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November 1989
Cremate Monsanto
Monsanto's field trials in
Karnataka will be reduced to ashes, starting on Saturday.
Two days ago the Minister of Agriculture of Karnataka gave a
press conference where he was forced by the journalists to
disclose the three sites where field trials with Bt cotton
are being conducted (for background information about the
trials, see appendix 2 at the bottom). KRRS activists have
already contacted the owners of these fields, to explain
them which action will be taken, and for what reasons, and
to let them know that the KRRS will cover any loses they
will suffer. On Saturday the 28th of November, at midday,
thousands of farmers will occupy and burn down the three
fields in front of the cameras, in an open, announced action
of civil disobedience. These actions will start a campaign
of direct action by farmers against biotechnology, called
Operation 'Cremation Monsanto', which will not stop until
all the corporate killers like Monsanto, Novartis, Pioneer
etc leave the country. Farmers' leaders from the states of
Maharastra, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh (states where
Monsanto is also conducting field trials) were yesterday in
Bangalore to prepare the campaign.
The campaign will run under the following slogans: STOP
GENETIC ENGINEERING NO PATENTS ON LIFE CREMATE MONSANTO BURY
THE WTO along with a more specific message for all those who
have invested on Monsanto: You should rather take your money
out before we reduce it to ashes. We know that stopping
biotechnology in India will not be of much help to us if it
continues in other countries, since the threats that it
poses do not stop at the borders. We also think that the
kind of actions that will be going on in India have the
potential not only to kick those corporate killers out of
our country: if we play our cards right at global level and
coordinate our work, these actions can also pose a major
challenge to the survival of these corporations in the stock
markets. Who wants to invest in a mountain of ashes, in
offices that are constantly being squatted (and if necessary
even destroyed) by activists? For these reasons, we are
making an international call for direct action against
Monsanto and the rest of the biotech gang. This call for
action will hopefully inspire all the people who are already
doing a brilliant work against biotech, and many others who
so far have not been very active on the issue, to join hands
in a quick, effective worldwide effort.
This is a very good moment to target Monsanto, since it has
run out of cash in its megalomaniac attempt to monopolise
the life industry in record time. It is going now through a
hard time of layoffs and restructuration in a desperate
effort to survive, since it cannot pay its bills. It is also
a good time because several recent scandals (like the
pulping of the Monsanto edition of The Ecologist, the whole
ÎTerminator Technologyâ affaire, the illegal
introduction of Bt Cotton in Zimbabwe, etc) have contributed
to its profile as corporate killer, which, being the
creators of Vietnam Warâs Agent Organe and rBHG, was
already good enough, anyhow. We are hence making a call
to:
* Take direct actions against biotech TNCs, particularly
Monsanto (be it squatting or burning their fields, squatting
or destroying their offices, etc)
* Maintain the local or/and national press informed about
all the actions going on around the world
* Take direct actions at stock exchanges targeting Monsanto,
to draw attention on its state of bankruptcy
We are making this call for action on the line of Peoples'
Global Action (PGA), a worldwide network of peoples'
movements, in order to emphasize the political analysis
beyond our opposition to biotechnology. This analysis does
not only take environmental concerns into account, and is
not limited to the defense of food security - it attacks
neoliberal globalisation as a whole, the WTO regime as its
most important tool, and the global power structures (G8,
NATO, etc) as the root of all these problems. You will find
the complete political analysis on the manifesto of the PGA,
which you will find in the web page www.agp.org The fact
that this call for action takes place on line with PGA also
has other implications:
* We are calling ONLY for non-violent direct actions.
Non-violence in this context means that we should respect
all (non-genetically modified) living beings, including
policemen and the people who work for these TNCs.
The campaign will take place in a decentralised manner, and
nobody should speak on behalf of other people involved in
the campaign without their consent (also not on behalf of
PGA, of course); however, people are welcome to report about
the actions of others without pretending to represent them.
If you want to be informed of what is going on around the
world on this matter, please send a message to
listproc@gn.apc.org with the message ãsubscribe
pga-geä on the text body. This way you will be informed
about what is going on in India and in other countries. (The
list will be active a few hours after we send this message).
