I am Isidore Ancog, farmer from Bohol Islands, Philippines. I am a tenant of a one hectare land, and I plant rice, peanuts, pineapple, vegetables, banana, yam and raise chicken, ducks and fish. I represent the Asian Farmers Alliance for Sustainable Rural Development or AFA. My organization in the Philippines is PAKISAMA, a national confederation of small farmers, marginal fishers, rural women, indigenous peoples and rural youth. My organization PAKISAMA is a member of AFA.
I am grateful and honored to be invited to this conference, and for that I thank wholeheartedly the organizers and FAO.
Before I came here I have two FEARS and suddenly it became three now. I had a chance to read some of the documents that pertains to this conference. But I sadly regret that some or most of the terms there I do not understand because it is written in modern scientific parlance. That is my first FEAR, to go home after this conference with less understanding of modern scientific jargons.
My second FEAR is centered on the title of this plenary; “Targeting biotechnologies to the poor”. I observe that the small scale men and women farmers and fishers, who form the majority of the poor in this world, are so underrepresented in this room. As a poor farmer in a remote province of Bohol, Philippines, I am extremely threatened rather than happy. This is a manifestation of what is happening in our villages – we are targeted, we are not involved in the process. Technologies are so top-down, imposed on us with very few knowledge given, especially on their limitations and effects.
However, there is one very obvious to me that I noticed. Most of the documents I came across are dealing with genetic engineering, and for that I have this feeling that this conference has defined biotechnology to zero-in towards massive commercialization of Genetically Modified Organisms. That is my third and biggest FEAR – to face defensively to an adverse intellectual arrogance on big scale?
As an organic farmer, I am against GMO; my province Bohol publicly rejects GMO, by law; my organization PAKISAMA –AFA fights against GMO. Why? Because we firmly believe it is not the solution to poverty and hunger, but rather a cause of more deprivation in the future. GMO’s doesn’t allow us to freely use, discover and exchange seeds. GMOs will not allow us to own seeds. It is seed control of big agri companies. It stops us from developing, discovering new seeds and technologies for our own. It is very clear that GMO is an attack to life; it is an insult to the most ancient culture, which is agriculture; it runs against ecology; it violates the law of nature and above all, it is disrespect to the integrity of creation.
We adhere to the biotecyhnology that is: ecologically sound, economically viable, socially just, culturally sensitive, technologically appropriate, scientifically holistic, and promotes total human development. For example, we use marcotting, grafting, NFTS fermentation; and these have helped us. BUT WE ARE SRONGLY AGAINST GENETIC ENGINEERING AND GMO’s.
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