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Genetics Action Roundup
Direct action against the biotech industry has been relentless, even growing this spring. Some with great success, such as the case of Warwickshire (UK), where local folks prevented a field trial near an important organic research center. Aventis was a major target in Belgium, Italy and the UK. Monsanto got hit in the Netherlands. The US saw colourful protests against the entire biotech industry during the Biodevastation running parallel to BIO's yearly promo- event.
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Aventis
in Belgium - Field trials or seed production?
"Pulling up transgenic crops is the only way to take the floor
in a debate in which we cannot participate" - the activists
In the night of May 26-27, three fields of PGS-Aventis oilseed rape were 'silenced' near the Belgian towns of Ten Hede, Beerhof and Turkijenhoek, all in East Flanders. The fields belonged to Aventis Crop Science.
According to an explanatory message that was sent around, one reason to target Aventis was that it has bought Plant Genetics Systems, that previously was connected to the University of Gent. Public money has been spent, not on general welfare, but on a now privately owned technique that has nothing to do with scientific development but all with money making.
More importantly even, although officially regarded as "experimental" fields, it is quite clear that the fields are in fact commercial seed production facilitations. Since 1996, Aventis has been storing the MS8 & RF3 seeds harvested in Belgium on more than 80 ha each year. It is clear that the company is anticipating European authorisation, which would turn those commercial crops into lawful ones. An authorisation for that oilseed rape has been repeatedly blocked at the European level as the de facto moratorium on new GM plant varieties has taken effect in June '98. But with the full support of Jaak Gabriëls, the Belgian Agriculture State Secretary, PGS-Aventis expect getting such an authorisation as soon as September 2001. One of the groups declared: "Ultimate creation in an industrial system which aims at consigning and recycling life in rough manageable goods, genetic engineering is different from other industrial plagues : the damage it generates is exponential and irretrievable. As corporate and scientific" lobbies have more weight than any democratic authorities, we are the only ones in capacity to enforce the so much appraised precautionary principle."
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UK:
More GM crop decentaminations
national seed list tests special targets
Genetic Engineering Network (GEN, UK) has recently received information about several GM crop decontaminations around the country.
This year, 13 National Seed List test sites of genetically modified winter oilseed rape were planted, 11 in England and 2 in Scotland. Out of these, two crops are reported to have failed, and 6 have been decontaminated, leaving just 5 in the ground. (See below for details)
National Seed List trials are to enable the crop grown to be placed on the National Seed Lists - a step necessary for the commercialisation of the crop. The company behind the crop is Aventis, and if the trialsites continue to be destroyed, the commercialisation of the crop will be threatened. The trials test whether or not the crop grows properly, is stable, and distinctive for the market...environmental concerns play no role.
Another major victory was obtained when, following massive opposition, two farm scale trials in Mathry, West Wales, were halted.
For a list of all the UK testsites including which ones have been destroyed, please visit www.geneticsaction.org.uk/test sites or www.gm-info.org.uk for a map based list. For an excellent briefing on the trial sites, visit www.genewatch.org. For a copy of the guide to nightime gardening, "my first little book of GM crop decontamination" ring 01803 866406
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Italy strikes back: 10 Aventis greenhouses destroyed
In that same night, of 26 May 2001, crop experiments in 10 research facilities of Nunhems Seeds were destroyed in S. Agata Bolognese, Italy. The activist declared that this type of action is a crucial one in the fight against GMOs. To counter the state propaganda that these experiments are under a tight control system, the activists put in practice their own: the elimination of the plants. They claimed the safety norms to be a joke: a few metres distance between crops can never stop the plant's pollen that are able to move a few kilometres by wind and with insects. The company, Nunhems Seeds, part of Aventis, was doing experiments with crops that are made resistant to certain chemicals. "The chemical agriculture is damaging and tyrannic, and we should consider the multinationals that sustain it all to be enemies".
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US: Biodevastation 2001 and international call for action june 25th
On June 24th and 25th, 2001 the Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO) convention in San Diego, opened its doors to thousands of executives, lawyers, venture capitalists, and corporate scientists working to further their agenda of a patented and commodified future.
From a report by Brian Tokar - The disinformation machine was in high gear in San Diego for over a month before this year's Biodevastation/Biojustice 2001 protests even began. Every night the cops were on TV saying it was going to be "like Seattle," claiming we were expecting up to 8000 protestors, telling shopkeepers to board up their windows. They said biotechnology was the future of San Diego's economy. They poured on the Seattle footage: "Violent protestors!" the announcer proclaimed, as they spewed out film showing nonviolent people in rain ponchos being gassed and shot at. It was American propaganda at it's most insidious.