Please, try not write back to this address, since we will be
madly busy in the next days with the mobilisations. However,
if you have good contacts with international media (CNN,
BBC, TV5, etc) and want to help us to get them here to cover
the bonfire at Monsantos field please let us know as soon as
possible.
Friendly greetings,
Prof. Nanjundaswamy
President, Karnataka State Farmers Association
swamy.krrs@aworld.net
Appendix 1:
ãSamykta Karnatakaä,
November 25th, 1989
Police Protection to all American Companies in
Bangalore City Bangalore
It has come to light that the American Ambassador in Dehli
has written to the Government of the State of Karnataka
asking to provide a strong police protection to all American
companies in the city. Pointing out the previuos repeated
attacks on American companies by ãmiscreantsä,
the Ambassador has requested the State Government to create
an atmosphere without fear and anxiety for them to work. He
has stressed the need for a special security for companies
related to science and technology and also the their
hundreds of foreign companies in the city. Tight Security
for Monsanto Anticipating attack on the offices of Monsanto
in Bangalore, tight security has been provided from today,
top police sources confirmed.
Police have said in their note that they are providing
security for the company owning the Terminator Technology
and having the right to sell seeds which do not germinate
for the second time. In a city where most of the TNCs are
based, the present developments have made them to work with
fear and anxiety. (Translated from Kannada)
Appendix 2:
Monsanto under siege in India,
message sent on 23rd November 1998
Dear friends,
On Monday the 16th the public was informed by Indian
newspapers that Monsanto (well known in India for the
Terminator Technology) has been conducting 40 field trials
with genetically manipulated cotton across five Indian
states for the last three months. Monsanto is testing a
hybrid cotton seed that has been genetically engineered to
produce the Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) enzyme. The
permission granted by the federal government in Delhi
pertains the states of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andrah
Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. Now that
peoples' movements are starting to mobilise on this matter,
the same central government that granted the permission is
inviting Monsanto to leave the country. Monsanto has formed
a joint venture with Mahyco (a 30 years old seed company) to
carry out these field trails. According to the media,
Monsanto now owns 26 percent of Mahyco. In the rest of the
message I include some excerpts of the newspaper coverage of
this affaire. We will keep you informed of the developments
in this part of the world, which will most probably include
a number of nonviolent direct actions to burn down the
genetically modified crops and kick Monsanto physically out
of the country. We encourage you to do similar actions all
over the world maybe we can make Monsanto's shareholders
feel our pressure reflected on the value of their
stocks.
Friendly greetings,
Prof. Nanjundaswamy
President, Karnataka State Farmers Association
swamy.krrs@aworld.net
'Curiously though agriculture is a state
subject, Karnataka Government seems unaware of the trials
going on in the State. Agriculture Minister C. Byre Gowda
admitted that he had been informend of the ongoing trials
but was unaware of where they were being undertaken in
Karnataka or in Maharashtra.' (The Indian Express, Bangalore
edition, cover page, 16th November) The trials started three
months ago although the 'Ministry of Science and Technology
has admitted that it does not have the requisite regulatoy
regimen to assess the risk of dealing with such transgenic
material for which biosafty guidelines have only now been
issued.' (The Indian Express, Bangalore edition, cover page,
18th November). In that sense, the University of Agriculture
Science (UAS) Bangalore warned that 'The genetic
modification involved in geneticlly engineered hybrid seeds
is a concealed one that cannot be ascertaiened with existing
regulations of the seed act and quarantine.' (ibid.) B.R.
Hedge, Director of Research at UAS, affirmed that 'The
Indian Council for Agricultural Research (ICAR) was only now
starting to look at ways which regulatory mechnisms should
be put in place to check the clandestine import of such
genetic material. Nevertheless, for the moment we have
nothing ready' (The Indian Express, Bangalore edition, page
9, 18th November) The KRRS has issued a deadline to the
State Government and Monsanto to disclose the places where
the trials are being conducted and the exact description of
the seeds that are being tested. 'Monsanto should reveal
immediately where the trials are being conducted; failing
which;direct action would follow on the company's office in
Malleswaram; he [Prof. Nanjundaswamy] threatened.
