As they celebrate the contributions of Filipino women farmers, peasant group Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas (KMP), on Tuesday, March 8, echoed the National Federation of Peasant Women’s 2022 electoral agenda and urged all candidates to “stand for the interests” of rural women.
The National Federation of Peasant Women’s electoral agenda mainly calls for the enactment of the Genuine Agrarian Reform Bill (GARB). This, according to KMP, aims to distribute farmlands to tillers free of charge.
“Land rights and gender-based rights of peasant women are inseparable. Rural women, a majority of women in our country, will continue to be enslaved by rural poverty as long as feudal landlessness exists,” said KMP national chairperson Danilo Ramos.
Ramos also stressed the importance of curbing imports and intensively ramping up the agricultural local production in the country.
“It is imperative to strengthen the country’s agricultural production, increase farmers’ income, and immediately provide aid and production subsidies to farming families,” said Ramos.
Meanwhile, on International Women’s Day, KMP urged all candidates for the 2022 national and local elections to denounce human rights violations against peasant women and their families.
“We firmly stand with all Filipino women fighting for a just future. We urge all rights-loving Filipinos to express unity against gender discrimination, violence, and feudal-patriarchy in the coming elections,” Ramos added.