 7,000 people demonstrated their support this past legislative session for SB958, calling for a 10-year moratorium (or pause) on the genetic modification of taro. They came out to legislative hearings and community events, visited with elected officials, gave school presentations, signed petitions and sent amazing written testimony. But instead of listening to the people, Rep. Clift Tsuji [Democrat, South Hilo to Kurtistown] poisoned the Haloa Law, choosing to back the corporate bio-tech industry instead of local farmers. As we prepare for a new legislative session next year, take a little time to learn more about this important issue - the failure of laws to protect the public and the taro, how your elected officials voted on this and other taro bills, and what you can do to get involved. You can start here with an update from "Na Kahu O Haloa" a local group of traditional farmers, cultural practitioners, and community leaders working together to protect the staple food and sacred ancestor of Native Hawaiians: Haloa, the Taro.  A MUST READ: "Uncertain Peril" is a powerful reminder that what’s at stake right now is nothing less than the nature of the future.“If we want to save places, people, or plants, we have to remember their stories. In their stories are the details of their natural and social history and, most importantly, the meaning they have for our lives...The reason traditional cultures are so important to the world right now is that they still know how to remember their stories. ” - C.H. Cummings, chapter 10. Airing all month long on Hawai‘i's public access cable networks: "Islands at Risk: Genetic Engineering in Hawai‘i", a new film by the filmmakers who brought us Mauna Kea: Temple Under Siege. To learn more, visit Na Maka ‘o ka ‘Aina. Yet Another Victory Hawai‘i’s Fragile Environment! Federal Court ruled in favor of KAHEA’s challenge to USDA’s failure to protect the environment from impacts of open field-testing of plants genetically engineered to produce pharmaceuticals. On Aug. 10, 2006, Federal Court Judge Seabright held that the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) violated both NEPA and the ESA by authorizing Monsanto, ProdiGene, Hawai'i Agriculture Research Center, and Garst Seed to field test crops genetically engineered to produce pharmaceuticals. Read the Court's Decision, get an overview of the case, and learn more: visit the Union of Concerned Scientists, read the executive summary to "A Growing Concern." Appellants include KAHEA, Center for Food Safety, Friends of the Earth, and Pesticide Action Network North America. Earthjustice senior attorney, Paul Achitoff argued the case. The judge will hold a hearing on August 22nd to determine further restrictions and conditions. Please attend and show support for strong protection. News Coverage:
KAHEA is party to a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Agriculture seeking comprehensive regulations and protection from the field testing of genetically modified organisms.
Fact Sheet: Genetic Engineering in the Garden of Eden (60k PDF) Basic information about agricultural biotechnology for Hawai‘i by Claire Cummings. Fact Sheet: Risks of Genetic Engineering (20k PDF) Fact Sheet: What's wrong with Genetic Engineering? (11k PDF) Organic Consumers Assocation. Fact Sheet: Biotechnology Policy Statement (12k PDF) Union of Concerned Scientist. The Union of Concerned Scientists Urges the USDA and FDA to Implement a Zero Contamination Initiative on Bio-Pharm Crops Feb. 5, 2003 Manufacturing Drugs and Chemicals In Crops: Biopharming Poses New Threats to Consumers, Farmers, Food Companies and the Environment(1.3MB PDF) Friends of the Earth. Executive Summary (324k PDF) TRESPASS A new comprehensive article on GMO's by Claire Cummings. Paoakalani Declaration: a statement of self-determination issued by Kanaka Maoli cultural experts in response to the commercialization and misappropriation of traditional Hawaiian knowledge (SIZE) October 2003. Bioprospecting /BioPiracy and Indigenous People (64k PDF) May 20, 2002. Biotech_and Indigenous Peoples Occasional Papers (36k PDF) May 8, 2002. Maori Point of View on Genetic Modification (25k PDF) The Violence of Globalization (12k PDF) by Vandana Shiva News Genetic Traits Spread to Non-Engineered Papayas in Hawai'i September 10, 2004 (ENS) coverage of Hawai'i Genetic Engineering Action Network Press Conference on threats to papaya markets from GMO papayas. Plenty Papaya Problems Scientists square off over how safe Hawaii's genetically modified papaya is for consumers by Alan D. McNarie, Hawai'i Island Journal Fears grow with genetic crop secrecy Honolulu Advertiser, October 19, 2003 Both sides lose in genetic crop wars Are there Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO's) in your lunch? Haleakala Times, October 15 - November 4, 2003 What's Wrong with Biotechnology in Hawai'i? (60k PDF) Op-Ed by Dr. Hector Valenzuela, UH Manoa Tropical Agriculture Hawaii Island Journal September 2003. No paradise for pharming The Scientist, July 30, 2003 Diversa Will Mine Biodiversity in Hawai‘i (3k PDF) Environmental News Service June 11, 2002 |
KAHEA is an alliance of Kanaka Maoli (Native Hawaiian) cultural practitioners, environmental activists and others concerned with protecting customary and traditional rights and our fragile environment.
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