REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- The elected president Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo and Jusuf Kalla are urged to restore food sovereignty as the country still depends on imported foods. Researcher from Indonesia for Global Justice (IGJ), Rachmi Hertanti said that rapid increase in food imports caused farmers' poverty in rural areas.

In the last three years, the value of food imports reached more than 19.2 billion USD. The ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) in 2015 will open access to imported foods and decline competitiveness of local farmers and fishermen.

"The liberalization of foods in ASEAN encourages industrialization food by corporates and marginalize farmers and fishermen as major producers," Hertanto said recently.

Statistic Indonesia (BPS) reported a decline in a number of agricultural laborers about 1.53 million people from Feb 2012 to Feb 2014. The poverty rate in rural areas is still quite high at 14.7 percent in early 2014.

Member of People's Coalition for Fisheries Justice Indonesia (KIARA), Martin said that the opening of AEC market next year would boost illegal fishing in Indonesia carried out by four ASEAN countries, namely Malaysia, Vietnam, Thailand, and Philippines. The opening of employment access to foreign workers will grab jobs of Indonesian citizens.

Member of Field Indonesia, Budi Laksana said that government had to stop the opening of wide space for transnational corporations in the industrialization of food. It will increase the the expropriation of agricultural lands from farmers to corporations.

"Land acquisition by corporations grow 24.57 percent in the last 10 years. It has eliminated 5.17 million farmers ownership in the country," Laksana added. Binti Sholikah/Mutia Ramadhani

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