Rebel French farmers' leader Jose Bové Urges Canadians to ruin GM Crops

Reuters 30apr01

QUEBEC CITY  -- Rebel French farmers' leader Jose Bové Thursday urged Canadians to destroy genetically-modified ``seeds of death'' and attack laboratories where the controversial crops were being developed.

Bové, best known for attacking a McDonald's restaurant in France in 1999 to protest against the United States, said Canadians should attack facilities owned by two major GM crop producers -- the U.S. biotech group Monsanto and Swiss-based Novartis AG .

The walrus-mustachioed Bové told a cheering crowd of 300 demonstrators -- in Quebec City to demonstrate at the Summit of Americas -- that it was especially important to act in Canada, which is one of the world's largest producers of GM crops.

``That means people here must also join the resistance movement and not just make speeches,'' thundered Bové, who has been tried twice in France for various acts of sabotage.

Supporters say the crops will help develop hardier crop types to help feed the world's poor. Opponents say they could lead to the uncontrolled spread of modified genes and thereby harm insects and humans.

``This means that GM crops must be destroyed, this means the laboratories which continue to make these seeds of death must be attacked, this means the Monsanto and Novartis facilities must be attacked, they must not be given five minutes of peace,'' he said to loud applause.

Despite a massive police deployment, militant demonstrators have threatened violence at the Friday-to-Sunday summit where the Western Hemisphere's leaders will discuss creating the world's largest free trade zone. They claim a trade deal will serve big business but ignore the hemisphere's poor.

Bové told reporters the free trade area would allow the world's multinationals to take control of seed distribution and food production throughout the hemisphere.

``We have to fight against this because if it goes (ahead), it means farmers won't be able to decide any more what they are going to grow,'' he said.

``This is a fight which must be fought every day and in doing so you should not be afraid to break the law...all forms of combat are possible,'' said Bové.

In January, Bové joined poor Brazilian farmers in uprooting rows of genetically modified soybeans at an experimental farm owned by Monsanto.

Last month, a court handed Bové a 10-month suspended jail sentence for destroying genetically-modified rice plants during an assault on a research center in the southern France.

Bové shot to fame in 1999 when he led an attack on a McDonald's burger bar in southern France to protest against junk food and U.S. tariffs on French cheese and foie gras, winning a three-month jail term.