No Land No Food No Life

Final transcript

 

 

01:00:43:08 01:00:47:08

When the police came to beat us 

I stood my ground.

 

01:00:47:09 01:00:52:09

If they ripped out my guts,

I'd never give up my land.

 

01:00:52:12 01:00:57:05

In the rainy season, I even

went to Bamako about the case.

 

01:00:57:12 01:01:02:00

This canal destroyed our crops.

But we will never give up.

 

01:01:02:08 01:01:07:10

When they dug the canal, they

destroyed all we had.

 

01:01:07:15 01:01:11:10

They beat me so badly 

I had wounds all over.

 

01:01:12:20 01:01:16:15

Here, and here.

They beat me black and blue.

 

01:01:17:04 01:01:20:00

I looked like I'd been burned.

 

01:01:48:05 01:01:52:08

The most pressing problem 

in Mali today,

 

01:01:52:10 10:01:55:08

after corruption,

 

01:01:55:10 01:02:00:11

is the seizure of land 

belonging to poor farmers

 

01:02:00:15 01:02:04:20

by foreign and local investors.

 

01:02:05:00 01:02:08:00

There are some 30 communities

 

01:02:08:05 01:02:13:11

whose land and crops have been

seized over the past 4 years.

 

01:02:15:14 01:02:21:10

In 2010 

they consulted our law firm.

 

01:02:22:15 01:02:27:22

In the past, numerous 

agencies have intervened

 

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to try to resolve the situation.

 

01:02:33:02 01:02:35:18

With no success.

 

10:03:04:03 10:03:08:07

We were shocked one day to find

a group of men

 

10:03:08:12 10:03:11:12

working our millet fields.

 

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We thought they had come 

to survey our land.

 

 

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We said: “What's going on?”

 

10:03:19:05 10:03:20:15

That's my field.

 

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Modibo Keïta has been 

working it for 3 years.

 

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That's all my land over there.

 35 hectares.

 

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He stole it 3 years ago.

All of it!

 

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3 years! He's using it now.

 

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This canal they dug cuts 

right through the village.

 

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Look how far it goes.

 

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We used to grow crops here

 

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but they drove the farmers out 

and dug this.

 

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The main objective today is

 

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to boost agricultural production

 

 

 

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to meet Mali's domestic needs 

and eventually to export.

 

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Exports bring in foreign 

currency, allowing us

 

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to acquire goods that we do not 

manufacture ourselves.

 

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We believe we can achieve this 

through agriculture.

 

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Mining generates wealth, but

mines have a limited life-span

 

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whereas farming is steady and

not harmful to the environment.

 

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Our goal: grow enough to 

ensure Mali's food security

 

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and export the surplus.

 

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That's what we're working for. 

Despite our limited means.

 

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For investors with enough means

we make land available:

 

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in lots of 1,000, 2,000, 5,000

 

 

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up to 10,000 or 20,000 hectares.

 

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We lived in an another village

for many years.

 

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We were expelled by

the government 9 years ago.

 

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Before then, we had no problems.

We had a good life.

 

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We had good wells and

grew our own food.

 

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But they made us leave 

and come here.

 

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We were expelled during Ramadan.

 

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This is not a good place to live.

 

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We are confined to a small space 

right beside the factory.

 

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Our children and animals have 

no place to go.

 

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The government said they'd build 

houses for us but they didn't.

 

 

 

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We have only 3 wells.

No fields. No gardens.

 

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No homes. They gave us nothing.

 

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The Markala dam is 

on the Niger River delta.

 

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It irrigates the river plain.

 

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Millions of hectares.

 

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All this water and land attracts

major investors.

 

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The water does not need to be 

transported very far.

 

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It's used in direct irrigation 

with water cannon, pumps,

 

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and centre pivot systems.

 

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There are 30 major investors.

 

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This is GDCM,

 

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Grand Distributeur Céréalier du Mali

 

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Mali's largest agri-food company.

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We produce and distribute 

sugar and rice.

 

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We will achieve food security 

in 5 years.

 

10:08:14:00 10:08:06:09

5 years at the most.

 

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If our investors stick with us.

 

10:08:12:00 10:08:13:24

Investors include Malian banks 

and some foreign banks.

 

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My name is Aminata Tangara.

 

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I am 40 years old.

 

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This land has been ours since

the dawn of time.

 

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This is all we know.

 

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Our ancestors 

have lived here forever.

 

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Our land stretches to the river.

 

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Our lives are completely

bound up in this place.

 

 

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Modibo Keïta, owner of GDCM, 

said he needed to build

 

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an irrigation canal to carry 

water to the lowlands.

 

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He asked for permission

to build on our land.

 

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He promised to compensate 

anyone whose land was affected.

 

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Later we learned

he wanted more than a canal.

 

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He was after farmland.

 

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Modibo Keïta started off 

full of promises.

 

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But he kept none of them.

 

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He said he'd give us a mill,

 

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a machine to make shea butter

and build a health centre.

 

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He also promised a school 

and a road.

 

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There is no health centre.

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No road.

 

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No school.

 

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And electricity? Forget it.

 

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We couldn't accept his proposal.

This is where we farm.

 

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Modibo Keïta said developing the

lowlands would be too costly.

 

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He suggested another area 

and again we said no

 

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because this is ancestral land:

never sold, leased or pawned.

 

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Our arable land is to us 

what real estate is to you.

 

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We could not give up our land.

