Farmers Reject the Draft National Seed Act! November 21, 2014 First DSLR Video of Lok Sanjh Foundation Sustainable Agriculture Action Group (SAAG) strongly oppose the approval process that federal government follows to approve the proposed Seed Amendment Bill 2014 and Plant Breeders’ Rights Act and demand open, effective and larger consultations involving small farmers, civil society, experts on international law and representatives of national institutions. The proposed Seed Amendment Bill 2014 was tabled in the National Assembly on August 8, 2014 introduced by Minister for National Food Security and Research Sikandar Hayat Bosan. According to the minister “the amendment to the Seed Act 1976 was required as the act in its present form does not fulfill the requirement of modern seed industry.” According to the proposed bill, no unregistered person (that will include farmers) or institution will be allowed to stock, sell or barter or otherwise supplies any seeds without official permission and the sale of unauthorized hybrid and semi-hybrid seeds will be banned. It will be a punishable crime with prescribed fines and imprisonment. This bill if passed allows the multinational corporations to produce basic seed for its multiplication and certification, and also set up accredited seed testing laboratories. It allows them to register GM varieties with some conditions but has no damage clause included if the GM varieties found damaging for human health and environment. The draft seed act is a prime example of obedience of our governments, federal and provincial, to rich countries and their transnational corporations. In this case, the dictation of agro-chemical corporations such as Monsanto, Pioneer, and Syngenta is responsible for the draft Seed Act 2014. The US State Department, in a 2013 statement, has said that Pakistan has made “no tangible progress” in protecting agricultural intellectual property rights (IPRs), (which is needed under the World Trade Organization, TRIPs agreement). It also does not enforce IPRs for genetically modified organisms (GMOs). This, it said “deterred US seed companies from entering the Pakistani Market.” The proposed amended seed bill, which is in compliance with TRIPs, guarantees the private sector taking control over the livelihood of small farmers and is one of the most anti-farmer international law in third world countries such as Pakistan. Such a disastrous step will certainly worsen food insecurity in Pakistan. The draft seed act allows National Biosafety Committee to certify, “genetically modified variety shall have no adverse effect on the environment, human, animal or plant life or health.” While science is still silent on whether GMO seeds are safe or unsafe. Moreover, why countries like France and Germany with more advanced agricultural infrastructure has been the most prominent EU countries to put restrictions on GMOs? Russia and China have also banned various forms of GMOs. The people of Pakistan, particularly small and landless farmers demand the same protection of their livelihood, health and food as the more advanced nations of the world. We demand provincial governments to come forward and play their critical role in protecting small farmers’ seed rights. Farmers in Pakistan are being forced to become pawns of the corporate seed sector. This is imperialism is at its best! Farmers will never allow corporations to control our seeds, the basis of our livelihood.” Press Conference Video
Posted on: Tue, 25 Nov 2014 12:01:47 +0000
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