Sugarcane farmers term zoning as 'modern-day slavery'

A section of sugarcane farmers has termed as 'Modern Slavery' the move to introduce regional zoning.

The farmers on Thursday said the move in another way aimed at exploiting farmers.

Though they welcomed President Uhuru Kenyatta's pledge to implement the recommendation in the sugar task force report, they said they are not happy because it did not take into consideration their fundamental issues.

Through Kenya National Alliance of Sugarcane Farmers Organization (KNASFO), the farmers while gathering in Kisumu said the report was contrary to the wishes of the president and the goodwill he has for poor and frustrated farmers.

Led by Saulo Busolo, the farmers noted that there is a proposed framework in the report to officially blind farmers to a zone nicknamed cane catchment areas.

“While the inefficient sugar mills have managed to accumulate farmers arrears under no zoning system, it will be worse when zoning is made official and expected results will be farmers apathy and abandonment of cane farming to deepened poverty in the sugar belt,” Busolo said.

He noted that this was against their constitutional right and also an anti-Big four agenda where sugarcane is one of the agro-processing target crops.

He said that was an anti-competition Act, that allows for easier collusion between mills.

Busolo questioned what legal process had been followed to decide where the farmers belong.

“Has the task force taken the position of IEBC to decide on boundaries, counties itself have been divided. How do they really think they will restrict Kenyans to move within their own country”, he posed.

Busolo said the same report allows for imports to come from many countries and trade freely throughout the country.

“Does this task force claim that briefcase sugar traders have more rights than hard-working sugar cane farmers. Does our sweat dripping on Kenyan soil not give us the same constitutional rights as any other Kenyan,” he questioned.

The farmers called on Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Peter Munya to schedule a meeting with farmers before implementing the recommendations of the 16-member sugar taskforce.