Salvadoran Farmers and Workers Demand Delay of CAFTA

The small farmer refuses to die. No to CAFTA!
We want real policies for rural development.
(Banner slogans at protest)

On February 8, 2006 , the Coordinadora Nacional Agropecuaria (National Agricultural Coordinator) marched from San Salvador ’s city center to Santa Tecla, where the Ministerio de Agricultura y Ganadería (Ministry of Agriculture and Cattle Ranchers) is located. Marchers demanded that the Ministry delay the implementation for three years of the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), slated to go into effect on March 1, 2006 . Participants stated that, since Salvadoran farmers cannot compete with U.S. prices, the importation of agricultural products from the U.S. to El Salvador through CAFTA would devastate the 500,000 Salvadoran families who depend upon agriculture for survival. Once CAFTA is implemented, it is expected that most Salvadorans will buy cheap U.S. corn, rice, and sugar rather than more expensive Salvadoran grown crops.

Carlos Rodriguez, one of the organizers of the march, said that Salvadoran farmers cannot compete with U.S. farmers who have better technology, financing and benefits. "If products are imported, it is the death of this [farming] sector.”

When the marchers arrived at the Ministry, they demanded to see Minister Mario Salaverría to present a list of demands to him. Protestors hoped to engage the Minister in a conversation about their policy suggestions for the Salvadoran agricultural sector. Civil employees said that the Minister was not in and could not attend to the group.

A number of farmer organizations from different parts of the country participated in the march. The Coordinadora, for its part, is composed of various small farmer, or campesino, organizations, including ANET (National Association of Agricultural Workers), UNTA (National Union of Agricultural Workers), UCS (Salvadoran Small Farmer Union), MPMR (Permanent Commission of Rural Women), FESACORA and FEDECOOPADES (Federation of Cooperative Association for Agriculture Production in El Salvador). Together with the Coordinadora, the main campesino organizations from the MPR-12 (Popular Resistance Movement 12 of October), CONFRAS (Confederation of Federations of Agrarian Reform in El Salvador ), and CRIPDES (Corporation of Rural Communities for Development in El Salvador ), participated. Vendors of pirated CDs and DVDs, whose livelihoods are threatened by the intellectual property regulations of CAFTA, also participated in the march. These groups are among the most affected by the legislative reforms of CAFTA.

In 2006, SHARE is supporting CONFRAS to develop alternative agricultural policies, strengthen its internal capacity, and prepare and incorporate women into leadership roles within the organization. SHARE and CONFRAS have collaborated frequently over the years to revitalize government interest and attention to the Salvadoran rural sector.

From CoLatino article 2/9/06