 

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He begged. He tried everything 

but in vain.

 

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We will never give up our land.

 

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It would be like selling our souls.

 

 

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It would be like dying.

 

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GDCM is owned by a Malian 

entrepreneur who got big.

 

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He exports rice.

 

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He claims to own 17,000 hectares

and sometimes 20,000 hectares.

 

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He approached the villagers.

 

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He made promises:

 

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to build hospitals, roads,

dispensaries, this and that.

 

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They said: “Why do that for us?”

 

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He said: “In exchange you'll 

give me your land.”

 

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They said: “We live off our land.”

 

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When negotiation didn't work

he said: “I'm rich and powerful.

 

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If you don't negotiate,

I'll just take your land.”

 

 

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A traditional farm is 

1 or 2 hectares.

 

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Food self-sufficiency can't be

achieved on 1 or 2 hectares.

 

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We need thousands of hectares for

Mali to export rice in 10 years.

 

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So this fight is necessary.

 

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As for Modibo Keïta.

 

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He came to our community. 

He sent 120 policemen. 

 

10:13:04:17 10:13:07:12

120 policemen, I swear.

 

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They beat people savagely.

 

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It was worse than what's going

on now in northern Mali.

 

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The people were defenceless. 

Why hit them?

 

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They threw 22 men in jail, 

many of them old.

 

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And later 2 more. 

14 women were beaten.

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Guards, police, 5 vehicles.

 

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This is my field.

 

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The police said: “Ah! There you are.

 

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Modibo Keïta told us

to beat you up.

 

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He says this is his field and 

we should thrash you.

 

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The land you're farming is his.”

 

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I never saw police here before.

 

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Now an outsider takes our land 

by force, destroys our things

 

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and beats us so badly

that we miscarry.

 

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They beat an 80-year-old woman 

to death.

 

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She never recovered and 

died of her injuries.

 

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Two men beat her to death.

 

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We do not seize lands.

 

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We do not support such a policy.

 

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Nor do we support dispossessing

the former inhabitants.

 

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There is no conflict.

 

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We ensure there is no conflict

between the locals

 

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and private companies that 

we want to install.

 

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Anyway, since I've been here

 

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we've done our best to keep our 

eyes open and reduce conflicts.

 

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The fight against land grabs

 

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is a fight against capitalism 

and a predatory economic model.

 

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Our lands and our identities 

are not for sale.

 

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We rededicate ourselves to

resisting and fighting land grabs

 

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by any means possible.

 

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We are arguing 2 major cases:

 

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against large corporations that

have set up

 

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in the Office of Niger zone

 

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on lands customarily belonging 

to local farmers.

 

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The first case

concerns 2 villages:

 

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Sanamadougou and Sahou, versus the

Moulin Moderne du Mali company,

 

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operated by Malian investor,

Modibo Keïta.

 

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He's a young investor who wanted

to get into the agri-food business.

 

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So the Office of Niger 

simply granted him

 

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7,400 hectares of arable land.

 

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If we no longer own the land

 

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how can we hope to achieve 

food self-sufficiency?

 

10:17:41:15 10:17:43:16

Hunger spares no one.

 

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It affects one's personality, 

dignity, and stability.

 

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When you're in the grip of 

hunger, you'll do anything-

 

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things you never imagined.

 

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Modibo Keïta pushed us to extremes.

 

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Only God can save us now.

 

10:18:01:05 10:18:04:29

We're reduced to doing anything 

to survive:

 

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stealing, selling our bodies.

 

10:18:08:13 10:18:11:13

That's the situation we're in.

 

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In Europe there's a statute

 

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called the EBA.

 

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It stands for: 

Everything But Arms.

10:21:56:10 10:22:01:10

Developing countries, like 

Cambodia, are granted

 

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preferential trade status

allowing us to export to Europe

 

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agricultural products 

such as sugar.

 

10:22:13:16 10:22:14:27

Some companies have obtained

from the government

 

10:22:19:02 10:22:12:13

90-year tax concessions

 

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to grow sugarcane and process

sugar for export so as to profit

 

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from the European EBA.

 

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In general these companies 

have foreign investors.

 

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Some important person here

 

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who is certainly part of the coup

 

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receives financing from abroad

 

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from China or sometimes from 

neighbouring countries.

 

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In the case of sugar we know the

money comes from Thailand.

 

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The refinery 

was established in 2009.

 

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We produce 2 types of products:

 

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raw sugar and refined sugar.

 

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Raw sugar goes to Europe

 

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and refined sugar is sold 

in Thailand or locally.

 

10:24:36:28 10:24:39:04

My name is Neth Kun.

 

10:24:39:20 10:24:41:28

I'm 41 years old.

 

10:24:42:13 10:24:45:00

I've lived here all my life.

 

10:24:45:28 10:24:49:01

I used to grow rice and fruit.

 

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With every harvest I always 

had plenty of food.

 

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Before the refinery came, people

raised cattle and water buffalo.

 

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Each family had 10 or 20 cattle.

10:25:06:27 10:25:11:01

Now some have only 2 or 3 

animals while others have none.

 

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The problem is lack of space 

for the animals to graze.

 

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If we take them into the fields 

we risk being fined.

 

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We've looked after this land 

for generations.

 

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They cut everything down: 

even the smallest trees.

 

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They seized this whole area and 

set up their own plantations.

 

10:25:32:11 10:25:36:16

They planted and planted. 