The government can foist 100 cases of attempt to murder
[against us], but we will throw it
[Monsanto] out... first from Karnataka, next from
Maharashtra" ... The former professor of law
wondered how the State's Agriculture Minister could be
unaware of the trials. "The Government cannot
continue for three minutes" considering its
irresponsible behaviour, he said'. (The Indian Express,
Bangalore edition, page 4, 20th November) 'Monsanto will
have to leave the country within a week. Otherwise we will
be forced to throw them out. We have given a day's ultimatum
to the company to furnish details about the seed trials
undertaken in the state and the country.' (Prof.
Nanjundasway in The Times of India, Bangalore edition, page
5 20th November). Although the field trials are testing BT
cotton, the Indian press and politiciancs seem to be rather
confused and are mixing up this issue with the terminator
technology, which has been used by opponents of Monsanto as
an example of the destructive potential of this corporation.
However, this confusion is making it easier for Monsanto to
reject any accusation by denying the use of this technology.
Here are some statements about this issue taken from the
last days press. 'Second and Third World markets are the
main targets for the terminator seed.' William Phelps,
Spokesman, Department of Agriculture, USA (quoted in The
Indian Express, Bangalore edition, cover page, 18 November)
'It is not merly the economic factors that threaten the poor
farmers of the world, but it is nature of the Terminator
gene itself, since the pollen from the crops carrying the
Terminator will infect the fields of farmers who either
reject, or cannot afford the technology.'
(UAS, quoted in The Indian Express, Bangalore edition, cover
page, 18 November) 'This is a terminator of biodiversity,
terminator of food security. It is a damaging technology
because pollination pollution can render all indigenous
varieties sterile. This gene will slowly remove all
characteristics of germination from seeds. This means the
harvest seeds cannot be used for sowing during the next
seseason. It will also force seed dependency on farmers who
cannot afford to buy seeds. Monoculture was introduced in
the country in 1965 with an aim to provide food
security.
When Green Revolution Technology introduced monoculture it
was thought the method would be very effective.
Terminatorgene is being dubbed as a second Green Revolution
Technology. This, too, will prove ineffective. Genetically
modified seeds are polluting the local species. It will not
solve the food problem, in fact it will terminate food
security along with biodiversity.' (Prof. Nanjundaswamy,
quoted in The Times of India, Bangalore edition, page 5,
20th November) The sincerity of Monsanto can be easily
assessed by the usual roguish reply it gave to the critics:
'Monsanto will only bring to India, products and
technologies which are consistent with what India wants and
its laws aprove.... Monsanto has not, and will not, bring to
India any technology that will adversely affect the
environment, current agricuture practices and force farmers
to use any technology it provides.' (Monsanto statement
quoted in Deccan Herald, Bangalore edition, page 9, 21th
November) Yesterday the Union Minister for Rural
Development, Babagouda Patil, declared that 'Monsanto wil be
asked to leave India' (headline, The Times of India,
Bangalore edition, page 5, 23 November). 'He said that he
recieved Information that Monsanto is developing and
conducting field trials on the "terminator
gene" seeds at a private farm in Ranebennur taluk
of Haveri district. "I have informed the Prime
Minister and Union Agriculture Minister", he said.
He said he knew the complications arising out of the issue
due to WTO stipulations. "But the government will
not compromise on this issue as crores of farmers' lives
will be in danger. The terminator gene seed will pose a
serious threat to Indian agriculture." The Union
cabinet is expected to deliberate on the issue besides
initiating measures to close Monsanto's buisness operations
in the country... He said that the Center would not hesitate
to withdraw from WTO if its provisions threaten our very
existence.'
(The Times of India, Bangalore edition, page 5 23rd
November)
Fred Cook
915 Cole Street, Suite 250, San Francisco, CA 94117-4315
vox: 415-861-1711, fax: 415-861-0371
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