EMF-Omega-News
Citizens Initiative Omega | 10.06.2003 15:56
Electromagnetic waves linked to children's brain tumor - Cell Phone Radiation Slows Down Brain Speed - Archive of Total Information Awareness site - Letter to the Brasilian Government
Fw: Japanese Study-Danger Within 100 Meters of Power Lines
Electromagnetic waves linked to children's brain tumor
------------------------------------------------------
.c Kyodo News Service
TOKYO, June 7 (Kyodo) - Exposure to electromagnetic waves from high-voltage power lines and some electronic appliances could increase the risk of brain tumor among children who live close to the source of emission, according to a three-year government-sponsored study.
Ultralow frequency electromagnetic waves are produced primarily by high-voltage power grids, whose effects on human bodies have been studied by overseas researchers. The same type of electromagnetic waves is also released in tiny amounts from computers and other home appliances.
While the study in Japan -- initiated three years ago by the former Science and Technology Agency, now part of the education ministry -- has shown a link between brain tumor and exposure to electromagnetic waves, authors of the report caution that the finding is not conclusive due to a limited size of the samples available for the project.
The study, undertaken by the National Institute for Environmental Studies, Tokyo Women's Medical University and others, compared the level of electromagnetic waves in the bedrooms of 100 healthy children and 60 children suffering from brain tumor below age 15, examining each case over a one-week period.
The researchers then tabulated the data after adding factors such as the average level of electromagnetic waves in the entire house, the extent of use of electric appliances and the distance between a child's room and a high-voltage power line.
The results, posted on the education ministry Web site on Friday, show that children exposed to more than 0.3 microtesla of extralow frequency electromagnetic waves, or three times the normal level, are 10 times more likely to develop brain tumor.
The researchers found that the level of electromagnetic waves actually topped 0.3 microtesla in the rooms of five children with brain tumor and one healthy child, and the rooms of three of the children with brain tumor were located within 100 meters of a high-voltage power transmission line.
The researchers have also found that exposure to electromagnetic waves above 0.4 microtesla would double the risk of childhood leukemia. The final report released Friday says the risk of developing acute lymphoblastic leukemia is comparatively higher than the risk
of acute myelogenous and other types of leukemia.
The electromagnetic waves emitted by high-voltage power lines are different from the electromagnetic waves that come from mobile phones and microwave ovens, where the frequency is much higher.
06/06/03 15:55 EDT
Copyright 2003 The Kyodo News Service. The information contained in the Kyodo news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Kyodo News Service. All active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.
and
Re: Cell phones and brain speed (Protsman)(Curry)....
-----------------------------------------------------
Roy and Jim, I think this is an interesting diagnostic, but it must be difficult to perform a controlled experiment, because of the range of variation you might expect in anyt individual's ability to count at the same rate without any RF exposure. Also, keep in mind that a previous published study showed an actual speedup in some mental tasks, when the subjects were exposed to RF radiation. (I have forgotten who the author of the study was.) In that case, the reason for speedup was thought to be heating of the brain, and what was important was not whether cognitive function speeded up or was slowed down, but the fact that it was altered - something that might have health implications.|Bill P. Curry, Ph.D. Physics is fun (630) 858-9377 Fax (630) 858-9159| EMSciTeck Consulting Company |
Cell Phone Radiation Slows Down Brain Speed
-------------------------------------------
Note to anybody wishing to publish this article or use excerpts therefrom: This article is based upon studies reported in my 2003 book, Brain Speed and the Body Electric, which assembles a wealth of proof showing that electromagnetic (EM) energy slows down nerve conduction. This is the smoking gun that many researchers have been looking for as they explore the possible health effects of EM radiation upon humans. When nerve conduction slows down, it adversely affects mental performance in every measurable skill category (memory, reading, computation, verbal fluency, verbal creativity, thinking, and reaction time).
It also adversely affects physical performance. This article concentrates upon the cell phone and the way its radiation lowers brain speed, and it shows the reader how to use a simple technique for measuring changes in brain speed. Anybody can use this simple scientific technique, which should appeal to most readers. Use of this article is permissible only if proper credit is given to the author.
Cell Phone Radiation Slows Down Brain Speed
James Protsman
Controversy swirls around the subject of the health effects of cell phones. The radiofrequency electromagnetic (EM) radiation emitted by a cell phone is known to penetrate the skull, but does this lead to the development of cancer, especially malignant brain tumors which are on the rise? The new cell phone towers springing up everywhere greatly increase our daily dosage of radiation. Is this healthy for us?
