Syngenta is a Swiss transnational company operating in Brazil since 1970, and was one of the first to promote the green revolution in the country. According to the organizations the company violates human rights, and is responsible for polluting land with agrotoxics and criminalizing social protests, among other abuses.

“Syngenta produces, distributes and promotes the use of GM seeds and agrotoxics. This company and others promote the privatization of agrobiodiversity rights and aim to have a commercial monopoly of the agricultural production in the world. They want to turn a human right into business”, the organizations say to the Tribunal, which will session in May, in Madrid.

According to Terra de Direitos and Via Campesina Brazil, Syngenta´s GM maize (BT 11) was authorized to be produced, traded and consumed in Brazil in 2007. This authorization didn´t take into account the carrying out of studies about the impacts of the introduction of the GM crop, which contaminates other crops and violates the right of peasants to choose their own production system. In addition, this GM crop has negative impacts on the rights of consumers, who are not informed about the origin of the product, and on the irreparable damage suffered by the biological diversity of the region.

They also make reference to the European Union and the World Trade Organization due to their direct responsibility and complicity in these violations to human rights.

The organizations state that the European Union is a consumer of GM products produced in Latin America, thus contributing with the increase of GM crops, and at the same time the European bloc adopts positions to “satisfy the interests of transnational biotechnology companies”.

Meanwhile, the WTO is responsible due to the role it plays in the privatization of biodiversity, damaging traditional production systems.

According to the document submitted to the Tribunal, the organizations expect that the PPT can contribute with the struggle taking place in Brazil against transnational companies. The decisions of the tribunal, although not binding, will serve as a “popular, moral and ethic” goal to strengthen the process of resistance taking place in Brazil.

Photo: Greenpeace