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Peasant’s Day in the Middle of the WTO’s VI Ministerial Meeting, Hong Kong
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Federation of Indonesian Peasant Union (FSPI)
In the Struggle against the WTO’s VI Ministerial Meeting, Hong Kong
More than two thousand peasants gathered in Victoria Park (17/12) to commemorate the Peasant’s Day. They gathered for the action series to reject the WTO, in the middle of the WTO’s VI ministerial meeting in the Hong Kong Convention Centre.While the WTO was talking the agenda of trade liberalization and was facing a dead-locked inside, thousands of peasants from all over the world gathered in solidarity to reject the agenda of trade liberalization. They have the fixed will that is to kick the WTO out of agriculture. There were 1300 Korean peasants and more than 500 Indonesian peasants and migrant workers.
Peasant Solidarity
This agenda was started by an oration from the initiative of Korean peasant. They sang the struggle songs and yelled the anti-WTO slogans. These Korean peasants are the delegations of Korean Peasant League (KPL) member of La Via Campesina in South Korea.
The Indonesian peasants followed in action. FSPI’s delegations were united with the migrant workers having the same fate due to the world’s trade liberalization regime: WTO. They gathered and sang the struggle songs.
“We want no deal to be made in this ministerial meeting,” said Henry Saragih, the General Secretary of Federation of Indonesian Peasant Union (FSPI). Henry added that there was an indication that the WTO’s VI ministerial meeting ended with no deal, however the Doha Round lasting on 2006 is worried to result in a new trade liberalization agreement by holding Hong Kong Ministerial Meeting part 2. The plan is that the continuation of this ministerial meeting will be held on March or April in the coming year.
Therefore, the peasants and all elements have to hand in hand and close ranks since the trade liberalism agenda must be combated. “The struggle is still long, there are still another neolibelism agendas. There are still many free-trade agreements such as FTAs, BFTAs, and other kinds of its camouflages,” said Hendry.
Franky and Rieke “Oneng”
Franky Sahilatua and Rieke “Oneng” Dyah Pitaloka took part in the peasant and migrant struggle in Hong Kong. The two pro-people artists went on 16 December to support the peasant struggle. They sympathized to the struggle of the peasants and the migrant workers in struggling against the trade liberalization killing the people.
“I will take part in the action with the peasants in Hong Kong,” said Franky steadily. The peasant’s day rally in Hong Kong was planned to be held at 2.00 pm in the following day. The peasants from all over the world united in the La Via Campesina planned to conduct the rally from afternoon until evening and the next day when the WTO’s VI ministerial meeting ended.
Franky and Rieke asked the whole peasants from all over the world to sing together. They sang “We Shall Overcome”, a song well-known in the people struggle. This song was echoing on the stage in the Victoria Park.
Afterwards, Franky sang his top songs, such as “Orang Pinggiran (Marginal People)”. and a new song created especially for the peasant and the migrant worker struggle in Hong Kong. The lyric is so simple, “The Poorer getting Poorer, The Richer getting Richer”, and it was followed directly by the audience dominated by the Indonesians.
Meanwhile, Rieke yelled “People united can not be defeated, Peasants united to reject the WTO, labors united can not be defeated”. She said that, “I concern to the peasants and the labors’ fate and will always keep struggling with them”.
The action was continued with the show of Thai-Boxing from Thailand symbolizing the struggle action against the WTO. Afterwards, there were orations from many countries, such as Iraq, Philippine, South Korea, Indonesia, and others. They also conducted a great action starting from the Victoria Park to the Convention Centre where the WTO’s VI ministerial meeting took place. The struggle keeps raging. Down! Down! WTO!
WTO’s Ministerial Meeting Makes People More Suffering!
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The fact that people are getting colonized in the middle of the development is caused by the neoliberalism policy applied by the government. The development is done, however those given the opportunity are the investors, the big traders, and the transnational corporations. The government facilitates the process while maintaining the power. They let the people’s live crushed, marginalized, and died. This is the humiliating fact which is happening now.
Meanwhile, in the International level, the ministerial meeting of the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Hong Kong has just ended with a limited negotiation, i.e. “face-saving” negotiation. As an organization forcing neoliberalism in the world, the WTO has regained the failure to achieve the negotiation three times, after Seattle 1999 and Cancun 2003.
