Haiti: Agrarian reform is urgently needed according to peasant farmers
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Jean Rabel (Haiti), 28 July 05 [AlterPresse] --- The issue of agrarian reform was at the centre of debates during the 22-23 July commemoration of the 18th anniversary of the masacre of 139 peasants in Jean Rabel (north-west).
Hundreds of peasants, who came from various parts of the country, declared that poor Haitian peasants must undertake a mobilisation at the national level to secure an equitable and true agrarian reform. "Agrarian reform is a necessity. Since 1804, all attempts to obtain it have failed. The consequence is that 49% of the products consumed in Haiti come to us from abroad and are genetically modified," said one peasant farmer. Other contributors said that a true agrarian reform would allow the country to be autonomous in terms of national production. "Peasants have the right to land on which to work", said one. The peasants' meeting at Jean Rabel called for food security and the establishment of structures to permit them to sell their produce. Since 180 until this very day, the issue of agrarian reform has remained a thorny problem in Haiti. The 1987 Constitution - article 248 - stipulates that the land belongs to those who work it. The government of René Préval (1996-2000) tried to address peasants' concerns by establishing the Natioanal Agrarian Reform Institute (l’Institut National de la Réforme Agraire, INARA). Some land was distributed to peasants in the Artibonite department. The INARA was authorised to take provisional possession, without the need for any prior process, of any contested stretch of land reputed to be or to have been either originally unclaimed or the property of the State. [ jj do gp apr 28/07/05 13:00] Translated from French by Charles Arthur for the Haiti Suppor Group |
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