The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) urges the government to seriously reconsider its plan to sell land to Saudi Arabia and other foreign investors, taking into account the welfare of hundreds of thousands of peasants whose livelihood will be directly affected.
The 'Food Pirates' are fast expanding their network, their reach and their control over land. And it is happening fast in our own neighbourhood, writes Devinder Sharma.
“We expect this impending land-lease deal with Saudi Arabia, courtesy of global land-grabbing’s No. 1 puppet in Asia, to displace thousands of farmers and agricultural workers. Ms Arroyo is selling out the country’s national patrimony under the guise of multi-million dollar investment packages,” Anakpawis party-list Representative Rafael Mariano said.
Ten Saudi Arabian agricultural companies wants to make the Philippines their food production hub and distribution center in the Far East.
Fears have been raised of a possible increase in food insecurity in Pakistan if a deal to lease out 202,342.8 hectares of farmland to Saudi Arabia goes ahead.
"The real worry is that IRRI may help Saudi Arabia produce aromatic rice varieties in Pakistan where these countries have bought large tracts of lands," food policy commentator Devinder Sharma said. "India and Pakistan are already bitter rivals in the Basmati export segment."
During Pervez Musharraf’s time, Beijing had proposed that it be leased 2,000 acres of land for a period of 10 to 15 years with the agreement that China would make technological and financial investments in the land, invest in newer forms of seeds and other products and leave the new infrastructure to the state or the owners after the termination of the contract.
It is unfortunate that even as deals that involve land which should belong to the people of Pakistan are struck, there has been so little public debate about the plan. We need to be informed of what is planned. Protests need too to be mobilized. In the prevailing political environment of Pakistan, the people who stand to lose the most have almost no spokesmen.
Casi 20 millones de hectáreas en África, Asia o América Latina han pasado a manos de gobiernos o inversores privados extranjeros
PAVA offers its shares to Gulf investors for food supplies. It will start road show to UAE and Saudi in October.
Sheik Mohammed Hussein Ali Al Amoudi, the second richest person in Saudi Arabia, is preparing to farm cereals on hundreds of thousands of hectares of Ethiopian land for export to Saudi Arabia
Philippine President Arroyo will meet with Saudi Minister of Agriculture Fahd Bin Abdulrahman Balghunaim to discuss bilateral agricultural projects and with members of the Saudi business community for talks on proposals for investments in the Philippines.
