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	Democratic workers’ rights under attack by International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC)   June 2024   The 2024 ITUC Global Rights Index makes for difficult reading – a clear and urgent wake-up call that the democratic values and fundamental rights agreed upon by most countries at an international level are crumbling.   ITUC General Secretary Luc Triangle said: “For 11 years now the Index has tracked a rapid decline in workers’ rights in every region of the world. Workers are the beating heart of democracy, and their right to be heard is crucial to the health and sustainability of democratic systems. When their rights are violated, democracy itself is attacked. Democracy, trade unions and workers’ rights go together; you simply cannot have one without the other.”   The ITUC Global Rights Index is a comprehensive review of workers’ rights in law ranking 151 countries against a list of 97 indicators derived from ILO Conventions and jurisprudence, and as such is the only database of its kind. It rates countries on a scale from 1 to 5+ based on the degree of respect for workers’ rights. Violations are recorded each year from April to March.   The 10 worst countries for working people are: Bangladesh, Belarus, Ecuador, Egypt, Eswatini, Guatemala, Myanmar, the Philippines, Tunisia and Turkiye.   Twenty-two trade unionists were killed in six countries: Bangladesh, Colombia, Guatemala, Honduras, the Philippines, and the Republic of Korea. Conditions are so bad in 12 countries due to the breakdown of the rule of law that they are rated 5+.   Only two countries have seen their rating improve in 2024: Romania has moved from 4 to 3 and Brazil is now rated 4, an improvement on 5 last year. Thirteen countries have worse ratings: Costa Rica, Finland, Israel, Kyrgyzstan, Madagascar, Mexico, Nigeria, Qatar, the Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Switzerland and Venezuela.   87% of countries violated the right to strike. 79% of countries violated the right to collective bargaining. 75% of countries excluded workers from the right to establish or join a trade union. 74% of countries impeded the registration of unions. In 65% of countries, workers had no or restricted access to justice. 43% of countries restricted free speech and assembly. Workers were arrested and detained in 74 countries. Workers experienced violence in 44 countries.   Europe has an average rating of 2.73, down from 2.56 in 2023, continuing a rapid deterioration from 1.84 in 2014 – the biggest decline seen in any region in the world over the past 10 years.   The worst region in the world for working people is the Middle East and North Africa, with an average rating of 4.74, worse than the 4.53 it received in 2023, and the 4.25 rating it had in 2014. The rights to collective bargaining, to join a trade union and to register a trade union were violated by all countries in the region.   Luc Triangle concluded: “Despite a few modest improvements, the general picture shows a relentless attack on civil liberties, workers’ rights and the interests of working people. The Index tells the story of courageous workers and trade unionists who face grave dangers to improve the lives of their colleagues and defend democratic rights.   “This comes against the backdrop of a continuing, devastating cost-of-living crisis, technological disruption rapidly changing the world of work, and worsening global levels of violent conflict where working people face the catastrophic consequences of war.   “A truly democratic movement is the only way that these trends can be addressed, sustainably. A movement that crosses borders and sectors, ages and genders, races and religions and has the power, presence and accountability to change the balance of power in every workplace, country and global institution. Trade unions are that movement.   “That is why, with the release of the 2024 Index, in a year when four billion people are due to vote, the ITUC’s For Democracy campaign aims to defend and strengthen democracy in the workplace, in society and at the global level against right-wing, vested interests focused on eroding workers’ rights. This is our shared struggle.   “We are the foremost practitioners and defenders of, and fighters for the democratic values we exercise every day to create a fairer and safer world for all. Our work is crucial now more than ever.”   http://www.ituc-csi.org/global-rights-index http://www.ituc-csi.org/corporate-underminers-of-democracy-en http://www.business-humanrights.org/en/latest-news/india-workers-to-stage-mass-protest-in-response-to-govt-attacks-on-workers-rights-incl-proposed-implementation-of-anti-worker-labour-laws http://www.industriall-union.org/indian-workers-to-stage-mass-protest-on-5-february http://www.business-humanrights.org/en/latest-news/construction-wage-theft-critical-global-issue-for-an-industry-that-impacts-millions-of-workers http://www.business-humanrights.org/en/latest-news/ http://www.business-humanrights.org/en/from-us/updates-from-bhrrc/ http://www.business-humanrights.org/en/from-us/updates-from-bhrrc/africa-quarterly-update-july-2024-corporate-related-labour-rights-violations-in-africa http://www.business-humanrights.org/en/blog/a-global-heat-map-identifying-hot-spots-for-corporate-abuse/ Visit the related web page