It's sad.

 

10:25:48:02 10:25:54:15

I came here in 1979 to grow rice.

 

10:26:01:27 10:26:05:28

We grew manioc, bananas 

and sugarcane.

 

10:26:06:02 10:26:10:28

Every day we ate what we grew.

 

10:26:13:28 10:26:17:19

Life was easier back then.

 

 

 

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From my rice field I'd harvest

20 bags of rice and other crops.

 

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I grew corn, watermelon

 

10:26:38:19 10:26:41:12

and other food crops.

 

10:26:41:13 10:26:46:04

I sold enough to be able 

to send my children to school.

 

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This is my 6 hectare plot.

 

10:27:40:01 10:27:44:02

In 2006, the Ly Yong Phat company

confiscated my land.

 

10:27:44:21 10:27:48:22

They planted sugarcane and

set up a refinery.

 

10:27:49:03 10:27:51:18

I got no compensation.

 

10:27:52:03 10:27:54:20

What's worse:

 

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the company won't allow us 

on to our land.

 

10:28:20:08 10:28:23:10

The sugar company

 

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took over people's fields

 

 

 

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knowing that they did not 

want to sell their land.

 

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It did so without permission,

 

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without notice, and with no 

agreement from the locals.

 

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Some locals were paid. Some not.

Some called it unfair

 

10:28:42:23 10:28:46:24

because they had valuable

fruit trees on their land.

 

10:28:47:09 10:28:51:16

The company cut down 

the trees to hide the evidence.

 

10:28:51:20 10:28:54:22

So locals couldn't file a claim.

 

10:28:54:27 10:28:57:28

Officials: the police, judges,

the mayor and the company

 

10:28:58:07 10:29:00:19

won't resolve the issue.

 

10:29:19:08 10:29:24:13

When the company began clearing

the fields and moving in

 

10:29:24:17 10:29:28:26

they told the local farmers 

that the sugarcane plantation

 

10:29:28:28 10:29:32:28

would provide employment.

10:29:33:08 10:29:40:05

We locals thought having a job

would be a good idea.

 

10:29:41:25 10:29:45:20

It's true, there are jobs, 

but not much money.

 

10:29:45:23 10:29:49:26

It's backbreaking work 

and poorly paid.

 

10:29:51:23 10:29:55:00

Cane harvesting is seasonal.

 

10:29:55:09 10:29:59:29

You work for 2 or 3 months

and get laid off.

 

10:30:00:19 10:30:04:09

There's no other work around.

I've just been hired back.

 

10:30:04:13 10:30:08:14

Before that I was unemployed.

I sat at home.

 

10:30:08:19 10:30:11:08

I've been searching high and low

 

10:30:11:11 10:30:15:08

to find a way to survive.

 

10:30:34:23 10:30:37:15

My name is Teda.

 

10:30:38:16 10:30:43:25

I cut cane at the Ly Yong Phat

sugar plantation.

 

10:30:49:16 10:30:52:23

Since the factory came here,

life has been a lot harder.

10:30:57:28 10:31:01:12

Before, my mother worked hard 

but we did okay.

 

10:31:01:18 10:31:04:14

We could buy clothes and food.

 

10:31:04:18 10:31:09:24

We could raise farm animals 

and go to school.

 

10:31:10:09 10:31:12:12

Now we can't afford school.

 

10:31:14:01 10:31:16:10

All my friends quit school.

 

10:31:16:14 10:31:20:13

Most of us only got as far 

as 4   or 5   grade.

 

10:31:20:18 10:31:24:22

This all started in 2009 

when the sugar refinery came.

 

10:31:37:18 10:31:35:26

Sometimes they give us work, 

sometimes they don't.

 

10:31:37:29 10:31:40:00

We're worn out.

 

10:31:40:09 10:31:42:19

It's very hard work.

 

10:31:42:23 10:31:45:01

And it's unstable.

 

10:31:45:20 10:31:48:24

There's no regular payday.

 

 

 

10:31:49:16 10:31:54:12

But we have no choice.

We need the work.

 

10:31:57:16 10:32:00:18

We're slaves now.

 

10:32:20:15 10:32:24:06

The workers used to earn

$3 CAD a day.

 

10:32:24:21 10:32:27:29

Now it's $2.50 CAD a day.

 

10:32:28:16 10:32:33:03

If the workers help the company 

prosper they'll earn more.

 

10:32:34:20 10:32:38:14

But not yet.

 

10:32:54:00 10:32:57:23

The refinery owner is rich

 

10:32:57:27 10:33:01:29

but the workers are poor.

 

10:33:03:15 10:33:08:15

If I got my land back 

I could manage.

 

10:33:12:21 10:33:18:03

Growing watermelon could earn

$126 CAD over 3 months.

 

10:33:19:12 10:33:23:12

Or pecans: if I had 10 or 20 

pecan trees,

 

10:33:23:15 10:33:27:15

and harvested at least 3 kg 

per tree, per season,

 

10:33:27:17 10:33:30:14

I could make a go of it.

 

10:33:50:12 10:33:54:16

We no longer have the right 

to go into the forest.

 

10:33:54:21 10:33:59:10

Before, when we were 

short of money

 

10:33:59:14 10:34:02:12

we'd gather vines,

resin and forest plants.

 

10:34:02:15 10:34:08:03

We'd sell them for cash

to provide for the family.

