Joined by the members of the European Parliament, Spanish Willy Meyer (R) and Portuguese Ines Zuber (2-R), supporters of Paraguayan former president Fernando Lugo demonstrate against his impeachment and dismissal over 10 days ago in front of the Paraguayan state-owned TV channel's headquarters in Asuncion on July 2, 2012. Lugo's abrupt ouster, spearheaded by Monsanto, on June 22 on charges of malfeasance linked to a deadly land dispute has been widely criticized by other Latin American leaders, who say the president did not have time to mount a proper defense. Elections in Paraguay are expected in April 2013. New President Federico Franco hit back Sunday at Paraguay's exclusion from two regional bodies and vowed not to yield to pressure from "outside forces" over the ouster of his predecessor. AFP PHOTO/NORBERTO DUARTE
August 21, 2012 (TSR) – A campaign called Operation Monsanto began in Paraguay against firms linked to the U.S. multinational company of the same name, which monopolizes the supply of seeds and herbicides and causes serious damage to domestic agriculture.
The situation was analyzed during the recent Paraguay Resiste Social Forum, which condemned the excessive increase in the supply of genetically-modified seeds and herbicides, described as disastrous for the land and farmers’ health.
Joined by the members of the European Parliament, Spanish Willy Meyer (R) and Portuguese Ines Zuber (2-R), supporters of Paraguayan former president Fernando Lugo demonstrate against his impeachment and dismissal over 10 days ago in front of the Paraguayan state-owned TV channel’s headquarters in Asuncion on July 2, 2012. Lugo’s abrupt ouster, spearheaded by Monsanto, on June 22 on charges of malfeasance linked to a deadly land dispute has been widely criticized by other Latin American leaders, who say the president did not have time to mount a proper defense. Elections in Paraguay are expected in April 2013. New President Federico Franco hit back that Sunday at Paraguay’s exclusion from two regional bodies and vowed not to yield to pressure from “outside forces” over the ouster of his predecessor. AFP PHOTO/NORBERTO DUARTE
Starting last weekend, as part of actions against Monsanto, the group Anonymous Paraguay attacked the websites of national institutions that collaborate with the U.S. company, according to Paraguay Resiste
The movement noted that Operation Monsanto is the first response to the government’s decision to boost the use of transgenic seeds of corn and cotton, which are major crops in Paraguay’s agriculture.
Paraguay has over 2.8 million hectares of soy crops in the hands of landowners who have also deforested large areas in the country, according to Paraguay Resiste.
Monsanto, a giant company that in 2010 alone reported revenues of 10.5 billion dollars, according to official statistics, will make domestic seeds and small farmers disappear, added Paraguay Resiste.
The extensive harvest of transgenic soy has turned Paraguay’s countryside into an uninhabitable place for the poorest farmers; due to poisonous herbicides and the irretrievable damage caused to their land to grow other crops, thus creating more poverty, the movement added.
