Thread: "MONSANTO" > GMs & MEXICO

http://www.americas.org/item_18915

The Butterfly's Tongue
Originally published in La Jornada, Mexico City, February 25, 2005
by Silvia Ribeiro*

Every year the Monarch butterfly travels a great distance from Canada and the United States all the way to Mexico, amazing the world with its beauty, but above all with the tenacity and strength of its very small and fragile body. This year, however, only 25 percent of the butterflies that normally migrate were able to arrive at their destination, according to a February 16th communiqué by the National Commission of Protected Natural Areas (CONANP).

The communiqué refers to preliminary results of a study conducted by the University of Guadalajara along with the World Wildlife Fund, according to which, one of the factors of the drastic decrease in the Monarch butterflies may be the growing area of transgenic crops in the United States and Canada, due to the fact that these crops use more agro-toxins. Furthermore, in 1999 Cornell University published an experimental study with transgenic corn pollen insecticide (Bt corn) showing that this was toxic for Monarch butterfly larva. The transnational producers of transgenic crops, like Novartis and Monsanto, rushed at that time to conduct their own studies (by definition, far from independent) to show that in field conditions, this would not be a threat. Of course, now they are not going to conduct any studies... But if they did, we would probably see it “scientifically demonstrated� that, in reality, the chemical and biological toxins are beneficial for the Monarch, and following the surrealist example of Mexican “justice,� they would likely show that 75 percent of the butterflies committed suicide.

This is a very similar logic to that of the legislators who on February 15th, 2005 committed the historic crime of approving the Monsanto Law, a bio-insecurity act by which they guarantee the creation of a high-risk natural and agricultural environment for the Monarch butterfly and for thousands of other different types of butterflies that exist in Mexico. Curiously, the communiqué from CONANP appeared the day after this fateful resolution.

Obviously, neither the legislators nor the scientists who against all professional ethics defended this act know the language of the butterfly or listen to their signals. Just like in the film (Butterfly) by José Luis Cuerda, where the professor who teaches his students to recognize the butterfly’s tongue is punished by the fascists of Franco’s Spain, this act has cleared the way for farmers and the indigenous, who for millennia have known how to sow their seeds and live in harmony with their crops, to be treated like criminals when the transnational companies that control the transgenic seeds accuse them of “unauthorized use of a patent� because of the transgenic contamination of their crops.

Already in 2004, Monsanto threatened the farmers of Chiapas, in local newspaper ads, with fines and even prison time if the presence of patented genes were discovered in their fields. In 2005, surely encouraged by the success of their “campaign� with the Mexican legislators, Monsanto purchased Seminis (part of it was previously called Grupo Pulsar, created and directed by Alfonso Romo from Monterrey, friend and financier of the presidential campaign of Vicente Fox). They thus took ownership of the thousands of unique samples of corn, chile and other crops originating from Mexico, that Seminis had collected in Chiapas and other states without permission to collect them given that it was a “Mexican� company. It would not be surprising if eventually Monsanto were to develop transgenic varieties using these native seeds, contaminate the seeds that exist and try to charge farmers and the indigenous for the use of patented materials.
Contamination and generalized criminalization is the future promised by transgenic crops, now strengthened thanks to the Monsanto Act.

The drastic decrease of the Monarch butterfly is just one of the many possible indicators. The CONANP declares that the capacity for recovery of the Monarch butterfly is surprising and that this time they will also find ways to recover. It is possible, although it remains to be seen how many more transgenic crops and toxins they will tolerate. What is certain is that the indigenous people and farmers of Mexico, apparently “small and fragile� and whose languages are also in danger of becoming extinct, will continue weaving multiple forms of resistance against this renewed legal and biological aggression.

*Researcher for ETC Group

Translated by Aaron Maus

More from MEXICO and the CAFTA SET-UP![quote]http://www.americas.org/item_17274
<snip>
Thus, while the Chamber of Deputies threatens to pass a biosecurity initiative that exclusively benefits the multinationals which control genetically modified (GM) crops throughout the country, the common folk of Mexico, the men, women and children of corn, weave proposals and actions to defend themselves from this new legal aggression against indigenous peoples, campesinos and against all those people in rural areas or in cities who recognize themselves in corn. Because as Bonfil Batalla says : “Corn, society, culture and history are inseparable. Our past and our present are founded in corn. Our life is based on corn. We are corn people.â€? Corn, which impregnates all of Mexican lifeâ€â€

This "law" 2ndamendsis is the same type of law that was forced down the throats of the Iraqis... a law forbidding natural seed....by the Iraqi Provisional Government....backed by agi-business...BEFORE the Iraqis even had time to catch their breath and finish up with their Free Elections, form their Constitution, and let such important decisions as this one, BE MADE BY THE IRAQI PEOPLE.

This law was passed in Iraq by an "interim american controlled provisional government" during a war affecting people who had no water, no electricity, with bombs going off every day...and no time to WATCH their temporary masters at the WHEEL of WORLD DOMINATION OF THE WORLD'S FOOD SUPPLY.

Remember that article I posted about the Depopulation of Mexico's farmland, 2ndamendsis, this POST connects the dots....the rabbit is near!!

GREAT WORK 2ndamendsis!!

I know JUDY! This is something that I was NOT aware of HOWEVER, my instincts said...............we've got to have Mexico involved.

Now we know!!

{BTW, would you mind pulling the url for the Iraqi agreement for me?}

I hope everyone understands how important this is in referrence to CAFTA/FTAA!! It's a pain in the neck to read this type of thing but it's necessary in order to understand the big picture.

Here is the link to the article I posed "CONTROL THE FOOD CONTROL THE WORLD" which has the discussion of the Iraqi farming law and how it came about.

https://www.alipac.us/ftopict-2079-control.html+food+control

Let me now if you need anything else!!



https://www.alipac.us/ftopict-2248-depopulate.html+mexico

Here is the link to the story on Depopulating Mexico's vast farmland areas, sending the farmers off the land seeking new lives....in cities of Mexico and then when they found nothing...they were urged to go to the United States. This was for genetically modified I'm certain. Your article confirms that.

JUDY, can't see the link? Sure it's there?

2ndamendsis-now try! For some reason when I transferred it, another one for HR 688 got in there instead, so I deleted it and had to go back and find it again. Now, it should be there. Also, note there are two stories in the topic....the one on Iraq....and the genetically modified transgenic scheme put down on the Iraqis AND the Kellogs Gutierrez story on their genetically modified purchasing program. Remember, Gutierrez was from Mexico, he ran Kellogs entire Mexican business operation. No surprise that the GM boys got into Mexico. I'll get the article on Depopulating Mexico...and post the link on that one as well...because it all ties in....to finding the Rabbit!!

THANX - J