June 30, 2006
Warm greetings of Peace!
We, the Asian Farmers’ Association for Sustainable Rural Development (AFA), an alliance of nine million farmers from eight countries in Asia, together with our support group, the Asian Partnership for the Development of Human Resources in Rural Asia (AsiaDHRRA), a network of 11 non-government organizations in ten Asian countries, both accredited NGOs during the 6th WTO Ministerial Conference in Hongkong, would like to extend our gratitude to your country for defending the position on Special Products and Special Safeguard Mechanisms in the current WTO negotiations in Geneva.
We are happy that major groupings of developing countries in WTO, such as the LDC group, the ACP group, and the G33, have made a statement that there will be “no deal” without adequate treatment of special products and special safeguard mechanisms.
The GATT-WTO- AoA has led to massive dumping of cheap agricultural products from developed countries and their transnational corporations. It has endangered, and in many cases, destroyed the livelihoods of millions of small farmers around the world.
We want the DOHA Round to be really for the development and benefit of small farmers and producers. We want it to correct the unjust imbalances in trade between poor and rich countries. We count on the members to ensure that this is done. Please do not give in to pressures of richer, developed countries. If adequate measures that respond to our concerns for food security, livelihood security and sustainable development are not addressed, then, we are one with you in saying that “no deal is better than a bad deal”: Do not sign to a new round of agreement.
Sincerely yours,
SEO, JUNG EUI
Chairperson, AFA
MARIMUTHU NADASON
Chairperson, AsiaDHRRA
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