The failure of the WTO’s ministerial meeting in Hong Kong could possibly happened due to the action of thousands of peasants, farmhands, and migrant workers from all over the world against the WTO. The Indonesian peasants and migrant workers are the fighters contributed in derailing the TO’s negotiation in Hong Kong.
Along with the struggle against the neoliberalism in the world nowadays, the struggle against it in the national level indeed is the most strategic done. Therefore, in the effort to bring back the people’s, the peasant’s, and the labor’s sovereignty and to stop the neoliberal policy, we demand that:
1. Indonesia must out of the World Trade Organization (WTO)
2. The government must implement the Genuine Agrarian Reform based on the Basic Agrarian Law No. 5 the year of 1960 immediately
3. The government must stop the rice import and implement the food sovereignty
4. The government must increase the labor’s wage
5. The government must withdraw all anti-people law issued, such as:
a. Water Resource Law No. 7 the year of 2004
b. Governmental Decree to change the Law No. 1 the year of 2004 on the change of the Law No. 41 the year of 1999, about the forestry
c. Law No. 18 the year of 2004 on plantation
d. Presidential Decree No. 36 the year of 2005 on the Land Provision for the Implementation of Public Development
e. Law No. 7 the year of 1996 on Food
f. Law No. 13 the year of 2003 on the Labor Force
g. Law No. 2 the year of 2004 on the Completion of Industrial Affair
6. The government must drag and send into court the doer of violence toward the peasants, labors, and marginal groups.
7. The government must end the violence and the criminalization toward the people struggle.
Peasants Action in Central Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara PDF | Print | E-mail The attack toward the peasants’ demonstration action, a wom
Published by INISIAL Center under on 11:01 pm| | Print | |
The peasants numbered about 1300 people demanded the govt, to stop criminalization and detain toward the peasants of Tanak Awu. They also demanded the govt to give the land being defended by them from Angkasa Pura I, Ltd. used for the building of International Airport. They demanded their rights to be protected as well.
The demonstration started from the office of the Central Lombok’s Regent, and then they moved to the Resort Police’s office and ended up in the yard of the Provincial House of Representatives of West Nusa Tenggara. However, when they were at the Provincial House at 12.30 (Central Indonesian Time), suddenly came a group of people claiming as the mass who were pro to the building of the airport in Tanak awu. That group acting on behalf of independent group numbered about 200 people came without any explanation and attacked the peasants having demonstrated directly. The group used sharp weapons, threw the stones, hit the peasants with sticks, and intimidated the peasants as well to dismiss the demonstration.
Meanwhile, the police and the military armies in the location did not do any optimal safeguard. They should pacify the demonstration and protect the demonstrators having done the action based on the valid rules.
Federation of Indonesian Peasant Union (FSPI) views that the attack has concretely violated the basic civil rights i.e rights to assembly and to state opinion. The General Secretary of FSPI, Henry Saragih, said that the police should be responsible toward the safety of the peasants conducting a peaceful action and based on the procedure of demonstrating. They should arrest and investigate the attacker.
Due to the attack and the intimidation done by those civilians, FSPI as the umbrella of the national peasant struggle insists the President of the Republic of Indonesian to command the Head of the Republic of Indonesian Police to investigate thoroughly and take a firm action toward the doer of the violence. In addition, FSPI demands as well the III Commission of the House of Representatives to oppress the govt and the Republic of Indonesian Police to do a firm action toward the attack mastermind and the attacker involved directly.
The peasants have demanded their rights to their farmlands in Tanak Awu, Central Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara since long time ago. They are forced to leave their farmlands since the govt and Angkasa Pura I, Ltd will build an International airport in the farmlands cultivated by the peasants.
Tanak Awu is the conflict land between the peasants and the duet of the govt and Angkasa Pura I, Ltd. since the new era regime governs. The conflict has always disadvantaged the peasant due the process is full of terror and intimidation. Until now, the peasants choose to defend their lands although the govt has several times conducted the condemnation actions. In fact, up to now, there are two peasants rejecting to hand over their lands who are still detained in the Police Jail of Central Lombok. For several times the peasants’ activities get a repressive action from the police. Just to remind that September 2005 ago, the peasant general meeting was dismissed, 33 peasants suffered beating and shooting wounds done by the police.
