control of life

Criminalization of peasant seed systems threatens global food supply

The global food supply is under threat from laws that criminalize the sale and exchange of traditional peasant seed varieties, a group of UN experts warned. In their latest report to the Human Rights Council, the UN Working Group on the Rights of Peasants and Other People Working in Rural Areas indicated that almost all of the world's food comes from seeds and that traditional systems supply 70 to 90 percent of the seeds sown in many countries. According to the report, peasants' rights and the food supply as a whole have come under threat from the commercialization of seed systems and implementation of plant variety protection laws (PVPs), which punish farmers who trade seeds of a company's protected variety. These laws may additionally prohibit the sale or exchange of any seed that is not catalogued, targeting the diverse peasant variety seed that does not meet industrial standards. (Photo of indigenous Mexican corn varities: Feria de Productores via Earth@Home)

Ecuador: Yasuní defenders face persecution

Amnesty International called on Ecuadorian authorities to drop all legal and financial penalties against activists behind the 2023 Yasuní Referendum, warning that the looming fines are part of a broader crackdown on civic space and dissent in the country. The Referendum resulted in an overwhelming majority of citizens voting to end oil extraction within Yasuní National Park, in the Ecuadorian Amazon. This result was celebrated across the world and hailed as one of Latin America's most important victories in the fight against climate change. However, since the vote, oil drilling has continued uninterrupted. Amnesty is pressing President Daniel Noboa to restore full legal protections for NGOs and respect the mandate of the Referendum, calling it a non-negotiable test of democratic integrity. (Image: Wikimedia Commons)

Suit challenges Trump order on offshore drilling

US conservation groups filed a lawsuit against President Donald Trump, asserting that the administration violated the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act (OCSLA) by issuing an executive order reversing withdrawals of oil and gas leases. Trump signed the executive order immediately after his inauguration, overturning a decision by President Joe Biden to protect large areas of ocean from offshore drilling. During his first term as president, Trump tried to undo similar protections implemented by Obama. A federal court, however, invalidated his attempt, finding that the president does not have the power to undo a former president's OCSLA protections. (Photo: Berardo62 via Wikimedia Commons)

Trade panel strikes down Mexico GMO corn ban

A trade dispute panel convened under the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) ruled that Mexico's import restrictions on US genetically modified corn violates the accord. The conflict stems from a presidential decree published by Mexico in February 2023 instating an immediate ban on the use of genetically modified corn in dough and tortillas, and a gradual end to its use in animal feed and other products. The panel determined that the ban was not based on science, and contravened the market access required under the USMCA. However, advocacy groups such as Greenpeace are proponents of the corn decree and implored the US to respect Mexico's sovereignty, arguing that market dominance of patented GMO varities leads to the decline of indigenous strains and threatens food security. (Photo of indigenous Mexican corn varities: Feria de Productores via Earth@Home)

Paraguay: major operation against timber trafficking

Paraguay authorities have arrested 26 suspects, dismantled two criminal networks, and identified 12 companies engaged in systematic illegal deforestation and trafficking of native tree species. The Paraguayan government, along with INTERPOL and 14 other agencies, launched Operation Panthera Onca to combat environmental crimes and the exploitation of natural resources in the Tri-Border Region where Paraguay, Brazil and Argentina meet. (Photo: Ilosuna via Wikimedia Commons)

COP16 adopts agreement on indigenous peoples

Meeting in Cali, Colombia, the 16th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (COP16) adopted several agreements regarding an expanded role for indigenous peoples in biodiversity preservation efforts. A new agreement on Article 8J of the Convention aims to enhance the place of indigenous knowledge and participation in crafting the Global Biodiversity Framework. Delegates agreed to establish a "subsidiary body" under Article 8J to include indigenous peoples in future decisions on nature conservation, and oblige private corporations to share the benefits of research when tapping genetic resources under the stewardship of indigenous communities. (Photo: UN Biodiversity via Flickr)

Protect indigenous rights in biodiversity framework

Amnesty International cautioned against potential threats to indigenous peoples' rights in the monitoring process for progress towards the Global Biodiversity Framework. The organization emphasized the imperative for states to engage in consultations with indigenous communities and secure their "free, prior, and informed consent" in conservation projects, in line with the Universal Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The statement warned against "fortress conservation" methods in which original inhabitants are forcibly evicted from protected areas. (Photo of Wajãpi indigenous people in Brazil via Mongabay)

