Agriculture Strike: Seen from the Point of View of Citizens
BY: Xamy Lopez & Maria Jose Sanabria
Conflicts have existed for a long time, since about the Medieval Ages (496-1492), in Europe, in the feudal system, when peasants revealed because they were not conformed with their lord. In this times, strikes are made because of the nonconformities the workers have with their officers.
The agriculture strikes, according to the interview, made the 16th of January in the headquarter of the Fiscalia, Manuel Gaona (Cra. 33 No. 18-33), to Margarita Quiroz Rodriguez, Fiscal Sectional for Land Issues, “were originated when the Government, be municipal, departmental or national, does not fulfill the different guild’s expectation”.
The last Agriculture Strike, in Colombia, made on April 8th 2014, according to Dr. Quiroz is “generated when the State does not protect the small farmers, making no roads, inputs, giving no credits and the easy of marketing their products”.
According to Margarita Quiroz Rodriguez, there are some solutions but the best one is to improve the communication between the farmers and the Government. In the country, The Ministry of Agriculture is supposed to give a solution, which Dr. Quiroz agrees because “the Government committed until it is allowed”.~ Analyzing the cause...
Beyond the vandalism and accusations at irregular groups of fomenting violence in demonstrations in support of the agricultural strike, the reality is that the field worker is now disadvantage relative to their urban counterparts.
With over ideology figures, accusations have focused on the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) signed with essentially the US Some have blamed the TLC of the decline in manufacturing exports in the last five years.
Others express their preferences for institutions like the European Union as a mirror in which to look the Andean Community of Nations while denigrating the treaty with the US One forget that the TLC just entered into force on 15 May 2012. The others ignore both the EU and CAN are, at base, an FTA.
~The three keys of the Government to overcome the agrarian strike
Finance Minister Mauricio Cardenas, said that the Government is considering the various outputs that could be given to agricultural strike.
Cardenas said the potential move in three directions. First, the disappearance of tariffs for agricultural inputs; Second, refinancing loans to farmers and peasants; and third, the implementation of exceptional conditions compared to TLC, this to preserve some products that are affected by these trade agreements.
"First disappear completely tariffs on fertilizers in the country to lower the cost of agri. Secondly the government is interested in refinancing loans to ease the financial burden on peasants and farmers of our country "- Minister Cardenas.
Bogota - Colombia