The House of Representatives Deceives People and Oppresses Peasants PDF | Print | E-mail Press Release, 24 January 2006 of Federation
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The people disappoint to their representatives’ decision which at the end decided to reject the use of polling and interpellation rights toward the policy of rice import by the govt. about 110.000 tons from Vietnam which is going to be realized on this month. The peasants again are the victims of the unfair policy. The decision to fail the inquiry motion was taken by voting at the House Plenary Session with the details of 151 representatives agreed with inquiry motion, 107 agreed with interpellation motion, and 184 were against both.
The House of Representatives Do not Sound the People’s Interest
The peasants are the last chain in the polemic of rice imports suffering the biggest loss. It has been recorded since the independence of Indonesia, the peasants are always sacrificed. Since the era of free trade and WTO began, the peasants more suffer since the domestic market and the domestic price mechanism are no longer protected by the govt. “The import rice policy that is the oppression of the WTO and also the policy of pro-trader, pro-corporation, has destroyed the agriculture of Indonesia,” stated the General Secretary of FSPI, Henry Saragih.
In the polemic of rice imports last November of 70.050 tons, the House of Representatives has rejected the rice imports so the govt. will not continue the import continuation about 250.000 tons. However, the shocking rice import in the beginning of 2006 for about 110.000 tons shows that the House of Representatives has lied. At first, the House seems siding by proposing the inquiry motion, but at the end they gave up to the interest of the traders and the corporations. “The peasants regret it since actually we regard that the people’s representatives in the House are those who can stop the rice import policy,” said Henry.
Therefore, it is clear that the unreasonable rice imports of 110.000 tons will be legitimated by the govt. with the failure of the inquiry motion of the House. The govt. and the State Logistics Agency are those who have to responsible for this case to do import calmly, while millions of Indonesian peasants will suffer to die due to the lack of price and market protections. As a matter of fact, the House does not represent the people’s voices, since they do not understand the root of the rice import problem killing the peasants even when the argument of rice price and rice supply are no longer relevant.
The House does not realize the conspiracy potential between the traders and the corporations in this case, so the problem identification is not solved and even sunken into the “Click-Click Politic”.
Demand and Call on
Therefore, FSPI curses any politic decision of some representatives who agreed the inquiry at first, but at the end betray the peasants. “It means that some of the House Representatives betray the peasants, and the people feel deceived,” Henry added.
Besides, we also sue the State Logistics Agency to be dismissed since this institution is no longer capable to run the social functions such as protecting the peasants and the consumers. Henry continued, “the State Logistics Agency roles only as the interest taking and be the nest of the corruptor benefiting only the rice importers and big scale rice traders.”
The President as the Chairman of the Food Security Council has to be responsible for the rice import policy which is not transparent and illogical arguments, even tends to have conspiracy with the corporation parties and the powers inside. As a matter of fact, the President has promised to conduct Revitalization on Agriculture, Fishery, and Forestry (RPPK). Afterward, the President in his speech in front of the House Plenary Session last 16 August 2005 stated that “...it is estimated that the whole national consumption will be able to fill by the national rice production along the year 2005. In addition, based on the Central Statistic Bureau’s prediction, the rice production reaches surplus for about 1,6 million tons,” Those all had totally become a rhetoric, and it is proved that the present govt. did not fulfill their promise in the Indonesian rice policy.
FSPI views that the Minister of Trade in issuing the rice import policy prioritizes more on the big scale traders. In fact, these traders have destroyed the domestic trade. “The Minister of Trade does not support the growth of fair trade, which benefits the peasants and the consumers,” said Henry. Meanwhile, the Minister of Agriculture did not show any serious and open fight against the rice import policy. It contradicts to what has been promised in the Hearing Meeting with the VI Commission of the House last 22 November 2005.
In the struggle against the rice import, FSPI calls on consolidation to the peasants. “We call on the FSPI’s members and the Indonesian peasants to evict and do any actions to fail the rice import policy,” said Henry. He also recommended the peasants to produce rice as many as they can and save it in the rice barns and encouraged them to achieve the distribution between the peasants and the small people, so the food sovereignty will be achieved.