www.asianfarmers.org

We, the Asian Peoples’ Solidarity for Climate Justice, are gathered here in Bangkok, Thailand to take our stand in the face of an unprecedented conflict.

It is a conflict over resources, a conflict driven by unfettered profiteering and the slavery of consumption, it is a conflict brought about the domination and ascendancy of private interest over public good.

Among the direst consequences of this conflict is global warming and the planetary impacts that are just beginning to unfold as we speak, such as rising seas, mass forced migration due to massive drought and the increase in frequency and severity of extreme weather events. The impacts also include rapid economic meltdown and the destruction of jobs and livelihoods, because the environmental ills the world is facing today are inextricably wedded to the global economic and financial system.

Unless the call for equity and justice prevail over this conflict, we will continue to face the sustained — and progressively worsening — violation of human rights on a global scale and the destruction of all ecosystems.

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(NFR Statement on the Manado Incident)

We, the 12 member organizations of the NGOs for Fisheries Reform (NFR), strongly condemn the suppression of freedom of speech and expression of the artisanal fisherfolks. We criticize the deportation of the 16 representatives in the Philippine fisheries sector from Manado, Indonesia for alleged violations of Indonesian laws last May 12, 2009. They were supposed to hold a parallel meeting of civil society to raise the concerns of artisanal fisherfolks in the global meeting to address climate change during the Inaugural World Ocean Conference and Coral Triangle Initiative Summit. Despite insufficient evidence to prove that they held assembly without permits, the Indonesian immigration officials in Manado detained our 16 colleagues.

We also condemn the relentless harassment by Indonesian authorities of leaders from the Indonesian Forum for Environment (WALHI) who were charged of violating Article 216 of the Indonesian Criminal Code on Public Order. They were alleged to be involved in ‘public disturbance’ in Malalayang Beach together with the 16 Filipinos who were deported. The truth is that they gathered to hear the ‘Manado Declaration’ bearing legitimate calls of the artisanal fisherfolks. We strongly condemn this use of force against peaceful assembly as this runs counter to NFR’s fundamental belief on freedom of speech and expression. The use of force to suppress voices of artisanal fisherfolks inhibits the formation of conducive policy environment, where fisheries reform can be instituted.

Read the full statement at the PhilDHRRA website

ISIS Press Release 04/12/07

When ISIS organised its briefing at European Parliament in
June (Scientists and MEPs for a GM free Europe, SiS 35), we
already knew that one of our speakers, Irina Ermakova, has
had her funding withdrawn because the results of her
experiments (GM Soya Fed Rats: Stunted, Dead, or Sterile,
SiS 33) challenged the claims of the biotech industry that
GM food is safe. She has since been the victim of a
scandalous attempt to discredit her work by the mainstream
journal, Nature Biotechnology (Science and Scientist Abused,
SiS 36).
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We, THE PARTICIPANTS from the Asia Partnership for Human Development (APHD), working in solidarity with the poor, marginalized and oppressed peoples and farmers’ of Asia, gathered here at the Flushing Meadows Resort and Playground, Tagbilaran City, Bohol, Philippines, from 18-22 October 2007, on the occasion of the 3rd Asia Partnership for Human Development Pan-Asia Farmers’ Conference. After the sharing of experiences, deliberations and joint analyses,
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A Primer

This primer is issued by AR Now!, PESANTech and PhilDHRRA to present and explain the “extension with reforms” position with regards to the impending “expiration of CARP” in June 2008. This primer will also attempt to clarify certain misconceptions about the event that will transpire in June 2008 and about the “extension with reforms” position.

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TASK FORCE MAPALAD
PRESS RELEASE
March 22, 2007
Email: tfmnational@yahoo.com <mailto:tfmnational@yahoo.com>

After 10 years of struggle and a series of failed promises, the 122 farmer-beneficiaries of the contentious Hacienda Velez-Malaga in Barangay Robles, La Castellana, Negros Occidental were finally installed in the land awarded to them five years ago under the Comprehensive Agrarian Reform Program (CARP).
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AsiaDHRRA and AFA are members of SAPA (Solidarity for Asian People’s Advocacy), a network of non-government organizations currently engaging the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in the formulation of an ASEAN Charter. The following article was presented during the meeting of the Eminent Persons Group (EPG) last April 17 in Ubud, Bali, Indonesia. AsiaDHRRA and AFA made contributions to this article. The SAPA presentation was well-received and appreciated by the EPG members.

Solidarity for Asian People’s Advocacy (SAPA) Submission to the Eminent Persons Group on the ASEAN Charter
17 April 2006, Ubud, Bali

Executive Summary

I. Introduction

The Solidarity for Asian People’s Advocacy (SAPA), a network of non-governmental organizations (NGOs), civil society organizations engaged in campaigns and advocacy on various issues of public interest at the national and regional levels, welcomes the move by ASEAN Leaders to develop an ASEAN Charter. The framing of an ASEAN Charter represents the transformation of ASEAN and a leap towards establishing a rules-based organization that carries the basic aspirations, values and ideals of the ASEAN people.

