Biosafety protocol
Whither biosafety?: in these days of Monsanto Laws, hope for real biosafety lies at the grassroots
Targetting biosafety laws
Authors:
; GRAIN
Publisher:
GRAIN, 2005
This opinion article examines political processes surrounding the Biosafety Protocol. It argues that, because of the actions of some national governments acting on behalf of Biotech firms, the protocol is failing to generate effective legislation at the national level.
Citing particular examples in Africa, Asia and Latin America, the paper argues that the fundamental problem with the biosafety policy process is that it is far removed from the grassroots with little opportunity for input by farmers and their representatives in individual countries. As such it is easily co-opted into tools for a GM industry determined to impose its GM crops on the planet. The fundamental problem here, according to the authors, is that these processes generally happen behind closed doors, far from grassroots realities, when they need to come down to the fields and the streets, where the issues matter most. Real biosafety, they believe, will not happen until this situation is reversed.