A study by the California. Department of Health Services, eight years in the making, and which can be seen online, suggests there is a connection between exposure to EM radiation and childhood leukemia, brain cancer, Lou Gehrig's disease (ALS), miscarriages, and possibly suicide.
The scientific proof connecting health problems with cell phones convinces some people and scientists that a danger exists, but the majority of people and lots of scientists remain skeptical. They want more evidence. More evidence is now available.
It now can be demonstrated that EM radiation from cell phones slows down nerve conduction, or the speed at which vital regulatory messages travel through the body's nervous system. This reduces the effectiveness of the nervous system, which in turn could reduce the ability of the immune system to protect our bodies from disease of all kinds. It certainly slows down reaction time, which makes cell phone use dangerous while driving.
You can detect for yourself the effect of cell phone radiation upon your brain by measuring changes in brain speed. Brain speed is a rough measure of nerve conduction speed. If you don't have a cell phone, the handset from a wireless phone will work almost as well.
For best results in this self-test, remove the metal from your hands (rings, bracelets, watches). This elimination will increase your sensitivity to the effects of EM radiation; to increase your sensitivity even more, remove shoes and socks. Males (especially postpuberty males) will get stronger testing results than females, because the electrical system in a male generates more electrical current than in a female.
(1) Hold a cell phone in your hand and silently in your head count to 50 as fast as you can. This is a rough measure of brain speed. Pay attention to the amount of effort this takes. Time yourself with a stopwatch or the second hand of a timepiece.
(2) Put the phone down and step away at least six feet (two meters) from it. You should be near no other electrical devices. Do not look at the phone. Again silently in your head count to 50 as fast as you can.
If it takes more effort and time to count to 50 when in contact with a cell phone, this means the phone's radiation slows down nerve conduction in your body, which slows down brain speed. It means you are sensitive to EM radiation. The term for this is electrosensitivity.
(3) Put the cell phone on a table. Put the palm of your hand one foot above it, and again count to 50 as fast as you can. Pay attention to the amount of effort this takes, and time yourself. Compare this self-test to when you were standing away from the phone.
The palm of your hand is a very sensitive responder to EM radiation, and even though it is a foot away from the phone, the phone's energy can still penetrate your body at this distance and slow down nerve conduction.
(4) Put the cell phone in a pocket and do the counting test again. Compare this to when the cell phone is several feet away from you, and you are not near other electronic devices.
Body contact with a cell phone can knock down brain speed if you are sensitive to EM radiation.
(5) Concentration can be measured in a rough sort of way by (a) counting by 2's to 50, or (b) by counting backward from 50 to 1. You know the numbers well, but to do either of these mental tasks extra concentration is necessary. Do one of these counting tests when you are holding a phone, and one when the phone is at least six feet away from you and you are not looking at it--or any electronic device.
If this concentration exercise goes slower when your body is being radiated by the cell phone, this means you are electrosensitive.
The phone does not have to be on to produce radiation effects. It radiates energy even when it is off. When it is on, this energy intensifies quite a bit.
What about all the cell phone towers popping up on the landscape that transmit radiofrequency signals (a form of EM energy) so that we can make cell phone calls to places far and wide? If you are electrosensitive, this radiation can have a dummying effect upon your brain as much as a half mile away from the tower. Because this radiation penetrates just about everything, it doesn't matter that there are buildings or trees between you and the source of radiation. EM radiation penetrates these things as if they didn't exist. That is why you can use your cell phone inside a building.
Cell phones are banned in many hospitals because their radiation interferes with the sensitive electronic devices used by modern medicine to keep us alive. The electrical system in your brain is every bit as sensitive as medical electronic devices, so therefore it is not surprising that a cell phone can interfere with the brain's delicate electrical system.
Cell phones should be banned in schools if their radiation is proven to knock down brain processes and learning. Even if a cell phone is kept in a backpack in a locker, its radiation extends out two meters (six feet) or more, into hallways and classrooms. Schools are places where learning is nurtured and revered, and there is no sense in semi-paralyzing students minds with radiation as they endeavor to improve their knowledge and mental skills.
When a person carries a cell phone or uses a cell phone, the radiation from this device intensifies the electrical energy encircling his or her body. It increases the voltage in the body's energy field. This unnaturally high voltage creates electrostress. Electrostress slows down the body's vital bioelectrical processes, and this slowdown could harm your immune systems ability to maintain good health because it cannot be as effective in fighting viruses, bacteria, and the formation of opportunistic cancer cells.
