WORLD WORLDWIDE EUROPE FRANCE - news journal UPDATE - (en) France, UCL AL #352 - Ecology, Water Village: International mobilization to defend water in Melle (ca, de, fr, it, pt, tr)[machine translation]

 A year and a half after the Sainte-Soline demonstration, opponents of

the basins once again organized a rally against the agro-industry in
Deux-Sèvres from July 16 to 21, 2024. Despite police pressure, the
international mobilization was able to take place to recall the vital
issue of water preservation. ---- The rally was organized at the
initiative of the anti-basin coordination and supported by more than 120
organizations including the Confédération paysanne, the CGT and
Solidaires unions and the Soulèvements de la Terre.

The immediate demands of the movement are "to obtain a total halt to
construction sites and basin projects on a national scale" and "the
opening of real discussions on water sharing including farmers and
residents, environmental associations and professional organizations at
the watershed level[1]".

This was the first major gathering against basins since the painfully
repressed demonstration in Sainte-Soline in 2023 and the aborted attempt
to dissolve the Earth Uprisings that followed.

The challenge was to once again mobilize a broad range of participants
around the vital subject of defending water, this time with a strong
internationalist tone. The gathering included a week of forums on the
Water Village in Melle and two days of demonstrations on Friday and
Saturday respectively in Vienne and La Rochelle.

The International Water Village
The Water Village was intended to be a "place of political conviviality
to learn about ongoing peasant, environmental and social struggles, to
train in collective direct action, and to exchange with a host of
activists, peasants and international collectives committed to the
defense of the commons, social and climate justice".

Throughout the week, the Village organized substantial self-management
and numerous workshops, practical training and conferences. The debates
particularly emphasized the class conflict in agricultural environments
of which basins are one of the symbols.

International delegations had made the trip, from Europe but also from
Mexico, Rojava, Morocco, India, South America. The international
conferences drew a strong link between water grabbing and colonialism,
particularly in Palestine with the one entitled "Water Apartheid and
Watertech in the Service of Colonization".

Other workshops also addressed the issue of water around the
Mediterranean basin and in South America. Finally, a debate raised the
question: how can we put an end to the weapons of domination that large
dams constitute?

Self-management on this scale takes on impressive proportions. Meals
were provided by the coordination of twenty canteens from several
countries in order to feed the 10,000 people present on site.

Similarly, a large care center of more than 300 people was deployed with
teams of medics for the demonstrations-actions but also teams for the
prevention and management of sexist and sexual violence in the Village,
mediation, listening, psychological support, disability, monitoring and
hygiene of the camp.

The demonstrations-actions were to take place in Saint-Sauvant, the
future basin whose work is supposed to begin in the fall, and in La
Rochelle where the objective was to block the port of La Pallice, a
major exporter of cereals. The idea was to denounce the control of
capitalism over the entire agricultural sector.

The basins are large artificial water reserves intended for agricultural
irrigation. They are part of the storage systems that collect water,
often in winter, from groundwater or watercourses, to conserve it and
use it during dry periods, mainly in summer.
Failed demonstrations?
It didn't go as planned. The two demonstrations were banned and the
police were too present: leaving the Water Village was already a test of
patience. However, more than 6,000 people gathered each time.

On Friday, the organizers decided to branch off to another site in
Migné-Auxances to visit a multinational seed company. The initiative was
cut short because while crossing a field, the police managed to set it
on fire with tear gas grenades.

For safety reasons, it was decided to interrupt the march to return to
the Village. A media victory all the same since the prefecture had to
publicly acknowledge that the fire was its fault.

Concerning La Rochelle, it was more difficult for the prefecture to
prevent a gathering in the middle of the city.

https://www.unioncommunistelibertaire.org/?Village-de-l-eau-Mobilisation-internationale-pour-defendre-l-eau-a-Melle
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