Two hundred eighty farmers from North Cotabato, Sultan Kudarata and Bohol signed as additional petitioners to declare the provisions on public cconsultations contained in the Department of Agriculture's Administrative Order 8 unconstitutional for being in violation of their right to health, right to balanced and healthful ecology and right to information as enshrined in the 1987 Philippine constitution.
The petition also seeks to prohibit the Secretary of the Department of Agriculture and Director of Bureau of Plant Industry from taking any further action in considering the application of Bayer CropScience for direct use of Liberty Link Rice 62 (LL Rice 62). LLRice 62 is genetically modified to tolerate Liberty Link herbicides also manufactured by Bayer CropScience.
Aside from health and environmental concerns, the approval of LLRice 62 importation for direct use poses trade concerns. The United States where LLRice 62 is most likely to be sourced has highly subsidized and highly organized rice sector. Importation could disrupt domestic rice market at a time when Philippine trade negotiators are working to protect the rice industry by extending the special product treatment to rice.
Last week, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas approved the US$20M commodity loan which involves importation of 69,000 metric tons of rice from the US. The US rice sector tap grant and concessional credit, such as Public Law 480, to build the market overseas. If the timing is not right, Filipino rice farmers will end up competing for local rice market with imported rice. In addition, since the imported rice is part of a loan agreement, Filipinos (including rice farmers) will have to pay for the loan.
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