Tobacco farmers decry exclusion from WHO conference ahead of COP11

New Delhi, Nov 11 (PTI) Tobacco farmers association FAIFA on Monday condemned its exclusion from a major World Health Organisation conference on tobacco control, saying millions of growers were being shut out of discussions that directly affect their livelihoods.

The Federation of All India Farmer Associations (FAIFA) said the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) secretariat had denied its requests to participate in the 11th Conference of the Parties (COP11), scheduled for November 17.

"Farmers are not the problem; they are victims of policy decisions taken without their voice," FAIFA President PS Murali Babu said in a statement.

"It is deeply disappointing that COP11 once again shuts its doors on the farming community." The FCTC secretariat rejected the participation request on grounds that farmers' interests were "not aligned" with the convention's objectives, according to FAIFA.

The group called the reasoning "illogical and discriminatory," citing Articles 17 and 18 of the FCTC that mandate protection of tobacco farmers' livelihoods and promotion of viable alternatives.

India is among the world's largest producers and exporters of tobacco, alongside Brazil, Zimbabwe, the United States and China.

FAIFA said over 36 million people depend on tobacco cultivation, curing, trading and allied sectors in major growing states, including Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Telangana.

The association urged India's delegation to COP11 to protect farmers from loss of livelihood, disruption of legal tobacco value chains, and unilateral decisions taken without stakeholder participation.

"The spirit of FCTC lies in cooperation and protection of livelihoods, not in coercion and exclusion," the statement said. PTI LUX LUX DR DR