 

10:34:08:16 10:34:11:11

Now we have nothing.

 

10:34:12:12 10:34:15:26

The locals are all in debt.

 

10:34:30:00 10:34:32:25

My name is Pet Nim.

 

10:34:33:29 10:34:37:13

Since the refinery came,

 

10:34:37:20 10:34:41:25

my life has gone downhill.

 

10:34:42:00 10:34:46:06

I tried to stop a truck that was

cutting the trees on our land.

 

10:34:46:18 10:34:51:17

And some people who worked for

the sugar company

 

 

10:34:51:22 10:34:55:03

shot me in the foot.

 

10:34:55:25 10:35:00:09

They said they would kill me.

 

10:35:01:26 10:35:05:17

I had to hide at a friend's house

 

10:35:05:21 10:35:09:18

because I knew they'd try 

to kill me.

 

10:35:09:26 10:35:16:01

I hid at my friend's house

for a month.

 

10:35:16:06 10:35:19:23

I had no way to make a living.

 

10:35:19:28 10:35:24:10

Later, I considered working in

the sugarcane field

 

10:35:24:10 10:35:32:19

but I was afraid 

they'd accuse me of sabotage-

 

10:35:32:27 10:35:37:23

of having deliberately tried 

to do something

 

10:35:37:29 10:35:44:04

that would harm the company.

 

10:35:46:02 10:35:50:10

I had to borrow money for food.

 

10:35:50:21 10:35:56:05

I don't know if I can ever repay it.

 

10:36:09:25 10:36:13:03

We would like Europe to consider

10:36:14:02 10:36:18:28

that producing sugar and

exporting it to Europe

 

10:36:19:02 10:36:22:29

involves human rights 

violations here.

 

10:36:27:02 10:36:31:05

We have given them the results 

of our investigations.

 

10:36:31:05 10:36:33:27

Very objective investigations.

 

10:36:34:00 10:36:37:08

Perhaps they didn't believe us.

 

10:36:37:21 10:36:41:28

All we ask is, please,

come and investigate yourselves.

 

10:36:42:01 10:36:46:08

When you have the results 

of your own studies

 

10:36:44:17 10:36:47:03

you can talk to our government.

 

10:36:49:07 10:36:53:03

You can say that if human rights 

violations continue

 

10:36:53:20 10:36:56:23

you might suspend the EBA.

 

10:37:02:27 10:37:06:29

And we've explained that 

more than once in Brussels.

 

10:37:07:02 10:37:10:01

Many times. Many times.

 

10:37:10:05 10:37:14:24

But the EU's response was:

 

10:37:14:28 10:37:17:20

“If we investigate

 

10:37:17:23 10:37:21:26

and suspend the 

Everything But Arms protocol,

 

10:37:22:00 10:37:26:10

if we stop importing sugar 

from Cambodia,

 

10:37:26:20 10:37:30:19

it will adversely affect 

the people of Cambodia.”

 

10:37:30:22 10:37:34:21

We said: “Think again! 

They are already suffering.”

 

10:37:42:18 10:37:50:21

Since 2003 there has been a steady 

increase in land concessions

 

10:37:50:27 10:37:54:26

from the government to companies.

 

10:37:56:02 10:38:01:15

This is at least half 

the arable land in Cambodia:

 

10:38:01:17 10:38:07:21

almost 3 million hectares.

 

10:38:12:07 10:38:18:26

1 million people are affected

by these land concessions.

 

10:38:34:22 10:38:37:10

On the high ground

 

10:38:37:21 10:38:42:23

we grew seed crops.

On the slope we cultivated rice.

 

10:38:41:27 10:38:44:08

We built a little hut to sleep in.

 

10:38:44:16 10:38:48:17

When the company came 

they took everything I had:

 

10:38:48:27 10:38:55:04

my hut, the rice field, everything.

 

10:38:56:03 10:38:59:12

Bulldozers came onto my land

 

10:38:59:16 10:39:02:18

and destroyed my crops.

 

10:39:03:17 10:39:07:15

Then the villagers got organized.

 

10:39:08:18 10:39:12:12

We united to oppose 

the injustice.

 

10:39:12:16 10:39:16:17

The police, the army, and 

security guards came

 

10:39:16:26 10:39:19:12

to forbid us to go to our lands.

 

10:39:19:24 10:39:22:11

They said that from now on

 

10:39:22:15 10:39:26:17

the land belongs to a company

with the backing of the state.

 

10:39:26:21 10:39:29:13

So we organized a protest.

10:39:30:12 10:39:33:08

We blocked the main highway.

 

10:39:33:15 10:39:36:00

We used loudspeakers to make

our voices heard.

 

10:39:37:06 10:39:41:08

The guards destroyed our

material and shot a protester.

 

10:39:42:11 10:39:46:11

Since then, we've been 

fighting for our rights.

 

10:39:49:07 10:39:52:08

We, the people, would

like the government

 

10:39:52:16 10:39:55:09

and the companies

 

10:39:55:12 10:39:58:27

to stop eviction of all people

 

10:39:59:17 10:40:02:25

wherever they may be.

 

10:40:03:07 10:40:06:24

If there's not a proper solution, 

Bocung Kak villagers will struggle until death.

 

10:40:16:27 10:40:09:15

Struggle until death!

Struggle until death!

 

10:43:53:15 10:43:58:14

These are the fruits from the oil

palm tree. These are the fruits.

