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Refugee colonies for evicted farmers in Fiji
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Posted on Dec 05 2000
New refugee colonies will be established for farmers evicted from their farms by the Native Lands Trust Board.
The National Farmers Union announced yesterday that a new colony will be established in Nanuku Rakiraki before the end of this month. Union President, Krishna Chand Sharma said that similar refugee camps will be established in Tavua, Ba, Lautoka, Nadi and Sigatoka. The NFU has one refugee camp already running in Valelawa in Vanua Levu.
The decision to establish refugee camps was made by the NFU’s council members who met yesterday. The Union states that the farmers have no choice but to stay in refugee camps because the regime has encouraged the NLTB to evict farmers, while at the same time, not providing for the welfare of the evicted farmers.
This year over 700 leases in the sugar can areas have not been renewed. Most of the farmers in Fiji harvest between 100 and 150 tonnes of cane. At the current market price of cane, farmers’ gross revenue is between $5,000 and $8,000 from which all farming, harvesting and transportation costs have to be deducted leaving farmers in perpetual indebtedness and below the official poverty line.
