Journalist Ahmed Al-Hanafi revealed the details of the crisis of Kafr Al-Bastawisi farmers, affiliated with the Association Agrarian reform In Tanbara – the center of Mahalla Al-Kubra in Gharbia, they have been suffering for many years from converting their lands from the usufruct system to rent in a sudden and exaggerated manner.
Al-Hanafi indicated in a telephone interview with the “Red Line” program presented by journalist Muhammad Moussa on Al-Hadath Al-Youm channel, that the farmers are appealing to the Minister of Agriculture, Alaa Farouk, to intervene to legalize the conditions of their lands, as happened with their neighbors whose lands were legalized according to a decision from the head of the authority since 1997, based on Article 4 of Law No. 3 of 1986.
He explained that the surprise that these farmers faced was converting their lands to a rental system while raising the rent amounts illogically, as the rent per acre previously did not exceed 2,500 pounds annually, while it has now risen to about 10,000 pounds, and there are plans to raise the rent to 31,500 pounds next year, which doubles the burden on farmers and increases their suffering.
Al-Hanafi stressed that farmers are demanding urgent intervention to correct this historical mistake, whether by legalizing their conditions like their neighbors or setting a fair value for rent that ensures their continuation of agriculture without excessive financial pressure, calling on the government to stand by them and support them in order to preserve the stability of agriculture in the region.
