NU: Govt never serious to handle peasants' fate

Banyuwangi, NU Online
Chairman of the Central Board of Nahdlatul Ulama (PBNU) KH Masdar Farid Ma'sudi criticized the government whose no concern for the fate of peasants. He said so far the government had never been serious in addressing their demands. As a result, he added, it had always faced problems in securing the nation's food supply.

With the majority of its people living in rural areas, Indonesia as an agrarian country,  Masdar said, had in the last few years faced the lack of rice. In turn the government has to inevitably import rice from overseas for securing the nation's food supply, he said.<>

As speaking on the sidelines of a training taking up issues on organic agriculture with the system of rice intensification in Gambiran, Banyuwangi, East Java on Tuesday (1/7), Masdar said that the government's instant mindset to import rice due to its lack of production should soon be ended.

According to Masdar the mindset would of course be risky for long period of time and trouble Indonesia's peasants. "The example is the use of chemical fertilizer. Whereas, within long period of time, it would damage soil ecosystems," he said.

While chairman of the Advisory "Syuriyah" Council of the Banyuwangi's NU Branch Board KH Hisyam Syafaat said that Indonesia would not face any crisis if the government again and again paid more its attention to the empowerment of agricultural sectors.

Syafaat cited that in some regions in the country, there would be peasants whose such tradition to store their rice. "So if Indonesia want to be prosperous, please empower the peasants." (ary)