Farmers’ group tags Philippine independence an ‘illusion’ 0 SHARES Share it! Share TweetBy Chito ChavezMembers of the militant farmer’s group Unyon ng mga Manggagawa sa Agrikultura (UMA) on Wednesday belittled the 121 years of Philippine Independence asserting “this is nothing but an illusion under a semi-colonial and semi-feudal system in a country where agriculture is bound to neoliberal policies’’. Backed by agricultural workers, UMA chairperson Antonio “Ka Tonying” Flores stressed there can never be freedom and democracy until its export-oriented import-dependent agricultural system is completely overhauled. The group added AVAs have also allowed TNCs to expand and convert vast lands growing subsistence crops into high-value or export crops. UMA noted that fake land reform programs of different regimes did not in any way alleviate poverty in the countryside as statistics remain the same—7 out of 10 farmers are landless.

Source: Manila Bulletin June 12, 2019 11:37 UTC