We listened to Percy Schmeiser from Saskatchewan and a panel of Midwestern US farmers talk about how the biotech industry is threatening the survival of family farms, and a cutting edge panel on biopiracy, patents and globalization with Vandana Shiva, Andrew Kimbrell (Center for Food Safety), Chaia Heller (Inst. for Social Ecology), Vicky Corpuz (from the Philippines) and Beth Burrows (Edmonds Institute).
Sunday was a thoroughly
ecstatic day, featuring a rally in Balboa Park, a permitted march to the
San Diego convention center, and a rousing closing rally right in front
of the convention center, as biotech delegates were arriving for the opening
of their annual convention.
Everyone was there--AP estimated between 1000 and 1200 marchers--from
local Raza Rights activists, families with children, the San Diego Greens,
various socialist groups, union members, environmental justice activists,
a multiracial drumming group, and hundreds who'd arrived on buses and
planes from throughout California and across the country. Radical puppeteers
from L.A. brought their 7-headed hydra, with heads depicting the leading
biotech culprits: Monsanto, Novartis, Syngenta, Aventis, Du Pont, Dow
and Cargill. There were giant balloons, butterflies, giant ears of corn,
"Monsatan" with dollar signs in his eyes, and a whole contingent
of George Bush clones dressed in white. It was exactly the colorful, lively
display of opposition to the biotech threat to our future that we'd been
planning since February.
Today, Monday, it's back to business as usual, and the business of the San Diego police this week seems to be harassing activists. The Biojustice Legal Team reports at least 75 incidents of people being detained for things like jaywalking and having clear plastic license plate covers. A long-time Asian American activist from northern California was surrounded by cops in a parking lot. Two women artists from Maine were followed into a dark corner of an underground parking garage and surrounded and harangued for over two hours by no less than 14 uniformed officers. The harassment continued long after legal observers arrived on the scene.
Meanwhile, the good folks at the Biotechnology Industry Organization are saturating the airwaves here in San Diego. They've even got kids calling local talk shows (from who knows where) to tell us how they've been cured. Of course, there's nothing more heart-warming than such spontaneous expressions of gratitude. These people are shameless. Some things never change.
Breaking news: BIO has announced the dates for next year's biotech convention: June 9-12th in Toronto. Canadian activists are exited about hosting biodevastation 2002, the sixth such grassroots gathering, tentatively beginning on friday, june 7th. See you there!
For more information and updates on the days of action, see: www.biodev.org
The Organizers of
Biojustice 2001
The Institute for Social Ecology Biotechnology Project
North East Resistance Against Genetic Engineering - neRAGE.org
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Netherlands: Raging Hares munch away Monsanto Fields as a contribution to 'public debate'
In the night of Sunday to Monday June 25, a group of activists calling themselves "Razende Hazen" (Raging Hares) have sabotaged two field tests of Roundup Ready sugar beets in Brabant, the south of The Netherlands. The two fields were the only Monsanto field trials in the Netherlands this year.
"The purpose of this action is to directly stop the spreading of genetically modified organisms (GMO's) in our environment and food," said a statement released by the Hares. They have in this way made their own contribution to the national "Broad Societal Debate" on genetics and food that started officially on 25 June. The "Debate" was highly criticized from the beginning by all civil organisations as being a subtle but massive attempt by government to increase acceptance of gmo's. Moreover, the public is 'being involved' in a stage where the government has already made up its mind about genetics. The question is only 'how' and not 'if'.
The start of the "Debate" on Monday 25th proved the critics being right immediately. A 30 minute video was shown which was so blatantly pro-GE that even the Dutch press got critical. According to new research by the University of Twente acceptance of GE foods has decreased the past two years with now 70% of people being of the opinion that GE should not be used in food. The "Broad Societal Debate" focuses on a group of 150 selected Dutch people who will act as a kind of "Parliament" on the issue. The NGOs were first intending to collectively boycott the whole process. However, the infamous Polder Disease has not died completely yet, and a few meanless gestures made them decided to go along anyway, thereby legitimising this piece of typical Dutch Democracy.
The actions were part of the second international day of actions against the biotech-industry.
For a report in Dutch, see Ravage
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A
SEED Europe
Post Box 92066,
1090 AB Amsterdam,
The Netherlands.
Tel: +31-20-668-2236
Fax: +31-20-468 2275
aseedeur@antenna.nl
www.aseed.net