Friends of the Earth (FoE) Africa, an Environmental Justice Organisation has called for ECOWAS Parliament\u2019s intervention to end the exploitation and human rights violation against plantation farmers across the sub-region by multinational companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ms Rita Uwaka, Coordinator, Forest and Biodiversity Programme of the organisation, made the call while presenting the FoE\u2019s concerns before the ECOWAS Parliament at its ongoing 2022 First Ordinary Session in Abuja.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Uwaka who led FoE\u2019s delegation to the Parliament, alleged that multinational companies especially that of oil palm came in the name of development to African communities but ended up forcefully taking their lands and exploiting them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She explained that unfortunately, the people were subdued by the companies and even local authorities who had been bribed by the multinational companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThere are more cases of labour exploitation and workers\u2019 rights violation as a result of the operation of these agro-commodity companies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe are seeing workers, including pregnant women being ferried, transported in open trucks with accidents and death.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt is sad to note that among our delegates here, we have one of the communities representatives who was knocked down by one of the tractors of these companies. Today, he cannot walk on his own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThere are lots of violations in communities that are hosting these companies in different places and communities in Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOur struggle over the corporate takeover of our forest and lands is not a fight against development but a struggle to prevent further human rights developments, environmental damage, biodiversity and livelihood loss.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAs well as promote the development of millions of indigenous people and local communities with a focus on women and youth who depend on forest and farmlands for their day-to-day wellbeing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe call on the ECOWAS Parliament to support economic partnership agreements that respect the rights of local communities and indigenous people in Africa and protect and restore our environment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cProvide access to justice for dependers and affected local communities, and stop trade deals like power companies to influence legislation through special rights and provisions at the detriment of public interest,\u201d Uwaka said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Addressing journalists after the presentation, Uwaka said FoE was headed to Brussels, Belgium to engage with the European Union Parliament to caution European companies in Africa who were engaged in such heinous acts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She said the FoE Africa delegation would also head to Singapore, Asia to take its complaints to authorities for them to also caution the Asian companies in Africa violating human rights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One of the victims, Philip Orok from Mbarakom Community, Cross Rivers who shared his experience with journalists, explained how he was badly treated upon sustaining injuries on the plantation by the company he worked for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIn June 2019, I went to work as a headman. After sharing work for my workers to supervise the work, I had an accident.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe management brought their ambulance and dumped me at the hospital. Until now they have not asked of me, to know if I am alive. My leg got bad.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAfter ten months, I came back and went to them and when I confronted them, they used the security agencies to chase me, including my colleagues who spoke out for me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThey load workers in the truck as if they load firewood, pregnant women. I was finally sacked without anything,\u201d Orok said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Hon. Shiaka Sama, Member of the ECOWAS Parliament for Sierra Leone, urged the Parliament to act drastically in addressing the menace, described as a new form of colonialism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sama who said he was once a victim of harassments by these companies, added that a lot of people became landless in their own communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThey have mounted illegal checkpoints on the lands of the people, preventing them from moving freely in their own communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd these multinationals are very rich in a place like Africa where they have mass production, the people\u2019s lives are in danger.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThey give bribes to local authorities; they instruct the police to arrest protesters; promises are not kept; the people realise that they have been robbed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI want to remind this house that most MPs here come from farming families so if we have multinational companies coming in and have taken our farmlands, we should act now.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIt is a shame to all of us who have known this as injustice and failed to take action because injustice anywhere is a threat to justice.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cFriends of the Earth have done so well at a time when no one stood up so that the world will know that there is injustice going on. I Thank you for giving voice to the voiceless.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis is a new form of colonialism and if we do not take our time, we are going to give up this continent,\u201d Sama said.<\/p>\n\n\n
Friends of the Earth (FoE) Africa, an Environmental Justice Organisation has called for ECOWAS Parliament\u2019s intervention to end the exploitation and human rights violation against plantation farmers across the sub-region by multinational companies. Ms Rita Uwaka, Coordinator, Forest and Biodiversity Programme of the organisation, made the call while presenting the FoE\u2019s concerns before the ECOWAS […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":23100,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[701],"tags":[400],"class_list":["post-43099","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-agriculture","tag-farmers","has-post-title","has-post-date","has-post-category","has-post-tag","has-post-comment","has-post-author",""],"yoast_head":"\n