Farmers Demand More Pay For Tobacco Harvest

Source from:  Daily Star 07/30/2009

Southern farmers have begun flocking to the fields to secure their primary source of income with the advent of the tobacco harvesting season. The tobacco plant, or the "bitter plant soaked in sweat and blood" as farmers like to call it, is predominantly grown in south Lebanon where it represents the main source of in-come for around 16,500 families. The history of the tobacco plant in Lebanon remains obscure, with some saying that Italians first introduced the plant to the country in 1598, while others suggest that it arrived during the reign of Emir Fakhr al-Din II in 1625. Yet whatever its origins, today almost 25,000 Lebanese families earn their living from the plant, working over 10 million square meters of land for an annual income for each family of about $2,400. However, southern farmers are now demanding an increase in the allowed annual production rate from 5 million kilograms per year to 7 million kilograms, as well as a hike in tobacco prices. They are also asking to benefit from the National Social Security Fund and to have their farming licenses renewed. Farming licenses are necessary in Lebanon for harvesting tobacco and they are issued by the country's Tobacco authority, Régie Libanaise des Tabacs et Tombacs, for up to LL2 million per license. Some farmers resort to renting licenses but are then obliged to pay the license holder half their profits only to use the other half to cover agricultural needs. The government hasn't issued any new licenses since 1996, saying that it will only do so alongside an increase in the permitted production rate, which has remained unchanged for years. Farmer Hassan Nasser complained that tobacco growing was the job of "poor unemployed people," adding that at the end of the day, all the hard work "doesn't pay off." Depending on quality, the price for each kilogram of tobac-co produced ranges bet-ween LL1,000 and LL14,000. President of the Trade Union of Agriculture and Tobacco, Hassan Fakih is optimistic and predicts a bright future for the southern farmers. "The Lebanese tobacco au-thority is expected to purchase 16 new electric machines that will help the farmers and limit child labor," he said. The farmers in the south do not seem to be as optimistic about their future as Fakih. "All of our crops burned during the summer 2006 war [with Israel] and we still haven't received any compensation from the government," said Abdel-Amir Murani. Members of the same family usually work together to cultivate the tobacco plants and help with the harvest. Families find it difficult to cultivate any other type of crop considering the peculiar nature of the soil required for the tobacco plant. Enditem