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WTO香港會議 反對者連署拒絕基因改造

2005年12月19日
ENS香港報導;劉文彥、丁秋仁編譯;莫聞審校

世界貿易組織(WTO)部長級會議於香港會議中心展開一連串貿易談判期間,場外抗議團體14日向世貿組織主席拉米(Pascal Lamy)遞交一份連署書。此連署書中強烈反對美國、阿根廷及加拿大三國於會中提出關於基因改造食品之貿易爭端,並由來自超過100多個國家,13.5萬人和代表6仟萬人的740個組織共同簽署而成。

遞交訴願書的包括有法國農民波維(José Bové)、印度生態學者席瓦(Vandana Shiva)及英國籍歐洲議會議員暨綠黨成員盧卡斯(Caroline Lucas)等。

波維表示:「農民和消費者強力反對基因改造生物體(GMO),我們將採取行動讓歐洲遠離GMO,也讓全世界遠離基因改造農耕。」

請願書中要求WTO勿破壞個別國家的權利,例如對於歐洲各國,應採取適當措施,使其農地、環境以及消費者遠離由基因改造食品與作物引致的風險。

綠黨WTO談判代表盧卡斯指出:「個別國家有權決定是否讓GMO出現在他們的食物鏈或環境裡,這項權利是民主原則的關鍵要素,而民主原則更是歐盟之所以為歐盟的基礎。多數歐盟公民明確主張他們不希望基因改造有機體出現在社區裡,無論WTO和歐盟,都無權推翻他們的這項權利。」

環保團體「國際地球之友主席」拉曼(Meena Raman)在香港發表聲明說:「WTO不應強迫任何人食用基因改造食品。不應該讓WTO決定我們究竟該吃什麼,也不該讓WTO決定我們該如何保護自己的環境。WTO請不要再把手伸到我們的食品!」

國際地球之友15日出版一份報告《自由質易的專制》(The Tyranny of Free Trade),於其中揭露當前WTO貿易談判對人類與環境的危險性,報告下載網址為www.foei.org/publications/pdfs/tyranny.pdf

Protesters Attempt to Influence World Trade Talks
HONG KONG, China, December 14, 2005 (ENS)

Campaigners today delivered a petition to World Trade Organization (WTO) Director General during trade talk taking place at the Hong Kong Convention Center. The petition opposing the WTO trade dispute over generally modified food filed by the United States, Argentina and Canada was signed by more than 135,000 people from 100 countries and more than 740 organizations representing 60 million people.

French Farmer José Bové, Indian ecologist Vandana Shiva, and Caroline Lucas, Green Party Member of the European Parliament for the UK, are among those who delivered the petition.

Bové said, "Farmers and consumers strongly oppose genetically modified organisms. We will take action to keep Europe free from GMOs and to protect the world from GM farming."

Through the petition citizens ask the WTO not to undermine the right of individual countries, in this case European countries, to take appropriate steps to protect their farmland, environment and consumers from the risks posed by genetically modified foods and crops.

Green Party WTO delegate Caroline Lucas MEP said, "The right of individual countries to decide whether or not to allow GMOs in their food chains or their environment is a key element of the democratic principles which are supposed to underpin the EU itself. Neither the WTO nor the EU have any right to overrule the clear majority of EU citizens who do not want GMOs in their communities."

Friends of the Earth International Chair Meena Raman said in Hong Kong, "The WTO should not force anybody to eat genetically modified foods. The WTO is the wrong place to be deciding what we eat and how we protect our environment. It is time for the WTO to get its hands off our food! "

The danger that current WTO trade negotiations pose to people and their environment is exposed in a new report, "The Tyranny of Free Trade," published Thursday by Friends of the Earth International.