Indigenous Peoples, local communities and smallholder farmers voice concerns to United Nations
September 30, 2005
In response to a request from the United Nations for “new information” on Terminator, a number of groups and communities sent critical comments expressing how Terminator would uniquely impact their communities and cultures.
The comments submitted to the Convention on Biological Diversity will now be incorporated into background material for government delegates who will make important recommendations on Terminator when they meet in Spain January 23-27 2006 for the UN Working Group on Article 8(j).
Though many communities only learned about the request for comments in the last month before the deadline, some were able to send their perspectives on specific anticipated impacts of Terminator. Groups will now work to contribute in other ways to the meeting of 8(j) so that government delegates will agree to recommend a ban on Terminator to the CBD COP8 meeting in March 2006 in Brazil.
Read some of the comments submitted to the CBD Working Group on Article 8(j):
Indigenous Peoples of Peru, leaders and community members from six districts and twenty-six communities met to discuss Terminator and sent the following detailed submission:
- Read submission of comments on the Potential Impacts of Terminator
- Press Release, October 6, 2005: Indigenous People Defend United Nations "Terminator" Ban
- View Photographs from the gathering (Sept 26-27 2005)
Ugandans Reject Sterile GMO "Terminator" Seeds, Food Rights Network (FORINET), Eastern Uganda
Joint submission from
ANDES (The Quechua-Aymara Association for Nature Conservation and Sustainable Development),
Call of the Earth Llamado de la Tierra,
Catholic Institute for International Relations,
ETC Group,
Gaia Foundation,
GRAIN,
Indigenous Peoples Biodiversity Network,
International Union of Food, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco and Allied Workers' Associations (IUF),
Third World Network
Pakistan farmers' groups sent a video documentary with this statement
SEARICE Southeast Asia Regional Initiatives for Community Empowerment
Comments were also sent by:
Agrarian group of attac in Wuppertal, Germany www.attac.de
Earth Peoples
Farmers' Legal Action Group - South Africa www.FLAG-SA.org
Fundación para la Investigación Participativa con Agricultores de Honduras (FIPAH)
GE Free Kapiti, New Zealand www.gefree.org.nz
Halifax Ecology Action Centre, Food Action Committee, Nova Scotia, Canada www.ecologyaction.ca
The Institute of Science in Society www.i-sis.org.uk
Indigenous World Association & Na Koa Ikaika o Ka Lahui Hawaii
Kenya Small Scale Farmers' Forum
Mediterranean Information Office for Environment, Culture and Sustainable Development
www.mio-ecsde.org
Save Our World, UK www.save-our-world.net
Sustainable Living Systems, USA www.sustainablelivingsystems.org
South Africa Biofarm Institute www.sabiofarm.co.za
United Confederation of Taíno People www.uctp.org
UK Platform on Food Sovereignty
USC Canada and USC Canada, West Africa, Seeds of Survival www.usc-canada.org
As well, "hundreds" of individuals reportedly sent comments.