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Terminate the Terminator

WEBNOTE: This petition is no longer active. Thanks to your letters and phone calls, the UN is not yet supporting the Terminator Technology

Consumer, farmer, and environmental organizations across the globe are mobilizing to stop the legalization and commercialization of the controversial Terminator Gene Technology, whereby seeds are genetically engineered to become sterile or commit suicide after one growing season. The Monsanto corporation and the biotech industry support the Terminator Technology, because it will force many of the 1.4 billion farmers around the world to stop saving their seeds and instead to purchase patented seed varieties from the Gene Giants.

In addition, scientists are concerned that genetic pollution from Terminator crops will lead to killing off a wide range of crops and plants, as Terminator pollen and seeds are spread by the wind, insect pollinators, and commercial seed co-mingling and transportation. After a massive international campaign in 1998, Monsanto Corporation announced they were shelving plans to commercialize the Terminator, while the United Nations (UN) called for a global ban. But on 2/11/2005 renewed efforts to overturn the worldwide ban were launched at a UN conference in Bangkok. Learn more by following links on the right-hand navigation bar on this page and sign petition below:

SIGN PETITION TO UNITED NATIONS
Secretariat of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity
413 St-Jacques Street, 8th floor, Office 800
Montreal, Quebec, Canada, H2Y 1N9
Tel: +1-514-288-2220 Fax: +1-514-288-6588
Email: secretariat@biodiv.org URL: http://www.biodiv.org To: United Nations Environmental Programme Secretariat of Convention on Biological Diversity 413 St-Jacques Street, 8th floor, Office 800 Montreal, Quebec, Canada, H2Y 1N9 We, the undersigned, strongly urge a continued international ban on Generic Use Restriction Technologies (GURTS), otherwise known as the "Terminator Technology." Canada, with the support of New Zealand and Australia, has begun placing intense pressure on the SBSTTA 10 scientific advisory board to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) to approve requests for the commercialization of GURTS plant varieties. This comes in the face of the global majority's opposition to the premature release of such technologies. There is an unknown, yet potentially massive negative impact from seed contamination by GURTS technologies on international agricultural economies. In addition, scientific studies are inadequate and inconsistent, regarding the potential spread of this preprogrammed plant sterilization to other crops and surrounding ecosystems, given the unpredictable dispersion of plant pollens. Unless the GURTS related process of genetic manipulation can be irrefutably shown as safe for the environment and global seed banks, as well as being fair for the world's farmers, it must remain in a state of indefinite moratorium. We urge the international community carefully weigh the short term benefits of these technologies on the profit margins of the biotech industry against the long term potential devastation that this premature technology could release on the economy and environment. Please support the moratorium on GURTS. Thank you, [petition signatures]

Questions regarding this issue:
Email Craig at the Organic Consumers Association

Note: If you have problems submitting the data on this petition form, it is due to high traffic levels on this website. You can also submit your petition information directly via email. Also, if you are outside of North America, you can sign the petition by sending all of the contact information requested above to:
Craig at the Organic Consumers Association

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Other groups working to pressure the UN to stop the Terminator Gene (More info):

United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity