“Land is the most valued resource that we have and therefore we must look after it,” Andrews stated. She emphasised that the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Peasants and Other People Working in Rural Areas (UNDROP) offers a crucial framework for defending these rights, especially for women, who are often pushed to the margins of land ownership and decision-making.
The Burden of Patriarchy and Exploitation
Throughout her address, Andrews highlighted the deep-rooted challenges posed by patriarchy and commercial exploitation. “Much of the land rights in the region are impacted by patriarchy,” she noted. “The ownership and control of land is in the hands of the husband, or the head of the family.”
Andrews illustrated how these traditional and cultural barriers, compounded by state inaction, systematically disempower women. In many cases, widows, single women, and even grandmothers are evicted or denied access to land they’ve lived on for years. “Women were not living in peace. Women were not treated with dignity. They were pushed off their lands,” she lamented.
A Legal Tool with Teeth: UNDROP
While the law exists, Andrews warned that it means little without grassroots mobilization. “No piece of paper, no law, no constitution is going to stop companies from doing what they like. It is us and our strength of organisation that can push back,” she affirmed.
UNDROP, developed over two decades by grassroots movements such as La Via Campesina, enshrines the right of peasants and rural communities to access and control land. It requires states to recognize all tenure systems, including customary ones, and to prohibit arbitrary evictions. Critically, it insists that all land-related decisions include free, prior, and informed consent from communities.
“Peasants and other women working in the rural areas have the right to be protected against displacement, unlawful and arbitrary displacement,” she said. “If people want to build a dam or a national road and displace you, that cannot happen without consultation.”
The Role of Traditional Authorities
The conversation also turned toward traditional leadership structures. Andrews challenged the commonly held notion that traditional leaders are landowners. “They are custodians on our behalf,” she asserted. “If you’re a custodian of something, you must act in the interest of the people, not in your interest or in the interest of mining companies.”
She further called for inclusive governance, noting that traditional councils rarely include women. “It is mainly women who are pushed off land, yet there are no women in the traditional councils making these decisions.”
The Threat of Extractivism
Across the region, communities are increasingly threatened by extractive industries such as mining and large-scale agriculture. Andrews cited a recent case in Zambia where a Chinese company polluted a river with mercury. “We must give people concrete examples of the impact of these projects,” she urged. “We must show people the lies and demonstrate the counter-narratives.”
She cautioned against empty promises of job creation: “People are being deceived to the good things that will happen. But the seafoods are gone. The ecosystem is being destroyed.”
A Call to Organise and Resist
In closing, Andrews left attendees with a powerful reminder: “Unless we are organised, unless we know our rights, unless we are strong, the laws are paper laws.” She urged continuous mobilisation, education, and alliance-building to push back against land grabs and exploitation.
A final reflection from the webinar captured the urgency of the movement: “Governments are not willing to give our rights. They only sign, but there’s nothing much in terms of implementation. It is from people’s power that we can reclaim these rights.”
