FIMARC International Federation of Rural Adult Catholic Movements

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FIMARC FÉDÉRATION INTERNATIONALE DES MOUVEMENTS D’ADULTES RURAUX CATHOLIQUES
INTERNATIONAL FEDERATION OF RURAL ADULT CATHOLIC MOVEMENTS
FEDERACION INTERNACIONAL DE MOVIMIENTOS DE ADULTOS RURALES CATOLICOS
FEDERACAO INTERNACIONAL DOS MOVIMENTOS DE ADULTOS RURAIS CATOLICOS

Facing the Food Crisis: Decrease

In many areas of the world we hear about dramatic stories caused by the world food crisis. Despite
the fact that farmers are the ones who produce the food, they are the ones who most suffer from
hunger. The price of basic food products are constantly on the increase, e.g. the 25 million poor
farmers who suffer from increased rice prices.
FIMARC, the International Federation of Adult Rural Catholic Movements, gathered in Assesse
(Belgium), with representatives from the 4 continents, analyzed and reflected on the world food
crisis.
Natural resources are in the world for the development of human beings. Natural resources are,
however, increasingly being privatized and are mainly now in the hands of transnational companies
– supported by international finance organizations such as the WTO, the World Bank and the IMF
– who manage them without taking the main objective into account : feeding the whole of mankind.
The land used for monocrop production is extending for the production of agrofuels which the multinational
companies mainly present as an alternative to fossil fuels and as a solution for the environment.
However, this is bringing about the destruction of numerous forests and traditional crops
in order to produce ethanol or similar fuels, in huge areas of Africa, Asia and America, due to their
land concentration.
We are moving towards a world which is upside down: cars, not people, will be needing to consume
the yearly cereal production.
We suggest as an alternative farmer and family agriculture that contributes to guaranteeing food
sovereignty for millions of people. This agriculture respects nature, soils, water, promotes biodiversity,
local development and puts the people within their communities at the heart of the system.
In a world with a consumerist minority and a majority who lives on the threshold of poverty, it is necessary
to propose an alternative. To the neoliberal system – only measured by the growth indicator
– we propose a different lifestyle : decrease – promoting responsible consumption in order to
maintain the values of justice and re-distribution, within the framework of solidarity economy, a model
which secures the principle of food for all, respects diversity of cultures, local initiatives and the
rural world.
Assesse, 5 May 2008

In many areas of the world we hear about dramatic stories caused by the world food crisis. Despite the fact that farmers are the ones who produce the food, they are the ones who most suffer from hunger. The price of basic food products are constantly on the increase, e.g. the 25 million poor farmers who suffer from increased rice prices.

FIMARC, the International Federation of Adult Rural Catholic Movements, gathered in Assesse (Belgium), with representatives from the 4 continents, analyzed and reflected on the world food crisis.

Natural resources are in the world for the development of human beings. Natural resources are, however, increasingly being privatized and are mainly now in the hands of transnational companies – supported by international finance organizations such as the WTO, the World Bank and the IMF – who manage them without taking the main objective into account : feeding the whole of mankind.

The land used for monocrop production is extending for the production of agrofuels which the multinational companies mainly present as an alternative to fossil fuels and as a solution for the environment. However, this is bringing about the destruction of numerous forests and traditional crops in order to produce ethanol or similar fuels, in huge areas of Africa, Asia and America, due to their land concentration.

We are moving towards a world which is upside down: cars, not people, will be needing to consume the yearly cereal production.

We suggest as an alternative farmer and family agriculture that contributes to guaranteeing food sovereignty for millions of people. This agriculture respects nature, soils, water, promotes biodiversity, local development and puts the people within their communities at the heart of the system.

In a world with a consumerist minority and a majority who lives on the threshold of poverty, it is necessary to propose an alternative. To the neoliberal system – only measured by the growth indicator – we propose a different lifestyle : decrease – promoting responsible consumption in order to maintain the values of justice and re-distribution, within the framework of solidarity economy, a model which secures the principle of food for all, respects diversity of cultures, local initiatives and the rural world.

