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18 October 2010 | Interviews | Food Sovereignty
“We don´t have lands to work”
Interview with Alba Alvarado, member of the Network of Rural Women of Costa Rica
Download: MP3 (923.5 kb)
The problems regarding land in Costa Rica have been deepened by the activities of extractive industries such as mining, and the threat of big hydroelectric dams. Alba Alvarado Gonzalez, member of the Network of Rural Women, made reference to this at an activity carried out by the network in the International Day of Rural Women.
Alvarado said that in her community, located at the south of the country, the mining activity has resulted in threats of evictions until its investments were withdrawn without even paying the debts held with its workers.
“We don´t have lands to work, even though we depend on them”, said Alvarado, who called to take care of native seeds so that “they do not force us” to consume genetically modified products. “We are losing our own identity. That´s deplorable”, she warned.
The model of mega-dams that has been spread in Latin America aims to generate power for other countries, not for the domestic demand. “Transnational companies are exploiting us and we don´t get any benefits from that”, she concluded.
