3rd Letter to President Lula of Brasil

Letter sent 29/09/04

To the President of the Republic,

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva

Please allow me to address you on behalf of the Independent Science Panel (ISP) on Genetic Modification (GM). The ISP consists of two dozen prominent scientists from seven countries, spanning diverse disciplines, and who are concerned to provide critical scientific information to the global debate over genetic engineered crops, in view of its importance for the future of our food and agriculture.

We are writing to express our strong support for the many Brazilian environmental, consumer and small farmer groups who are asking you to honour your previous statement that you will not grant "special permission" again for GM soya to be planted in Brazil.

In this regard, I am pleased to draw your attention to the ISP's report, The Case for a GM-Free Sustainable World, which is an extensive review of the scientific and other evidence on the problems and hazards of GM crops and the manifold benefits of all forms of sustainable agriculture. Based on this, we are calling for a global ban on environmental release of GM crops, to make way for agroecology, organic farming and other forms of sustainable agriculture. The full report is available at the ISP website, www.indsp.org

It is clear, from the evidence presented in the ISP Report, that there are many unanswered questions on the safety of GM crops. Very few studies have been conducted, particularly as to the effects of GM foods on human health, and the few independent studies that have been carried out raise serious concerns. Research increasingly shows that GM crops can affect the environment and wildlife negatively, and have widespread socio-economic impacts.

We therefore ask you to listen to the voices of your own Environment Minister and the many others who have written to ask you to respect the Precautionary Principle that is enshrined in the Convention on Biological Diversity, which Brazil  ratified in 1994. The Precautionary Principle is also put into operation in the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety, which entered into force for Brazil on 22 February 2004. Given the scientific uncertainties and the fact that contamination between GM and non-GM crops is inevitable, we respectfully urge you to abide by the Precautionary Principle and not grant "special permission" for GM soya to be planted in Brazil.

Furthermore, we wish to remind you that Article 8(g)of the Convention obliges Brazil to "regulate, manage or control the risks associated with the use and release of living modified organisms resulting from biotechnology which are likely to have adverse environmental impacts that could affect the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity, taking also into account the risks to human health." As such, we call on your Government to restore the biosafety bill(Project Law) to the form in which it was originally approved by the Chamber of Deputies in February. The original bill guaranteed environmental security, consumer safety and national sovereignty, all of which will be devastated by the bill in its present modified form.

We also agree that it is of fundamental importance that local state governments be allowed to declare their territory GM-free if the people and the legislative assemblies opt for that, as has been the case in Santa Catarina, Paraná and Goiás.
Signed

Dr. Mae-Wan Ho for the Independent Science Panel
and the Institute of Science in Society, UK
PO Box 32097
London NW1 0XR