Around 60 participants from nearly 50 organisations (many Misereor partners working in the field of rural development, activists and experts) came together in Raipur to discuss urgent issues related to the WTO, food sovereignty and genetic engineering. Misereor initiated this meeting to foster information and exchange on the issues which are of importance not only for partner NGO in India, but also for our own lobby work. The conference was organised by SANFEC India, GRAIN and PAIRVI and hosted by the Richharia Campaign in Chhatthisgarh.

"No" to Unfair Trade Rules and Gene Technology, "Yes" to Sustainable Land-Use and Food Sovereignty

At the end of the workshop, participants drew the conclusion that world trade roles, agricultural policies and research were not in favour of poor people, but a threat to food security. They agreed that concepts of sustainable agriculture and food sovereignty provided alternatives, promoting livelihood security and the protecting biodiversity. In such agricultural systems, farmers could regain the control over their productive resources and secure diversity - not only with regard to ecology, but also to culture and lifestyle. Participants asked for a revision of WTO rules and especially intellectual property rights. They opted against patents on life and for a ban on genetic engineering.

The issues discussed revealed the broad spectrum of participants' experience

A number of resource people (political analysts, scientists, farmers, NGO people) shared a lot of information and experience on the following topics: 

• WTO and food sovereignty,
• farmer driven processes, peasant agriculture,
• green revolution and the history of subversion through technology, myths of food security and productivity through green revolution,
• livestock-based livelihood options and the use of minor forest produce,
• genetic engineering with special focus on the Indian experience and lessons,
• effects of the WTO agreements (AoA - Agreement on Agriculture, TRIPS - Trade-Related Intellectual Property Rights, SPS - Sanitary and Phyto-Sanitary Measures),
• biopiracy and the role of agricultural research.

The conference also provided space for introducing experience in campaigns and movements all over the world:

• Two members of Masipag, a Philipino farmers' network, shared their experience in farmer-led breeding of local rice varieties and described their active lobbying role concerning their 'no patents on life' Campaign.
• The different actors involved in the Richharia Campaign explained how Syngenta, a multinational seed company, tried to obtain the Richharia Collection's germ plasma of thousands of local rice varieties, in compliance with the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) and the Indira Gandhi Agricultural University of Raipur - and how a people's movement emerged and forced Syngenta to draw back.
• Finally, Misereor presented its experience of lobbying in Europe on issues like WTO and 'no patents on life' and introduced some initiatives and programmes in countries all over the world, supported by Misereor.

Commitment to discuss WTO, Food Sovereignty and Gene Technology with people's organisations and to strengthen lobbying

As a result of the workshop, participants committed themselves to a number of activities. Information material in a clear and simple language will be produced in order to prepare participants for further discussions with people's organisations on the issues in their project area. The documents will be translated in a number of Indian languages. The NGOs present at the workshop decided to create an informal information network to keep each other informed. They opted for a joint study on food security and land-use systems aiming at improving the situation on the village level. They also planned to form a lobbying group for the revision of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) legislation in India.

An immediate result was the formulation of a letter to the Indira Gandhi Agricultural University of Raipur which was signed by the participants. After a visit at the University, participants felt that research focused on input intensive cash crops and even gene-technology, and the University was asked to stop support for such research. Instead, studies on sustainable farming systems should be initiated in close co-operation with the farmers.