 

10:44:01:00 10:44:05:00

These are the fruitlets, 

where you get the oil from.

10:44:05:00 10:44:10:20

The oil comes from the mesocarp; 

you get the oil from here.

 

10:44:11:22 10:44:15:28

The oil which we squeeze out from 

the fruit we call crude palm oil.

 

10:44:16:11 10:44:18:11

Or in short we normally 

call it CPO.

 

10:44:18:21 10:44:22:27

Crude palm oil from here, we will 

send it to our refinery in Jinja.

 

10:44:23:19 10:44:25:18

We have a refinery there. 

 

10:44:25:21 10:44:30:10

There it will be processed into 

consumable items like cooking oil,

 

10:44:30:10 10:44:33:22

soap production 

or detergent production.

 

10:44:36:07 10:44:39:18

The priority now 

is for consumption for the people

 

10:44:39:21 10:44:43:14

because Uganda is importing 

a lot of oil from Asia.

 

10:44:43:16 10:44:47:16

So if they can have palm oil now, 

they can reduce foreign exchange,

 

10:44:47:18 10:44:50:23

they can cut down the import of oil.

 

 

10:45:12:24 10:45:15:23

This is the Bukakata ferry,

going to Kalangala.

 

10:45:17:24 10:45:21:23

We are going to see the 

oil palm plantations

 

10:45:23:18 10:45:25:29

and the company called BIDCO.

 

10:45:26:10 10:45:31:15

And how it actually impacts on communities 

and agricultural systems.

 

10:45:56:15 10:46:01:05

My name is Kureeba, David. I work for 

National Association of Professional Environmentalists.

 

10:46:01:10 10:46:05:22

We worked closely with 

Friends of the Earth International

 

10:46:05:25 10:46:11:18

and we did a report on how the project has 

benefitted communities in this project of oil palm.

 

10:46:11:20 10:46:14:08

According to how the project started, 

World Bank is involved.

 

10:46:14:12 10:46:18:12

But when we mentioned that World Bank was 

involved, they said they are not involved. 

 

10:46:18:17 10:46:22:28

They said we were telling lies, and the project was 

very good, that it was benefitting communities. 

 

10:46:23:18 10:46:25:26

So we told World Bank:

 

 

10:46:25:29 10:46:28:16

"Yes, if you're saying 

what we wrote in the report is lies,

 

10:46:28:19 10:46:32:07

let's go to the communities themselves 

who gave us this information.

 

10:46:32:10 10:46:34:15

This is not our information. 

For us our land was not grabbed,

 

10:46:34:18 10:46:38:10

it is the community land that was grabbed and  

the people whose land was grabbed are there.

 

10:46:38:18 10:46:39:27

Let's go there and we'll see them."

 

10:47:11:17 10:47:13:27

I started cultivating this land 

when I was 15 years old.

 

10:47:14:16 10:47:19:05

I planted coffee, bananas 

and avocado.

 

10:47:20:19 10:47:27:12

I hoped to provide for myself 

and my children

 

10:47:27:18 10:47:32:20

and, when I'm gone, to hand the 

land down to them.

 

10:47:34:00 10:47:39:19

Right now, I'm tending my coffee 

trees and banana trees.

 

10:47:40:02 10:47:43:17

I work my land with a hoe

 

 

10:47:43:18 10:47:45:26

not with heavy machinery 

like tractors.

 

10:47:46:00 10:47:51:28

I work by the sweat of my brow 

but, come harvest-time,

 

10:47:51:28 10:47:57:21

someone might come along 

and take it all away.

 

10:47:57:26 10:48:02:15

That's what we face.

 

10:48:06:27 10:48:10:13

Once, Uganda was beautiful.

 

10:48:10:25 10:48:15:15

People came to Kalangala from 

America and Europe

 

10:48:15:20 10:48:18:15

to enjoy its lush natural beauty.

 

10:48:18:20 10:48:21:10

You can see how green it is.

 

10:48:21:15 10:48:24:21

But oil palm will destroy it.

 

10:48:24:26 10:48:28:13

When BIDCO came we thought 

they'd help us.

 

10:48:29:11 10:48:35:15

We're poor and we struggle 

to survive.

 

10:48:35:19 10:48:39:18

Poverty has driven some to 

surrender their land

 

10:48:39:18 10:48:42:15

for oil palm production.

 

10:48:42:21 10:48:46:23

But they're being tricked 

for mere pennies.

 

10:48:56:16 10:49:04:03

BIDCO came here. And when they came here,

 they partnered with other companies

 

10:49:04:25 10:49:11:28

like WILMAR Plantation Services because

 they were very experienced in plantation agriculture.

 

10:49:13:00 10:49:20:16

And BIDCO, or WILMAR together, formed a company

 called Oil Palm Uganda Limited here.

 

10:49:20:19 10:49:29:25

Now it was through the agreement between 

Government of Uganda and Oil Palm Uganda Limited or BIDCO,

 

10:49:30:03 10:49:34:16

Government of Uganda was 

supposed to provide land:

 

10:49:34:21 10:49:39:17

land free of encumbrances, 

plantable land,

 

10:49:40:17 10:49:48:16

and all this land was leased to 

Oil Palm Uganda Limited for a period of 99 years.

 

10:49:49:16 10:49:55:03

This arrangement of growing oil palm 

is a public-private partnership

 

10:49:55:16 10:49:58:25

because this project had 

to involve farmers.

