potential cause for the recent rapid increase in autism, cancers, and other long-term developing illnesses.  The company Monsanto has been so aggressive legally to cover up any public ill, believed to be hushing farmers, buying off segments of the government and paying off scientists in the U.S. that it is hard for anyone to know what logistical data has been soured, and what truths to believe.  It has become easier for countries like Hungary to plow under the crop than to try to disseminate between what is fact and what is farse with Monsanto’s disastrous reputation and communication failures.

There is also the factor that when Monsanto seeds are found to be present on land, they fight for ownership of those seeds, and consider them as patent infringement, theft, or whatever you want to call it.  Rather than fight the giant in court every time their seeds blow into a field, it’s easier to wipe them off the map.

Source: www.offgridquest.com | Original Post Date: August 30, 2015

Plants Breeders Right Bill: Farmer Shackling Law

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Press Release

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During the press conference PKMT national coordinator Raja Mujeeb, provincial coordinator sindh Ali Nawaz Jalbani, national core group member Hakim Gul and district coordinator ghotki Ali Gohar speaking to the media.

August 12, 2016

The Standing Committee on National Food Security and Research (NFS&R) on August 9, 2016 approved the ‘Plant Breeders Bill 2016’ which had earlier in the year already been approved by the Senate Standing Committee on Cabinet Division; the draft bill will be now be presented before the National Assembly for approval.

Implementation of the Plant Breeders Rights Bill, like the Amended Seed Act, 2015 is dictated by the World Trade Organization (WTO) under the Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual property rights (TRIPS) Agreement.  The TRIPs agreement makes it mandatory for the government to provide intellectual property rights (IPRs) on new varieties of plants and seeds. In essence, the Plant Breeders Right’s Act provides monopolistic control to IPR holders of the new varieties of plants or seed prohibiting their use and sale to all others without permission.

The Plant Breeders Act’s is delivered through an ‘effective’ sui generis system or through patents or a combination of both and thus provides mechanisms for plant variety owner to seek IPRs over their plant varieties in each country where they want commercial use of the variety.

The Plant Breeder Right Act basically takes away a centuries old right of farmers to saving and exchanging seed. With gigantic seed corporations such as Monsanto and Syngenta holding intellectual property rights over seeds, the country will on one hand, face serious food insecurity and on the other, loose its sovereignty allowing transnational corporations to dictate food and agricultural production in the country. The royalties paid for IPRs will result in massive seed prices, and farmers already reeling under the steeply rising production costs will face further impoverishment. There is no doubt that the approval of this Bill is equivalent to pushing farmers out of the agricultural sector, reducing them to the status of beggars, a life of misery and humiliation.

Genetically modified seeds (GMOs) are based on genetic engineering (GE) of living organisms including seed and animals and is against evolution of life in nature; the commodification of nature, environmental pollution and further destruction of biodiversity through GMOs is a threat to the entire humanity and goes far beyond ethical dictates of society. It is due to the above reasons and potential health risks associated to GMOs that many countries across the globe have banned GM seed and crops.

Some members of the Standing Committee on NFS&R have shown strong reservations against the bill. According to them, the while the Bio Safety Committee under the Ministry of Climate Change has been given the responsibility for issuing certification on GMOs but lacks expertise on this matter. Pakistan has not undertaken any research and analysis on GE crops and their impacts, which is absolutely against international law on this issue.

Based on the above, Pakistan Kissan Mazdoor Tehreek, an alliance of small and landless farmers and Roots for Equity strongly reject the Plant Breeders Rights Bill demanding first, a complete elimination of the role of foreign seed companies in agricultural production and second, any further decision making in this context to be based on inclusion and decision making role of farmers’ organizations.

Released by Pakistan Kissan Mazdoor Tehreek (PKMT)

Urdu Press Release

Plant Breeder Right Act 12 aug 16 copy

GENETICALLY MODIFIED: GM CROPS – BOON OR BANE?

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The Express Tribune, August 12th, 2016.

Peer Muhammad

ISLAMABAD: Experts are currently debating whether introduction of genetically modified crops (GMCs) would help fulfil nutritional requirements and improve agricultural productivity – or carry with it unwarranted adverse consequences if GMCs are introduced without following standard safety measures.

The views were expressed during a brainstorming session on commercialisation of GMCs in Pakistan, organised by the Ministry of National Food Security and Research at the Pakistan Agriculture Research Centre (Parc).