Electrosensitivity varies from person to person. The simple self-tests introduced in this article are not as sophisticated as other tests that can be used, but in their simplicity these self-tests are capable of letting you know if electosensitivity needs to be a concern of yours.
(Note: James Protsman is a longtime researcher into the effects of electromagnetic energy upon body and brain function in humans, and is the author of the 2003 book, Brain Speed and the Body Electric. More information is available at the www.brainspeed.net web site.)
Informant: Colette O'Connell
--------
FC: Archive of Total Information Awareness site, before purges
As the United States Department of Defense's DARPA is shrinking its public information about its programme to imbed microchips that are designed to transmit personal information in every citizen worldwide to their facility, you may find it worthwhile to archive the yet
available information for your own requirements, while it is still possible.
Electra Briggs wrote: FYI
FC: Archive of Total Information Awareness site, before purges
Previous Politech message:
"Act Three of Poindexter's Incredibly Shrinking Site: Still More!"
http://www.politechbot.com/p-04281.html
Date: Mon, 6 Jan 2003 00:26:16 +0100
From: Kai Raven
To: Declan McCullagh
Subject: Re: FC: Act Three of Poindexter's Incredibly Shrinking Site: Still More!
X-Request-PGP: http://kai.iks-jena.de/files/kraven.asc
Hello Declan,
On Fri, 03 Jan 2003 11:17:58 -0800 you wrote:
The Chronology So Far:
I have written the german speaking website "Sciencia est Potentia - the TIA system and the Information Awareness Office" some time ago
http://kai.iks-jena.de/miniwahr/tias-iao.html
For my studies, i sucked the whole IAO site and some other stuff, including all biography files and the BBA Questions & Answers. reading your last mail i decided to put all in an archive for download.
You can find it under
http://kai.iks-jena.de/files/tias-iao_site.zip
There you can find also all DARPAtech2002 "Transforming Fantasy" IAO presentations and speeches from the TIA project leaders
http://kai.iks-jena.de//files/darpatech2002tias.zip
Ciao
Kai
WWW: http://kai.iks-jena.de/
GPG-Key: 0x60F3882F / 0x76C65282
ICQ:146714798
Informant: Andrew Michrowski
--------
Letter to the Brasilian Government
----------------------------------
Honorable President
Luis Ignacio Lula da Silva
Brasil
5 June 2003
Dear Sir,
Please allow me to address you on behalf of the Independent Science Panel (ISP) on Genetic Modification, officially launched at a public conference in London on May 10, attended by 200, including UK’s Environment Minister, Michael Meacher.
The ISP consists of dozens of prominent scientists from seven countries, spanning diverse discisplines of agriculture, ecology, biochemistry, chemical medicine, molecular genetics, nutrition, histopathology, toxicology and virology 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.
The ISP members have undertaken 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. The results are presented in a report entitled, The Case for a GM Free Sustainable World, a draft of which was released electronically on May 10,and is now being finalised for released 15 June 2003.
Ahead of the release of the final report, we are pleased to enclose an executive summary of the evidence assembled, based on which, we are calling for a global ban on GM crops to make way for agroecology, organic farming and other forms of sustainable agriculture. (see http://www.i-sis.org.uk/ispr-summary.php).
Brasil, the second largest producer of soya in the world, has become the principal source of non-transgenic soya for consumers who reject genetically engineered foods. Consumer rejection is due overwhelmingly to concerns over health and the environment. For farmers in addition, transgenic crops, produced and patented by large corporations like Monsanto and Dow, are usurping their right to own and control seed stocks, which is the basis of their livelihood and food security.
Indeed, in recent years, Monsanto has declared that in order to dominate the global seed market, it would be necessary to break through the barriers in Brazil and the European Union.
It is clear, from the evidence presented in the ISP Report, that transgenic contamination of non-transgenic crops is inevitable, once transgenic crops are released into the environment. There can be no co-existence of transgenic and non-transgenic crops. We have to make the right choice now.
For these reasons, we very respectfully request that you continue to prevent the release of transgenic seeds in Brasil. The future of transgenics in Brasil is decisive for the future of food and agriculture all over the world.
Brasil has a very special place in my heart. I was invited as a speaker to the very first seminar on Biodiversity Law organised by your distinguished judiciary in Brasilia in 1999. Safeguarding Brasil’s rich natural genetic resources from the ravages of transgenic agriculture and corporate biopiracy is a very important step towards a sustainable future for Brasil and for the world.
Yours Sincerely,
Dr. Mae-Wan Ho
For the Independent Science Panel
This article can be found on the I-SIS website at
http://www.i-sis.org.uk/BrasilLetter.php
Electromagnetic waves linked to children's brain tumor
------------------------------------------------------
.c Kyodo News Service
TOKYO, June 7 (Kyodo) - Exposure to electromagnetic waves from high-voltage power lines and some electronic appliances could increase the risk of brain tumor among children who live close to the source of emission, according to a three-year government-sponsored study.
Ultralow frequency electromagnetic waves are produced primarily by high-voltage power grids, whose effects on human bodies have been studied by overseas researchers. The same type of electromagnetic waves is also released in tiny amounts from computers and other home appliances.
While the study in Japan -- initiated three years ago by the former Science and Technology Agency, now part of the education ministry -- has shown a link between brain tumor and exposure to electromagnetic waves, authors of the report caution that the finding is not conclusive due to a limited size of the samples available for the project.
The study, undertaken by the National Institute for Environmental Studies, Tokyo Women's Medical University and others, compared the level of electromagnetic waves in the bedrooms of 100 healthy children and 60 children suffering from brain tumor below age 15, examining each case over a one-week period.
The researchers then tabulated the data after adding factors such as the average level of electromagnetic waves in the entire house, the extent of use of electric appliances and the distance between a child's room and a high-voltage power line.
The results, posted on the education ministry Web site on Friday, show that children exposed to more than 0.3 microtesla of extralow frequency electromagnetic waves, or three times the normal level, are 10 times more likely to develop brain tumor.
The researchers found that the level of electromagnetic waves actually topped 0.3 microtesla in the rooms of five children with brain tumor and one healthy child, and the rooms of three of the children with brain tumor were located within 100 meters of a high-voltage power transmission line.
The researchers have also found that exposure to electromagnetic waves above 0.4 microtesla would double the risk of childhood leukemia. The final report released Friday says the risk of developing acute lymphoblastic leukemia is comparatively higher than the risk
of acute myelogenous and other types of leukemia.
The electromagnetic waves emitted by high-voltage power lines are different from the electromagnetic waves that come from mobile phones and microwave ovens, where the frequency is much higher.
06/06/03 15:55 EDT
Copyright 2003 The Kyodo News Service. The information contained in the Kyodo news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Kyodo News Service. All active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.
and
Re: Cell phones and brain speed (Protsman)(Curry)....
-----------------------------------------------------
Roy and Jim, I think this is an interesting diagnostic, but it must be difficult to perform a controlled experiment, because of the range of variation you might expect in anyt individual's ability to count at the same rate without any RF exposure. Also, keep in mind that a previous published study showed an actual speedup in some mental tasks, when the subjects were exposed to RF radiation. (I have forgotten who the author of the study was.) In that case, the reason for speedup was thought to be heating of the brain, and what was important was not whether cognitive function speeded up or was slowed down, but the fact that it was altered - something that might have health implications.|Bill P. Curry, Ph.D. Physics is fun (630) 858-9377 Fax (630) 858-9159| EMSciTeck Consulting Company |
Cell Phone Radiation Slows Down Brain Speed
-------------------------------------------
Note to anybody wishing to publish this article or use excerpts therefrom: This article is based upon studies reported in my 2003 book, Brain Speed and the Body Electric, which assembles a wealth of proof showing that electromagnetic (EM) energy slows down nerve conduction. This is the smoking gun that many researchers have been looking for as they explore the possible health effects of EM radiation upon humans. When nerve conduction slows down, it adversely affects mental performance in every measurable skill category (memory, reading, computation, verbal fluency, verbal creativity, thinking, and reaction time).
It also adversely affects physical performance. This article concentrates upon the cell phone and the way its radiation lowers brain speed, and it shows the reader how to use a simple technique for measuring changes in brain speed. Anybody can use this simple scientific technique, which should appeal to most readers. Use of this article is permissible only if proper credit is given to the author.
Cell Phone Radiation Slows Down Brain Speed
James Protsman
Controversy swirls around the subject of the health effects of cell phones. The radiofrequency electromagnetic (EM) radiation emitted by a cell phone is known to penetrate the skull, but does this lead to the development of cancer, especially malignant brain tumors which are on the rise? The new cell phone towers springing up everywhere greatly increase our daily dosage of radiation. Is this healthy for us?
A study by the California. Department of Health Services, eight years in the making, and which can be seen online, suggests there is a connection between exposure to EM radiation and childhood leukemia, brain cancer, Lou Gehrig's disease (ALS), miscarriages, and possibly suicide.
