This is a FWD from activists in Hawai'i. Please take a moment to email your testimony. Mahalo!
---------

Aloha mai kakou,

This is a summary of the call for Testimony for the
Senate Hearing on GE Kalo scheduled for Sat. Feb. 25,
in Honolulu. Testimony can be sent by e-mail,
complete instructions are written below, as well as
supporting documents.

Aloha,

Nancy



> From: "Miss Sarah Sullivan" <soulfive@hotmail.com>
> CC: soulfive@hotmail.com
> Subject: TARO ACTION ALERT! WE NEED YOUR HELP!
> Date: Wed, 22 Feb 2006 17:32:38 -0500
>
> February 2006
> TARO ACTION ALERT: WE NEED YOUR HELP!
> PLEASE FORWARD THIS ON!!!
>
> Many of you probably already know that the taro
> plant is being genetically
> engineered in Hawaii: altered at a cellular level by
> researchers through the
> University of Hawaii. Many people are very concerned
> about this, and groups
> working on this issue have popped up all over the
> state.
> There are several things you can do to show your
> support in moving forward
> to protect the TARO in Hawaii.
>
> 1. There are two bills around taro that will be
> heard this Saturday,
> February 25th at 10:30am. We need to support the
> moratorium (or end) of GE
> research on both taro (SB 2749) and SB 2750 on
> coffee. The taro bill was
> introduced by Senators Hooser, English, and Chun
> Oakland and it is really
> important that we show our support that GMO TARO
> SHOULD STOP NOW! It would
> be great if you could show up but if not, please
> send in testimony. It makes
> a huge difference. You can send to
> testimony@capitol.hawaii.gov
> Detailed directions for sending testimony are below
> at the bottom of this
> email.
>
> 2. Thursday, March 2nd there is an action at UH on
> Oahu. At 11:30 am at
> Bachman Hall we will be demanding that President
> David McClain drop the
> PATENT on taro in which the UH claims "Ownership"of
> Haloa, the ancestry of
> Hawaii and the taro plant.
>
> 3. University of Hawaii and the Industry involved in
> genetic engineering are
> getting letters to the editors published almost
> daily in many of our
> local/state papers. We really need to respond in
> mass, and a few of us have
> been working hard to try to get others to write
> letters to the editor. You
> could make a big difference by showing your support
> by writing a letter
> saying NO GMO TARO in Hawaii to any of the
> newspapers in Hawaii.
>
> 4. Chris Kobayashi, taro farmer from Hanalei on
> Kauai, and some others have
> worked very hard to get our “taro resolutions”
> written up. These are simply
> sign-on’s that people can put their name on to show
> their support in
> stopping GE taro research in Hawaii. If you could
> sign one and get your
> friends, any farmers, and anyone else to sign onto
> these it would be so
> valuable to the efforts to protect taro. If someone
> from you island is
> coming to Oahu Sat. the 25th, they could bring these
> resolutions which would
> be best, or you can mail them for future use t
>
> Sarah Sullivan
> PO BOX 343
> Koloa HI 96756
>
> SO, I’ve compiled some info below for you to see if
> you want to keep reading
> and pass on this on.
> You can open any of the attachments (in Word or
> Adobe.)
> I will also copy and paste some info below so that
> you can forward this
> message on easily.
>
> First, why should we oppose GE taro?
>
> Well, here is an example of how the Biotechnology
> companies view taro in
> Hawaii. This is good example of something put out
> by the companies that The
> University of Hawaii is working with that state that
> taro is not sacred, and
> that Hawaiian people who are opposed to GE are just
> fearful. This is
> offensive for obvious reasons. Here is what they
> say:
>
> HCIA
> Hawaii Crop Improvement Association
>
> BIOTECH CROPS: THE FACTS ABOUT GENETICALLY
> ENGINEERED TARO
>
>
>
-------------------------------------------------------------------
> “Taro Considered Sacred”
> Taro production was not merely an activity of food
> production in Hawaii’s
> early history, but was tightly interwoven into the
> Hawaiian culture and
> their legends about creation…
>
> Since the taro plant was the first-born of Father
> heaven, devotees of Wakea
> consider it superior to man and sacred. This is the
> source of some of the
> resistance to genetically engineered taro. It stems
> from a deep and abiding
> fear that changing any aspect of the taro plant
> desecrates a sacred deity-a
> fear that overlooks the fact that taro has already
> been changed
> significantly due to thousands of years of breeding
> to produce new and
> improved hybrid varieties.
