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Support for Ghana's ban on GMOs (7/8/2005)

Here's a great response to the news that Ghana is moving to ban the importation and cultivation of GMOs.

As you will have seen, Ghana's Food and Agriculture minister, Mr. Ernest Debrah, is reported in the Ghanaian Chronicle as saying the country would reject, without hesitation, the importation of any GM foods, crops and materials into the country(Ghana stops importation of GM Foods, 28 Jul 2005)
http://www.ghanaian-chronicle.com/thestory.asp?ID=6930

This letter of support was sent in response to the suggestion of a Kenyan campaigning group whose message, and the contact details to enable other letters of support to be sent to Ghana's Food and Agriculture minister, are given below.

EXCERPT: "Ghana's Food and Agriculture minister, Mr. Ernest Debrah, is right to be suspicious of GM foods. Besides offering nothing to African farmers, they pose human health and environmental risks that U.S. regulators have failed to take seriously. One can only hope that the U.S. stops trying to force African nations to accept risky, poorly tested foods that most of the world simply refuses to eat."
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Letter to editor re: Ghana rejects GM food imports
TO: The Honorable Ernest Debrah

Dear Mr. Debrah,

I want to thank you for your strong stance against importation of GM foods. As a U.S. citizien, I find it unconscionable that my government attempts to exploit food emergencies in African and other nations to force GM crops and life patents on the rest of the world.

Below please find a letter to the editor I sent to the Ghanaian Chronicle in response to the July 28th article. Once again, my thanks.

Sincerely,
Bill Freese, agricultural biotechnology consultant
Friends of the Earth US
1717 Massachusetts Ave., NW, Suite 600
Washington, DC 20036
301-985-3011
[email protected]

Dear Ghanaian Chronicle,

In "Ghana stops importation of GM foods" (July 28, 2005), Joseph Coomson points out the important facts that genetically modified foods are grown mainly in developed countries, are used primarily as animal feed, and offer little or nothing of value to African farmers.

In fact, 5 of every 6 acres of commercial GM crops worldwide are engineered to allow direct application of a chemical weedkiller (which kill non-GM crops) made by the same company that produces the GM seed. These herbicide-tolerant crops are associated with increased use of weedkillers, more chemical residues on crops, and more rapid development of weeds that are resistant to the weedkiller. Contrary to Mr. Coomson, virus-resistant crops (papaya and crookneck squash only) make up an infinitesimal fraction of worldwide GM crop acreage.

Despite hundreds of millions of dollars spent on research and field tests, neither private industry nor publicly-funded research institutes have developed a GM food crop useful to African farmers (e.g. Kenya's virus-resistant sweet potato was a complete flop). Meanwhile, truly beneficial developments such as New Rice for Africa (NERICA) - which combines the hardiness of African rice and the higher yield of Asian rice - were developed by Africans, without genetic engineering, and at a fraction of the cost of GM.

Ghana's Food and Agriculture minister, Mr. Ernest Debrah, is right to be suspicious of GM foods. Besides offering nothing to African farmers, they pose human health and environmental risks that U.S. regulators have failed to take seriously. One can only hope that the U.S. stops trying to force African nations to accept risky, poorly tested foods that most of the world simply refuses to eat.

Sincerely,
Bill Freese, agricultural biotechnology expert
Friends of the Earth U.S.
1717 Massachusetts Ave., NW, Suite 600
Washington, DC 20036
301-985-3011
[email protected]
PS I would be happy to supply references to support the claims made in this letter.
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"ECOTERRA Intl." [email protected]
Subject: This requires a THANK YOU [ ]
Better send your e-mail via
[email protected]
- pls distribute far and wide -

Dear anti-GE campaigners,

How long ago it was, when you had a chance to send a THANK YOU e-mail to a political leader or a government? Such occasions have become very rare these days - but here comes one:

Please send your THANK YOU to Hon. Ernest Debrah, the Food and Agriculture Minister of the sovereign state of Ghana, who stated clearly that his country would reject, without hesitation, the importation of any Genetically Modified (GM) foods, crops and materials into the country, although it might solve the famine problems being experienced.

Though the GE promoters' machinery to bribe and infiltrate also doesn't stop at the gates of Ghana and just now a workshop paid for by the Science and Technology Policy Research Institute (STEPRI) of the pro-GM notorious Centre for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) was held to still continue with business as usual for the biotech players, the Ghana leadership stands strong.

GHANA, in its original meaning "war-leader" (as one of the titles used for the ancient kings of Wagadu), thereby becomes the war-leader in the fight against the highly corrupt practices of the biotech corporations to infiltrate, contaminate and subdue sovereign countries.

Please read the information below and send your best greetings and thanks to:
Hon. Minister Ernest Debrah
Ministry of Food and Agriculture
Accra
P.O Box M37 Ministries, Accra
Tel: (+233-21) 663036/6171360
Fax: (+233-21) 668245
E-mail: [email protected]

With Zambia and Ghana we have strong role models for the other leaders of Africa to follow swift!
ECOTERRA Intl.

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