Dr Muhammad Fahim, a biotechnology expert and professor of Peshawar, warned that among many health implications, there would be adverse effects of GMCs on agriculture exports to European countries if these are adopted without required capacity and safety measures.

“These countries are concerned in the matter and you may lose a good export market,” he maintained. He added that the adaptation of GMCs was not harmful per se, but the lack of expertise on Pakistan’s part to deal with GM technology was a cause for concern.

Meanwhile, former Parc chairman and pro-genetically modified organisms (GMOs) scientist Kauser Abdullah said that the GMO can increase the productivity of famers and it could build tolerance to biotic stress. He added that GMOs will help reduce cost of production and increase productivity. He further said that it will also increase nutritional content in addition to increase the productivity of meat and milk.

The ministry of climate change has given the green light to two multinational companies – Monsanto and DuPont/Pioneer – for commercialisation of the GM corns, which triggered widespread criticism and concerns from the farmer community and experts.

http://tribune.com.pk/story/1160532/genetically-modified-gm-crops-boon-bane/

 

EU URGES GOVT TO LIFT DUTY ON IMPORT OF MILK POWDER

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The Express Tribune, July 31, 2016

ISLAMABAD: The European Union has urged the Pakistani government to remove the 25% regulatory duty on import of milk powder, which has hurt the export of this product.

The demand was made by some EU ambassadors at a meeting with Commerce Minister Khurram Dastgir Khan in Islamabad last week.

The ambassador of EU Mission led the delegation, accompanied by ambassadors of France and Holland, to take up the issue with the Pakistani authorities.

The ambassadors argued that since Pakistan enjoys GSP Plus status in exporting its products to the EU, the government should avoid such curbs on EU products as well. They urged the commerce minister to take up the matter with the higher authorities.

The Pakistani side said that the duty was imposed to protect the local farming community. The government imposed 25% regulatory duty on the import of powdered milk and whey powder in the latest budget, resulting in a total duty of 45% (20% customs and 25% regulatory duty) on the import of these items.

This was done on the recommendation of the Ministry of National Food Security and Research, which took the step after farmers demanded protection.

Sources said that after the categorical demand by the EU countries, the government is in a difficult situation about the issue as it cannot ignore the demand of the EU countries, particularly given the GSP Plus status.

At the same time, Pakistan’s agriculture and livestock sectors continue to show unimpressive growth, while forming a majority of the vote bank for the ruling PML-N.

http://tribune.com.pk/story/1152842/eu-urges-govt-lift-duty-import-milk-powder/

Climate Change: a saga of disasters for riverine farmers in Pakistan!

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The endless suffering of the riverine area farmers in Pakistan depicts the disaster that climate change is bringing to the most vulnerable marginalized communities. In March 2015, sudden rains and low floods had washed away the almost ready to harvest wheat crops of various villages along the Chenab River in the area called Ghanta Ghar, Mozan Nawabpur, Multan district; than later in July 2015 floods had forced communities to evacuate or live cut off from the rest of the city among the swirling waters. Daily coming and going became dependent on small row-boats which charged the villagers either per journey or even yearly payment of fixed amount of wheat grains. We have reported on their hardships earlier.

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Now once again there are flood warnings being issued by the government. In early Ramazan (early June), government had raised to the ground some homes but then stopped, supposedly because of Ramazan. Now they are back. Bulldozers are smashing the small mud-houses to the ground. According to the government officials who are with the eviction team these people were given notices earlier and they have to be evacuated as this land adjacent to the river bank and the government has to reinforce the embankment (bund) called the Sipar Nawabpur Bund. According to the officials there they will be abolishing 700 housed within this week. The police has barricaded the area not even allowing people to remove their belongings or go near the site.

No doubt, there are expected flood but that is nothing new. If this land was not safe why were people allowed to sit here in the first place. Second, many people had purchsed land here after the 2010 Super Floods – why was land sold to these farmers if indeed this area was not safe?

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July 26, 2016

No doubt, there is a flood warning but where do the people go? Our shameless government officials are forcing people to evacuate without giving them an alternate abode.  Nobody allows them to put down their belongings and makeshift abode.

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It is criminal that on one hand these people suffer from climate change calamities – dumped on their heads by the profit-driven capitalist growth – and on the other hand they are given no support from their own government. In a matter of 16 months, this is the third eviction that these communities are facing!

A farmer saving what he can of the destroyed wheat harvest. He will use the wasted crops as fodder for his livestock.

