By Kim Hill / Deep Green Resistance Australia
Life itself has been stolen from us.
Genes, the very basis of life, no longer belong to the living beings who embody them, but to institutions that convert life into profit.
Our basic needs, of food and water, no longer come from the land where we live, but from distant corporations that use the exact same food and water as a dumping ground for their wastes.
Monsanto executives take up positions of power in the US Food and Drug Administration, and Environmental Protection Authority. These bodies, instead of protecting our food and water as they were intended to do, now protect the interests of those who are causing the harm.
Governments exist within the rules of Free Trade Agreements and The World Bank, institutions that exist to protect the profits of corporations. Governments have little power to create change.
So we cannot ask governments to act.
In India, 250,000 farmers have committed suicide by drinking Monsanto pesticides after their Bt cotton crops, sold to them by Monsanto, failed, and they were no longer able to provide for their families. Monsanto obstructs labelling laws, and suppresses the results of research that are not in its favour. It is not going to listen to the demands of the people. The purpose of a corporation is to make profit, regardless of the costs to other people and living beings. It is not possible for it to act in any other interest.
So we cannot ask corporations to act.
Even if Monsanto were stopped, there are plenty of other biotechnology companies ready to take their place. The entire economic system is structured to see living beings only as an opportunity for profits, or as standing in the way of profits. For life to continue, the entire system needs to be dismantled.
It is up to us to act.
As human beings, we are part of a natural community of rivers, forests, soil and myriad living beings. This community provides our food and water.
We need to act, not as consumers, not as citizens, but as humans.
We are accountable not to profits or institutions, but to the land that provides for us.
Actions that ask governments and corporations to change – rallies, petitions and letters – can never be effective on their own. Those who are profiting from the theft of life itself need to be physically stopped.
Every day, people are taking real action, by destroying GM crops, sabotaging equipment and infrastructure, and engaging in cyber-attacks against corporations. These actions are essential to stop Monsanto and all those profiting from the destruction of living communities.
On behalf of those whose lives have been stolen and manipulated for profit, those who cannot speak and cannot act, we need to give our full support to the people who are risking their own lives and freedom to defend life itself.
Fantastic piece. Thank you Kim!
Reblogged this on The Turning Spiral and commented:
“It is up to us to act.
As human beings, we are part of a natural community of rivers, forests, soil and myriad living beings. This community provides our food and water.
We need to act, not as consumers, not as citizens, but as humans.
We are accountable not to profits or institutions, but to the land that provides for us.”
Indeed.
Reblogged this on Free UniversE-ity.
Are you sure that your data is accurate? Of course even one suicide is too many, but I have been researching and can find no evidence of a mass suicide of 250,000 people.
Could you cite your sources please?
Indian farmers have committed suicide due to failing farms, although I have no stats. It is also misleading to blame it all on Monsanto. They are running out of water, with wells going deeper all the time. It’s overpopulated.
The data of 250 000 farmer suicides is from the March Against Monsanto press release.
March Against Monsanto is happening around the world, this Saturday, 24 May.
Not sure about the numbers, but documentation on farmer suicides in India was been well discussed by the blog Ground Reality (http://devinder-sharma.blogspot.ca) for at least the past 7 years.
If you might edit my reply, I meant to say “has been”, not “was been”. Aside from that, it’s good to get some accurate information from a long-standing blog, by an Indian, in India, with local context. I have been following this blog for many years, and I’m frankly surprised it’s still around. How many english-language blogs about internal Indian politics, economics, ecology and other matters will you ever find? Especially one that doesn’t follow government guidelines, and manages to chart its own path. Anyway, well recommended.
Vandana Shiva has been talking a lot regarding suicide among farmers in India due to this so more information might probably be obtained through her. But I would not be surprised if those numbers are accurate, on the web page there it even says over 250,000 farmers.
Regarding them running out of water.. coca cola steals water in India drying up wells.
Thank you for the reference to Vandana Shiva, who is a recognized authority in this field. This is an excellent article, but without any cited sources it lacks credibility and is easy for people to dismiss out of hand. I am disgusted that this tragedy has not been more widely reported, and caused international outrage.
I really enjoy her and her work and all that she does. An inspiring soul! Two Swedish documentary makers made a documentary about her & her work some years ago called bullshit, it can be downloaded here http://thepiratebay.se/torrent/5604367/Bullshit_-_Food_Terrorism_by_Monsanto_%28Vandana_Shiva_Documentary
I highly recommend seeing it, it is not that easy to find and I think not that many has been able to see it.
It is a documentary in which one get to know her more personally and takes us on a journey on globalisation and patenting, on genetic engineering, bio-piracy, indigenous knowledge and more.
Ahh, I saw that one can order the actual DVD here http://www.peaholmquist.com/bullshit/order.htm