GE soya claims its latest Argentine victim

Following the announcement by Juan Carlos Romero, the governor of Salta, Argentina's biggest northern state, to put the Pizarro Reserve on sale, our campaigners demonstrated outside the 'Salta House' in Buenes Aires to illustrate the folly of this decision.

Our activists dressed up as vampires to illustrate that continued plundering of the land by soya barons will such the life out of the country's natural resources.

Greenpeace Argentina along with Fundación Vida Silvestre Argentina (WWF local afiliate) Fundación ProYungas and Fundación Ambiente y Recursos Naturales also filed a legal action against the government of Salta in order to stop the legal process that has put the Reserve on sale.

Emiliano Ezcurra our GE campaigner in Argentina stated: "Selling our natural reserves is an environmental crime and should be condemned by everyone. Soya fever shouldn't expand over the last third of our native forest, and never over the local communities rights."

The GE soya barons have already devastated massive areas of forest and are now trying to develop protected reserves such as the 18.000 ha. of the Pizarro Reserve for further expansion of the country's top environmental nightmare GE soya.

Mr Romero's decision comes at a time when all expert voices, NGOs, community leaders, aboriginal communities and religious groups are calling for an immediate halt to deforestation for expansion of what's called the 'monoculture frontier'.

"It is amazing, even in area that was declared protected in decree in 1995, we see the same threat rising again. More than ten families will have to be displaced if this land is sold, 87 members of the Wichi aboriginal community will also have to move. More than 18.000 ha. of protected forest will vanish to be replaced by an ocean of GE soya," added Emiliano Ezcurra.

This destructive move comes just days after a moratorium has been declared to stop further GE Soya expansion in the Santiago del Estero province.

More Information:

- Read our brief: Roundup Ready' Soya - what more can go wrong?

- Read our story: Victory: Moratorium on GE expansion in Argentina

- Read our story: Argentina monitors GE destruction

- Read our story: Greenpeace helps protect Argentinean reserve

- Read our story: Argentinean Farmers create human anti-GE barrier

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