CONAMURI: Developments and Challenges in the Struggle Against Agrochemicals in Paraguay

Introduction

Seed Campaign

The National Coordinator of Rural and Indigenous Women Workers (CONAMURI) has had an on-going program since 2008, called Campaign for the Rescue and Preservation of Native and Creole Seeds, to fight against agrochemical agents and transgenic products, following the line of Via Campesina, an international organization to which it is affiliated.

The aim of this campaign is to strengthen agricultural populations through the development of bills that benefit small farmers. For example, the Law of Protection and Advocacy for Local Maize Varieties (the Corn Act), drafted in 2008, was supported by numerous civil stakeholders but has not been taken into consideration by the National Parliament yet. In spite of the fact that two public hearings were held to promote this bill, legislators have not shown enough interest in considering, much less approving, this proposal devised by social movements.

With the advance of agribusiness, it becomes imperative for rural families to organize and protect the small agriculture that is based on harmony with nature. Article 1 of the Corn Act reads: “This law aims at preserving the maize (Zea mays L.) as genetic and cultural heritage of Paraguay, developed for thousands of years; fighting hunger resulting from the rise prices for basic food; and, consequently, fighting poverty, and contributing to enhance food security and food sovereignty.”

Also, within the activities developed in the struggle for food sovereignty, in January 2010, CONAMURI founded “Seed Roga” (the Seed House, in Guarani), a space where seed varieties are stored for distribution to the various committees of producers, divided initially in eight departments, with growth expectations. One of the major concerns of the organizations that see agriculture not as a source of profit but as cultural heritage for life and survival is to encourage the organic production of food.

In order to achieve these goals, CONAMURI has launched a plan to foster the participation of young people committed to the guidelines of the organization. The spokespersons for the Seed Campaign have been carrying out several activities in the departments with greater presence of genetically modified (GM) crops to spread the news through alternative media, and to hold workshops and ongoing training to create awareness in the community about the problems derived from mechanized agriculture and the current production model.

The threat posed to rural women by the indiscriminate use of pesticides, that, besides spontaneous abortions, birth malformations, forced expulsion from the territory, hunger, unemployment, land degradation, disappearance of forests, and pollution of the water and air, has already caused noticeable global climate changes, is enough for CONAMURI to continue struggling against this system that trades our right to live in this planet for gold.

National Scenario

In Paraguay, the poor distribution of wealth is mainly based on the lack of an appropriate agricultural policy and the historical material conditions that forged our nation. To this day, we continue to stand out in surveys as one of the countries with the highest concentration of land in the world, which, coupled with the corruption of institutions and, above all, a judiciary that is far away from reality, creates and perpetuates poverty.

Under these circumstances, the gender aspect emerges as one of the pieces of this scenario. Women, particularly rural, indigenous, and working class women, see the comprehensive agrarian reform as an urgent measure to build greater social justice within the process of democratic change that is taking place in Paraguay.

But what does this agrarian reform mean for these women? What demands does it cover? What are the principles that it entails? Firstly, we must clarify that the agrarian reform in question has been devised with a view to gender issues. Women, including mothers, youngsters, and women in general, have always been present in the struggle of social movements and popular organizations, and they have been the least visible, the most stoic, who act in a low profile because they have children to feed, they have the will to study and better themselves, they have great expectations. Today, we may not speak of change or transformation without taking into account the contribution of women.

A comprehensive agrarian reform must ensure equality, avoid any type of discrimination based on gender or ethnicity, and give priority to the most disadvantaged groups for the distribution of land, recognizing women as subjects of rights and obligations.

In view of the global crisis affecting us with climate change, the struggle for food sovereignty arises as a legitimate alternative to stop this unprecedented catastrophe. It is not possible to conceive an agrarian reform that meets the demands of women without looking at the reality in which we live. The peasants and farmers of the world, through their promotion of agroecological production, will allow us to return to the “good life” or “wellbeing,” known as “teko porã” by our people.

Some of the next challenges to be faced by the CONAMURI are to coordinate our fields of action with the activities of other women's organizations and other working class sectors, to foster constant political mobilization against multinational corporations that violate national sovereignty and those who seek to profit from national resources, to participate in the debates to achieve regional integration through the ALBA (Bolivarian Alternative for the Peoples of our America) and UNASUR (Unión de Naciones Suramericanas) projects, and, finally, to gain political visibility to add to the empowerment of peasant and indigenous women in state institutions, both from the gender and from the classist point of view.