|
January 5, 2001
The Right Honourable Jean Chrétien
Prime Minister
House of Commons
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0A6
Dear Prime Minister:
The purpose of this letter is to urge the Government of Canada to sign
the Montreal Protocol on Biosafety, finalized January 29, 2000. An important
element of the Protocol is the Precautionary Principle. The National Council
of Women of Canada (NCWC) is concerned that Canada has not yet signed
the Protocol as the members of the NCWC voted at their 200 Annual General
Meeting to support the use of the Precautionary Principle; this support
relates particularly to health, safety and the environment.
Under the Precautionary Principle, nations are enabled to control and
to respect the importation and exportation of genetically modified organisms
(GMOs). The Precautionary Principle forms part of a structured approach
to the analysis of risk and risk management. It covers cases where scientific
evidence is insufficient, inconclusive or uncertain; and where preliminary
scientific evaluation indicates that there are reasonable grounds for
concern that the potentially dangerous effects on the environment, human,
animal or plant health may be inconsistent with the high level of protection
chosen by the country concerned.
The guidelines within the Protocol guard against unwarranted recourse
to the Precautionary Principle as a disguised form of protectionism. The
Protocol will therefore function as protection for consumers and economic
operators alike.
Final negotiations of the Protocol took place in Montreal last January.
At that time, Canada's Environmental Minister David Anderson agreed to
the wording that we must establish controls over GMO products to protect
biological diversity and human health. Since then, the Canadian government
has failed to take the next step of adding Canada's name to the list of
countries signing this important Agreement.
Up to now, seventy-five countries have signed the Protocol, including
two grain-exporting nations with similar trade interests to Canada (Chile
and Argentina). Canada's failure to sign the Protocol reinforces the view
that Canada is prepared to place the protection of the environment, biological
safety and diversity, and human health at risk in the pursuit of its trade
objectives. In addition, Canada's unwillingness to sign jeopardizes Canadian
access to markets as many countries exercise their right to reject genetically
modified grain imports.
The National Council of Women of Canada is a non-sectarian, non-partisan
federation of voluntary organizations of twenty Local Councils of women
in major Canadian cities, five Provincial Councils and twenty-seven affiliated
Nationally Organized Societies. Representing many thousands of people
across Canada, for over a hundred years, the National Council of Women
of Canada has worked to improve the condition of women and families. Because
the Local and Provincial Councils are themselves federations of local
women's organizations, the network of affiliated organizations represented
by NCWC is a significant cross-section of grass-roots opinion.
In conclusion M. Chrétien, the National Council of Women of Canada
urges you to sign the Protocol on Biosafety to benefit the health and
environment of both consumers and producers in Canada and elsewhere.
Sincerely,
Elizabeth Hutchinson
President
National Council of Women of Canada
cc: Maria Neil, NCWC Convener Economics, President O-C Council of Women
|