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19 October 2009 | |

Disastrous State

Guatemala: 126 municipalities affected by hunger

1:40 minutes
Download: MP3 (1.1 Mb)

The displacement of indigenous communities 120 years ago to promote the growing of coffee; the neoliberal model implemented since 1985 and the strong droughts that have hit the countryside in recent years.

These three elements are a “perverse combination” in Guatemala, and have caused hunger to be present in 126 municipalities of the country, according to Mario Godínez, from Ceiba-Friends of the Earth Guatemala.

Last Friday, in the framework of an event for the right to food sovereignty, Guatemalan organization denounced this and demanded public policies to help reverse the situation.

So far, State policies have managed to provide “GM food aid” to the affected communities, generally used by the authorities with “electoral ends” and in complicity with the interests of corporations, said Godinez in an interview with Real World Radio.

It is easy to identify as background a series of issues that are still unresolved, including inequalities in the access to land, and lack of technical assistance to promote a production model based on family agriculture. Godinez considers, however, that the most progressive social forces of the country are effectively articulating political goals for the defense of territories, and it is possible that this has positive results in the future.

Photo: http://ipsnoticias.net/

(CC) 2009 Real World Radio

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