 

10:49:58:28 10:50:06:18

IFAD was supposed to finance 

oil palm growing on the farmers' site.

 

10:50:07:21 10:50:13:10

IFAD stands for International Fund 

for Agriculture Development.

 

10:50:29:11 10:50:33:10

We have developed a total 

of 6,500 hectares on this island.

 

10:50:33:16 10:50:37:15

A full 6,500 hectares spreading 

throughout the island.

 

10:50:37:21 10:50:41:20

Very, very scattered land.

 

10:50:41:26 10:50:46:11

Whatever land was available which were not used

 were developed into oil palm plantations.

 

10:50:47:16 10:50:49:28

The total hectarage would be 

6,500 for the nucleus,

 

10:50:50:01 10:50:55:20

and then 3,500 for the small holders, 

or "outgrowers" as we call them.

 

10:50:55:28 10:51:00:19

That belongs to the farmers. 

And that's what we have developed so far.

 

10:51:54:16 10:51:58:17

I have 12 hectares of land.

 

10:52:00:08 10:52:04:12

When BIDCO presented the project 

we were happy at first

 

 

10:52:04:20 10:52:08:23

because they would get us 

out of poverty. 

 

10:52:08:28 10:52:12:01

They promised us many things:

 

10:52:13:01 10:52:17:18

seeds, tools and fertilizer.

 

10:52:18:00 10:52:24:02

Everything needed to make 

the project a success.

 

10:52:24:02 10:52:30:02

They promised money and loans 

to help us improve our fields.

 

10:52:30:20 10:52:37:10

But we had to cut down all 

the trees that were here before.

 

10:52:37:15 10:52:43:11

We used to grow our food here: 

plantain and cassava.

 

10:52:43:28 10:52:47:02

The oil palm harvest is still low

 

10:52:47:07 10:52:53:10

and the money we get goes

to pay our labourers.

 

10:52:53:20 10:52:57:15

It's not easy.

 

10:53:00:29 10:53:04:10

There are no feeder roads.

 

10:53:05:05 10:53:11:23

You need to be young, like me, 

to carry the palm fruits.

 

10:53:24:00 10:53:30:00

Often, the trucks don't come 

until long after the harvest.

 

10:53:30:26 10:53:34:05

The company says the oil palm 

fruit must reach the factory

 

10:53:34:10 10:53:36:26

within 24 hours of harvesting.

 

10:53:37:03 10:53:42:10

After 24 hours, the price drops.

 

10:53:43:00 10:53:46:09

But their trucks might not come

for a week.

 

10:53:46:28 10:53:51:22

By the time your harvest reaches 

the factory

 

10:53:51:27 10:53:56:09

they say the price has dropped 

because the oil palm is no good.

 

10:54:56:22 10:54:00:11

All this makes it hard for us.

 

10:54:09:02 10:54:11:14

We make 1¢ CAD a kilo.

 

10:54:11:26 10:54:16:02

All the money goes to paying 

transportation to the factory,

 

10:54:16:09 10:54:25:14

paying the labourers, 

and repaying the loan.

 

10:54:26:14 10:54:31:11

Also, there is only one buyer: 

BIDCO.

10:54:34:02 10:54:37:02

There is monopoly.

 

10:54:37:02 10:54:41:14

There is nowhere you can sell because 

he's the one who gave you the loan.

 

10:54:41:29 10:54:45:26

He's the one to determine the market.

 

10:54:45:26 10:54:48:11

You cannot sell anywhere.

 

10:54:48:13 10:54:51:13

He's the boss for everything.

 

10:54:52:01 10:54:46:28

So you have to bear with the 

situation in all ways.

 

10:54:57:24 10:55:01:07

So there is no way a farmer can 

complain about the price fluctuation

 

10:55:02:10 10:55:05:27

because he's the one 

who determines the market.

 

10:55:07:00 10:55:10:25

But we must keep up our 

loan payments.

 

10:55:11:00 10:55:15:00

We don't know if we'll live long 

enough to pay off our loans

 

10:55:15:07 10:55:21:26

or pass the debt on to our 

children to pay back that loan.

 

10:55:23:22 10:55:29:08

If we don't repay 

they might take away our land.

10:55:50:00 10:55:52:15

This place is called Byoga village

 

10:55:52:25 10:55:58:26

and this was a forest, originally, 

where I used to live;

 

10:55:58:26 10:56:05:28

and we expected to expand, growing food, 

do farming and other activities.

 

10:56:05:02 10:56:12:14

But today, things have changed 

after the coming of the oil palm project.

 

10:56:16:23 10:56:22:15

My garden of food stops here. 

On this side there is a plantation

 

10:56:22:23 10:56:26:28

such that when I want to extend 

I can't go beyond this plantation.

 

10:56:27:02 10:56:29:07

This is for years and years.

 

10:56:29:11 10:56:33:28

Which means other generations 

cannot come and settle here.

 

10:56:34:18 10:56:38:17

Because there are so many people, 

young people like that one,

 

10:56:38:22 10:56:41:22

who don't have anywhere to settle.

 

10:56:41:27 10:56:45:02

We have got to squeeze now to

our land, to our bibanja.

 

 

 

10:56:45:11 10:56:50:01

A kibanja is a piece of land,

no title for it,

 

10:56:50:20 10:56:52:13

but you settle there.