The scientific proof connecting health problems with cell phones convinces some people and scientists that a danger exists, but the majority of people and lots of scientists remain skeptical. They want more evidence. More evidence is now available.
It now can be demonstrated that EM radiation from cell phones slows down nerve conduction, or the speed at which vital regulatory messages travel through the body's nervous system. This reduces the effectiveness of the nervous system, which in turn could reduce the ability of the immune system to protect our bodies from disease of all kinds. It certainly slows down reaction time, which makes cell phone use dangerous while driving.
You can detect for yourself the effect of cell phone radiation upon your brain by measuring changes in brain speed. Brain speed is a rough measure of nerve conduction speed. If you don't have a cell phone, the handset from a wireless phone will work almost as well.
For best results in this self-test, remove the metal from your hands (rings, bracelets, watches). This elimination will increase your sensitivity to the effects of EM radiation; to increase your sensitivity even more, remove shoes and socks. Males (especially postpuberty males) will get stronger testing results than females, because the electrical system in a male generates more electrical current than in a female.
(1) Hold a cell phone in your hand and silently in your head count to 50 as fast as you can. This is a rough measure of brain speed. Pay attention to the amount of effort this takes. Time yourself with a stopwatch or the second hand of a timepiece.
(2) Put the phone down and step away at least six feet (two meters) from it. You should be near no other electrical devices. Do not look at the phone. Again silently in your head count to 50 as fast as you can.
If it takes more effort and time to count to 50 when in contact with a cell phone, this means the phone's radiation slows down nerve conduction in your body, which slows down brain speed. It means you are sensitive to EM radiation. The term for this is electrosensitivity.
(3) Put the cell phone on a table. Put the palm of your hand one foot above it, and again count to 50 as fast as you can. Pay attention to the amount of effort this takes, and time yourself. Compare this self-test to when you were standing away from the phone.
The palm of your hand is a very sensitive responder to EM radiation, and even though it is a foot away from the phone, the phone's energy can still penetrate your body at this distance and slow down nerve conduction.
(4) Put the cell phone in a pocket and do the counting test again. Compare this to when the cell phone is several feet away from you, and you are not near other electronic devices.
Body contact with a cell phone can knock down brain speed if you are sensitive to EM radiation.
(5) Concentration can be measured in a rough sort of way by (a) counting by 2's to 50, or (b) by counting backward from 50 to 1. You know the numbers well, but to do either of these mental tasks extra concentration is necessary. Do one of these counting tests when you are holding a phone, and one when the phone is at least six feet away from you and you are not looking at it--or any electronic device.
If this concentration exercise goes slower when your body is being radiated by the cell phone, this means you are electrosensitive.
The phone does not have to be on to produce radiation effects. It radiates energy even when it is off. When it is on, this energy intensifies quite a bit.
What about all the cell phone towers popping up on the landscape that transmit radiofrequency signals (a form of EM energy) so that we can make cell phone calls to places far and wide? If you are electrosensitive, this radiation can have a dummying effect upon your brain as much as a half mile away from the tower. Because this radiation penetrates just about everything, it doesn't matter that there are buildings or trees between you and the source of radiation. EM radiation penetrates these things as if they didn't exist. That is why you can use your cell phone inside a building.
Cell phones are banned in many hospitals because their radiation interferes with the sensitive electronic devices used by modern medicine to keep us alive. The electrical system in your brain is every bit as sensitive as medical electronic devices, so therefore it is not surprising that a cell phone can interfere with the brain's delicate electrical system.
Cell phones should be banned in schools if their radiation is proven to knock down brain processes and learning. Even if a cell phone is kept in a backpack in a locker, its radiation extends out two meters (six feet) or more, into hallways and classrooms. Schools are places where learning is nurtured and revered, and there is no sense in semi-paralyzing students minds with radiation as they endeavor to improve their knowledge and mental skills.
When a person carries a cell phone or uses a cell phone, the radiation from this device intensifies the electrical energy encircling his or her body. It increases the voltage in the body's energy field. This unnaturally high voltage creates electrostress. Electrostress slows down the body's vital bioelectrical processes, and this slowdown could harm your immune systems ability to maintain good health because it cannot be as effective in fighting viruses, bacteria, and the formation of opportunistic cancer cells.
Electrosensitivity varies from person to person. The simple self-tests introduced in this article are not as sophisticated as other tests that can be used, but in their simplicity these self-tests are capable of letting you know if electosensitivity needs to be a concern of yours.
