[Rakyat India bercadang untuk memprotes besar-besaran di seluruh negara terhadap Vajpayee jika beliau mengurangkan duti kepada minyak kelapa sawit. Setakat ini sudah 3 petani membunuh diri kerana masalah hidup yang menekan dan hutang keliling pinggang. Dijangka ramai lagi akan mengikuti jejak langkah mereka jika kerajaan India berdegil akur kepada kehendak Malaysia.

Terdapat 400,000 penanam kelapa di Kerala, India yang mungkin terjejas pendapatan mereka jika minyak kelapa sawit memasukki pasaran India. Langkah mereka mendesak kerajaan itu seharusnya dipelajari oleh kaum petani di negara ini yang sedang diasak inflasi dan kos hidup yang meninggi. Ramai tidak sedar mereka hidup melarat kerana perbuatan pemimpin Umno sendiri yang sengaja tidak membangunkan hidup kaum petani kerana mereka mempunyai kepentingan peribadi dalam industri berasaskan pertanian di negara ini.

Ada banyak cara untuk meningkatkan pendapatan kaum petani ini sebagaimana yang pernah ditulis oleh Pak MT - malangnya itu tidak ditelahi kerana mahu rakyat menjadi peminta dan khadam saban hari melalui pelbagai perjanjian itu ini untuk menyekat mereka dari berdikari. Ini juga bertujuan agar mereka tidak mempunyai banyak masa untuk memikirkan hal lain seperti kenapa kerajaan terdesak berdagang secara barter dengan negara Cina dan India. Minyak kelapa sawit Indonesia lebih murah kerana rupiah mereka menggila murah sudah mencekik industri kelapa sawit malaysia sehingga tercedera parah.... Kawalan matawang Malaysia menyebabkan kita sudah tidak ketentuan arah. - Editor]

http://livenews.lycosasia.com/cgi-bin/get.pl? pi_news_id=646090&pi_ctry=my&pi_lang=en

Indian Coconut Growers Oppose Malaysia Palm Oil Duty Cuts

COCHIN (AP)--Thousands of coconut growers in southern India Monday threatened to launch a nationwide protest if Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's government lowered import duties on Malaysian crude palm oil.

Coconut oil prices have plunged to $0.70 a kilogram, from nearly $1.08/kg a year ago, with consumers switching over to cheaper imported palm oil, said N. Ananthan, secretary of the Cochin Oil Merchants' Association.

"The average monthly income of a coconut farmer has come down to $43, from $170," he said.

Last year, Malaysia exported about 2.4 million metric tons of palm oil to India, which has traditionally been the biggest buyer of Malaysian oil.

Malaysia has proposed barter deals with China and India to drain its rising palm oil stocks and keep its market share amid a glut.

"A liberalized import policy for palm oil will further bring down the market price of palm oil against which coconut oil stands no chance in winning the buyers," said Anthony Kozhuvinal, national secretary of Indian Farmers' Movement, an umbrella organization of farmers in the state.

Kerala state is the largest producer of coconut oil in the country, with nearly 400,000 farmers dependent on coconut farming.

"Already three farmers have committed suicide in Palakkad and Pulpally areas in the past five months due to their soaring debts. I am afraid more farmers depending on coconut will follow them," Kozhuvinal said.

During his visit to Kuala Lumpur two weeks ago, Prime Minister Vajpayee assured his Malaysian hosts that he would review his government's import duty on palm oil.

Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad raised the issue with Vajpayee, concerned that India had imposed a 92.4% import duty on palm oil, compared with just 50.8% on soybean oil.

Vajpayee's promise hasn't gone down well with India's coconut growers.

"We will hold statewide conventions in June and send mass petitions to India's president. If the authorities don't budge, we'll begin a wave of nationwide struggles against the anti-farmer attitude of the Vajpayee government," Kozhuvinal said.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires 21-05-01