Reject The Surrender of Farmers’ Interests and Right to Food Sovereignty
19th November, 2014
The All India Kisan Sabha strongly condemns the BJP Government for entering into an Agreement with USA on the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) of the WTO without getting anything concrete on Food Security and Agricultural Subsidies. India has paved the way for the ratification of TFA and its incorporation into the WTO legal framework bowing to the pressure of USA. The BJP Government has meekly surrendered the interests of peasantry and hungry millions to please USA, EU as well as the big agri-businesses and Indian Corporate lobby. It reinforces our position that the USA unilaterally decides and maintains a stranglehold over the WTO. The Agreement only claims that it will hasten the efforts to arrive at a Permanent Solution on Food Security. This was already promised by the Bali Package. Rather than an advance India has given a big concession to USA and other advanced capitalist countries by paving the way for the TFA.
In context of the World Economic Crisis continuing unabated from 2008 as well as the crash of prices of agricultural commodities this Agreement only strengthens the unequal WTO regime and the Neo-Liberal agenda of promoting corporate profits. It foregoes India’s right to protect our farmers and ensure food security and livelihood security of our people. The implementation of Neo-Liberal policies since 1991 has only ensured profits for a miniscule section of the population at the expense of the peasantry and poor and has been rejected by the people of India in consecutive elections. AIKS demands a review of implementation of these policies and a White-Paper including a Cost-Benefit Analysis before going ahead with any decision.
The Agreement lacks transparency and smacks of authoritarian functioning by the BJP Government. Once again it has subverted the established Parliamentary norms and gone ahead in a clandestine manner without any consultation with States or discussion in Parliament. India’s unilateral action also undermines the solidarity with over 46 countries (G-33) that had been built over the years to collectively safeguard interests of developing and Less Developed Countries. It infringes upon our sovereign right to decide on provision of price support to farmers and ensure food security.
The Agreement only indefinitely drags on the unequal Peace Clause and perpetuates the antiquated International Reference Price of 1986-88 for calculating agricultural subsidies. This will not take into account the increase in costs of production over last two decades and make even the unremunerative Minimum Support Prices (MSP) to seem like massive subsidy. India will be restrained from increasing MSP or farm subsidies on the pretext that they are “trade distorting”. This inherent anomaly for the calculation of subsidies will continue without any rectification.
The TFA also will benefit those countries which are net exporters. Net importers like India will see their imports rising faster than their exports, with adverse effects on their trade balance. The TFA advocated by developed countries is binding in nature (with those not fulfilling their obligations facing WTO legal cases) while the decisions on LDC issues and export subsidies favoured by developing countries are not binding in nature.
The BJP Government is unilaterally going ahead with its decision and pursuing an Agreement by December on these important issues affecting millions of people in India. We call upon all democratic minded people and Organisations as well as State Governments to oppose such a move. AIKS will strive to build the broadest possible unity against the betrayal of interests of the peasantry and poor and launch struggle against this move.
Sd/-
Amra Ram, President
Hannan Mollah, General Secretary
