Articles by Dr. Shiva
Biotech Wars:
Food Freedom VS Food Slavery
Monsanto
through the U.S. government, is trying desperately to reverse its failing
fortunes by creating markets for its genetically engineered crops (GMOs)
through coercion and corruption.
The
E.U. has not yet cleared GM crops for commercial planting or GM food for
imports. Brazil has had a ban
on GM crops. And India has not
cleared GM food crops and has stopped the spread of genetically engineered
Bt. Cotton to Northern India after its dismal performance in Southern
India in the first season of commercial planting in 2002.
E.U.,
Brazil and India are all under attack overtly and covertly, for not rushing
into adopting genetically engineered crops without caution and ensuring
biosafety.
The
U.S. has threatened to initiate a dispute against the E.U. in the W.T.O.
for not importing genetically modified foods.
The U.S. trade representative, Mr. Zoellick was in Brazil at the
end of May to force Brazil to remove the ban on GM crops. The U.S. Secretary of State tried to bully Southern African countries
to the Earth Summit in Johannesburg to accept GM food and, but Zambia
refused to be bullied. In India,
the U.S. Embassy tried to pressurize the Ministry of Environment through
the Prime Minister's office to clear imports of GM corn, but a major mobilisation
of women's groups organized as the National Alliance of Women for Food
Rights under the movement of Diverse Women for Diversity, was successful
in sending back two ship loads of 10,000 tons of GM corn.
Since then the Chairman of the Genetic Engineering Approval Committee
which rejected GM crops and imports has been removed and the Agricultural
Ministry has been changed.
Free
people with free information are saying no to genetically engineered food
for both ecological and health reasons.
However, genetic engineering is being imposed on the world by a
handful of global corporations with the backing of one powerful government.
Commercial
crops produced through genetic engineering are not producing more food
nor are they reducing the use of chemicals.
While the hunger argument is the most frequently used argument
to promote and push genetic engineering, GMOs have more to do with corporate
hunger for profits than poor people's hunger for food. As a news item in the international Herald
Tribune of May 29, 2003 titled, "Biotech war recast as hunger issue"
reported,
President George W. Bush is framing his attack on European
resistance to genetically modified crops as part of a campaign against
world hunger.
Bush and his aides are making an emotional plea, saying the
administration's stance is part of the fight against world hunger. In a speech last week be accused Europe of
hindering the "great cause of ending hunger in Africa" with
its ban genetically modified corps." (IHT, May 29, 2003)
The
technology of genetic engineering is not about overcoming food scarcity
but about creating monopolies over food and seed, the first link in the
chain and over life itself.
After
having pressurized Lula's government in Brazil to temporarily remove the
ban on GMOs, Monsanto is now claiming royalties for genes in the Round
up Resistance Soya crops, showing once again that profits through royalty
collection are the real objective of spreading GM crops.
India
has been forced to change its patent laws under TRIPS and the main beneficiary
of the Second Amendment to India's Patent Act of 1970 are biotech corporations
like Monsanto, seeking patents on genetically engineered crops.
Patents
also criminalise and make illegal the human work of life's reproduction. When seeds are patented, farmers exercising
their freedom and performing their duty of saving and exchanging seeds
are treated as "intellectual property thieves". This can reach absurd limits as in the case of Percy Schmieser whose
canola field was polluted by Monsanto's Round up Resistant Canola, and
instead of Monsanto compensating Percy for pollution on the "polluter
pays principle", Monsanto sued him for $200,000 for theft of their
genes. Monsanto uses detective agencies and police
to track farmers and their crops. Patents imply police states.
Genetic
engineering is not merely causing genetic pollution of biodiversity and
creating bio-imperialism, monopolies over life itself. It is also causing knowledge pollution -- by
undermining independent science, and promoting pseudo science. It is leading to monopolies over knowledge
and information.
The
victimisation of Dr. Arpad Putzai who showed the health risks of GM potatoes
and Dr. Ignacio Chapela who showed that corn had been contaminated in
its centre of diversity in Mexico are examples of the intolerance of a
corporate controlled scientific system for real science.
The
fabrication of the data by Monsanto on Bt. Cotton India is an example
of the promotion of an unnecessary, untested, hazardous technology through
pseudo science. While yields of
GM cotton fell by 80% and farmers had losses of nearly Rs. 6,000/acre. Monsanto used Martn Qaim (University of Bonn)
and David Zilberman) University of California, Berkeley) to publish an
article in Science to claim that yields of Bt. Cotton increased by 80%. Qaim and Zilberman published the paper on the
basis of data provided by Monsanto from Monsanto's trials not on the basis
of the harvest from farmers fields in the first year of commercial planting.
The
fabricated data that presents a failure of Bt. Cotton as a miracle hides
the fact that non-target insects and diseases increased 250-300%, costs
of seed were 300% more and quantity and quality of cotton was low. This is why on April 25, 2003, the Genetic
Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC) of the Government of India did not
give clearance to Monsanto to sell Bt. Cotton seeds in Northern India.
The
false claims of Monsanto were also proved with a total failure of Hybrid
maize in the state of Bihar and a black listing of the company by the
government.
In
Rajasthan, Monsanto gave itself an award for miracle yields. While the brochures claimed 50-90 Q/acre, farmers
harvested only 7 Q/acre, 90% lower than the promise. Farmers of the Udaipur district of Rajasthan
have started a campaign to boycott Monsanto seeds.
Reports
of these failures do not reach the international level because Monsanto
controls the media with its public relations spin, just as it is attempting
to control governments and science.
Our
crops are being polluted, our food contaminated, our scientific research
and regulatory agencies threatened and corrupted.
This
is the context in which the Biotech Conference for Agriculture Ministers
in Sacremento, California, hosted by Ann Vanneman, the U.S. Secretary
for Agriculture is taking place. Ann
Vanneman used to head Agracetus, a subsidiary of Monsanto. The Brazilian Agriculture Ministry is held
captive by Monsanto. The removal
of India's Agriculture Minister, Ajit Singh, a few months before general
elections is to ensure that the threat to peasant survival under corporate
control of agriculture is not put high on the agenda and India's Agriculture
Ministry also comes under Monsanto/Cargill control.
The first activity in which the new Agriculture Minister Rajnath
Singh participated was a Global Seed Conference organised by the Biotech
industry.
Sustainability
and science are being sacrificed for a reckless experiment with our biodiversity
and food systems which is pushing species and peasants to extinction.
We need to re-imbed technology in ecology and ethics to ensure
that the full ecological and social costs are taken into account.
What
is at stake is the evolution of nature and survival of people, our food
sovereignty and food freedom, integrity of creation and our food systems
based on the evolutionary freedom of nature and democratic freedoms of
farmers and consumers. The choice
before us is bio-imperialism or bio-democracy. Will a few corporations
have a dictatorship over our governments, our knowledge and information,
our lives and all life on the planet or will we as members of the Earth
family liberate ourselves and all species from the prison of patents and
genetic engineering?
We
need to reclaim our food freedom and food sovereignty.
Our
movement in India seeks to defend our seed freedom (Bija Swaraj) and food
freedom (Anna Swaraj) by defending our rights, and refusing to cooperate
with immoral and unjust laws (Bija Satyagraha).
We save and share our seeds, we boycott corporate seeds, we are
creating patent free, chemical free, genetic engineering free zones of
agriculture to ensure our agriculture is free of corporate monopolies
and chemical and genetic pollution. Our
bread is our freedom. Our freedom
will ensure our bread. And each
of us has a duty to exercise bread freedm (Anna Swaraj) -- for the sake
of the earth, for all species, and for ourselves and the generations to
come.
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