Arab Network for Food Sovereignty (ANFS), of which APN is a co-founder and the current Secretariat, took the decision to boycott the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Civil Society Consultation scheduled to take place before the next ministerial Regional Conference for the Near East (NERC).
In a majority decision by the 49 organization member network came about after civil society organizations (CSOs) from the Arab region found themselves effectively excluded from a non-transparent organizing process which favors international organizations. Members of ANFS sent the following letter of protest to the FAO Director General José Graziano da Silva:
Dear Director General Graziano da Silva,
On behalf of the Arab Network for Food Sovereignty (ANFS), we would like to begin by conveying our warm greetings and appreciation to you and your team for all the efforts and hard work you undertake.
We are writing to inform you that we, ANFS, consisting of 49 member organizations, have taken the decision to boycott the CSO Regional Consultation prior to the NERC 33. We take this step in protest of the exclusion and lack of transparency that we have witnessed, despite being a formal member of the Steering Committee.
The preparation process for the CSO Consultation has thus far lacked legitimate participation of regional CSOs, in spite of the fact that the event is intended to be dedicated entirely to regional consultation. In particular, we would like to highlight the following:
· At no point were we consulted on or made aware of the selection process for the members of the CSO Steering Committee. We were not informed of who takes decisions or of what criteria were used. Furthemore, no official correspondence was sent prior to the start of planning informing us of who was on the Steering Committee.
· It was only after repeatedly contacting FAO OCP and the FAO Regional Office inquiring into the planning process that we were informed that we were indeed on the Steering Committee, at which point we realized that the majority of decisions had already been made without our consultation.
· The International Planning Committee for Food Sovereignty (IPC) has taken multiple decisions on behalf of the SC without consulting, obtaining the consent of, or informing all SC members, including:
o changing the initial date and the host organization of the consultation, and sending FAO a letter of confirmation in the name of the SC;
o sending an invitation for registration only to IPC member organizations in the name of the SC. Through this action, IPC had notified the IPC mailing list of the invitation and date changes before the Steering Committee was made aware of them;
o unilaterally appointing non-Steering Committee 'support persons' to be involved in the organizational process, many of whom are neither from nor live in the Arab region.
Members of IPC eventually attempted to amend some of these actions only after significant protest from us.
· Most alarming was the response we received from FAO OCP in Rome after we had notified the FAO Regional Office of IPC's actions. Rather than demonstrating concern and committing to a transparent, inclusive process, Mr Rodrigo Castaneda replied that CSO exclusion “is a [sic] internal procedure among CSO” and that the regional office of FAO should “not reply [to ANFS] or reply saying please contact to IPC for further clarification”, thus legitimizing the IPC takeover of the Steering Committee.
· IPC, with FAO support, is effectively acting as the sole representative of civil society in our region despite not having any Arab regional organization members. To our shock, IPC expunged ANFS unilaterally and without transparent process or explanation in November, 2015 and IPC is now attempting to form an alternative network rather than to recognize, communicate and work with ANFS as a legitimate existing representative. FAO has entrusted IPC to act in an ethical, inclusive manner in such processes, yet IPC acts without accountability to civil society from the Arab region.
It is clear that organizations from the region were appointed as members of the Steering Committee in name only, and that our participation is meant to be merely token. As a network of regional organizations we insist on respect for the dignity and autonomy of our region, and thus cannot allow ourselves to be used to give legitimacy to a process which we are not a part of in a substantial way.
We remind you that FAO in 2012 acknowledged two essential principles regarding FAO-CSO engagement that should be respected:
· Autonomy and self-organization: once granted access to a forum, CSOs can autonomously organize, deciding how best to occupy the different spaces of dialogue and express their positions.
· Internal consultations: CSOs will carry out internal consultations among their constituencies to establish their positions and identify their representatives.
We therefore appeal to your good office to:
- Acknowledge the importance of regional networks as opposed to only international organizations which are based in the North;
- Allow CSOs from the region to take the lead, organize their consultations and select their own representatives autonomously;
- Recognize ANFS as a regional network that was formed in a FAO-Civil Society Consultation in 2012 to unite CSO voices and bring consensus on policies and activities related to food security and nutrition – it is our right, as 49 member organizations, to engage fully in FAO activities which impact our lives, and we have thus far been deprived of this right;
- Demonstrate equality toward all regions in respect to civil society involvement in FAO activities, including workshops, consultations, and programs;
- Do not show favoritism toward particular CSOs or allow FAO activities and spaces to be monopolized by a single CSO network.
We hope to cooperate together to ensure that these issues will be resolved, resulting in a fair, inclusive, dignified, and transparent process for regional CSO involvement. If helpful, we are open to including our governments from throughout the region in this conversation. Until this is resolved, ANFS regrets that we feel forced to abstain from this Regional CSO Consultation, and we await your prompt response.