Sixth mass extinction lops branches off tree of life

The sixth mass extinction, primarily driven by human activities, is more dire than previously anticipated, with entire branches on the tree of life now disappearing, finds a new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Researchers from Stanford University and the National Autonomous University of Mexico assessed 5,400 genera of terrestrial vertebrates, including 34,600 species. The staggering results: 73 genera have become extinct since 1500 AD. This rate of extinction surpasses the last million years by 35 times. In other words, in just five centuries, human actions have triggered a surge of genus extinctions that would have otherwise taken 18,000 years. The researchers refer to this as a "biological annihilation." (Photo: CounterVortex)

Malaysia rainforest at issue in fight over historic monastery

A Buddhist monastery carved out of a cave complex in the rainforest of Malaysia stands to be evicted after losing a legal appeal in its case against a cement manufacturer that seeks to demolish it to mine limestone. The Court of Appeal ruled for Associated Pan Malaysia Cement in the case brought by the century-old Dhamma Sakyamuni Caves Monastery, finding that the company has the right to evict "squatters" from the tract at issue on a limestone massif known as Gunung Kanthan—despite the fact that it lies within the Kinta Valley National Geopark. The forested massif is home to several endangered species of both flora and fauna, and most of it has already been cleared for quarries. After the appeals court ruling, the Perak state government formed a special committee to mediate in the conflict. The Dhamma Sakyamuni monks pledge they will resist eviction. (Photo via Free Malaysia Today)

Win for rainforest in Ecuador elections

Winning 60% support in Ecuador's election is a ballot measure to permanently bar oil drilling from Yasuní National Park, a world biodiversity hotspot in the Amazon rainforest. Parastatal PetroEcuador must now halt extraction at Bloc 43, which lies near the heart of the reserve. Likewise approved by a wide margin was a referendum on halting copper, gold and silver mining activity in the Chocó Andino de Pichincha, a biosphere reserve outside of Quito. (Image: Wikimedia Commons)

Podcast: Mexico and the struggle for the genetic commons

In Episode 166 of the CounterVortex podcast, Bill Weinberg discusses how a little-noted US-Mexico dispute on trade and agricultural policy has serious implications for the survival of the human race. Washington is preparing to file a complaint under terms of the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement over Mexico's decree banning imports of GMO corn, slated to take effect in January 2024. Concerns about the (unproven) health effects of consuming GMO foods miss the real critique—which is ecological, social and political. GMO seeds are explicitly designed as part of an "input package" intended to get farmers hooked on pesticides and petrochemical fertilizers, and protect the "intellectual property" of private corporations. Agribusiness, which can afford the "input package," comes to dominate the market. Eased by so-called "free trade" policies, agbiz forces the peasantry off the market and ultimately off the land—a process well advanced in Mexico since NAFTA took effect in 1994, and is related to the explosion of the narco economy and mass migration. The pending decree holds the promise of regenerating sustainable agriculture based on native seed stock. It is also a critical test case, as countries such as Kenya have recently repealed similar policies in light of the global food crisis. Listen on SoundCloud or via Patreon. (Image: Sin Maíz No Hay País)

African dissent from biodiversity protocol

The UN Biodiversity Conference, or COP15, concluded in Montreal with what is being hailed as a landmark agreement to address the current unprecedented loss of species, now termed the planet's sixth mass extinction. The centerpiece of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, conceived as a match to the Paris Agreement on climate change, is the so-called "30×30" pledge—with countries committing to protect 30% of their territory for habitat preservation by 2030. The deal earmarks $30 billion per year to flow from wealthy countries to poor ones to assist in conservation programs. But the financial commitments are not binding, and were assailed by countries in the developing world as inadequate. After an all-night session, the gavel was brought down on the deal minutes after the delegation from the Democratic Republic of Congo pressed outstanding criticisms. This was decried by the DRC, Uganda and other African delegations. A representative from Cameroon protested: "What we saw was a force of hand." (Photo of Kenya's Great Rift Valley via Pixabay)