Realities of rural women across South Asia - a report from North India, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka by La Via Campesina South Asia | 8 Mar 2015 Bangladesh | India | Sri Lanka | food sovereignty | actions Though the word “farmer” is gender neutral, when people think of farmers, they automatically picture men. This is so internalized that we have to specify “women farmers” to address the significant half of ‘the farming world’. The blindness to women in agriculture goes beyond language; the visible-invisible contribution of women in the agriculture sector and rural society is completely neglected. Members of LVC South Asia take this day as an opportunity to share the realities of rural women in each of our areas – farmers facing sexual violence in North India, religious fundamentalism in Bangladesh, and militarism in Sri Lanka. Though the word “farmer” is gender neutral, when people think of farmers, they automatically picture men. This is so internalized that we have to specify “women farmers” to address the significant half of ‘the farming world’. The blindness to women in agriculture goes beyond language; the visible-invisible contribution of women in the agriculture sector and rural society is completely neglected. Members of LVC South Asia take this day as an opportunity to share the realities of rural women in each of our areas – farmers facing sexual violence in North India, religious fundamentalism in Bangladesh, and militarism in Sri Lanka.
Goodbye and thank you, Sarath! by Asian Peasant Coalition | 9 Sep 2014 Sri Lanka | food sovereignty “In Sri Lanka, my greatest desire is to enlighten the plantation population, about a million, that they have their own land to till and be a dignified citizens in the country” – Sarath Fernando, founder of Sri Lanka's Movement for National Land and Agricultural Reform, 1942-2014 “In Sri Lanka, my greatest desire is to enlighten the plantation population, about a million, that they have their own land to till and be a dignified citizens in the country” – Sarath Fernando, founder of Sri Lanka's Movement for National Land and Agricultural Reform, 1942-2014