Last week, President a General Secretary of Fimarc was in working visit in Croatia. We bring  a small slide show of that event.

Dear friends of the rural world,

Warm greetings.
“Don’t be afraid! I’m here with good news for you, which bring great joy to all the people. This very day in David’s town, your saviour was born…Christ The lord!!…

In our celebration of Christmas I invite you to  raise prayers of thank giving and praise, united together with Jesus the child to the Father, who revealed his will and actions to people, farmers, shepherds and workers, whom he did his redemption, and through you all who continue his salvation work through serving the farmers. So we need to reflect moments to contemplate in the mystery of great incarnation focusing on Jesus who come to offer him self for us, for every one seeking for him.

The infinity beauty of heaven appeared on the earth, The ward became a human being, and The infinity beauty of heaven dwelled and lived among us. This is not a dream, wake up, this is real; The son of God  came to meet the human, He is the shiny sun from heaven, the eternal light, Jesus Christ is the ward of God, the source of our life, the true light,  the eternity wisdom, Jesus is the mirror that God sees him self in, the divine light that open our eyes to the true light, to know God the father, and to love him.

Jesus Christ, The son of God, who came to meet the human, he came to inform us, that we ‘re the issue of God’s love, we ‘re his mission, “For God loved the world so much that he gave his only son, so that every one who believes in him may not die but have eternal life (john 3\16),  He came to reveal love of God to us, who misunderstand him through the times of darkness, God cares of us, farmers, employers, He selected to share us his life, to live like us, poor from his birth to hid death, He was born without clothes, and died crucified without clothes too. He came to help human in his struggle in keeping his rights, to live, to chose how to live his life, and how to be responsible for others.

Human is a wolf to his human’s brother, said Thomas Hobz (social philosopher), This is his own experience in the world then, and Today wherever Man wants to use the other for his benefits, but Jesus said another wards; “I am the bread of life who came from heaven, he who comes to me will never be hungry; he who believes in me will never be thirsty, I’m sending you like lambs among wolves.. so that the human isn’t a wolf to kill his brother in humanity, but he’s a eaten bread for his brother, this is the incarnation meaning, we become another Christ’s working with Jesus Christ, who live in us, who gives us his body and blood in the Eucharist. We borrow him our bodies to do works of life, we borrow Jesus our organs to make it his own organs, so we become other Christ’s. He lives in our bodies, our organs, our wards, our struggle for human rights, farmer rights; food sovereignty, Economy solidarity, Democracy….etc.
This is Jesus Christ, who incarnates in us as he incarnated in wombs of Mary the virgin; He still works with us, in us, through us. And we borrow him our life at the same time he gave it to us… we ‘re his external life, and He ’s our internal life…..the source of life.

At the same time, at the end of the year, we must to confess our weakness, our limited, our sin, and the necessary to focus on Jesus Christ The lord, to trust in his presence among us, sharing our hands with his hands, depending on his prayers to the heaven Father and his helping us as a members of family of FIMARC in all parts of the world, looking forward to our Mother, Mary the lady of the apostles, who carry the graces, and distributed with her self, her wards, her actions.

Merry Christmas

Happy New year 2008

Father Abraam Maher

International Chaplain

For the past one decade organizations like FIMARC (International Federation of Rural Adult Catholic Movements), INAG (Indian Network of Action Groups) and INFACT (Information for Action), along with grass root level farmers movements and organizations have been continuing the soul searching efforts in issues related to Food Sovereignty and Solidarity Economy.

 In our journey we came across the pathetic state of the Farming Communities due to speculation in the prices of farm produce and unfair trade practices with criminal financial capital. One of the crops, which were subject to a high fluctuation is vanilla, which leads us to study the vanilla-growing scenario in detail. This paved the way to organize the International Vanilla Exposure held in Pala, Kottayam, Kerala, India from 8^th to 13^th October 2007, with participation of farmers, farmer movements and organizations, networks and NGO’s from Madagascar, Indonesia, Uganda and India.

