Mobilising for food sovereignty: the pitfalls of international human rights strategies and an exploration of alternatives
Date
2017
Authors
Larking, Emma
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Routledge
Abstract
This article considers the role played by the language of human rights in a global campaign for food sovereignty. Led initially by the international peasants’ movement, Vía Campesina, the campaign opposes the globalisation of agricultural markets and neoliberal interventions in food production. Alongside other strategies, the campaign makes creative use of human rights and also seeks their institutionalisation in a UN Declaration on the rights of peasants. An examination of how the campaign employs human rights reveals a more complicated process than that suggested by the theoretical polarisation of ‘top down’ and ‘bottom up’ accounts of rights development in the sociology of human rights. It demonstrates both wariness of state power and attempts to harness the power of the state against international forces. It also shows that a desire for legal reform co-exists with the struggle for more radical social and political transformations.
Description
Keywords
Food sovereignty, struggle rights, international human rights, UN declaration on the rights of peasants
Citation
Collections
Source
The International Journal of Human Rights
Type
Journal article
Book Title
Entity type
Access Statement
License Rights
Restricted until
2099-12-31
Downloads
File
Description