>
> Sources: John J. Cho, Ph D., Plant Pathologist, The
> College of Tropical
> Agriculture and Human Resources (CTAHR) at the
> University of Hawaii at
> Manoa, and Andy Hashimoto, CTAHR Dean
>
> You can read this document in full attached as the
> adobe “Taro Fact
> Sheet”put out by the HCIA. If you can’t open any of
> these and need them, I
> would be happy to send them to you on disk if you
> call me at 808-756-1269.
>
> Here’s a summary of what has happened with GMO TARO.
> (Attached as “Who,
> what, when of GMO taro.”)
>
> GENETICALLY ENGINEERED TARO IN HAWAII
> Here in Hawaii, the growing and cultivation of the
> kalo (or taro) plant is a
> tradition that stretches back for more than a
> thousand years. The Hawaiians
> loved, honored, and cared for the kalo plant as
> their older brother, and
> were in turn fed and supported by kalo for
> generations and generations. By
> tending carefully to the kalo plant, the Hawaiians
> eventually cultivated
> more than 300 varieties of taro.
>
> Today, the proud history of kalo in Hawaii is being
> threatened. Genetic
> engineers at the University of Hawaii and the Hawaii
> Agricultural Research
> Center are currently developing genetically
> engineered taro in laboratories
> here in Hawaii. They are altering the very genetic
> foundation of the taro
> plant by inserting genes from other, unrelated
> organisms. This process:
> • Undermines the genetic integrity of kalo;
> • Threatens the biodiversity of the taro plant;
> • Could cause new, unexpected problems in taro
> cultivation;
> • Could contaminate traditional varieties of kalo
> and take away taro
> farmers’ ability to choose what they grow in their
> lo’i; and
> • Overlooks the wealth of traditional knowledge
> about growing taro that has
> been passed down through generations and
> generations.
> History of Genetically Engineered Taro:
> WHO is doing this?
> Researchers at the University of Hawaii (UH) have
> been granted permission to
> do this. Susan Miyasaka was conducting research.
> Many other have been
> involved, such as Dr. John Cho who has mapped the
> genome (genetic structure)
> of the taro and participated in many PRO-GMO
> meetings around the taro.
> Andrew Hashimoto, Dean of the College of Tropical
> Agriculture and Human
> Resources (CTAHR) oversees the genetic engineering
> of taro.
> WHAT varieties are they engineering?
> • Chinese (Bunlong), Hawaiian (Maui Lehua), and
> Samoan (Niue)
> • Researchers are inserting rice, wheat and
> grapevine into the taro.
> WHEN did this research start?
> GE taro research started in 2003. UH received
> patenting rights on three
> varieties of hybridized taro in 2002 (read below.)
> WHERE is this research being done?
> Supposedly this GE taro has been kept in the lab.
> Researchers only have a
> permit for indoor research.
> WHY is this research being done?
> Researchers hope to make the taro resistant to a
> fungus (phytophthora), but
> clearly all GE revolves around ownership and
> money-making.
> GE involves PATENTING the taro plant (meaning the
> researchers own it) and
> overlooks the causes of disease and fungus problems
> with taro: poor water
> quality, lack of water, lack of diversity, and the
> loss of the knowledge
> about the old, organic, healthy growing techniques.
> Ownership of Taro:
> Patenting:
> Pa'lehua, Pa'akala and Pauakea varieties are now
> patented. These are all
> descendents the widely-grown Maui Lehua variety,
> which belongs to the
> original group Lehua of the Hawaiian-Polynesian
> taros.
> Farmers wishing to purchase huli, or breeding stock,
> must sign a licensing
> agreement with UH for this patented taro. The
> licensing agreement (click to
> see the agreement) states that "UH owns the taro
> cultivar..." It prohibits
> farmers from selling or breeding the patented
> plants, and requires payment
> of a royalty to the University. (See
> www.centerforfoodsafety.org)
>
> WHAT HAVE PEOPLE DONE ABOUT THIS:
> • Walter Ritte, activist from Molokai, and friends
> held a ceremony for Haloa
> (Hawaiian ancestor and taro plant) in May of 2005,
> getting the Dean of the
> University of Hawaii Andrew Hashimoto to sign a
> moratorium (end) of genetic
> engineering research of the Hawaiian taro until a
> Hawaiian advisory board
> was established. Unfortunately, some of the “board”
> that the University
> formed were paid employees of University of Hawaii
> with a vested interest in
> promoting GE taro to the Hawaii people. Since then
> this bogus board has
> disbanded.
> • Hundreds of farmers and citizens have begun
