The Biggest Land Grabbing in Africa – PROSAVANNA

(cross.posted via https://www.facebook.com/inusso.jamal#)

One of the biggest land grabbing in Africa its about to happen: “press release: National Campaign to PROSAVANA in may 2013, more than 20 civil society organizations and social movements, farmers, environmental, religious, families and communities of the Nacala Development Corridor, signed and submitted with the Presidents of Mozambique, Brazil and the Prime Minister of Japan an open letter to stop and Reflect so Urgent the program ProSavana.

The ProSavana is a program of triangular cooperation among the three Governments that allows Brazil and Japan to the acquisition of more than 14.5 million hectares of land by Mozambican authorities to be yielded to large agribusiness companies and Japanese (monocultures of soy, corn, sunflower, cotton) in the North of the country, along the Nacala Development Corridorwith strong incidence in 19 districts of the provinces of Nampula, Niassa and Zambézia.

The open letter addressed to leaders of the three countries responsible for this mega partnership had as main goal the arrest and shutdown ProSavana urgent to provide deep, broad public dedebate spaces, transparent and democratic in the exercise of the right to information, consultation and public participation in this process of great social, economic and environmental relevance, with high potential for adverse impacts and effects the lives of millions of citizens and future generations.

The document also denounces the existence of numerous discrepancies and contradictions in the insufficient information and documents available, indications and evidence that confirms the existence of unhealthy addictions program design; serious irregularities in the process of consultation and public participation; serious threats of usurpation of land and forced removal of villagers and communities of the areas they occupy today.

One year after the submission and publication of the open letter to stop and Reflect so Urgent the ProSavana Program, this remains unanswered. Against all criticisms and demands of various segments of Mozambican society, the ProSavana continues to be implemented in the enterprise templates and perverse in that it was designed. The Mozambican Government, through the Ministry of Agriculture, continues to ignore the demands and just demands of Mozambicans and Mozambique raised around this program.

With much apprehension we assisted the permanence of secrecy, omission, manipulation and deliberate misrepresentation and contradictory documents, the multiplication of intimidation and manipulation of leaders of peasant organizations, representatives of social movements and civil society organizations and activists, led by proponents and executors of Prosavana.

To prevent situations of neocolonialism expressed through the advancement of ProSavana and of multinationals on the territories peasants announce publicly today, June 2, 2014, the NATIONAL CAMPAIGN to PROSAVANA as part of a wider process of hardening of our struggle in a joint mobilization of civil society organisations and movements of peasants in protection of natural resources and against aggression, usurpation, commodification and possible privatisation of land.

With the launch of the NATIONAL CAMPAIGN to PROSAVANA we intend to build a public agenda of fighting with the main objective of stopping and paralyze all actions and projects (Plan Director, Extension and ProSavana models) underway in the framework of the ProSavana under the terms and assumptions on which has been designed and is being implemented, reaffirming the actuality of open letter and all the demands and concerns of peasants contained therein that were never answered. This campaign still intends to denounce and repudiate all forms of manipulation, co-optation, intimidation and attempted criminalization of civil society organizations, leaders and activists who challenge the Prosavana.

Promote a broad mobilisation, organisation and popular resistance of the peasants and affected communities against the aggression and usurpation of land and environmental contamination to be caused by ProSavana;

Empowering the States and international agencies involved in ProSavana through national and international legal mechanisms; lawsuits about the denial of information of a program of public interest and move complaints and denunciations extrajudicial institutions such as: the national human rights Commission and Ombudsman;

Require the Government of Mozambique, the establishment of an inclusive, broad and democratic mechanism construction of an official dialogue with all sectors of the Mozambican society (peasants and farmers, rural communities, religious organizations and civil society) about the real needs, aspirations and priorities of array and sovereign development agenda of the country;

Finally, we reiterate our invitation and appeal to all movements of peasants, environmental and social, civil society organizations, rural communities and all citizens in General for a broad mobilisation, organisation and building a national grassroots movement in defence of our rights and interests relating to access to and control of land, water, goods and common cultural and historical heritage. We urge for a vigorous and firm resistance from all affected by ProSavana and victims of commodification and usurpation of land, social and environmental injustices.

Maputo, June 2, 2014

9 Jun, 2014
Posted in News, Defending Rights, Forests and Climate Change