US embassy cable - 02HARARE2305

UNCLAS HARARE 002305 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR AF/PD, AF/S, AF/RA 
NSC FOR JENDAYI FRAZER 
LONDON FOR GURNEY 
PARIS FOR NEARY 
NAIROBI FOR PFLAUMER 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL, PHUM, KPAO, KMDR, ZI 
SUBJECT: GOVERNMENT NEWSPAPER PUBLISHED ANTI-BIOTECH 
TRACT 
 
  1.   Under headline "Beware of Americans bearing 
      `gifts'" the government-controlled daily "The Herald" 
      published a silly anti-biotech article attributed to 
      Raj Patel of "Third World Network Features": 
 
  2.   "Food aid from U.S. is increasingly met with 
      suspicion and skepticism by many who describe 
      the export of unlabelled genetically modified 
      food to needy nations as `a dangerous game 
      played with the lives of starving people for 
      political gain. . .'  The U.S. Government has 
      been playing this game for well over a decade; 
      the famine in Southern Africa provided merely 
      the latest installment. . .  The covert U.S. 
      introduction of GM food into Africa is harmful, 
      for four reasons.  First, there is mounting 
      evidence that GM crops maybe unsafe. . . 
      Second, the covert introduction of GM food in 
      the Third World also jeopardizes the possibility 
      of an independent non-GM food policy within the 
      EU. . .  The third reason to be worried is that 
      the GM food aid compromises the sovereignty of 
      Southern African countries. . .  The reason poor 
      countries now find themselves holding a begging 
      bowl is because of the last `gift' they accepted 
      from the U.S. and EU: structural adjustment 
      policies. . .  The notion of `saving lives 
      through food aid' rings a little hollow if we 
      remember this; there were, prior to structural 
      adjustment, ample ways to feed the people, 
      without relying on frankenfood.  Southern 
      African countries didn't have much of a choice 
      about becoming beggars, but they can choose what 
      to do next. . ." 
 
      3.  Comment:  Publication of this article shows 
      continuing official Zimbabwean hostility toward 
      biotech food in spite of the government's 
      decision to accept it (with conditions) in food 
      assistance. 
 
SULLIVAN