that they give us back our lands

The Popular Alliance for the Right to Land has delivered a report to the new government highlighting the injustices faced by farmers: families have lost ownership of the land, which is dedicated to this monoculture even when they do not It is suitable.

Colombo (Asia News) – “The government should initiate a process to investigate the historical injustice of land acquisition for sugarcane cultivation in Ampara district.” This is clear from a research document published by the People’s Alliance for Land Rights (PARL). An independent commission “should examine violations of land rights and methods of returning these lands to their original owners. In cases where these lands have been used by other farmers for a long time, the original owners should receive compensation or alternative lands,” continues the document titled “Problems affecting Hingurana sugarcane growers,” in the east of the country.

The report investigates the injustices suffered by sugarcane growers. These are families that have lost their lands since 1965 due to the acquisition of land for the exclusive cultivation of sugar cane. Although in some cases solutions have been found (with the condition that sugarcane cultivation continues), ownership of the land has not been transferred. Many lands belonged to Muslim farmers and their lands were given to Sinhalese farmers, which also led to ethnic tensions.

The PARL handed over the report to the Prime Minister of the new Sri Lankan government, Harini Amarasuriya, in the hope that a solution will be found to a problem that has existed for 30 years. «Previous governments have also spoken about it in Parliament. But it is a crisis to which no response has been given and which remains forgotten,” Priyankara Costa, coordinator of the Praja Abhilashi Network, affiliated with the PARL organization, told . Priyankara Costa added that the crisis directly affects more than 2,500 families living in 10 villages in five divisions of Hingurana in Eastern Province and cultivating sugarcane on more than 5,000 acres.

The report notes that the farmers became debtors when the company they were hired for took out loans in the farmers’ names. Several lands where monoculture has been established are also not suitable for sugar cane. «According to the soil analysis carried out previously, lands that are not suitable for growing sugar cane should be used for other crops. That is why we hope that the government will take the most appropriate and appropriate measures after discussing them with the affected people,” added Priyankara Costa.

In September, Marxist Anura Kumara Dissanayake was elected president after decades of ruling political dynasties and years of serious economic crisis due to the financial default announced in April 2022. “We urge the new authorities and the new government to provide the solution and grant land ownership through a sustainable work plan,” added Costa.

In the PARL document delivered to the executive, a series of solutions are listed, which will be implemented together with the Sri Lanka Sugarcane Research Institute and the Ministry of Agriculture: a valuation of the land, a pricing mechanism for that farmers can obtain a fair price for their harvest, technical assistance. The district secretary, as a representative of the government, which owns 51% of the company’s shares, should closely collaborate with farmers and their organizations and represent their voice in decision-making platforms, the survey further notes.