GMO-free Lelystad citizens initiative, support from all over the world.   Steunbetuigingen uit de hele wereld voor ons burgerinitiatief om Lelystad gentechvrij te laten verklaren

Devinder Sharma,

former editor of the Indian Express:

Dear Miep,

Thank you very much for your letter. I am so delighted that you are launching this campaign against GMOs. I am sure if we all begin to stand up and be counted, we can defeat these regressive forces to save our planet for our future generations. You have all my support.

Best wishes

Devinder Sharma

Devinder Sharma is an Indian journalist, writer, thinker, and well-known and respected for his views on food and trade policy. Trained as an agricultural scientist, Sharma has been the Development Editor of the Indian Express, the largest selling English language daily in India at that time. He quit active journalism to research on policy issues concerning sustainable agriculture, biodiversity and intellectual property rights, environment and development, food security and poverty, biotechnology and hunger, and the implications of the free trade paradigm for developing countries.
He has been a Visiting Fellow to the International Rice Research Institute, in the Philippines; Visiting Fellow at the School of Development Studies at the University of East Anglia, Norwich (UK); and a Visiting Fellow at the University of Cambridge (UK).

The famous actress, writer, and artist Wieteke van Dort supports our initiative, she wrote to us on the 29th of Augustus   Wieteke van Dort in her role of Auntie Lien during an opening of one of the GMO-free-Exhibitions. © foto Miep Bos.

The famous Dr. Mae-Wan Ho writes to us:

Please find below a letter of support for the GM-free Lelystad citizens' initiative.

26 August 2004

Dear Miep Bos

I am writing to you on behalf of the Independent Science Panel (ISP) on Genetic Modification (GM). The ISP consists of two dozen prominent scientists from seven countries, spanning diverse disciplines, and who are concerned to provide critical scientific information to the global debate over genetic engineered crops, in view of its importance for the future of our food and agriculture. We understand that together with citizens from Lelystad, The Netherlands, you are leading a citizens' initiative to create a GM-free Lelystad. This initiative is not alone, for many in Europe and around the world have successfully created GM-free regions.

We are encouraged by your efforts and lend our support to the initiative. In this regard, I am pleased to draw your attention to the ISP's report, The Case for a GM-Free Sustainable World, which is an extensive review of the scientific and other evidence on the problems and hazards of GM crops and the manifold benefits of all forms of sustainable agriculture (please find attached the Report's Executive Summary). Based on this, we are calling for a global ban on environmental release of GM crops, to make way for agroecology, organic farming and other forms of sustainable agriculture. The report is available for downloading at the ISP website. It is clear, from the evidence presented in the ISP Report, that there are many unanswered questions on the safety of GM crops. Very few studies have been conducted, particularly as to the effects of GM foods on human health, and the few independent studies that have been carried out raise serious concerns. Research increasingly shows that GM crops can affect the environment and wildlife negatively. Given the scientific uncertainties and the likelihood that once GM crops are released into the environment, transgenic contamination of non-GM crops is inevitable, it is imperative that the Precautionary Principle is applied. Particularly so in the case of Lelystad where there are many organic farms. We wish you all the best in your initiative and hope that our report can contribute to your local meetings on 30th August and 16th September, and to informing the local council vote on 16th September.

Yours Sincerely,
Dr. Mae-Wan Ho (m.w.ho@i-sis.org.uk)
For the Independent Science Panel
PO Box 32097
London NW1 0XR
UK

This moment we received a message of the world famous scientists dr. Arpad Pusztai and Drs Susan Bardocz.
They wrote to us:

Dear Citizens of Lelystad, Worried Mothers and Other Citizens,

We, Drs Susan Bardocz and Arpad Pusztai, both of Aberdeen, Scotland, UK firmly support your laudable effort to make Lelystad and other Dutch towns and cities GMO-free. You are quite right, GMOs are the result of a profit-driven, untested, and potentially dangerous technology. You, the citizens are being used as human guinea-pigs for testing in a botched experiment No one, politicians, scientists or multinational biotechnology companies whose products are unwanted and potentially unsafe should be able to force farmers against their will to grow GM crops or make people consume GM foods. We very much hope and wish that your effort will be successful and Lelystad will truly be GMO-free.

In the media:

Ons burgerinitiatief staat vermeld in "Het Landbouwblad" van NLTO, op de site van "Lelystad voor wie verder kijkt" en in de Stentor, editie Dagblad Flevoland. Het heeft op NieuwsTV Lelystad gestaan (kabelkrant), "Nieuwsgrazer" heeft het vermeld en de Inwonerspartij heeft het burgerinitiatief (verkort) en onze poster op haar website gezet. Gifvrij Polie heeft de oproep ook vermeld, alsmede op Weblog Polie.

We kregen een steunbetuiging van Milieu Federatie Flevoland, die deze ook naar de gemeente heeft gestuurd. Tevens krijgen we elke dag steunbetuigingen binnen van vooral biologische boeren. Wytze de Lange, gentechmedewerker XminY solidariteitsfonds stuurde ons zojuist zijn steunbetuiging.

Culemborg is gentechvrij verklaard. Culemborg ging ons voor. De motie van GroenLinks kreeg steun van de SP, PvdA en een deel van het CDA. Culemborg, gefeliciteerd!

Een aantal boeren uit Flevoland en de rest van het land heeft al toegezegd te komen, onder hen is Harm Evert Waalkens, biologisch boer en Tweede Kamerlid voor de PvdA.

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