(Note: James Protsman is a longtime researcher into the effects of electromagnetic energy upon body and brain function in humans, and is the author of the 2003 book, Brain Speed and the Body Electric. More information is available at the www.brainspeed.net web site.)
Informant: Colette O'Connell
--------
FC: Archive of Total Information Awareness site, before purges
As the United States Department of Defense's DARPA is shrinking its public information about its programme to imbed microchips that are designed to transmit personal information in every citizen worldwide to their facility, you may find it worthwhile to archive the yet
available information for your own requirements, while it is still possible.
Electra Briggs wrote: FYI
FC: Archive of Total Information Awareness site, before purges
Previous Politech message:
"Act Three of Poindexter's Incredibly Shrinking Site: Still More!"
http://www.politechbot.com/p-04281.html Date: Mon, 6 Jan 2003 00:26:16 +0100
From: Kai Raven
To: Declan McCullagh
Subject: Re: FC: Act Three of Poindexter's Incredibly Shrinking Site: Still More!
X-Request-PGP:
http://kai.iks-jena.de/files/kraven.asc Hello Declan,
On Fri, 03 Jan 2003 11:17:58 -0800 you wrote:
The Chronology So Far:
I have written the german speaking website "Sciencia est Potentia - the TIA system and the Information Awareness Office" some time ago
http://kai.iks-jena.de/miniwahr/tias-iao.html For my studies, i sucked the whole IAO site and some other stuff, including all biography files and the BBA Questions & Answers. reading your last mail i decided to put all in an archive for download.
You can find it under
http://kai.iks-jena.de/files/tias-iao_site.zip There you can find also all DARPAtech2002 "Transforming Fantasy" IAO presentations and speeches from the TIA project leaders
http://kai.iks-jena.de//files/darpatech2002tias.zip Ciao
Kai
WWW:
http://kai.iks-jena.de/ GPG-Key: 0x60F3882F / 0x76C65282
ICQ:146714798
Informant: Andrew Michrowski
--------
Letter to the Brasilian Government
----------------------------------
Honorable President
Luis Ignacio Lula da Silva
Brasil
5 June 2003
Dear Sir,
Please allow me to address you on behalf of the Independent Science Panel (ISP) on Genetic Modification, officially launched at a public conference in London on May 10, attended by 200, including UK’s Environment Minister, Michael Meacher.
The ISP consists of dozens of prominent scientists from seven countries, spanning diverse discisplines of agriculture, ecology, biochemistry, chemical medicine, molecular genetics, nutrition, histopathology, toxicology and virology 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.
The ISP members have undertaken 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. The results are presented in a report entitled, The Case for a GM Free Sustainable World, a draft of which was released electronically on May 10,and is now being finalised for released 15 June 2003.
Ahead of the release of the final report, we are pleased to enclose an executive summary of the evidence assembled, based on which, we are calling for a global ban on GM crops to make way for agroecology, organic farming and other forms of sustainable agriculture. (see
http://www.i-sis.org.uk/ispr-summary.php). Brasil, the second largest producer of soya in the world, has become the principal source of non-transgenic soya for consumers who reject genetically engineered foods. Consumer rejection is due overwhelmingly to concerns over health and the environment. For farmers in addition, transgenic crops, produced and patented by large corporations like Monsanto and Dow, are usurping their right to own and control seed stocks, which is the basis of their livelihood and food security.
Indeed, in recent years, Monsanto has declared that in order to dominate the global seed market, it would be necessary to break through the barriers in Brazil and the European Union.
It is clear, from the evidence presented in the ISP Report, that transgenic contamination of non-transgenic crops is inevitable, once transgenic crops are released into the environment. There can be no co-existence of transgenic and non-transgenic crops. We have to make the right choice now.
For these reasons, we very respectfully request that you continue to prevent the release of transgenic seeds in Brasil. The future of transgenics in Brasil is decisive for the future of food and agriculture all over the world.
Brasil has a very special place in my heart. I was invited as a speaker to the very first seminar on Biodiversity Law organised by your distinguished judiciary in Brasilia in 1999. Safeguarding Brasil’s rich natural genetic resources from the ravages of transgenic agriculture and corporate biopiracy is a very important step towards a sustainable future for Brasil and for the world.
Yours Sincerely,
Dr. Mae-Wan Ho
For the Independent Science Panel
This article can be found on the I-SIS website at
http://www.i-sis.org.uk/BrasilLetter.php
Citizens Initiative Omega
Homepage:
http://www.grn.es/electropolucio/omega214.htm
