Chris, Are you against patents?
This isn't a trick question. I am completely against them. Harry ________________________________________ Christoph wrote: >Keith Hudson wrote: > > some African politicians have been frightened enough to prevent GM grain > > being imported by the aid agencies in order to cope with wide-scale > > starvation among their people -- even though, within the stomach, the > > variant genes within GM food are broken down and digested as thoroughly > > as all the others and are of absolutely no danger. > >This statement is misleading in several ways. First, it is not just >"frightened politicians", but also informed experts (see forward below). >Second, the issue is not the digestion of "the variant genes", but >of proteins produced by the variant genes. It's much too early to >state that these "are of absolutely no danger." > >Btw, the latest edition of New Scientist (19 Sept 2002) reports that >the UN has been slipping GM food into food aid for the last 7 years, >without informing the recipient countries, and often in breach of >national regulations. The GM corporations are taking advantage of >poor people's misery to dump their unwanted GM stuff on human guinea pigs. > >Chris > > > > >__________________________________FWD__________________________________ >"LET NATURE'S HARVEST CONTINUE" >Statement from all the African delegates (except South Africa) to FAO >negotiations on the International Undertaking for Plant Genetic Resources, >June 1998 [published in the European media in late July 1998] > >(Document begins) >During the past few weeks European citizens have been exposed to an >aggressive publicity campaign in major European newspapers trying to >convince the reader that the world needs genetic engineering to feed the >hungry. Organised and financed by Monsanto, one of the world's biggest >chemical companies, and titled "Let the Harvest Begin", this campaign gives >a totally distorted and misleading picture of the potential of genetic >engineering to feed developing countries. >We, the undersigned delegates of African countries participating in the 5th >Extraordinary Session of the Commission on Genetic Resources, 8 - 12 June >1998, Rome, strongly object that the image of the poor and hungry from our >countries is being used by giant multinational corporations to push a >technology that is neither safe, environmentally friendly, nor economically >beneficial to us. >It is time to look at some of the facts about the company behind this >campaign: >Monsanto is one of the world's largest pesticide companies. During the past >two years only it spent over US$6000 million to take control over other seed >and biotechnology companies and is now the major industrial player in this >field. Its major focus is not to protect the environment, but to develop >crops that can resist higher doses of its best-selling chemical weedkiller >"Roundup". >Rather than stretching a helping hand to farmers, Monsanto threatens them >with lawsuits and jail. In the USA, the company employs detectives to find >and bring to court those farmers that save Monsanto soybean seeds for next >year's planting. Backed by patent law, the company demands the rights to >inspect the farmers' fields to check whether they practise agriculture >according to Monsanto conditions and with Monsanto chemicals. >Rather than developing technology that feeds the world, Monsanto uses >genetic engineering to stop farmers from replanting seed and further develop >their agricultural systems. It has spent US$18000 million to buy a company >owning a patent on what has become known as Terminator Technology: seed that >can be planted only once and dies in the second generation. The only aim of >this technology is to force farmers back to the Monsanto shop every year, >and to destroy an age old practice of local seed saving that forms the basis >of food security in our countries. >In "Let the Harvest Begin" the Europeans are asked to give an unconditional >green light to gene technology so that chemical corporations such as >Monsanto can start harvesting their profits from it. We do not believe that >such companies or gene technologies will help our farmers to produce the >food that is needed in the 21st century. On the contrary, we think it will >destroy the diversity, the local knowledge and the sustainable agricultural >systems that our farmers have developed for millennia and that it will thus >undermine our capacity to feed ourselves. >In particular, we will not accept the use of Terminator or other gene >technologies that kill the capacity of our farmers to grow the food we need. >We invite European citizens to stand in solidarity with Africa in resisting >these gene technologies so that our diverse and natural harvests can >continue and grow. >We agree and accept that mutual help is needed to further improve >agricultural production in our countries. We also believe that Western >science can contribute to this. But it should be done on the basis of >understanding and respect for what is already there. It should be building >on local knowledge, rather than replacing and destroying it. And most >importantly: it should address the real needs of our people, rather than >serving only to swell the pockets and control of giant industrial >corporations. > >NAME: >Jean Marie Fodoun, Cameroun >George A. Agbahungba, Benin >Paul Therence Senghor, Senegal >Koffi Goti, Cote d'Ivoire >Mokosa Madende, Congo Democ >Jean Jacques Rakotonalala, Madagascar >Juvent Baramburiye, Burundi >Worku Damena, Ethiopia >Gietaturn Mulat, Ethiopia >M.S. Harbi, Sudan >Eltahir Ibrahim Mohamed, Sudan >Maria A. Calane da Silva, Mozambique >Kohna Nganara Ngawara, Tchad >Nkeoua Gregoire, Congo >Mugorewera Drocella, Rwanda >H. Yahia-Cafrif, Algeria >Abebe Demissie, Ethiopia >G.P. Mwila, Zambia >Dr S.H. Raljtsogle, Lesotho >Naceu Hamza, Tunisia >Hambourne Mellas, Morocco >Elizabeth Matos, Angola >Tewolde Berhane Gebre Egziabher, Ethiopia > >Additional statement by Zimbabwean delegate: >"Africa should not be used as a testing ground for technologies and products >which have been developed elsewhere. We reserve our sovereign right to test >these technologies ourselves, examine their effectiveness and compatibility >to the environment in our region." >(Document ends) ****************************** Harry Pollard Henry George School of LA Box 655 Tujunga CA 91042 [EMAIL PROTECTED] Tel: (818) 352-4141 Fax: (818) 353-2242 *******************************
