Open Letter to:
WTO Ministerial Meeting in Hong Kong
December 14,
2005
We, the Palestinian farmers, men and women, represented by the
undersigned non- governmental organizations and cooperative
unions- living under the Israeli occupation pressure like the
rest of our people who struggle against the systematic policies
of water resources appropriation and confiscation of farmed land
for the purpose of constructing the Apartheid wall and expanding
the Israeli settlements erected on our lands- wish to take the
opportunity of your gathering in Hong Kong to strongly voice our
position in regard with the liberalization of Agricultural
trade.
As is
well-known to you, Israel has transformed the Palestinian
territories into a large prison and separate disintegrated
cantons to cut down any efforts for the establishment of a
Palestinian viable state. This situation leads to a catastrophe
to the Palestinian economy, which is too vulnerable to compete
with the global and regional economies due to the coercive
control of our internal and external market outlets by Israel.
For more than three decades, Palestinian Farmer and small- sized
producer sector has suffered, and still suffers, from unjust and
discriminatory Israeli policies, which led to imbalance trade
exchange between the Palestinian and Israeli peoples. As well
they led to the monopoly of Israeli agrarian and food business
firms of the Palestinian market. Consequently, this de-facto
situation has destroyed the Palestinian economy particularly
agriculture and undermined our ability to achieve livelihoods,
food security, and economic growth.
We are well aware of the drastic and far-reaching consequences
of the WTO dictated agreement on agriculture which part of you
try to approve in the course of your 6th ministerial
meeting in Hong Kong. We are alert to the potential catastrophic
results of this agreement on developing and the least developed
nations worldwide. It jeopardizes peoples’ ability to achieve
food security and sovereignty as well as achieving a respectful
life. Moreover, the AoA puts at risk the livelihoods of millions
of farmers, rural women and small sized producers who will be
compelled to leave their farms and homes in search for
livelihoods. As such, circles of absolute poverty will expand
and massive hunger will prevail.
On the occasion of your meeting in Hong Kong, we send our
fraternal greetings and best wishes of success to the social
movements, farmer and producer movements and the civil society
organizations protesting against violation of socio-economic
rights by the WTO globalization policies, and opposing to the
imposition of unfair adjustments such as eliminating subsidies
and cutting down tariffs on developing countries as prerequisite
for their integration into the global economy.
We call upon the ministers meeting in Hong Kong to relinquish
the AoA for the sake of a better and equitable humane life for
all.
Agricultural Development Association (PARC)
Palestinian Farmers Union
Rural Women’s Development Society
Rural Woman Cooperative Societies for Credit and Saving
Youth Development Association
Arab Agronomists Association
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