Farmers in Poland demand better prices, debt relief
From January 25 to February 4, farmers across Poland blocked up to 130 roads with dumped grain and tractors, demanding the government guarantee them higher selling prices for meat, grain, and other products. They also called for higher tariffs on imports. Working farmers sense Warsaw's "market reforms" in agriculture, aimed at gaining entry to the European Union, will drive many of them off the land. The government declared the blockades illegal, but on February 4 agreed to negotiate with the farmers.

Farmers are pushing for government price supports, debt rescheduling, and controls on food prices. According to news reports, Warsaw has agreed to not prosecute farmers involved in the blockades. Compared to hog prices, "[w]e pay more to feed the pigs," remarked Zbigniew Radzikowski, a farmer in Lugi Golacze, a town 60 miles east of the capital. Andrzej Lepper, who reportedly called the January 25 action, rejected the negotiations and threatened to call more protests. National cop spokesman Pawel Biedziak warned that they would clear roads by force.

Baku official asks for U.S. base
A top Azerbaijani official told reporters in late January that the Baku government would like Washington, London, or Ankara to set up military bases in the country. "You [Washington] have interests, large interests, and there is a threat to your position," said Vafa Guluzade, foreign policy adviser to Azerbaijani president Haidar Aliev. The former Soviet republic is located on the Caspian Sea, neighboring Russia to the north and Iran to the south. The U.S., British, and Turkish governments have not responded. A February 5 New York Times editorial urges Washington to "pass up the offer," which "would needlessly complicate relations with Russia, Armenia, and Iran."

Meanwhile, hopes for the rapid development of oil resources that would spur Azerbaijan's economy are fading. The Azerbaijani International Operating Company (AIOC), the leading oil grouping, is laying off personnel and suspending development projects. AIOC, which has invested up to $12 billion in the Caspian Sea, is hesitant to put more capital into the underwater crude probes due to the low price of oil, but isn't willing to pull out and lose the potential of lucrative deposits.

Nigerians rally against oil bosses
Nineteen people were killed the last weekend in January when Nigerian troops attacked protesters near a crude export terminal run by Royal Dutch/Shell, the biggest oil company in the area. In January dozens of others were killed by government troops in Bayelsa state after youth of the Ijaw tribe threatened to shut down onshore oil production if their demands for better conditions were not met. Fishing villages near the oil facilities have no electricity or clean water, and fuel prices are quadruple the regular level. A number of the companies have been forced to make concessions to the villagers in recent months or face occupations and shutdowns.

Protests jolt gov't in Ecuador
Thousands of students, workers, and peasants held demonstrations in major cities across Ecuador February 5 to protest belt-constricting moves of the government. This was the second nationwide protest in recent weeks. The austerity moves include axing subsidies on electricity and fuel prices, raising the cost by 35 percent. This has also led to hikes in food prices. In Quito, the capital, hundreds of protesters, many of them high school students, marched toward the Government Palace. Cops and soldiers fired tear gas at the demonstrators, some of whom retaliated with Molotov cocktails. Forty people were arrested and several injured. Similar actions took place in Guayaquil, Cuenca, and other cities. At least 80 percent of the population officially live in poverty. In an effort to cool off the protests, President Jamil Mahuad declared the next day a national holiday.

Ford backs down on Brazil layoffs
The union at Ford Motor Co.'s subsidiary in Brazil announced in early February that the bosses had backed down from plans to lay off 2,800 workers at the auto giant's plant in Sao Bernardo. The laid-off workers had been occupying the plant since January 5 demanding they be rehired.

Brian Taylor  
 
 
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