Call for Worldwide Action on the 17th of April 2004 - the International Day of Farmers' Struggle

Vol. 7, No. 2

April, 2004

by Via Campesina
Via Campesina

This call comes from Vía Campesina, the international network of peasants’
organizations. In Brazil and elsewhere, the April 17th actions are being
framed, in part, as kick-off events for the international week of action against
the IMF & World Bank.

Call for Worldwide Action on the 17th of April 2004 -
the International Day of Farmers' Struggle

WTO, World Bank and transnationals out of agriculture and food!

During the World Social Forum and the International Peasant Forum held in
Mumbai, India, in January of this year we discussed strategies and plans of
action with social movements in resistance and struggle against neo-liberal
policies. We elaborated a common action agenda. The 17th of April, the
International Day of Peasant Struggle is an important part of this common
agenda. Therefore, we call everybody, worldwide, to action on this day.

We call to focus mobilizations on three key issues:
1) Demand for genuine agrarian reform and rejection of the land policies of
the World Bank;
2) Demand for peasant-based sustainable agriculture for people and strong
opposition to the control and dominance of transnational corporations,
especially Nestlé and Monsanto;
3) Elaboration of policies focused on domestic production and consumption,
and rejection of dumping practices and the liberalization of markets imposed
through policies of WTO, FTAA and other regional and bi-lateral “free” trade
agreements.

We defend our peasant rights and we want our key demands to be taken into
account at the national, regional and international levels. We demand:
_ the implementation of the principles of peoples’ food sovereignty;
_ genuine agrarian reform;
_ the maintainance and protection of seeds as a heritage of peasants men
and women, and indigenous peoples;
_ a ban on the use of GMOs and patents and other forms of intellectual
property rights on life forms;
_ full respect and participation of women, indigenous people, the “Dalits” and
other marginalized and excluded groups in our societies. We denounce at the
international level the Human Rights violations against peasants and
indigenous people. These days of struggle will be dedicated to our friends
worldwide that are in prison or suffer persecution.
_ recognition, respect, and promulgation of peasant rights at the national and
international levels.

April 17th is the International Day of Farmers’ Struggle (established because
of the massacre of 19 farmers of the Landless Movement [MST] in Brazil on
the 17th of April 1996). We hope that it will be a day of strong protest that will
contribute to strengthen pressure on our governments for changes to current
policies. Let’s engage in a strong day of international struggle!

Let’s globalise the struggle; let’s globalise hope!

International Co-Ordinating Committee of Vía Campesina

^TOP

50 Years Is Enough Network - 3628 12th St NE, Washington, DC 20017 USA
Tel: 202-IMF-BANK (202-463-2265) Email: info@50years.org