Bio-tech foods are not the solution top global food shortages
Greenpeace today slammed the weak text in the
latest draft of the World Food Summit´s Committee on Food
Security
(CFS) final declaration as it lacks political will to solve the
world´s hunger
problem. Late Sunday night the CFS gave in to the US led
pressure and
agreed to drop two key concepts of Right to Food and
Precautionary
Principle in relation to biotechnology from the preamble text
and
subsequent paragraphs.
"The draft proposal for a Final Declaration is clearly a step
back from the
1996 agreement and not one forward as it should be", said
Emiliano
Ezcurra, Greenpeace Argentina, monitoring the work of the CFS in
Rome.
"Delegates gave in to the pressure from the US. The text now
means
nothing concrete and will benefit only the genetic engineering
industry."
(1)
In a supposed trade off, by giving way to the preamble, the
CFS
delegates agreed in Paragraph 10 to establish a Working Group
to
elaborate voluntary guidelines to support Member States´ efforts
to
progressively achieve the right to adequate food in the context
of
national food security. Again, the US opposed this point for
fear of legal
domestic action.
In Paragraph 24, the CFS failed to mention the precautionary
principle in
relation to biotechnology. (2) "This principle is an
internationally agreed
standard in the UN Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety", commented
Miges
Baumann from Greenpeace International in Rome. "The failure of
the CFS
to include this principle in the Summit´s Draft Declaration
shows clearly
shows the lack of the political will of some rich
governments."
In Paragraph 35, the call to sign and ratify the International
Treaty on
Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture was weakened to
the
wording "to consider signing and ratifying" the Treaty.
Greenpeace urgently calls upon the delegates and the world
leaders
assembled in the Food Summit to correct these big mistakes of
the CFS:
- To reintroduce the Right to Food in the preamble.
- To state clearly the precautionary principle in relation
to
biotechnology.
- To call for a fast signing and ratification of both the
International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and
Agriculture, and the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety
- To stop patenting life forms and to ban any 'genetic use
restriction technologies', in particular Terminator
technologies,
as well as to maintain and increase public control of
agricultural
biodiversity
"Heads of states and government representatives attending the
WFS
this week have just over 48 hours to turn this failure into a
success. If
freedom from hunger is the first freedom for humans, as the
Italian Head
of State put it in the opening ceremony, then delegates should
stop
playing games and turn their ears to the malnourished instead of
food
dictators," Baumann concluded.
Notes: (1) Point 3 of the Preamble reads:“Reaffirming the right of everyone tohave access to safe and nutritious food.”(2) Parts of Paragraph 24 reads: “We call the FAO, in conjunction withCGIAR and other international research institutes, to advanceagricultural research and research into new technologies, includingbiotechnology. The introduction of tried and tested new technologiesincluding biotechnology should be accomplished in a safe manner andadapted to local conditions to help improve agricultural productivity indeveloping countries. We are committed to study, share and facilitate theresponsible use of biotechnology in addressing development needs.”