The Cosmo-vision American

National
The Meso-American towns and the cultivate of the corn
The Cosmo vision American
By: Carlos Damián September 12, 2010
The mono-cultivate auspicious lands and damage evictions to the health
México. - The corn was domesticated in Mesoamerica about eight thousand years b. C., but frequently is forgotten that always it was accompanied of other plants, that its cultivate and diversification were developed in all the territory under the system of “milpa”, what is mean, that “milpa”, corn and culture were born and grew together in this part of the world. In fact the first kinds that present changes due to human manipulation are the “guaje”, the gourd and followed of the chili and the avocado, and a wild bean presence.

In Tehuacan the first two were cultivated fields in the gullies that were maintaining a greater dampness, while the chili were planted in the margins of the river, together with the avocado, that it is not indigenous of that region. The corn makes its appearance in this site, the same as in Tamaulipas and Oaxaca, about two thousand years after, under the form of a corn on the small cob with tiny grains, compared with the current that, is thought, they should their size to a sudden mutation resulted of the genetic structure of this plant, though there is polemics in this regard.

The domestication of plants was part of a strategy that was seeking to level the variations between the quantity from obtained products from the managing of the vegetation in the station of you dry and in that of rains in order to maintain a certain abundance to what is long of the year, a feature that is observed in all those places where was originated almost simultaneously the agriculture in the orb. Nobody has idea but occurred the event, the corn cultivate in “milpa”, together with bean, gourd, chili and other plants was adopted by peoples of different origin and language that entered what is currently Mexican territory in different eras and occupied the very various semi-arid regions, temperate, warm, etc.

Development of mono-cultivates and environmental impact
The development of mono-growing, as those of African palm in Mexico or soja in Argentina, it has let as violations balance to the human rights of the populations. In different cases the peasants have been vacated of forced way of their lands, their health is affected by the intense use of pesticides and the water is contaminated. Furthermore the governments have given priority in their budget to the development of the industrial agriculture instead of supporting to the peasant, indicate various specialists analysis. The cultivation of mono-growing is an agricultural practice in the one which is sown only a form of plant in a great area and has industrial end.

Currently this activity is in summit by the impulse to the bio-fuels, for something which are planted large corn or sugar cane extensions, between other products. In this usage can imply the perspective of violations to the human rights since can serve as context to accede to the defense of the peoples and their lands in national and international courts. This already it occurred in Ecuador and Costa Rica, where were presented accusations before the judicial power because those developments violated the national legislation. In this context the mono-growing violate, between other rights of, housing, since who live in the lands where is planned this activity are evacuated of various forms: they receive pressures from the companies or from paramilitary, as has happened in Colombia, or is used the public force. Also it can occur that with property titles the families are moved yet.

In some instances they are used agro - toxic as happened in Argentina, which the use of pesticides provoked the abandonment of the lands because provoked diseases, and the water is contaminated. Furthermore, it exists a discussion on food safety and right to the adequate nourishment, due to the fact that before the impulse of the bio-fuels and to the fact that for their production are used foods as the corn and the sugar cane, the beet, it has been given an increase in the price of the foods, in detriment of the local population, the one which every time is impoverished more.

For the establishment of the mono -cultivate is not requested environmental impact demonstration, there is no conferences with the populations, neither compensations in the event of land expropriations, though the consequences are similar to the large mining projects impact, preys construction, or metallurgical factories installation. The mono - cultivates have been included in the development policies of the governments; "enjoy subsidies and wide public promotion, control the better lands and have access to abundant water and infrastructure vial and energetic". (La Jornada, sociedad y justicia, p. 49, June 14, 2010).