A farmer saving what he can of the destroyed wheat harvest. He will use the wasted crops as fodder for his livestock. March 2015

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July 2015

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May 2016

https://rootsforequity.noblogs.org/post/2015/03/10/the-miserable-life-of-the-kacha-area-farmers-facing-evacuation-once-again/

https://rootsforequity.noblogs.org/post/2015/07/15/in-the-jaws-of-climate-change/

Footprints: A case of mistaken identities?

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NASIR JAMAL

A CHAK 28/2R resident, Ghulam Murtaza, points towards the place where the ‘shootout’ took place

A CHAK 28/2R resident, Ghulam Murtaza, points towards the place where the ‘shootout’ took place – Photo by writer

OKARA: In the midst of lush green fields in Chak 28/2R — one of the several villages that make up Okara’s Kulyana Military Estate — sits a decrepit cemented structure, the outhouse where the Okara police claim the six terrorists they had killed during a ‘shootout’ in the early hours of July 13 were hiding.

Many villagers speaking to Dawn recall how they were woken up by speeding police trucks and jeeps late in the night. None dared to step out, and only learnt about the “raid and gunfight” the next morning, after the bodies of the suspects had already been removed.

“It was in the dead of the night when we heard police vehicles racing in the direction of the outhouse,” says Dilshad Ali, a village resident.

The outhouse belongs to a retired army major, Faqir Hussain, who, like other military officers, was allotted land in the Kulyana Estate around 20 years ago. But it has been in possession of two Anjuman Muzaraeen Punjab (AMP) leaders — Saleem Jhakkar, who has been in jail for the last year and a half, and his brother Naeem.

It was in 2009 when the retired major’s men allegedly shot dead three protesting tenants over a land rent dispute, after which Faqir Hussain has never been able to return to the village. “The tenants, led by Saleem, grabbed all my land eight years ago. I tried every available option but neither the military nor the provincial government helped me regain possession of the land I made cultivable after almost 10 years of hard work. The police are on the side of the tenants, and the courts haven’t helped either,” he says.

According to police claims, Naeem had given shelter to the suspects at the outhouse. “He fled the place after the raid and is now a fugitive,” says a senior Okara police official. Some say the government has announced a reward of up to Rs1 million for information that may lead to his arrest.

AMP activist Ghulam Murtaza says no one has any knowledge of the whereabouts of the families of the AMP leaders. “Only the police can tell whether they are hiding or are in their custody,” he says.

There are more than 50 policemen lounging in the AMP leader’s home; their officer-in-charge seems unhappy to see a newspaper team asking his men about the whereabouts of the family of the owner. “We were brought here the morning after the encounter with terrorists and don’t know anything,” he says. “Talk to our seniors if you want any details; we cannot help you.”

Murtaza, like other villagers, rules out even the “remotest possibility of the presence of suspects at the outhouse before the police arrived,” insisting that neither any AMP leader nor the tenants have anything to do with religious militants.

“It is a lame effort to start a witch-hunt against Naeem and the rest of the AMP leadership [in Okara] to break the back of our movement for land rights, and evict us from the land we have been tilling for more than four generations. We are not terrorists. Nor are our leaders, as the police would want the world to believe,” he says.

There is hardly any evidence at the outhouse to corroborate the police’s claim that a fierce gunfight between security forces and suspected terrorists took place there less than a week ago. There are a few large bloodstains on the ground of the verandah, and on the bedcloth inside the room; no bullet marks can be seen on the outer walls. The room has been stripped down and appears to have been out of use for quite some time.

A news agency report has quoted the management of Lal Masjid that two of the six suspects killed in the encounter were employees of Jamia Hafsa and had been in custody of security forces for several months. This development has lent further credence to the villagers’ claim that the shootout was no more than a case of “custody killings”.

Police, however, say intelligence was provided by the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). “The raid was carried out jointly by the counter-terrorism department, local police, and ISI officials,” says a senior police official, unwilling to be identified.

A leader of the Awami Workers’ Party (AWP), Farooq Tariq, who has been working with tenants of the Okara military farms for their land rights since the movement began 15 years ago, also says the incident was “staged” and is an attempt by the military farm administration, with the aid of the police, to force tenants to strike a deal with the Kulyana Estate allottees on their conditions.

A few days after the Kulyana Estate village ‘operation’, police and military personnel raided the house of Mehr Abdul Sattar in Chak 4/4L. Sattar has been in jail since April when he tried to organise a peasant convention. “Police had not found anything in Sattar’s home when they raided it to arrest him. But after the so-called Kulyana shootout, they claim to have recovered weapons and Indian currency. Doesn’t their story baffle you?” says the AWP leader.

