GMW: NZ doing GM exporters' dirty work

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GMW: NZ doing GM exporters' dirty work

" GM WATCH " <info

Fri, 3 Jun 2005 10:15:20 +0100

 

 

 

GM WATCH daily

http://www.gmwatch.org

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NZ Environment Minister Marian Hobbs is well known for her incompetence

and stupidity but few would have credited that she'd actually manage to

turn NZ first into an international laughing stock and now worse.

 

After New Zealand's earlier wholly negative tactics, the latest word

we've had from a journalist covering the talks in Montreal is that " the

bone of contention is Article 18 - relating to handling, transport,

packaging and identification of LMOs. Here some good changes proposed by

the Working Group are not acceptable to Brazil and New Zealand. " He also

says New Zealand action is attributable to the US.

 

Brazil's action at least comes from a country that's a GM exporter.

That's not the case with NZ and coming on top of its support for

Terminator and its support for the US's WTO action over GMOs, this is

the final

nail in the coffin of the NZ government's reputation.

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NZ doing GE exporters' dirty work

Friday, 3 June 2005

Press Release: Green Party

http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PA0506/S00087.htm

 

New Zealand is doing the dirty work for pro-GE countries outside the

Cartagena Protocol on bio-safety by trying to unravel the deal from the

inside, says Green Co-Leader Jeanette Fitzsimons.

 

Greenpeace International, the Third World Network and the Friends of

the Earth International last night condemned what they called " the lone

attempts " of the New Zealand Government to " derail " Cartagena, an

international agreement setting rules on trade in Genetically Modified

Organisms, at talks in Montreal. This follows criticism of New Zealand

earlier in the week from the Malaysian delegate, Gurdial Singh Nijar.

 

" On Tuesday, Marian Hobbs claimed in Parliament that Mr Nijar's

statements were untrue and denied that New Zealand was trying to

undermine the

Cartagena Protocol. This information received last night from NGO

observers at the Montreal conference confirms Mr Nijar's concerns, "

said Ms

Fitzsimons.

 

" Ms Hobbs said New Zealand is 'inside the tent' on Cartagena, but this

report suggests that we're trying to tear 'the tent' down. "

 

Doreen Stabinsky, a GE campaigner with Greenpeace International, has

said, " There is no way to describe New Zealand's behaviour at these talks

as other than obstructionist. They don't want this agreement to happen

and they are doing everything they can to stop it - even if that means

isolating New Zealand from the entire rest of the world. "

 

Ms Fitzsimons: " New Zealand is being a poor international citizen,

acting on behalf of other pro-GE countries which have not ratified the

Protocol and so don't get a vote. We should not be doing the dirty

work of

the US and others who are standing aside from this treaty.

 

The three NGOs report: " The New Zealand delegation is continuing to

block consensus on key provisions regarding the information that must

accompany GMOs in international trade. Instead of defending New Zealand

national law that requires the labelling of genetically modified food,

and

presumably requires that importers and food manufacturers know whether

the ingredients they import are or are not genetically modified, the NZ

negotiators continue to argue that shipments of commodities such as

corn or soy should merely state that they 'may contain' GMOs. By

continuing with this stance, New Zealand is blocking consensus on the

main item

under negotiation in Montreal. "

 

 

Ms Fitzsimons: " This move on labelling is a deliberate attempt to

prevent consumers knowing what is in their food and countries from

knowing

what is crossing their borders.

 

" Other observers have reported to us that New Zealand is also blocking

consensus on the formation of a group to consider risk assessment and

the rules for the compliance committee. Apparently it is being asked in

the corridors 'why did New Zealand become a party if their only

intention was to lower the standards of the Protocol?'.

 

" This all surely confirms my earlier concerns that New Zealand's

actions are those of a country that is trying to secure minimal

liability for

its GE exports, rather than protection for our environment and economy

from GE imports, " said Ms Fitzsimons.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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