Thread: Without Corn There is No Country: Open Letter to President O

This was interesting. This is written by Mexican citizens.

Without Corn There is No Country: Open Letter to President Obama
Written by Without Corn There is No Country National Campaign
Tuesday, 21 April 2009

We, the people of Mexico, also want to renegotiate NAFTA to protect our corn, the jobs of millions of farmers, and the way of life in the Mexican countryside

Towards a new era of cooperation between the people of Mexico and the United States, based on respect for our sovereignty, dignity, and right to sustainable development

We ask President Obama for a dialogue on NAFTA
Honorable Barack Obama

President of the United States of America

1. President Obama, Welcome to Mexico

On the occasion of your visit to our country, we welcome you in the name of farmers’, human rights, environmental, and sustainable development organizations, as well as the thousands of citizens that participate in the National Campaign Without Corn there is no Country.

The hope of the people of the United States, and their brave decision to end the Bush administration and elect you as president of the United States, represents for the people of Mexico as well a hope that we will end the era of neoliberalism and simulated democracy, guided by the hands of large corporations. We hope to advance towards a new era of cooperation between our people and take up the task of pursuing sustainable human development and rights.

The National Campaign Without Corn there is no Country is a plural, grassroots initiative that hopes to recoup for Mexico the right to food security sovereignty, the right of our farmers to mantain their way of life, the right to food for every member of our population, and the right to preserve the genetic and cultural patrimony of our native corn varieties. We consider the renegotiation of the agricultural chapter of NAFTA a necessary, but not sufficient step towards these ends.

2. President Felipe Calderón does not speak the truth about NAFTA

You come here to meet with President Felipe Calderón. Surely you will not have the opportunity to meet with representatives of civil society. This limited opportunity for dialogue is the motivation for our letter.

We believe that President Felipe Calderón does not legitimately represent the Mexican people and won’t tell you the truth about NAFTA and its dramatic negative impact on the economy, society, and environment in the Mexican countryside, as well as rest of the country’s access to critical food resources.

On the contrary, President Calderón represents the interests of the largest corporations, particularly the agribusinesses, and pretends to “counselâ€

Our country now imports 42% of the food it consumes, representing US$22.5 billion and an agricultural trade deficit of US$5.5 billion (200; we import food and export millions of farmers and members of our rural communities.

We have lost our sovereignty and become a dependent country; the agreement has only benefited large corporations and a small minority of agro-exporters, making losers of our farmers, our workers, and our environment.

They keep saying a "tri-national" meaning, since we have lost OUR sovereignty we have decided to take yours and Canada's too!

I see they still want to stay here in the US

IV. Promote immigration reform in the United States that permits legalization of the undocumented workers, opposes a wall along the border, and does not criminalize those in the United States without documentation.

[quote]We say “noâ€