 

10:56:52:29 10:56:55:26

But those young boys don't have bibanja:

 

10:56:56:00 10:56:58:20

they have got to squeeze to our bibanja

 

10:56:59:01 10:57:01:12

Otherwise, if this forest was still there,

 

10:57:01:15 10:57:02:21

they could come and settle in the forest,

 

10:57:04:02 10:57:05:28

and get new settlements.

 

10:57:05:29 10:57:07:12

Which is not possible now.

 

10:57:17:14 10:57:21:14

It's shocking. The very people 

who say they're for development

 

10:57:21:18 10:57:24:17

are the land-grabbers. 

 

10:57:24:21 10:57:29:13

They see our well-tended land 

then steal it.

 

10:57:30:16 10:57:33:08

They seized all my land.

 

 

 

10:57:33:13 10:57:39:12

It stretched from that hill to 

the valley in the distance.

 

10:57:43:10 10:57:46:04

The local authorities 

called a meeting.

 

10:57:46:08 10:57:49:08

They said the land had been sold

 

10:57:49:08 10:57:55:04

and that we would get money 

to leave our lands.

 

10:57:55:08 10:57:58:08

I said: "We know the law.

 

10:57:58:12 10:58:01:17

Anyone forced off their land

 

10:58:01:21 10:58:06:05

must be paid the full value 

or be given a chance to buy it."

 

10:58:06:09 10:58:10:15

After all BIDCO gave land-loans 

to people without land title.

 

10:58:10:19 10:58:14:21

That's how I became a target.

 

10:58:15:02 10:58:19:02

This is where they lay in wait 

to kill me.

 

10:58:19:07 10:58:23:09

They had orders to beat me to 

death if I came back to my land.

 

10:58:45:12 10:58:49:20

My name is Byagagayile, Adelya.

 

10:58:51:08 10:58:55:18

I used to grow all my own food. 

Right here.

 

10:58:55:29 10:58:59:29

Avocado, jackfruit, 

everything we needed.

 

10:59:02:19 10:59:05:10

But in 2009

 

10:59:06:10 10:59:10:17

people came threatening 

to beat me.

 

10:59:10:21 10:59:15:01

They wanted to grab my land so 

they could plant their palms.

 

10:59:15:06 10:59:18:15

But I stood up to them.

 

10:59:18:21 10:59:23:06

I went straight to the

government authorities,

 

10:59:26:03 10:59:28:21

but they were no use.

 

10:59:29:05 10:59:31:21

I got no help at all.

 

10:59:37:09 10:59:42:13

My house was right here.

 

10:59:44:03 10:59:48:06

I built it myself. 

I lived here for 12 years.

 

10:59:48:16 10:59:52:01

Then I had to go into the hospital.

 

 

10:59:52:08 10:59:56:03

When I got back home, 

they had burned it down.

 

10:59:56:10 10:59:59:08

They threw me in jail.

 

11:00:00:01 11:00:04:06

They hoped I'd die in jail. 

But I didn't.

 

11:00:05:12 11:00:10:17

The judge dismissed the case 

and told them to leave me alone.

 

11:00:11:17 11:00:14:09

I want them off my land.

 

11:00:16:17 11:00:20:11

They should pay for the coffee 

and banana trees they destroyed,

 

11:00:20:16 11:00:24:16

and everything they stole 

from my house.

 

11:00:24:21 11:00:28:00

My mattress, dishes, chickens, 

ducks… and my life.

 

11:00:28:04 11:00:32:12

I have lived in fear since 

I was thrown in jail.

 

11:00:32:17 11:00:35:02

I'm always afraid.

 

11:00:35:06 11:00:38:19

I have nowhere to go. 

Nothing to eat.

 

11:00:38:23 11:00:42:06

My belly is empty.

11:00:42:10 11:00:45:05

I have no food.

 

11:01:05:19 11:01:10:16

This was a forest, a natural forest 

with a variety of trees,

 

11:01:11:02 11:01:14:21

a variety of species of trees 

which are no longer here.

 

11:01:14:21 11:01:17:04

We used to get timber from the trees;

 

11:01:17:14 11:01:20:17

we used to get wood to build the houses,

 

11:01:20:22 11:01:23:13

which is no longer possible now.

 

11:01:23:19 11:01:28:10

That means, anybody wanting 

to build must go to the mainland

 

11:01:28:14 11:01:32:20

to look for bricks, look for sand, 

look for iron sheets to build.

 

11:01:32:23 11:01:38:13

However poor you are, if you are poor 

then look for somewhere else to go.

 

11:01:39:00 11:01:42:05

We used to get firewood. 

Where do we get firewood now?

 

11:01:42:08 11:01:46:11

Look there, look up there, 

is there any tree where can we get firewood?

 

11:01:47:01 11:01:50:08

That means cooking is a problem now.

 

11:02:07:15 11:02:12:02

They wanted to take our spring. 

We fought so hard that they didn't take it.

 

11:02:13:13 11:02:18:23

That meant, they would have denied 

us from getting water, a basic need.

 

11:02:23:17 11:02:28:20

People in our country understand, 

seeing the people there demonstrating,

 

11:02:29:16 11:02:37:15

they see a crowd of people with placards 

showing what has tortured them.

 

11:02:37:19 11:02:43:13

I think they understand that because 

we did that to get the spring again.

 

11:02:43:22 11:02:46:15

We did it to get our playground back there.

 

11:02:46:19 11:02:49:00

We did it to get the landing site.