“If the authorities think they can scare tenants by labelling their leaders as Indian agents, or framing them in false cases by using high-handed tactics, they are grossly mistaken.”

Published in Dawn, July 26th, 2016

http://www.dawn.com/news/1273244/footprints-a-case-of-mistaken-identities

FARMERS PROTEST LAND ACQUISITION FOR INDUSTRIAL ESTATE

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Dawn, July 21st, 2016

GUJRAT: Scores of farmers and landowners from different villages along the Gujrat-Sargodha road on Wednesday staged a demonstration in front of the district government complex against a proposal to acquire land for the establishment of phase II of the industrial estate area.

At least 480 acres of agricultural land between Saroki and Sheikh Sukha along Sargodha Road have been earmarked by the local land revenue department and approved by stakeholders, including the Punjab Small Industries Estate Department and local business community.

A large number of people from Jhandewal, Mund, Dhudra and Sheikh Sukha — the villages to be affected due to the proposed land acquisition — gathered at the district government and staged a demonstration.

The protesters demanded the authorities select another site since the proposed site comprised rich fertile land, which should be spared for agricultural purposes only.

Later, representatives of the protesters met with District Coordination Officer (DCO) Liaquat Ali Chattha and local PML-N MPA Haji Imran Zafar to convey apprehensions of the villagers over the project.

They asked the district government to shift the project to the other side of Sargodha Road where at least 200 acres of government land was also available, which they claimed had been occupied by some influentials.

They project could also be shifted to the previously proposed site along Gujrat-Bhimbher road where a huge chunk of barren land owned by the provincial government was available, they suggested.

The DCO told them that at least 400 acres were required for the project, which was why the southern side of Sargodha road was not an option.

Both the DCO and the MPA asked the protesters to render this sacrifice for the uplift of the country as well as economic growth of Gujrat.

They also sought suggestions from landowners if the matter could be resolved by enhancing the price of land or sparing a part of affected villages.

The protesters dispersed peacefully when the DCO assured them of visiting the proposed site with them on Saturday.

Meanwhile, the district government in consultation with officials of the Gujrat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GTCCI) proposed that phase 2 of the planned industrial estate be named Chenab Industrial Estate Area of Gujrat.

This was decided in a meeting held at the district government complex presided over by DCO Chattha with GTCCI President Mian Muhammad Ijaz leading a delegation of local industrialists.

The meeting was told that officials of the Punjab Small Industries Estate Department had also declared the proposed 480 acres feasible for the project, which would be linked with the GT Road by a 120-foot wide dual carriage way.

The DCO said following completion of the initial procedural work, a formal summary was being prepared for approval of the chief minister, which would be followed by the issuance of a notification of Section 4 of the Land Acquisition Act so that the district Land Revenue Department could acquire the land.

http://www.dawn.com/news/1272151/farmers-protest-land-acquisition-for-industrial-estate

A Small Farmer’s Advocacy for Agroecology!

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The short documentary is witness to the knowledge of small farmers belief in traditional agriculture systems which are now being often referred to as agroecology.  In this documentary Rasheed Khan, a small farmer and a member of Pakistan Kissan Mazdoor Tehreek (PKMT) from Mansehra, Khyber Pakhtunkwa not only talks about the hardiness of crops grown from indigenous seeds but also ‘actively demonstrates’ their tenacity and deep roots in the ground. According to him, the stalk is also strong and even a buffalo would find it hard to take out the crop; whereas for hybrid varieties a simple pull would lift the crop off the ground.

Rasheed Khan has used oxen to prepare the land; according to him using a tractor cost him at least Rs 10,000 and he would much rather use his oxen than the tractor. He elaborates on the benefits of traditional sustainable agriculture practices which are based on the used of animal manure and traditional seed varieties. The corn flour is not only tasty but has much more energy than the hybrid varieties. Rasheed Khan states, “a roti made from the traditional corn varieties is as rich as eating butter.”  In addition, the traditional varieties are tall yielding plentiful fodder for animals which they relish; the milk also has a much better taste than when animals are fed with fodder from hybrid corn varieties.

Rasheed Khan has come back to traditional agricultural production practices after becoming a member of PKMT. According to him, people from the surrounding areas come and see him using traditional methods and he hopes that they will also convert once they understand the benefits.