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First
Session of the Intergovernmental Technical Working Group
on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture
Rome, 2-4 July 2001
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Photos and RealAudio from Wednesday, 4 July |  |
| Monday 2 July - Tuesday 3 July |
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Peter Kenmore, Coordinator of the Global Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Facility, presented and discussed CGRFA/WG-PRG-1/01/7, Potential impacts of Genetic Use Restriction Technologies (GURTs) on Agricultural Biodiversity and Agricultural Production Systems |
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In his extensive commentary on the paper, the US stated, inter alia, that many assertions made in the report were in fact speculative and urged a more balanced description of GURTs that highlights their potential for hunger reduction. |
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 Ecuador
suggested the elaboration of principles of prevention and precaution.
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| Iran
said there was an inherent difference between development
of a technology that may benefit the whole of humanity and has
some side effects as well; and a technology that benefits just
a very small percentage of the society or private companies.
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Speaking in a personal capacity, Canada likened IPRs to locks that could be used to protect the valuable contents of a warehouse; said that innovation, blocked by opposition to IPR, had now emerged in the form of GURTs; and noted that innovators are more likely to put valuable things in the warehouse if they know there is a lock on the door protecting from piracy. |
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| India
reminded delegates of the reasons why his country does not
allow the import of GURTs, and asked that other countries also
discourage their use. |
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Portugal
also thought the report to be overly negative, and called for
the highlighting of the positive aspects of GURTs. |
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A
representative of ASSINSEL said that: in cases of containment,
V-GURTs could provide direct added agronomic value; development
of new varieties is not changed by development in farmers' fields;
and comments in the report on the Green Revolution were too negative.
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| Adoption of the report of the meeting closing statements | |||
| Asmund Asdal (Norway), Rapporteur, presented the report of the meeting. Delegates adopted it after making clarifications and suggestions for improvement. |  |
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Dr. N. Murthi Anishetty, FAO Seed and Plant Genetic Resources Service (on the right) looks on as Chair Eng Siam Lim gavels the meeting to a close.
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| Archive: Photos and RealAudio of Monday, 2 July and Tuesday, 3 July | |||
Documents
for the meeting