VANCOUVER – It is no longer news that India is in the grip of a Covid catastrophe caused by criminal acts of omission and commission by the national Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government of Prime Minister Modi.
Disregarding science and concerns expressed by numerous epidemiologists and other medical experts,they allowed millions to gather for religious ceremonies and held election rallies of thousands across several states. The solidarity statement recognizes that the current covid situation is the most recent example of callous disregard that this government has shown for the people of India, ever since they came to power in 2014. The statement calls on the Indian government to
- IMMEDIATELY REPEAL the farm laws passed in September 2020 so the farmers can protect themselves from COVID and return to their homes, secure in the knowledge that their families’ futures are not jeopardized.
- RELEASE ALL POLITICAL PRISONERS being held under draconian laws and now also facing COVID infection
- PROVIDE FREE COVID-19 VACCINATIONS for all in India
The farm laws referred to were passed in September 2020 by the Modi government, without consultation or debate in the midst of the first wave of the Covid pandemic. This farmers’ movement is the largest and longest non-violent peaceful protest in world history. It is entering an unprecedented sixth month. The farmers oppose these laws because they will empower corporations to seize their land, jeopardize their livelihood and deepen the agrarian crisis facing the country.
Since November, hundreds of thousands of farmers have camped at the borders of the capital New Delhi, in the bitter winter cold and now, the searing heat of summer, despite police tear gas, water cannons and barricades. Several hundred of them, young and old, men and women, have perished due to weather, disease, police violence and traffic accidents. Many have been injured by vigilantes of the ruling party. Yet the struggle continues and grows.
But the Modi government does not budge. With the current wave of Covid, it is feared the government will opportunistically invoke public health and attempt to demolish the camps. While the farmers know the health risk they face by staying encamped, they remain resolute because it’s a devil’s bargain between the threat of covid or farm laws that spell death for them.
The farmers’ protest has garnered amazing support from all sections of Indian society and outside the country as well. In Canada, city councils from Vancouver to Brampton, along with many Canadian labor organizations, including Canadian Labour Congress, Canadian Union of Public Employees, Federations of Labour, and UNIFOR, have passed resolutions or issued statements in support of the demands of the farmers.
“In the last few weeks, the world has watched in horror as thousands die in India because of COVID-19 and lack of oxygen in hospitals. Yet despite the risks, myriad Indian farmers and farm workers continue their protest. They have no option if they are to save their lands and their livelihoods,” said Hassan Yussuff, President of the Canadian Labour Congress. “On behalf of the Canadian labour movement, I call on the Indian government to repeal the agriculture laws so that farmers and farm workers can safely return home.”