SAPA acknowledges the important task placed upon the Eminent Persons Group on the ASEAN Charter and pledges its support to the EPG in this process. As part of civil society, we share your ideals of cogent cooperation and mutual prosperity for ASEAN, and of shared rights and benefits for its people, towards the construction of a community of caring societies.

We hereby offer our initial submission to the EPG on the ASEAN Charter. In this submission we outline the broad principles and highlight civil society perspectives that we believe should be reflected in an ASEAN Charter, and give special focus on the aspects of people’s security in line with the agenda of the EPG meeting this week.

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Dear 12 anti-WTO protestors,

1. On behalf of a farmers organization in Thailand, SorKorPor would like to share our feeling to the hunger strike for Solidarity and Justice.
2. The hunger strike in this protesting, it is shown the emotion that dare for fighting to win and do not give up to any hindrance and difficulty. SorKorPor would like to be pleased and supports to your action and your intention mind.

Farmers and members of SorKorPor used to have experiences on fighting for Thai farmers, all of activities such as the rally, Hyde park, caught in to the jail and were killed happened on the way of fighting for the better living of farmers.

Before become on this day, farmers lost more, it was the valued lessons that was changed by their sweat and life and giving “the summary of General Truth” that any place having tyrannizing that place will have fighting and only the fighting people will meet the success.

All of us in SorKorPor have confidence that your fighting on hunger strike in this event will be reality wined not only you will get freedom but will be spread out your heroic performance of people to the public and around the world.

SorKorPor: Farmer’s Federations Association for Development Thailand

The following is the Declaration adopted during the INTERNATIONAL SEMINAR ON WTO, FOOD SOVEREIGNTY AND ALTERNATIVES TO GLOBALIZATION organized by Asia Pacific Network for Food Sovereignty (APNFS), Asian Farmers Network for Sustainable Development (AFA), Asia Partnership for the Development of Human Resources in Rural Asia (AsiaDHRRA) and International South Group Network (ISGN) held at Boys and Girls Club, #3 Lockhart Road, Wanchai, Hongkong onDecember 14-15, 2005

STOP THE DOHA ROUND!
NO TO FURTHER TRADE LIBERALIZATION IN AGRICULTURE!
GET WTO OUT OF AGRICULTURE AND FISHERIES!*

We, the social movements, farmers’ and fisherfolks’ organizations, women’s movements, and non-government organizations gathered here in HK from December 14-15, 2005, on the occasion of the WTO 6th Ministerial meeting, condemn in the strongest terms WTO’s agenda to further liberalize our agriculture markets at the expense of our livelihood and food security. The neo-liberalization program pushed by the WTO in the last ten years has already severely weakened protection of domestic sectors strategic to employment generation, food security and national development. The periodic import surges that followed the dismantling of protective border measures in developing countries have invariably led to significant declines in their domestic food production, collapse of traditional rural livelihoods, rising unemployment and massive rural-urban migration. Women peasants and fishers have lost control in agriculture and fisheries production, distribution and consumption. The impact has been more damaging on poorer countries particularly on low income and food deficit countries as their agriculture, which provides the main source of livelihood and sustenance to as much as 80 percent of their population has stagnated. In consequence, many of these countries have been transformed into net food importers and are now facing rising food import bills, which clearly are raising their trade deficits to unsustainable levels further worsening their precarious external debt situation. Thus a new round of negotiations that will further liberalize agriculture and remove remaining policy flexibility of developing countries will surely be more disastrous to the poor.

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Mr. Donald Tsang
Chief Executive
Hongkong, China

Dear Mr Tsang ,

Warm greetings of Peace and Goodwill!

We, Asian Farmers’ Association for Sustainable Rural Development (AFA), an alliance of national small farmers’ organizations from ten countries in Southeast and North Asia, is deeply concerned about the continuous detention of 14 anti-WTO demonstrators, following the rally last December 17, 2005.

Together with many international groups, including the groups of Korean farmers and trade union leaders, we went to Hongkong to voice out our protest against unfair agricultural global agricultural trade rules and push WTO members to protect farmers rights and livelihoods in the current DOHA round negotiations.

We are aware that under the WTO rules, our farming livelihoods are being threatened. There is drastic reduction in our incomes; as well as government support to our sector. Together with farmers from all over the world, we called for a stop to WTO’s continuous neglect to our concerns. We were deeply moved by the sincere actions of our fellow Korean farmers. We deeply admired their determination and courage in fighting for their rights and lives.

We lament the fact that many people were injured, including some Hongkong policemen, during the Dec. 17 anti-WTO rally.

However, we sincerely hope that that your government will broaden its understanding of protest actions.

In the name of democracy and freedom of speech and expression, we call on you to release all the 14 detainees unconditionally and to drop all charges. We sincerely hope that your government will really maintain its maximum tolerance policy and will protect the human rights of those in custody.

Respectfully yours,

Ma. Estrella A. Penunia
Secretary General
Asian Farmers’ Association for Sustainable Rural Development (AFA)
www.asianfarmers.org