 We, the participants of this International Vanilla Exposure have formed the “International Alliance of Bio Spice Growers” and we declare and call for:

 Farmers of all countries should unite together to fight against the forces challenging the livelihood of the Farming Families and Communities.

 Area specific Package of Practices (POP) must be developed for each crop and cost of production must be ascertained on basis of this Package of Practices, which should be prepared by the farmers themselves. This is an inalienable right of the farmers.

 Farmers must get a fair price for their produce. Fair price is the combination of cost of production of the product and the livelihood expenses of the farmer families and farming communities.

 We believe that it is the duty of the National governments and International bodies to ensure the fair price and the physical security of the farming communities.

 The farmer families and farming communities around the world should work together in bringing out the standardized quality management systems, taking into consideration and respecting the environment, consumers, and the future generation.

 
It is our duty and responsibility to join our hands and strengthen our Alliance of the farmers and likeminded stakeholders from various corners of the world to attain the greater goal of FOOD SOVEREIGNTY AND SOLIDARITY ECONOMY.

 
We commit ourselves to lobby the decision makers at different levels from local to international, and thereby to ensure the dignified life of the farming communities across the world.

This year, the FIMARC has the pleasure to join all the groups, associations, countries and international organizations
that will celebrate the World Food Day next 16th October. This year, the theme selected is particularly
important to us, since it is one of our first demands, i.e. the right to food.
The right to food is a universal right. Every person – man, woman and child – must have access at all time to
the food they need, diversified and of good quality, to meet their dietary needs, food with no harmful substances
and culturally acceptable, or must have the means to buy it.
Even if we do not deny the progress made in the fight against poverty and hunger in the world, we cannot
accept the fact that today, 59 years after the Universal Declaration of Human Rights was signed, 854 million
people are still suffering from hunger.
How could things be different considering the policies developed by international organizations such as the
WTO and the IMF? All the negotiations carried out all around the world in the framework of the Economic
Partnership Agreements, Free Trade Agreements… go against people’s right to food, which cannot be isolated
from the other rights. Since the Uruguay Round in 1994, many countries have seen their local markets
totally destabilized and the possibility to feed the local populations almost disappeared. The example of
South Korea is significant with its food self-sufficiency rate that went from 80.5% in 1970 to 25% today and,
should the free trade agreements be signed between the European Union and this country, this rate would
go down to 2.7% in a close future.
It is difficult to resist the globalization steamroller. Global warming, the increase in the oil price and the desire
to develop agrofuels from foodstuffs could make the little sovereignty that countries have disappear.
It is time we acted, it is time we claimed clear and loud the right to food and its realization in the framework of
people’s food sovereignty. It is time we claimed this right, we insisted on it and understood that we will not
limit ourselves to the access to food and forget about the things that are missing. Our dignity as people, our
culture and health depend on it.
The realization of the right to food is mainly the responsibility of States. They must take measures to ensure
a total implementation of the right to food adapted to all. States must respect the existing right that people
have to have access to the food they need and not take measures that could prevent some people from having
this access. They must protect the right to food from those people who could hinder it, making sure that
companies or individuals do not prevent people from having access to adequate food. The might of law must
face the might of the strongest. The answer must come from the legal and political worlds.
Since we are convinced of the eminent dignity of all human beings and since we have always been concerned
about the total realization, all around the world, of rural people’s fundamental rights, the FIMARC and
its movements are committed to this struggle, since the history of mankind teaches us that we have to fight
for getting rights but that we have to fight for their implementation as well.
Assesse, October 2007

From: Korea Farmers Alliance against Korea-EU FTA

Immediately Stop the Korea-EU FTA Negotiations!

This FTA Kills Korea’s Agriculture and Livestock Industry!

