The European Parliament demands that EU Members States vote in favour of the peasants’ rights declaration
On 3rd July, the EP adopted an important resolution on the rights violations, including land-grabbing, that indigenous peoples across the world suffer. This resolution includes an important recommendation to EU Members States to adopt the Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and Other People Working in Rural Areas, which was negotiated over the last few years within the UN Human Rights Council.
The text adopted by the EP calls for the EU and its Member States to support and vote in favour of the Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and Other People Working in Rural Areas during the UN Human Rights Council in September 2018.
“The support that the EP has shown today for peasants’ rights is extraordinary! The peasants’ rights declaration will help to improve the situation of peasant farmers across Europe and will give new hope to the European countryside. After 20 years of agricultural market liberalisation and peasants’ rights violations across the world, peasants will finally have their charter of rights. It is time for our governments to support peasants’ rights, joining not only the EP but the rest of the world,” stated Pierre Maison, a member of the ECVC Coordinating Committee.
“Finally, the EP, the main body that represents EU citizens, has heard our voice,” added Ramona Duminicioiu, a member of Ecoruralis and the ECVC Coordinating Committee. “Next September, Member States must comply with the EP’s position and vote in favour of the peasants’ rights declaration during the next HRC in Geneva. No existing legal instruments protect us from land-grabbing, exploitation and many other rights infringements. We urgently need this declaration, especially in Eastern Europe, where most European peasants are based. If implemented, this declaration could profoundly benefit our society,” she explained.
ECVC demands that EU Members States adopt the declaration following the EP’s recommendation.
More info on the EP resolution
CONTACTS:
Pierre Maison: +33615731389 member of ECVC Coordinating Committee (FR)
Ramona Duminicioiu: +40264599204 member of ECVC Coordinating Committee (RO FR EN ES)
Image: By Andrijko Z. – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=52171776