 

11:02:39:04 11:02:54:11

Just demonstrate before them and 

they understand what we mean.

 

11:02:54:20 11:02:58:10

Otherwise, if you don't do that 

you could die in silence.

 

11:03:35:09 11:03:38:08

In Malaysia and Indonesia,

 

11:03:38:15 11:03:42:07

they do process some of the oil 

into biodiesel

 

 

 

11:03:42:11 11:03:45:28

and they are mixing into petroleum 

to be run in a car.

 

11:03:58:13 11:04:01:23

For example, if we look at the oil palm 

that is being grown in Kalangala,

 

11:04:01:28 11:04:06:28

it is aimed at making oil palm 

and making cooking oil out of it.

 

11:04:07:13 11:04:12:21

But then when the president was 

opening a large plantation

 

11:04:12:27 11:04:16:27

he said that was a potential site 

for biodiesel.

 

11:04:17:08 11:04:21:05

So that statement, when you check 

the President's Office website,

 

11:04:21:15 11:04:24:20

if you go deep to interprete 

what that means,

 

11:04:24:24 11:04:27:22

is that the future of that project 

is purely biodiesel,

 

11:04:27:24 11:04:33:03

although tracing it in writing 

is not yet good.

 

11:04:33:16 11:04:37:13

But that is the future.

That is where it is heading.

 

11:05:10:05 11:05:14:00

I'm from Kasese 

in western Uganda. I'm 19.

11:05:14:10 11:05:16:28

I left home to go to school.

 

11:05:17:29 11:05:21:10

I wanted to learn welding or 

another trade.

 

11:05:21:14 11:05:25:15

But I had to quit, 

because I couldn't pay the fees.

 

11:05:25:20 11:05:29:12

So I went home. 

Then I heard about this job.

 

11:05:29:18 11:05:33:21

I came here and signed on 

for 12 months.

 

11:05:33:26 11:05:36:22

But it's not easy.

 

11:05:36:27 11:05:39:09

I can't afford to go home.

 

11:05:39:14 11:05:43:01

I have no way 

to contact my family.

 

11:05:43:12 11:05:48:26

My parents back home think  

I have a good job.

 

11:05:49:19 11:05:53:02

We handle dangerous chemicals.

 

11:05:53:13 11:05:56:15

You can feel the effects, 

especially in bed at night:

 

11:05:57:20 11:06:01:27

in your chest and your head.

 

11:06:02:02 11:06:04:26

That's how it is.

 

11:06:32:22 11:06:35:08

We have to keep a buffer zone 

to the lake:

 

11:06:35:20 11:06:39:00

a 200 metre buffer zone 

along the lakeshore

 

11:06:39:08 11:06:43:05

to check any runoff of fertilizer 

any erosion to the soil

 

11:06:43:10 11:06:45:06

to the shoreline to the lake

 

11:06:45:10 11:06:48:00

in order to protect the 

fishing industry.

 

11:06:48:01 11:06:51:21

That is very, very important to 

the government.

 

11:07:13:00 11:07:16:10

We fishermen are worried

 

11:07:1702 11:07:21:03

We think the oil palm project 

endangers our livelihood.

 

11:07:22:02 11:07:27:10

They plant palm trees near the 

shore and spray chemicals.

 

11:07:29:07 11:07:36:06

When it rains the chemicals 

run off into the lake.

 

 

 

11:07:38:17 11:07:42:09

Even a little rain flushes 

everything into the lake.

 

11:07:42:19 11:07:47:03

When you go along the shore, 

you don't see fish anymore.

 

11:07:48:02 11:07:54:08

The fish have all disappeared.

We are in trouble.

 

11:08:54:09 11:08:57:09

This project was supposed to have 

some small pieces of land

 

11:08:57:20 11:08:59:20

reserved for agriculture.

 

11:08:59:26 11:09:04:02

But now, when you move around, 

you only see stretches, stretches,

 

11:09:04:06 11:09:07:00

stretches of oil palm as opposed to 

having gardens.

 

11:09:07:02 11:09:09:10

People cannot feed on oil palm.

 

11:09:10:24 11:09:14:20

As a result, now, Kalangala can no 

longer have sufficient food.

 

11:09:14:25 11:09:18:00

It has to get food from the mainland 

and bring it here.

 

11:09:52:05 11:09:55:10

Since the oil palm project came

 

 

 

11:09:55:20 11:10:01:20

there's not enough land for 

us to grow our food.

 

11:10:05:05 11:10:12:04

Now we have to buy all our food 

at ever increasing prices.

 

11:10:12:14 11:10:16:06

We could grow all this food here,

 

11:10:16:10 11:10:21:14

if we had room for food crops.

 

11:10:21:26 11:10:25:04

That's the situation.

 

11:10:33:21 11:10:36:12

The common people

are completely getting phased out.

 

11:10:36:26 11:10:40:06

It is those who had money 

and other land speculators

 

11:10:40:10 11:10:42:24

that are benefitting from the project.

 

11:10:43:03 11:10:45:24

Food sovereignty, you have to look at:

 

11:10:46:00 11:10:48:28

How do you grow crops? 

How do you plant them, 

 

11:10:48:28 11:10:50:20

how do you store them for 

the next season,

 

11:10:50:28 11:10:54:10

and how can you live and get food 

at any time you want.

 

11:11:09:12 11:11:12:25

He who owns seeds owns life.

 

<end subtitles>