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Terminator & Traitor
Latest Publications
Date: May 21, 2008
Language: English
Captain Hook Awards for Biopiracy 2008
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Download PDF2 (4 MB) - about 765 seconds on a 56k modem(PDF2 above contains the complete poster)
News Release
Coalition Against Biopiracy
Wednesday, 21 May 2008
www.captainhookawards.org
www.etcgroup.org
Captain Hook Awards for Biopiracy 2008
The Coalition Against Biopiracy* exposes Hooks and celebrates Cogs
Winners announced at the UN’s Biodiversity Convention in BonnToday the world learned which corporations, governments, institutions and individuals earned a spot in biopiracy’s hall of shame when the Coalition Against Biopiracy (CAB) announced the winners of the 5th Captain Hook Awards at a lunch-time ceremony during the Ninth Conference of the Parties (COP9) to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in Bonn, Germany.
“The Maritim Hotel, where the CBD meets this week and next,... Read More
Categories: Biodiversity & Genetic Resources, Biopiracy, Biotechnology, Geoengineering, Human Genomics, Human Rights / Farmers' Rights, Intellectual Property & Patents, Other, Synthetic Biology, Terminator & Traitor
Date: Jun 13, 2007
Language: English
Suicide-Seed Sequel: EU’s “Transcontainer” Turns Terminator into Zombie
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Download (142 KB) - about 25 seconds on a 56k modem* also available in french*
ETC Group today releases “Terminator: The Sequel,” a Communiqué reporting on new research related to “suicide seeds” and other genetically modified (GM) seed technologies that pose unacceptable threats to farmers, biodiversity and food sovereignty.
Today ETC Group reports on a new crop of genetic engineering technologies that are being promoted as a biosafety solution to the unwanted spread of transgenes from GM crops, trees and pharmaceutical-producing plants. In practice, these technologies, if commercialized, will allow the multinational seed industry to tighten its grasp on proprietary seeds and to restrict the rights of farmers.
Categories: Biodiversity & Genetic Resources, Biological Warfare, Biotechnology, FAO, Human Rights / Farmers' Rights, Intellectual Property & Patents, Public / Private Relations, Terminator & Traitor
Date: Jun 13, 2007
Language: English
Terminator: The Sequel
Download PDF (1 MB) - about 205 seconds on a 56k modem* also available in french*
Despite the fact that governments re-affirmed and strengthened the United Nations’ moratorium on Terminator technology (a.k.a. genetic use restriction technology [GURTs]) in March 2006, public and private sector researchers are developing a new generation of suicide seeds – using chemically induced “switches” to turn a genetically modified (GM) plant’s fertility on or off.
Issue: Under the guise of biosafety, the European Union’s 3-year Transcontainer Project is investing millions of euros in strategies that cannot promise fail-safe containment of transgenes from GM crops, but could nonetheless function as Terminator, posing unacceptable threats to farmers, biodiversity and food sovereignty. Terminator technology – genetic seed... Read More
Categories: Biodiversity & Genetic Resources, Biological Warfare, Biotechnology, Corporate Concentration, Human Rights / Farmers' Rights, Intellectual Property & Patents, Public / Private Relations, Terminator & Traitor
Date: May 31, 2007
Language: English
Bill to Ban Terminator Introduced in Canada
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Download PDF2 (76 KB) - about 14 seconds on a 56k modemNews Release
ETC Group
May 31, 2007
www.etcgroup.org
Bill to Ban Terminator Introduced in Canada
A bill to prohibit field testing and commercialization of Terminator seed technology was introduced in the Canadian Parliament today. Terminator refers to plants that are genetically engineered to render sterile seeds at harvest - a technology that aims to maximize seed industry profits by preventing farmers from re-planting harvested seed.
"Canada needs to pass this bill into law because genetic seed sterilization is dangerous and blatantly anti-farmer - suicide seeds threaten to intensify corporate control over Canadian agriculture and offers no benefits for farmers," said Colleen Ross of the National Farmers Union.
