Oxfam Uncovers Injustice Over Land Deals
September 22, 2011 TheFreshOutlook  |
Oxfam calls for justice for more than 20,000 Ugandans forced into poverty as a result of modern day land rush.
On Wednesday Oxfam launched a major new report that has shone light on the consequences of land deals across the world; deals that evict local communities from their land with no prior consultation, compensation, or means of appeal.
The report, entitled ‘Land and Power’, indicates that around 227 million hectares of land have been sold in land deals since 2001.
Many of these deals are so called “land grabs”, which force the initial inhabitants of the land into homelessness, without any land from which to grow food or make a living.
Chris Johnes, Head of Oxfam Cymru, said: “Many of the world’s poorest people are being left worse off by the unprecedented pace of land deals and the frenetic competition for land. The blinkered scramble for land by investors is ignoring the people who live on the land and rely on it to survive.”
Kate Geary, Land Policy Advisor for Oxfam and co-author of the report concerning land deals in Uganda, spoke to The Fresh Outlook about the situation.
She visited Uganda in research for the report. Travelling and talking to those affected, she described those she met as “destitute”.
She commented on the experience of women, who are particularly vulnerable to land grabs as they hold fewer land rights. Generally, in terms of the deals, they are often subject to gender violence.
She described those she conversed with in Uganda as “deeply emotionally upset”. Ms Geary made the point that as women are no longer in a position to feed or send their children to school, they could no longer fulfil their natural role of care. Poverty even forced some women to “send their children away”, which she said left them “broken-hearted”.
She met one woman who had managed to find work as a casual labourer. The woman made “just enough income to send one child to school”. Ms Geary commented: “How can you possibly make that choice?”
The land rush is a product of the EU’s target to obtain 10% of transport fuels from renewable sources by 2020. Commenting on this mandate, Ms Geary told The Fresh Outlook: “The land required to grow enough biofuels for one tank of petrol … could grow enough to feed a family for a year.”
She added that the operation of biofuel has “doubtful climate benefits”.
Oxfam’s GROW campaign is calling on investors, governments and international organisations to implement current international trade standards to ensure that local people are consulted and treated fairly in land deals.
Ms Geary added that the campaign also works within local communities, to fight together against injustice.
She emphasised that: “What we are talking about here are basic human rights, the right for compensation.” When asked how this problem existed despite international trade laws, she explained that because land grabs have been “a rapidly increasing phenomenon” over the last decade, the protection that exists in international standards in other markets is just not being implemented in this case.
Land investment, when approached responsibly, could help those in positions of poverty. Oxfam said that they support investment in agriculture in developing countries, ideally supporting smallholder productions.
The UN’s Committee on Food Security meets in Rome in October. It could take big steps in developing pro-poor, pro-women guidelines. Ms Geary said that she hoped this would result in “strong guidelines” that would have positive gender and security impacts in developing countries.
By Gwen Smith
[Image courtesy of Janet Kamigisha]
