RIHA - Stating that dirty policies are being carried out on agriculture, but they are resisting to produce, farmers from Hewag said: "They want to make the people living on these lands dependent on them and to exterminate those who do not accept this."

 

The hikes that came with the increase in the exchange rate after the elections deepened the economic crisis experienced by the farmers who could not sell their produce. The increase in the prices of diesel, fertilizer and seed, which are among the increasing input costs, as well as the climate change and the non-agricultural use of agricultural lands have made the farmers unable to produce. Farmers who continue to produce in the Cewsaq (Kargılı) District of Riha's Hewag (Bozova) district, despite these conditions, said that agriculture is at the point of end.

 

COSTS ARE DOUBLED

 

Noting that they reduce the variety of products compared to the previous year due to the difficulties they experience, Yıldırım said: "I could not plant the cotton I planted last year because it was damaged. We used to plant cotton and pepper. Every year we had to cut one off. We planted watermelon this year, but if it goes like this, we won't be able to plant it next year. While the money we spent on a field in the last years was between 40-50 thousand TL, this year it costs 100-150 thousand TL. The places where we get our expenses want their money in advance. But what we sow does not feed us. The whole burden is on the shoulders of the farmer."

 

RESISTANCE IN AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION

 

Stating that the government carries out a policy that prevents agricultural production, Yıldırım said: “We are increasingly being forced to abandon farming. We used to be able to live on what we planted from here, but now we can't see ahead. Young people cannot farm. When I first started farming, about 30 of my peers were also farming with me. We stayed 2-3 people today. There is no hope left in farming. Peanuts are one of Riha's most important sources of income, but aside from financial difficulties, the production of peanuts has decreased with the effect of climate change in recent years. It is true that we are suffering. Sometimes, in such financial difficulties, we think, 'I wonder if I should move?' But here, by insisting on farming, we are actually showing resistance. We are having a fight. We must not leave our land. Apart from the support of the state, we, as farmers, need to create an alternative. As farmers, it is imperative that we unite and establish a cooperative.”

 

'DIRTY AGRICULTURE POLICY'

 

Stating that there is no agricultural policy to solve the problems of the farmers in recent years,Tahsin Durmaz said: "The farmers are losing more and more each year. Agricultural policies do not develop independently of political policies. A dirty policy is being carried out here on agriculture. This is a policy that will make the people living on this land dependent on them and that those who do not accept this will leave this place. First of all, justice must be provided. We do not think of these agricultural policies as independent from politics. After the elections, only the name of the ministers has changed, the mentality is the same. The citizens should find an alternative way against the agricultural policies."

 

MA / Ceylan Şahinli