> signing onto the a resolution
> in support of banning the genetic engineering of
> taro in Hawaii as well as
> the patenting of any varieties of taro.
> • In January of 2006 Hawaiian activists and farmers
> demanded that the
> University of Hawaii (UH) give up its patents on the
> three lines of taro
> (mentioned above) whose lineage extends back to
> Polynesian taro first
> brought to the Islands centuries ago. Activists
> Walter Ritte and farmer
> Christine Kobayashi from Kauai, along with the help
> and legal support of
> “The Center for Food Safety” submitted a letter to
> UH demanding the drop of
> patents. They are currently awaiting a reply from
> UH. Go to
> www.centerforfoodsafety.org and type "taro" in
> search to find the following:
> Resources:
> • View the letter to University of Hawaii
> • View the University of Hawaii licensing agreement
> • Links to U.S. Patents on Taro
> Pa'akala Cultivar
> Pa'lehua Cultivar
> Pauakea Cultivar
> Links to WIPO Patents on Taro
> Pa'akala Cultivar
> Pa'lehua Cultivar
> Pauakea Cultivar
>
> TO SUBMIT TESTIMONY:
> GMO Free Hawaii Supporters:
>
> Three bills will be heard in the Senate on Saturday
> Feb. 25, 2006 at 10:30
> am.
>
> WE ARE NOT SUPPORTING SB2751, IT IS A COMBO COFFEE
> AND TARO BILL AND WE FEEL
> THAT COFFEE AND TARO HAVE VERY SEPARATE ISSUES AND
> SHOULD NOT BE MIXED
>
> Please respond with conviction,
> Mahalo,
> Una
>
> SB 2749 Provides a 10-year moratorium on testing,
> propagating, cultivating,
> growing, and raising genetically engineered taro.
> Introducer(s): HOOSER,
> ENGLISH, Chun Oakland. Current Referral: EIA/WLA
>
> SB 2750 Provides a 10-year moratorium on field
> testing, propagating,
> cultivating, growing, and raising genetically
> engineered coffee.
> Introducer(s): HOOSER, ENGLISH. Current Referral:
> EIA/WLA
>
> SB 2751 Provides a 10-year moratorium on testing,
> propagating, cultivating,
> growing, and raising genetically engineered coffee
> and taro. Introducer(s):
> HOOSER, ENGLISH, Chun Oakland, Nishihara, Kim.
> Current Referral: EIA/WLA
>
> Who do I submit testimony to and how?
> Testimony needs to be submitted at least 24 hours
> before the hearing.
>
> To submit testimony by email to
> testimony@capitol.hawaii.gov
>
> Info that should be in the heading of your testimony
> (cut and paste the
> info below into your testimony)
>
> TESTIMONY IN SUPPORT OF SB2750, or SB2749 Relating
> to Genetically Modified
> Organisms
>
> Submitted to the Committees on Energy , Environment
> and International
> Affairs, and Water, Land and Agriculture
> Date: Saturday, Feb. 25, 2006
> Time: 10:30 a.m.
> Place: Conference Room 329
> Submitted by: (your name here)
>
> Chairperson English, Vice-Chair Kokubun, Chairperson
> Kokubun, and Vice Chair
> Hooser and members of these committees, Mahalo
> for the opportunity to testify in strong support of
> SB 2749 or 2750
>
>
>
> Here are some talking points for your testimony.
> Please make sure that you
> include some of your own words too!
>
>
> I strongly support the SB 2750 to create a ten year
> moratorium on the field
> testing and planting of GMO coffee in Hawaii.
> Hawaii's coffee industry has a
> lot to lose by the introduction of gmo coffee in
> outdoor plantings. A
> certain amount of cross-pollination will occur.
> Unlike the GMO papaya,
> where the flesh of the first generation is non-gmo
> when there is cross
> pollination, the coffee SEED is the part of the
> plant that is consumed.
> Consequently, the crop could be damaged by any
> amount of cross-pollination.
> The Hawaii coffee industry sells within the gourmet,
> specialty coffee
> market. GMO coffee would ruin that market. Japan
> and Europe require the
> labeling of all gmo foods imported into their
> countries. Consumers would
> not buy this product if it was GMO.
>
> This bill also allows for the research in the
> laboratory for new gmo coffee
> plants.
>
> This bill does not take away jobs from Hawaii, which
> is often the concern.
> It protects a substantially viable and successful
> industry in the state.
>
>
> I strongly support SB 2749 to create a ten year
> moratorium on the research
> and planting of GMO taro in the state of Hawaii.
> This is a spiritual issue
> for Native Hawaiians. Taro is considered an
> ancestor of the Hawaiian
> people. Any manipulation of this sacred crop is an
> affront to the Hawaiian
> people. Please take the precaution to protect the
> cultural rights of the
> people of this land. This bill does not take away
> jobs from the people of
> Hawaii. Please do what is pono.
>
>