CONAIE'S Agrarian Law Proposal

September 25, 2007

The "Integral Agrarian Law," presented by ONAIE, consists of five main points: * Existing demands for land should be processed quickly, systematically and fairly, and there should be equal access to land for all. Land con- flicts should be dealt with not violently, but through peaceful negotiations. * Indigenous-campesino economies should be modernized to improve their productivity levels. Assuring better prices for agricultural products will help resolve the problem of rural poverty. The ultimate objective of this proposal is to pro- duce better-quality, lower-cost products for the domestic market, with a priority on food securi- ty for all Ecuadorians, and secondarily, on agri- cultural exports. * Individual and community initiatives should be promoted to sustain productivity, multiply resources, and guarantee a rational redistribu- tion of resources. Establishing efficient communi- ty enterprises could help channel these energies. * Any agrarian law must actively promote the pro- tection and recuperation of the soil and other renewable natural resources. It should promote ecologically sound technologies and use ances- tral technologies where appropriate. * Organized groups of civil society in the country- side (indigenous groups, campesinos, Afro- Ecuadorians and small farmers) must play a leading role in implementing a new agrarian law. The state has a specific role: to administer the law fairly and in a timely manner, and to ensure the assignment of the appropriate resources. While the market acts as a dynamic force and improves the efficiency of many enter- prises, it cannot rationally distribute access to land. Rather, if the market is given free rein, land tends to become concentrated in the hands of a few.

Tags: Ecuador, indigenous movement, CONAIE, land, agrarian reform


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