	70% of the world’s farmland is now controlled by just 1% of the world’s largest farms by IPES Food   May 2024   Soaring land prices, land grabs, and carbon schemes are creating an unprecedented ‘land squeeze’, threatening farmers and food production, reveals a comprehensive new report by IPES-Food.   The new study exposes the alarming escalation of land grabbing in various forms, including through ‘green grabs’, opaque financial instruments and speculation, rapid resource extraction, and intensive export crop production. Land around twice the size of Germany has been snatched up in transnational deals worldwide since 2000.   Green grabs   Major new pressures are emerging from ‘green grabs’ for carbon and biodiversity offset projects, conservation initiatives, and clean fuels, the report highlights. Huge swathes of farmland are being acquired by governments and corporations for these ‘green grabs’ – which now account for 20% of large-scale land deals – despite little evidence of climate benefits. Governments’ pledges for land-based carbon removals alone add up to almost 1.2 billion hectares, equivalent to total global cropland. Carbon offset markets are expected to quadruple in the next 7 years.   This global trend of land grabs and green grabs is particularly affecting sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America, while land inequality is growing fastest in Central-Eastern Europe, North and Latin America, and South Asia. Shockingly, 70% of the world’s farmland is now controlled by just 1% of the world’s largest farms.   Squeezing farmers   As demand for land continues unchecked, the panel of experts says the ‘land squeeze’ is inflaming land inequality and making small and medium scale food production increasingly unviable – leading to farmer revolts, rural exodus, rural poverty and food insecurity. With global farmland prices doubling in 15 years, farmers, peasants, and Indigenous peoples are losing their land (or forced to downsize), while young farmers face significant barriers in accessing land to farm.   IPES-Food calls for action to:   Halt green grabs and remove speculative investment from land markets; Establish integrated governance for land, environment and food systems to ensure a just transition; Support collective ownership and innovative financing for farmers to access land; Forge a new deal for farmers and rural areas, and a new generation of land and agrarian reforms.   Sofia Monsalve Suarez, IPES-Food expert:   "It’s time decision-makers stop shirking their responsibility and start to tackle rural decline. The financialisation and liberalisation of land markets is ruining livelihoods and threatening the right to food. Instead of opening the floodgates to speculative capital, governments need to take concrete steps to halt bogus ‘green grabs’ and invest in rural development, sustainable farming and community-led conservation. Bottom line, we’ve got to make some serious changes to democratise land ownership if we want to ensure a sustainable future for nature, food production and rural communities".   Shalmali Guttal, IPES-Food expert:   "We’re seeing soaring land prices, land grabs and out-of-control carbon schemes driving an unprecedented ‘land squeeze’. In this era of economic turmoil huge swathes of land are being snapped up like there’s no tomorrow by governments, corporations, and speculators. Land prices have doubled globally since 2008. Farmers, peasants, and Indigenous communities are being squeezed from all sides – losing their land, livelihoods, ancestral and cultural roots, and undermining their ability to produce food sustainably. They need to have real agency to shape land governance".   Nettie Wiebe, IPES-Food expert:   "Imagine trying to start a farm when 70% of farmland is already controlled by just 1% of the largest farms – and when land prices have risen for 20 years in a row, like in North America. That’s the stark reality young farmers face today. Farmland is increasingly owned not by farmers but by speculators, pension funds, and big agribusinesses looking to cash in. Land prices have skyrocketed so high it’s becoming impossible to make a living from farming. This is reaching a tipping point – small and medium scale farming are simply being squeezed out".   Key data points:   Globally 1% of the world’s largest farms now control 70% of the world’s farmland.   In Latin America the smallest 55% of farms occupy just 3% of land. Since 2000, an area twice the size of Germany has been acquired through transnational land deals.   Between 2008 and 2022, land prices nearly doubled globally – and tripled in Central-Eastern Europe. In the UK, an influx of investment from pension funds and private wealth contributed to a doubling of farmland prices from 2010-2015.   North America has seen 20 consecutive years of land price increases: and 30 consecutive years of land price increases in Canada, with spikes of 12% in 2022 and another 8% in 2023. Land prices in the US agricultural heartlands of Iowa quadrupled between 2002-2020.   By 2023, 960 active funds specialised in food and agricultural assets managed over $150 billion.   More than half of land grabs are intended for water-intensive crop production, and 87% of land grabs occur in regions of high biodiversity.   Agricultural investment funds have risen ten-fold from 2005 to 2018, with US investors doubling their stakes in farmland since the pandemic.   Nearly 45% of all farmland investments in 2018, worth roughly $15 billion, came from pension funds and insurance companies. Between 2005-2017, pension, insurance and endowment funds invested around $45 billion in farmland.   ‘Green grabs’ now account for 20% of large-scale land deals. Governments’ pledges for land-based carbon removals alone add up to almost 1.2 billion hectares, equivalent to total global cropland. Carbon offset markets are expected to quadruple in the next 7 years.   Over half of government carbon removal pledges on land risk interfering with small-scale farmers & Indigenous Peoples.   Some 25 million hectares of land have been snapped up for carbon projects by a single ‘environmental asset creation’ firm, UAE-based ‘Blue Carbon’ through agreements with the governments of Kenya, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Zambia, and Liberia.   http://ipes-food.org/report-summary/land-squeeze/ http://ipes-food.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/LandSqueeze.pdf http://www.ipsnews.net/2024/06/land-grabs-squeeze-rural-poor-worldwide/ http://africanarguments.org/2024/06/land-squeeze-green-grabs-hidden-battle-for-africas-soils http://landgap.org/2022/report Visit the related web page
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