Initially developed by the US Department of Agriculture and... Read More
Categories: Biodiversity & Genetic Resources, Corporate Concentration, Human Rights / Farmers' Rights, Intellectual Property & Patents, Terminator & Traitor
Date: May 03, 2007
Language: English
REVOKED!! Monsanto Monopoly Nixed in Munich
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Download (135 KB) - about 24 seconds on a 56k modemETC Group
News Release
3 May 2007
www.etcgroup.org
REVOKED!! Monsanto Monopoly Nixed in Munich
but little joy in foiling soy ploy at this late dateMunich – The European Patent Office today put the brakes on Monsanto’s over-the-top corporate greed by revoking its species-wide patent on all genetically modified soybeans (EP0301749) – a patent unprecedented in its broad scope. ETC Group, an international civil society organization based in Canada, won its 13-year legal challenge against Monsanto’s species-wide soybean patent when an EPO appeal board ruled that the patent was not new or sufficient (i.e., the invention claimed was not sufficiently described for a skilled person to repeat it). The patent challenge was supported by Greenpeace and “No Patents on Life!” Dr. Ricarda Steinbrecher of UK-based EcoNexus also joined... Read More
Categories: Biodiversity & Genetic Resources, Biopiracy, Biotechnology, Corporate Concentration, Human Rights / Farmers' Rights, Intellectual Property & Patents, "New Enclosures", Public / Private Relations, Terminator & Traitor
Date: Aug 16, 2006
Language: English
Monsanto Acquires Delta & Pine Land and Terminator
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Download (162 KB) - about 29 seconds on a 56k modemNews Release
ETC Group
16 August 2006
www.etcgroup.org
www.banterminator.org
Monsanto Announces Takeover of Delta & Pine Land and Terminator Seed Technology (again)
In a quest to expand its corporate seed empire - Monsanto, the world's largest seed enterprise - announced yesterday that it will buy the world's leading cotton seed company, Mississippi-based (USA) Delta & Pine Land, for US$1.5 billion. Monsanto and Delta & Pine Land (D&PL) together account for over 57% of the US cotton seed market. With D&PL subsidiaries in 13 countries - including major markets such as China, India, Brazil, Mexico, Turkey and Pakistan - the takeover means that Monsanto will command a dominant position in one of the world's most important agricultural trade commodities and that millions of cotton farmers will be... Read More
Categories: Biopiracy, Biotechnology, CGIAR, Corporate Concentration, Cultural Diversity, FAO, Human Rights / Farmers' Rights, Intellectual Property & Patents, "New Enclosures", Terminator & Traitor
Date: May 15, 2006
Language: English
WCC Demands Action to Stop Terminator Seeds
15 May 2006
The General Secretary of the World Council of Churches today issued a strong condemnation of Terminator seeds and called on churches and ecumenical partners to take action to stop the technology. The Rev. Dr. Samuel Kobia warned that sterile seed technology would increase economic injustice all over the world.
The WCC's news release is available here.
15.05.06
World Council Of Churches
Take Action to Stop Terminator Seeds Demands WCC General Secretary
The general secretary of the World Council of Churches, Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia, called upon churches and... Read More
Categories: Terminator & Traitor
Date: Mar 31, 2006
Language: English
UN Upholds Moratorium on Terminator Seed Technology
Download PDF (123 KB) - about 22 seconds on a 56k modemBan Terminator Campaign
News Release
31 March 2006
www.etcgroup.org
www.banterminator.org
UN Upholds Moratorium on Terminator Seed Technology
Worldwide Movement of Farmers, Indigenous Peoples and Civil Society Organizations Calls for Ban
It's official. Governments at the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) have unanimously upheld the international de facto moratorium on Terminator technology - plants that are genetically engineered to produce sterile seeds at harvest. The 8th meeting of the CBD ended today in Curitiba, Brazil.
"The CBD has soundly rejected the efforts of Canada, Australia and New Zealand - supported by the US government and the biotechnology industry - to undermine the moratorium on suicide seeds," said Maria Jose Guazzelli of Centro Ecologico, a Brazil-based agro-ecological... Read More
Categories: Terminator & Traitor
Date: Mar 29, 2006
Language: English
Captain Hook Awards for Biopiracy 2006
Download PDF (176 KB) - about 31 seconds on a 56k modemThe Coalition Against Biopiracy exposed the globe's nastiest biopirates and rewarded the most steadfast resistors at the Captain Hook Awards on 24 March during the meeting of the 8th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity in Curitiba, Brazil. This ETC Group Communique provides a detailed description of the 2006 award winners.
Categories: Biopiracy, CGIAR, Biodiversity & Genetic Resources, Cultural Diversity, Human Rights / Farmers' Rights, Terminator & Traitor, Biotechnology, Human Genomics, Nanotechnology, Corporate Concentration, Intellectual Property & Patents, "New Enclosures", Public / Private Relations
Date: Mar 27, 2006
Language: English
Terminator Rejected! A victory for the people
Download PDF (85 KB) - about 15 seconds on a 56k modemBan Terminator & ETC Group
News Release
24 March 2006
Terminator Rejected! A victory for the people
A broad coalition of peasant farmers, Indigenous Peoples and civil society today celebrates the firm rejection of efforts to undermine the global moratorium on Terminator technologies - genetically engineered sterile seeds - at the meeting of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in Curitiba, Brazil.
"This is a momentous day for the 1.4 billion poor people worldwide, who depend on farmer saved seeds," said Francisca Rodriguez of Via Campesina a global movement of peasant farmers. "Terminator seeds are a weapon of mass destruction and an assault on our food sovereignty."