 
Korea’s agriculture and the rural community are in a serious state of crisis. Since the 1994 Uruguay Rounds, 1321 agricultural items, except rice, have become completely opened. In the past 13 years, Korea’s food self-sufficiency rate has fallen from 80.5% in 1970 to 25% today, making Korea 139^th out of 147 members of WTO. When you remove rice, the rate is 2.7%. Furthermore, farmers’ debt has increased 4 times during the past 10 years, and the farming population has been reduced by half.

We cannot have true independence unless we protect agriculture. Due to conditions such as climate change, the world’s food crisis is accelerating. A small number of multinational agrobusinesses increasingly control the production and distribution of food. As a billion people suffer from food shortage, the safe production and distribution of food is a matter of security, independence, and life. Even article 20 of WTO agreement on agriculture states that the related functions of agriculture such as food security and environmental protection must be taken into account in the negotiations for liberalization.

 Our reality is that the multiple functions of agriculture such as food security, environmental protection, sociocultural maintenance are being ignored by economic interests. Trade liberalization is not the only way for a country to become wealthy, especially for agriculture.

 Last April, Korea’s agriculture experienced another death sentence in the form of Korea-U.S. FTA. Due to the signing of Korea-U.S. FTA, and its unilateral demand on agriculture, Korea faces losing what is left of its agriculture. Furthermore, the U.S. is demanding the importation of U.S. on the condition of saving Korea-U.S. FTA. As such, FTA is disregards not only the survival of an industry but also the safety of food.

 We have no place to go. We have been hit from all sides with the Korea-EU FTA negotiations, and Korea’s farmers are in a serious and detrimental state. EU is targeting Korea’s livestock industry, and therefore Korea’s dairy and pork industries face a great crisis. Almost all livestock items were liberalized at the 1994 WTO Uruguay Rounds: 40,000 dairy farms have been reduced to 8,000, and the massive influx of imported items is causing more suffering. Also, if tariff for frozen pork meat is eliminated due to Korea-EU FTA, Korea’s pork industry cannot help but to collapse.

 By implementing Common Agriculture Policy (CAP), EU is world’s number one exporter of agricultural goods: EU produces 23.4% of all milk production and 21.3% of all pork meat production. Therefore, if the FTA is passed, Korea’s agriculture and especially livestock industry may not exist.

 Korea’s agriculture has already sacrificed all it has. We have nothing more to give. We have come to Belgium with a determination to protect all farmers of the world and defend our food sovereignty.

 To the farmers and citizens of EU, we ask for your strong support in our struggle to protect food sovereignty and livelihood of all farmers.

-Korea Farmers Alliance against Korea-EU FTA

September 17, 2007

To Mr. Ignacio Ignacio-Bercero, EU Chief Negotiator for Korea-EU FTA

Greetings from the Korean Alliance against Korea-EU FTA.

We are a coalition made up of over 300 organizations, including trade unions, farmers’ groups, and NGOs. As a representative of Korean people’s civil society, we feel that it is our duty to inform you of several concerns related to Korea-EU Free Trade Agreement, which are shared by a large section of the Korean population. We sincerely hope that you, as Chief Negotiator, will consider these views seriously.

First, we wish to note the undemocratic nature in which all FTA negotiations are carried out, in particular the lack of effort on the part of the South Korean Administration to solicit the opinions of interested parties and the Korean public. (The South Korean Administration is currently negotiating six FTAs.) As it was the case with the Korea-U.S. FTA, the negotiations for the Korea-EU FTA are taking place without proper and necessary discussion, hearings, or public debates with concerned groups.

In addition, the South Korean Administration has moved forward with the Korea-EU FTA negotiations process in a closed and secretive manner; information related to important points of contention and matters requiring the consent of the Korean people have not been made public. Moreover, the secretive process of FTA negotiations is undermining the National Assembly to question and monitor the proceedings. It is understandably not possible to make public all information related to the FTA. However, it can surely be said that information concerning FTA issues are of great public interest and require the understanding at all levels of society. The negotiation process must be made transparent, and concerned citizens and lawmakers must be sufficiently consulted. The South Korean government has not upheld these principles.

