Protestors Seek to Stop Land Grabs

By Epoch Times Staff On October 17, 2012 @ 10:33 pm In National | No Comments

Oxfam demonstrators staged a photo op on Parliament Hill Monday to call attention to what Oxfam describes as land grabs being carried out with the help of the World Bank. (Matthew Little/The Epoch Times)

Oxfam demonstrators staged a photo op on Parliament Hill Monday to call attention to what Oxfam describes as land grabs being carried out with the help of the World Bank. (Matthew Little/The Epoch Times)

Oxfam demonstrators staged a photo op on Parliament Hill Monday calling on Finance Minister Jim Flaherty to take a stand against what it describes as land grabs being carried out with the help of the World Bank.

The demonstrators staged a symbolic land grab using yellow tape while collecting signatures on a petition.

“Today, agricultural land is being scooped up at a feverish pace by foreign investors. Poor people around the world are suffering as they lose their land, their livelihoods and in some cases, their lives, as whole communities are forcefully evicted from their homes and farm fields,” reads an Oxfam statement.

The group wants Flaherty to speak out against land grabs to the World Bank and urge the bank to put a six-month freeze on all its land-related investments.

“Putting a stop to new investments gives the World Bank time to put its own house in order and sends a strong signal to global investors that land grabs must be stopped,” the statement said.

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