>Press release from "Monsanto Quit India" Campaign - 1 Sept 1999
-
>
>MNC's invasion of Indian Agriculture - The Real Swadeshi -
Videshi issue
>in Bellary
>
>Monsanto, the world's largest biotech company has invaded
India.
>
>It now owns and controls Cargill seeds, MAHYCO, Rallis, EID
Parry. The
>main Cargill seed plant, now owned by Monsanto is in Bellary.
This plant
>was pulled down by angry farmers in 1992 because of the high
rates of seed
>failure.
>
>Monsanto has taken over the biotech lab of our premier research
institute,
>the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore. Monsanto is also
robbing all
>our Universities of our scientists. This is intellectual hijack
and
>intellectual theft.
>
>Monsanto has also engaged in Biopiracy by patenting our cotton,
mustard,
>neem and soyabean. Through patents on seeds it is trying to
establish a
>totalitarian control over agriculture.
>
>Monsanto's undertook illegal and hazardous trials of
genetically engineered
>Bt. cotton. It has continued its trials in spite of the Supreme
Court case.
>Scientific evidence proves that toxic Bt plants kill beneficial
species
>such as butterflies, bees and beetles. Bt crops also accelerate
evolution
>of resistance in pests and the evolution of 'super pests'. This
will lead
>to more debts and more suicides and will wipe out both our
biodiversity and
>our farmers.
>
>Thousands of farmers have already committed suicide because of
huge debts
>linked to costly seeds and costly pesticides, herbicides and
increasing
>seed failures. Pests are becoming resistant to pesticides
leading to higher
>debts and higher crop failure. Monsanto is also trying to
import gene guns
>and virulent genetically engineered plasmids for making and
selling
>Terminator seeds, and other ecologically hazardous products.
This is a gene
>war on our farms, against all species.
>
>Monsanto is also trying to control drinking water and convert
the growing
>water
>scarcity into limitless profits.
>
>Seed famine and water famines are the most severe threats the
majority of
>Indians are facing today.
>
>However, no political party and no politician are addressing
these survival
>issues faced by Indian people.
>
>Because Monsanto poses a severe threat to Indian agriculture
and Indian
>farmers, Indian citizens have been telling Monsanto to quit
India, since
>Quit India day, Aug 9th 1998.
>
>We repeat this call during the Indian general election 1999
from Bellary,
>which
>is a citadel of corporate invasion into Indian agriculture.
Bellary
>symbolizes the combined imperialist power of Cargill, the
world's largest
>grain trader and Monsanto, the world's largest seed monopoly.
>
>This is the real Vidheshi invasion and threat to India.
>
>Ignoring the real economic threat to the survival of the Indian
people, the
>Congress and BJP have reduced the Bellary Election to a
"foreigner -
>native" issue focussing only on individual personalities in the
election
>contest between the Congress President, Italian born Sonia
Gandhi and BJP
>representative, Sushma Swaraj.
>
>The Bija Satyagraha Movement started by 2500 groups around the
country,
>represented in Bellary by Navdanya and the Karnataka Krishak
Samaj wants to
>draw attention on the real Videshi invasion by Monsanto &
Cargill. The Bija
>Satyagraha Movement is building the Swadeshi alternative of
keeping the
>seed in
>our hands and keeping it free of patents, genetic engineering &
MNC's control.
>
>We also want to draw attention to fact that both the BJP and
Congress have
>colluded with foreign MNC's. They have allowed Monsanto and
Cargill to
>enter Indian agriculture and rob us of our fundamental security
- our food
>security.
>
>Both BJP and Congress joined hands to change Indian patent laws
and allow
>Bio-pirates like Monsanto to have monopoly markets through
patents for
>products derived from our neem, cotton and mustard etc.
>
>Gandhi defined Swadeshi as economic democracy. Our politicians
are
>corrupting the content of this powerful word.
>
>The citizens of India will save "Swadeshi' from being
trivialized into a
>call for xenophobia and narrow nationalism. Navdanya and
Karnataka Krishak
>Samaj will address a press conference and march to the Cargill
and Monsanto
>Seed factory on 2nd September 1999.
>
>Our Swadeshi call from Bellary is:
>
>1. "Monsanto Quit India"
>2. "Monsanto Stop the Hijack of Indian Seed and Water"
>3. "No Patents on Life" - "No Patents on Seeds"
>
>Our Swadeshi test for every candidate and Political Party is
>
>1. The next Government must scrap the new Patent Act 1999 and
Stop the
>implementation of TRIPS. It must also takes step to revise and
reform TRIPs
>by supporting the African Proposal to WTO.
>2. The next elected government must stop the genetically
engineering trials
>that threaten our farmers, our biodiversity and our food
security.
>3. The government must stop the import of the Gene Guns and
genetically
>engineered plasmids by Monsanto.
>
>Bija Satyagraha For Further Information please contact:
>Navdanya Karnataka Krishak Samaj A * 60, Hauz Khas, New Delhi *
110 016
>Bellary Tel: 011-6968 077, 6853 772, Fax: 011- 6856 795 Email:
>vshiva@giasdl01.vsnl.net.in
>
----------------
Northeast Resistance Against Genetic Engineering
http://www.bckweb.com/nerage
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