Second, the Korea-US FTA seriously endangers the Korean people’s access to healthcare and pharmaceuticals. We believe that trade between the two countries can and must processed fairly. However, we are very concerned about the way in which public systems and policies of one country have come under discussion at the current negotiations. For example, by demanding the expansion of intellectual property rights, the health care system is being severely limited. Guaranteeing people’s access to necessary pharmaceuticals at an affordable price is a constitutional responsibility of the state and Administration. However, the Korea-EU FTA negotiations stand to undermine this ability and people’s right to access, through clauses on ‘patent extension,’ and ‘data exclusivity.’ We would like to emphasize that this is not consistent with the FTA principle of ‘promoting the mutual benefit of the people of both countries.’

Third, we are concerned that the Korea-EU FTA will make the lives of Korean farmers and the sustainable development of South Korea’s farming communities much more difficult.

When South Korea’s agriculture was first opened as a result of the WTO Uruguay Rounds, Korea’s farmers suffered greatly. The situation has now reached the point that the future of Korea’s agriculture as whole is in question. Given the current conditions, we face the prospects of the disappearance of South Korean agriculture if our market is further opened through the Korea-EU FTA. Domestic agriculture is necessary for sustainable development and food security. For this reason, countries around the world have agricultural subsidy policies. In fact, EU has world’s strongest subsidy policies. We would like to also point out that in South Korea, farming communities play the part of preserving our history, culture and the rural environment and ecosystems. If these communities are destroyed, the resultant influx from the countryside to the cities will seriously exacerbate already increasing urban poverty, and underemployment. We must emphasize that the Korea-EU FTA is inviting the destruction of agriculture and agricultural life and with it, numerous social problems.

Fourth, the Korea-EU FTA is predicted to violate the government’s constitutional duty to protect public services and, therefore, public interest. The governments of both countries have stated that public services such as water will not be directly included in the negotiations. However, by limiting government procurement domains, this FTA exposes essential public services such as water, electricity, railroad, gas, and postal service to precarious market forces.

We are concerned that the FTA will seriously restrict the right of common people to access high-quality public services.

Finally, we are compelled to point out that Korea’s FTA negotiations are taking place amidst severe suppression of trade unions and civil society groups who voice concerns about free trade agreements. The South Korean Administration has declared all activities of the Korean Alliance as illegal. Numerous people have been arrested. The people’s rights to organize and oppose state policies have been taken away. In order to hastily conclude FTA negotiations, the Korean Administration has forsaken its responsibility to protect constitutional rights.

We hope you and EU DG Trade will consider, with all seriousness, the concerns of the Korean people which are laid out above. We hope that this will make you reconsider whether the Korea-EU FTA does in fact present a desirable direction for the promotion of fair trade and economic relations between Korea and EU.

Sincerely,

Lee, Seung-Ho

Co-Chair of KoA Delegation and President, Korean Dairy and Beef Farmers Association

Heo, Young-Koo

Co-Chair of KoA Delegation and Vice President, Korean Confederation of Trade Unions

