A CASE STUDY OF THE NATIONAL FORUM OF FOREST PEOPLE AND FOREST WORKERS SEPTEMBER 2009 STUDY CONDUCTED BY ASHOK CHOWDHURY ROMA EDITING: RAJNISH TRANSLATION TO ENGLISH AND EDITING: SRIDEVI PANIKKAR 1 CONTENTS PAGE NUMBER PROLOGUE 3 PART 1 HISTORY OF THE NATIONAL FORUM FOR FOREST PEOPLE AND FOREST WORKERS: THE 5 JOURNEY FROM FOREST RIGHTS TO ENVIROMENTAL JUSTICE PART 2 IMPLEMENTATION OF THE FOREST RIGHTS ACT: NFFPFW’ S EXPERIENCES PART 3 CHALLENGES 2 PROLOGUE The last few years have seen a proliferation in the discussion around the rights of forest workers and forest-based communities, particularly in the context of the implementation of the Forest Rights Act (formally known as the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006). The struggles of forest dwelling communities to assert their sovereign control over forests and other natural resources, waged from the early days of the British rule right up to post-Independence India, are probably the oldest and the most consistent. But these struggles have thus far been marginalised by the political and academic circles. In post-colonial India, the discourse on forests and environment almost always dealt with and described the community as a threat to the environment and held it responsible for the destruction of natural resources. Hence the identity of forest workers was never really recognised, neither in the political nor the labour movement discourse. But despite such a response, these struggles continued, incessantly raising vital questions of labour rights and human rights. The last three decades, particularly since the enactment of the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980, have witnessed a revitalisation and intensification of these forest- based struggles. In the 1990s, the initiation of the process of organising forest workers and establishing a separate national forum, which started during the process of formation of the National Centre for Labour, marked the beginning of a new chapter in the history of the forest rights and environmental justice movements in India. This period also saw the introduction of structural adjustment policies and the increasing assault of capitalist globalisation on natural resources, which accelerated into the enormous environmental crisis that we face today. Today, this section of the labour force has formed itself into a strong movement which is fighting a crucial battle for protecting natural resources and securing livelihoods by challenging the capitalist system. Two very important aspects of this movement are: one, asserting the collective rights of forest-based communities on forest resources and two, environmental justice, which an issue of critical importance for the society as a whole. The formation of the National Forum for Forest People and Forest Workers (NFFPFW) marked an important stage in the development of this movement, making crucial an analytical study of the processes that led to its formation and subsequent development. It is also important to analyse the historical and political significance of the NFFPFW within the labour movement, particularly in the context of the enactment and implementation of the Forest Rights Act. The current study is an important first step taken by WEIGO and Vikalp Social Organisation in this direction. Last year, WEIGO published a report on the problems faced by women workers in the unorganised sector and the efforts made towards unionising them, which formed the basis of discussion in many seminars. In one such seminar, a report on forest workers was also presented, which led to a serious debate and raised some very important questions. Thereafter, WEIGO decided that since the problems faced by forest-based communities are complex and 3 long-standing, it called for a focussed and detailed study of these issues. It is in this background that the current study was initiated with the intention of opening up a wider discussion on the challenges confronting the formulation of effective political strategies to solve the problems faced by forest workers. 4 PART I HISTORY OF THE NATIONAL FORUM FOR FOREST PEOPLE AND FOREST WORKERS THE JOURNEY FROM FOREST RIGHTS TO ENVIROMENTAL JUSTICE BACKGROUND The National Forum for Forest People and Forest Workers was formed in September 1998 in a meeting organised in Ranchi which was attended by 120 representatives of organisations working with forest workers from nine states (Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Karnataka) and intellectuals such as Dr. B.K.Roy Burman and Dr. Ram Dayal Munda. The formation of the Forum was in fact the culmination of a process which started in 1993-94. The discussions held prior to the establishment of the National Centre for Labour(NCL), a national federation of unorganised sector workers, stressed on the need to make special efforts to organise certain sections of the unorganised sector workers, particularly fish workers, home- based workers and forest workers. Unorganised sector workers in general face a peculiar challenge— despite forming a majority of the total workforce, they are still largely unrecognised. This was particularly true for workers involved in these three sectors. It was therefore felt that a two-pronged strategy had to be adopted: not only was there a need to build a wider organisation of all unorganised sector workers, it was also important that workers be organised on a sector-wise basis. One national organisation of the fish workers had already been formed— the National Fishworkers Forum— which was gradually expanding its reach in the coastal areas. A need to similarly organise home-based workers and forest workers was felt. SEWA had already begun the task of organising home-based workers on a national level. Based on this principle, the process of connecting with organisations working across the country with forest workers was started by Ghad Kshetra Mazdoor Morcha and Vikalp Social Organisation, which are based in the Shivalik area of Saharanpur- Haridwar districts84. The NCL was formed in 1995 and in 1996 the first meeting of forest workers organisations was held in Dehradun. This was probably the first time in India that attempts were made to organise a national forum of forest workers which also tried to ensure the participation and representation of all forest-based communities. THE BEGINNING OF THE PROCESS: THE DEHRADUN MEETING The three-day Dehradun meeting—where about fifty representatives from eight states participated—saw in-depth discussions on the struggles going on in various states on the issues of livelihood, labour, preservation of natural resources and unionisation. Though there was a long history of people’s resistance and movements in forests, these struggles were localised. 5 The meeting emphasised on the need to unify these localised struggles into a national alliance so that forest workers struggles could finally take a strong political form and start a democratic dialogue with the state and administration. Further, while the laws regarding forests were national, the struggles remained localised, which impeded the process of collective bargaining. It was decided that in order to ensure the security of livelihood of forest workers, to ensure protection of natural resources, to start a dialogue between the workers, the state and the forest administration and to strengthen local struggles, a process must be initiated to unify these localised struggles on a national level. The importance of forming such a national alliance also became important due to another factor: neo-liberal globalisation and economic structural adjustment policies posed a direct threat to forest resources. In 1993, a meeting, which was attended by Forest ministers of over 150 countries, declared that forests and forest produce would henceforth be considered not just as national property but as an international resource and that the trade of forest produce would also be internationalised. Commercial forestry was to be encouraged over traditional methods, which posed a grave threat to the livelihood of forest dwelling communities. It was under this initiative that the Joint Forest Management (JFM) and Community Forest Management (CFM) projects were started in several states in which the World Bank and other international financial institutions which are controlled by rich countries started making large investments. The main goal of these projects was to destroy and replace the traditional structures of forest-based communities in the name of protecting forest resources. It became crucial that such anti-people measures be opposed nationally and internationally. The Dehradun meeting also arrived at another very critical conclusion. There were no legislations which ensured forest based workers and communities their citizenship rights and their right to livelihood, which has meant that since the days of British imperialism the Forest Department had monopolised the management and control of forest resources. On several occasions recommendations has been made to ensure the recognition of forest workers and their rights, but the government had not taken any concrete steps in that direction. While the revenue generated from forest produce continued to increase and fatten the state treasury, the Forest Department officials and the forest mafia ruled the roost and the forest workers who were responsible for the generation of this revenue continued to be neglected and exploited. Labour laws were never implemented in forest