The G8 has to clear up the crisis that they have created!
The representatives of the 8 richest countries of the world will meet on the 7th-9th of July 2008 in Hokkaido in Japan. These governments have imposed policies that are the root cause of the crisis in food and agriculture. This worldwide crisis started to emerged in the seventies and kept 852 million people in extreme poverty, people mainly living in rural areas. The recent food price crisis has brought the crisis to the cities where people cannot buy enough food. The climate crisis, caused by the extensive use of fossil energy in industrialized countries and the massive deforestation by TNCs, will hit especially the poor in the South.
The reaction of the WTO, World bank, as well as the G8 governments has been disastrous: they only push more of the same polices that are at the root of the current crisis: more liberalisation, more support for fertilizers and industrial seeds, a green revolution in Africa, more food aid, and a rapid expansion of agro-fuels. Mainly due to the attitude of the G8 countries, no advance at all was made at the High level Conference organized by FAO, and the TNCs were not prevented from pushing through their disastrous initiative on agro-fuels.
Enough is enough! It is irresponsible that you together with multilateral institutions continue to destroy our food production and hand us over to the mercy of a handful of TNCs and the international markets, who are incapable of and not interested in feeding the world!
We have to stop the corporate takeover of the agricultural and fisheries sector. The answer to the climate crisis and the food price crisis is peasant, small-producer-based food production based on local resources and for domestic consumption!
We want the G8 to be responsible and to take adequate steps to avoid a deepening of this potentially explosive crisis:
-Stop the corporate-driven production of agro-fuels.
-Stop the liberalization of agricultural markets and fisheries and end the WTO, FTA, and EPA negotiations.
-Stop the failures and quick fixes. We need an in-depth analysis of the crisis and the development of international and national policies that protect and strengthen peasant-based and small-holder food production.
The G8 governments and their TNCs bear the full responsibility for the climate and food crisis. Through their economic power they control the UN system (FAO, World Food program, IFAD,…), WTO, World bank, IMF, and the negotiations on the Free Trade Agreements.
The G8 governments have to make decisions to solve the crisis and should allow other countries to take necessary measures. The G8 at this crucial moment will be decisive for the fate of hundreds of millions of people all over the world. The G8 has to make decisions to clear up the disaster that they have created.
Get mobilized, come to Hokkaido!
Peasant, small-producer-based, and agro-ecological food production for domestic markets is the best answer to the climate and food-price crisis
Time for food sovereignty has come!
July 4th -9th Peoples' Action Days
Action program in Hokkaido during the G8 summit
July 4 Food Sovereignty Day. mobilization by international movements.
July 5th Debate on Climate Crisis and mobilisation
July 6th Women Actions
July 7th Mobilisation Asian Social Movements
July 9th Press Conference
For more information go to www.viacampesina.org or contact
Haesook Kim; Regional Staff South East & East Asia rupina72@gmail.com
Or Indra Lubis; International Secretariat La Via Campesina ilubis@viacampesina.org