"Terminator directly threatens our life, our culture and our identity as Indigenous Peoples," said Viviana Figueroa... Read More
Categories: Corporate Concentration, Intellectual Property & Patents, Terminator & Traitor
Date: Mar 22, 2006
Language: English
News Release: Ban Terminator Campaign -- Terminator Seed Battle Begins: Farmers Face Billions of Dollars in Potential Costs
Download PDF (134 KB) - about 24 seconds on a 56k modemBan Terminator Campaign
News Release
www.banterminator.org
22nd March 2006
Terminator Seed Battle Begins:
Farmers Face Billions of Dollars in Potential Costs
Curitiba, Brazil. After a week that has seen a worldwide mobilisation against Terminator technology, the issue of Suicide Seeds is about to hit the negotiating floor of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) meeting in Curitiba, Brazil. Known to the CBD as GURTs (Genetic Use Restriction Technologies), Terminator crops are genetically modified to create sterile seeds at harvest so that farmers must buy new seed every season. Today the Ban Terminator Campaign, a global coalition of over 500 organisations, released new financial calculations indicating that Terminator seeds will impose a burden of billions of extra dollars in seed costs on some of the world's poorest nations.... Read More
Categories: Biodiversity & Genetic Resources, Biopiracy, Biotechnology, CGIAR, Corporate Concentration, Cultural Diversity, Human Rights / Farmers' Rights, Intellectual Property & Patents, "New Enclosures", Other, Public / Private Relations, Terminator & Traitor
Date: Mar 02, 2006
Language: English
Monsanto Apologizes
Download PDF (170 KB) - about 30 seconds on a 56k modemA 21 February news release from the Ban Terminator Campaign reported on Monsanto's revised pledge on Terminator. Whereas the company made a public commitment in 1999 not to use Terminator technology, its new pledge suggests that it would use Terminator seeds in non-food crops and does not rule out other uses in the future. Now Monsanto's Director of Public Policy has written an apology to the Ban Terminator Campaign and concedes that it didn't really mean it would consider using Terminator in non-food crops.
Categories: Biodiversity & Genetic Resources, Terminator & Traitor, Corporate Concentration, Intellectual Property & Patents
Date: Feb 21, 2006
Language: English
Monsanto May Commercialize Terminator
Download PDF (111 KB) - about 20 seconds on a 56k modemBan Terminator
www.BanTerminator.org
News Release,
21 February 2006
Monsanto May Commercialize Terminator
Biotech Giant Revises Pledge on Sterile Seed Technology as Global Alliance Calls for a Ban.
Monsanto, the world's largest seed and agbiotech company, made a public promise in 1999 not to commercialize 'Terminator Technology' - plants that are genetically engineered to produce sterile seeds. Now Monsanto says it may develop or use the so-called 'suicide seeds' after all. The revised pledge from Monsanto now suggests that it would use Terminator seeds in non-food crops and does not rule out other uses of Terminator in the future. (1) Monsanto's modified stance comes to light as the biotech and seed industry confront peasant and farmer movements, Indigenous peoples and their allies in an escalating battle at the United Nations over the future of Terminator.
In... Read More
Categories: Terminator & Traitor
Date: Jan 27, 2006
Language: English
Granada's Grim Sowers Plow Up Moratorium on Terminator, Clear the Path for its Approval at UN
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Download PDF2 (100 KB) - about 18 seconds on a 56k modemETC Group
Ban Terminator Campaign
News Release
27 January 2006
www.etcgroup.org
www.banterminator.org
Granada's Grim Sowers
Plow up Moratorium on Terminator,
Clear the Path for its Approval at UN
Terminator Opponents Prepare for Battle
at COP8 in Curitiba, Brazil March 20-31, 2006
Indigenous peoples were betrayed and Farmers' Rights trampled at a UN meeting this week when the Australian, New Zealand and Canadian governments - guided by the US government and a brazen cabal of corporate Gene Giants - took a major step to undermine the existing moratorium on Terminator technology (i.e., plants that are genetically modified to produce sterile seeds at harvest). The damaging recommendations from the meeting in Granada, Spain, now go to the upcoming 8th biennial meeting of the UN's Convention on Biological Diversity... Read More
Categories: Biodiversity & Genetic Resources, Biopiracy, Biotechnology, Corporate Concentration, Cultural Diversity, Human Rights / Farmers' Rights, Intellectual Property & Patents, "New Enclosures", Public / Private Relations, Terminator & Traitor
Date: Jan 23, 2006
Language: English
ETC Group at the World Social Forum, Caracas,Venezuela, January 24 - 29, 2006
ETC Group at the World Social Forum, Caracas Venezuela, January 24 - 29, 2006
From Biotechnology to Nanotechnology
Hotel Caracas Hilton - Rotisserie
Friday Jan 27th
8:30 - 11:30
A panel discussion with Pat Mooney (ETC Group, Canada), Andres Barreda, (CASIFOP, Mexico), Elizabeth Bravo (Accion Ecologica, Ecuador), Edgardo Lander (Universidad Central de Venezuela), Silvia Ribeiro (ETC Group, Mexico).
The debate will focus on the social, economic and environmental impacts of biotech on local communities and what we can expect with the advance of nanotechnology - the manipulation of matter, both living and non-living, at the scale of atoms and molecules.
Biopiracy, Human Genomics and New Technologies
Colegio Universitario de Caracas, La Floresta, 2nd floor, Room 204
Saturday Jan 28
15:30 - 18:00
This workshop will include presentations and debate on the... Read More
Categories: Biopiracy, Biotechnology, Corporate Concentration, Nanotechnology, Terminator & Traitor