Zhudong Erchongpu faces land grabbing; Rice Wave Forum reports from the front line
Recorder: Liao Hsuan-ya. Photographer: Da Baolong
Introduction
On a mild, sunny day, more than twenty local smallholders gathered at the "Chuanjing Di" square in Zhudong, Hsinchu. Following the first session held in Yuanshan, Yilan, the second session of the "Rice Wave Forum" was opened by Professor Hsu Shih-jung, spokesperson for the Taiwan Rural Front, who kicked off the discussion. Then Hsu Po-jen of the Taiwan Rural Front began by noting that past actions on Ketagalan Boulevard were mostly "firefighting" types, such as land expropriation and farmers competing for water. However, the "People's Forum" and "Food Sovereignty Night" held on Ketagalan Boulevard on 2/3 this year were intended to consolidate more opinions and express the fundamental problems of Taiwan's agriculture to the government.
"La Via Campesina" is a global transnational peasant movement organization that originated in Central and South America, and its members are mainly farmers. Farmers in various countries have encountered many problems; for example, Indonesia and Mexico have faced large-country dumping that has caused the decline of domestic agriculture. Or farmers in countries gradually moving toward agricultural modernization cannot afford production materials, and there are also more land problems. It has recently put forward propositions of "food sovereignty" and "peasants' rights," meaning that people and farmers have the right to make their own choices. Without affecting others, people and farmers have the right to choose what to eat and what to grow.
The more than twenty farming friends discussing on site were mostly middle-aged and older farmers from the Hsinchu area. Most had farmed for generations and had lived locally for a long time. A few belonged to the younger generation; although they did not live locally and did not farm as an occupation, their feelings for the land and the environment were also quite strong. The main thread of discussion was mostly the issue of land expropriation, and some farmers also mentioned problems such as pests and yields caused by recent extreme climate. There were also questions raised about the implementation of government policies, and finally the issue of imported agricultural products was also discussed.