1. We, 34 young and adult leaders of rural Christian movements affiliated to MIJARC (International Movement for Catholic Agricultural and Rural Youth) or FIMARC (International Federation of Rural Adult Catholic Movements) have shared together our experiences in solidarity economy. Coming from 16 different countries spread over 4 continents, we explored in detail some alternatives to the dominating neo liberal and capitalist system.
2. In spite of the major problems we cope with in our continents (difficulties in getting access to the land, to water, agricultural policies detrimental to farmers, young people lacking interest in agriculture, increasing discrepancies among the rich and the poor…), we highlighted the multifaceted mobilization of young and adult activists in solidarity economy initiatives : fighting for land access, training, setting up of local development groups, direct sales/exchanges amongst producers and consumers. The narrow scope and isolated nature of such initiatives, rich in experimentations, mean that they have no weight compared to the prevailing neo liberal economy.
3. Through micro-credits, fair trade or inclusive companies, we managed to measure some benefits: credit accessibility for the poorest, minimum price secured for selling agricultural products, job creation for people marginalized by mainstream companies. However, there are many traps: micro-credits can be the beginning of a capitalist approach aiming at bleeding the poorest. The major distribution groups try to turn fair trade into an additional component of their product range. Inclusive companies export part of their production which leads to the collapse of local markets.
4. The neo liberal system does only consider human beings as economic agents. States become non-existent when faced with multinational companies. The economy is driven by financial benefits and is fed with financial speculations that have nothing to do with a genuine production in line with human needs. It puts up with formal democracy, but controls policies, the media, on top of the market. It prides itself with a scientific approach that makes it possible to state that there is no other alternative.
5. We are often sad to see that our hierarchy is untouched by the suffering of rural people and we consider unacceptable the lack of official commitment to condemn GMOs : first of all because of the destruction of the biodiversity and secondly because of the privatisation of life. We are also the Church. All the rural people are our brothers and sisters. We must express ourselves freely, without fear, convinced by the fruitfulness of Christianity, we must remain vigilant and maintain our focus on the human being when faced with a neo liberal economy ‘as a structure of sin’ (cf. Sollicitudo Rei Socialis, n’36 and 37).
6. In view of all that, we state that social economy/solidarity economy is not meant to fill in political gaps; it is a political proposal which has to give an overall consistency to the many initiatives emerging in the field and offer an alternative to the neo liberal system.
7. Solidarity economy meets the needs of people and communities. Producers have to keep the situation under control, thanks to ongoing education and participative democracy. The emphasis is to be on people and their work, not on capital. Solidarity economy gives a greater importance to local and sustainable development, secures gender equality without damaging the resources of future generations. It secures fundamental rights for all (food, housing, education) while the neo liberal system guarantees their accessibility… to those who can afford it.
8. Our movements, actors of social transformations, want to give to their constituencies an inclination for initiative and common work for the common good. It is up to us to promote our methodology ‘See, Judge, Act, Evaluate’ with a view to make a rigorous analysis of the realities experienced by the rural people, to stick to our beliefs until the very end and to act in solidarity with the poorest. We also measured what was at stake: our individual and collective behaviours should be consistent with the challenges of a genuine solidarity.
9. Rural people are the victims of neo liberal policies, in particular young people, who are forced to migrate to get a job, a situation which speeds up poverty in many rural regions deprived of their living strength for the future. It is urgent to make engaged choices in terms of solidarity economy so that young people will stay and work in their country.
10. We are convinced of the need for a holistic approach, taking on board political, cultural, social and environmental dimensions as well as the reality of our multicultural world. It is therefore vital to invest in education, to act legally in favour of the respect of rights – mainly of the most underprivileged- to get mobilized to convince and to lobby at the local and international level.
11. We are mobilized to promote our objective of solidarity economy and, through it, a genuine food sovereignty. That is why we call on our elected representatives to state in a tangible way their political will towards solidarity economy:

• • offering sustainable prospects to the initiatives currently under way in the field;
  • reversing the trend in favour of the neo liberal system which contaminates everything
  • 12. We emphasized the fruitfulness of the exchange between the young rural people and the adults who cope with the same realities. We are aware of the fact that there is still a long way to go, riddled with difficulties. But we are also convinced that “another world is possible”. It is already emerging and we are critical actors, by establishing, amongst others, alliances with consumers and our fellow citizens. We are committed to:

• • identify local experiences and initiatives and network them;
  • organize capacity-building training sessions for our members and organisations;
  • develop exchanges of good practice amongst the movements in our continent with a view to build on our experiences, expand our projects and act upon public policies.

Brussels, 09/05/2007