New Iraq Patent Law Will Make Traditional Farmers Seed Saving Illegal

[Dover]

New Iraq Patent Law Will Make Traditional Farmers Seed Saving Illegal

From: THE AGRIBUSINESS EXAMINER
November 15, 2004, Issue #380
Monitoring Corporate Agribusiness
>From a Public Interest Perspective

EDITOR\PUBLISHER; A.V. Krebs


IRAQI FARMERS FARM-SAVED SEED AND FREE INNOVATION TRADITION
NOW RULED ILLEGAL UNDER NEW CORPORATE FRIENDLY PATENTING LAW

FOCUS ON THE GLOBAL SOUTH AND GRAIN, COALITION AGAINST BAYER, CBG NETWORK:
For generations, small farmers in Iraq operated in an essentially
unregulated, informal seed supply system. Farm-saved seed and the free
innovation with and exchange of planting materials among farming communities
has long been the basis of agricultural practice. This has been made illegal
under the new law.

The seeds farmers are now allowed to plant --- "protected" crop varieties
brought into Iraq by transnational corporations in the name of agricultural
reconstruction --- will be the property of the corporations. While
historically the Iraqi constitution prohibited private ownership of biological resources, the new U.S.-imposed patent law introduces a system of monopoly rights over seeds.

Inserted into Iraq's previous patent law is a whole new chapter on Plant
Variety Protection (PVP) that provides for the "protection of new varieties of
plants." PVP is an intellectual property right (IPR) or a kind of patent for
plant varieties which gives an exclusive monopoly right on planting material
to a plant breeder who claims to have discovered or developed a new variety.

So the "protection" in PVP has nothing to do with conservation, but refers
to safeguarding of the commercial interests of private breeders (usually
large corporations) claiming to have created the new plants.
http://www.organicconsumers.org/patent/iraq111704.cfm

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[LiberalEsto]

1. The modern way to create serfs

who will have to buy Monsanto seed for the rest of their lives.

This is monstrous.

[TomInTib]

3. testing....testing....

This is just the first.
I expect this little cutie will be written into trade agreements with impoverished and/or develoing nations.
Thousands of years of local agriculture wil be stripped and globalized.

[msongs]

2. India government outlawed this practice:

best of my recollection is that corporate whores tried to do this in India and the government told them to go eff themselves...corporations who tried this crap in India would be outlawed and prohibited from doing ANY business in India.

the entire world should tell these american companies to go eff themselves.

Americans should do the same thing.

Msongs
www.msongs.com/political-shirts.htm

[bonito]

4. Save the seeds n/t

[ThoughtCriminal]

5. Welcome Iraq to the "Ownership Society"

How's that "Freedom" thing working out?

[Dover]

6. PROVES corporations fully intend to STAY in Iraq

The only way we can sell our toxic goods is to conquer weaker countries and force our crap down their throats.

[prescole]

7. Get all the seeds you need

mail order from Vancouver.

[madeline_con]

8. More info on Iraqi Agribusiness...

Statement of H. Lee Schatz, Foreign Agricultural Service,
U. S. Department of Agriculture
Before the House Committee on Agriculture
Washington, D. C. June 16, 2004

Two of USDA's Market Development Program Cooperators, the U.S. Grains Council and the American Soybean Association, have received USDA funds to help Iraq's broiler and layer producers restart and modernize their industry.

(snip)

USDA's Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) used the Foreign Market Development Program to support the U. S. Grains Council in its proposal to contract an Iraqi specialist to undertake work on behalf of all cooperators desiring to penetrate the Iraqi market. An initial Iraqi contractor has been hired.

http://www.cpa-iraq.org/transcripts/20040615_farming.html

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Dan Amstutz: Iraq's agriculture czar
Well-connected corporate and political operative aims to revamp Iraq's agricultural sector


When the United Nations lifted sanctions against Iraq, the U.S. officially took charge of the country's purse-strings. The UN decision will "free billions of dollars in frozen assets and future oil revenues from the UN's control and place it at the disposal of coalition forces and interim Iraqi leaders to pay for reconstruction," the Financial Times reported. "The opportunities are immense here," a senior official with the US-led civil administration in Baghdad told the London-based newspaper. "I hope everyone realizes that."
U.S. Agriculture Secretary Ann M. Veneman "realizes" that "the opportunities are immense," and in late April, Veneman took steps to insure that U.S. agribusiness will play a significant role in the future agricultural development of the country by appointing Dan Amstutz to head Iraq's agricultural reconstruction.

http://www.workingforchange.com/article.cfm?ItemID=15213

[kestrel91316]

9. I predict massive civil disobedience by the smaller farmers.

The big boys might have to play by these rules, but good luck enforcing it for the little guys.

[amandabeech]

10. If the Iraqis ever get control of their country again,

this will be at the top of the list of laws for the real parliament to ditch.

[Boomer]

11. Ah, the smell of freedom in the air!

Funny how it smells a lot like servitude....

[soothsayer]

12. Monsatan at work again.

[NNadir]

13. It is only a matter of time before the US is driven out of Iraq.

We lost the war a long time ago, almost on the first day we fought it.

I think Iraqi farmers need not worry too much about their seeds. They have much more exigent matters to face.

[OneBlueSky]

14. of all the shittly things we've done to Iraq . . .

this ranks right up there among the worst . . .

[funflower]

15. Calm down folks. It applies only to newly invented patented plants.

Not to the staple cereals that have grown in that area for thousands of years. The patent holders have to go through a pretty long and miserable process to prove their plants are indeed new, and, of course, the patents don't last forever.

[skids]

17. ...and any crops contaminated by them...

...like we saw in Canada.

This crap's been going on for over a decade. We know what to expect: large corporations using patent law to run a campaign to hassle small farmers.

[gulfcoastliberal]

16. Google Monsanto terminator seeds to understand this

Their seeds produce sterile seeds and their pollen can infect non-monsanto crops, killing off other peoples crops too. Looks like Monsanto wrote this.