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The Hindu

Article Summary   by:jitendra kumar sharma    
  • Summary rating: 2 stars (2 Ratings)
  • Visits : 298
  • words:600 
ª
 
2/15/2006



ABSTRACT BY Dr. JITENDRA KUMAR SHARMA

America's
plan is to force GM food on the world

World Trade Organization officials
resented being called irresponsible, secretive bureaucrats and accused of transgressing
national sovereignty, the environment or human rights for promoting Freed
Trade. That was when the global-trade policeman decided disputes that did not
concern the Europeans.

The WTO’s latest ruling will greatly
increase its detractors. This week three WTO judges after years of secret
deliberation ruled that Europe had imposed a ban on GM food imports between
1999 and 2003, violating WTO rules and Austria, France, Germany, Greece, Italy,
and Luxembourg had no legal grounds for their unilateral import bans.
"Europe guilty!" cried the U.S. media.

A
few bureaucrats in the U.S., EU, Argentina, and Canada had access to the full
1,045-page report, and a much-edited summary got leaked. No one is taking
responsibility for the ruling that would force EU to pay millions to compensate
the world's most subsidized farmers, and change the laws of the culprit
countries.

Consequently, the U.S.A. has won a lot of
new enemies and the opposition to GM foods has grown since 2004 when the case
was instituted.

Europe, its member-states, and consumers
have rejected the ruling making the WTO appear incompetent to rule on issues
concerning the environment, health, and consumer choice.

The European Commission, a zealot for
introducing GM crops in Europe finds the ruling "irrelevant" as its
laws have been changed. Individual countries will resist its enforcement.



Hungary and Poland say they will remain GM-free. Greece and
Austria have reiterated their opposition to the GM crops. Italy considers WTO
ruling "unbalanced" More than 3,500 elected councils in 170 European
regions have declared themselves GM-free.

The WTO, EC or U.S. are helpless against
this coalition of the unwilling. If the U.S. re- imposes its GM products as in
the 1990s, the move will backfire. The real reason for the U.S. hauling Europe
to the WTO court to help its GM companies to force entry into China, India,
south-east Asia, Latin America, and Africa, where most U.S. exports now and
millions of tonnes of U.S. food aid go. More than two-thirds of exported U.S.
corn now goes to Asia and Africa. Once it went to Europe.

Like the tobacco industry, GM companies
are now focusing exclusively on developing countries. But there is stiff
opposition from powerful unions and farming groups. Brazil has caved in, but Bolivia
is uniquely and boldly about to reject GM. Major demonstrations in the
Philippines, Korea, Indonesia, and India's largest farmers' organization affirm
increasing opposition even as the WTO verdict will make the US dumping of GM
food on the developing countries more aggressive.



-An Abstract of The Hindu
article “America's plan is to force GM food on the world” 2/15/2006

==============The
End============
Published: February 15, 2006   
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