genetiX snowball

"There are moments and issues in history where parliament is inadequate and it falls to the people themselves to act. With the case of genetic engineering and the granting of patents on life, I believe we have reached one of those historic moments." Alan Simpson MP for Nottingham.

After half a century facing the dangers of the nuclear age and the splitting of the atom, we now find ourselves with a new threat posed by the splitting of the genome through genetic modification. Radioactivity has a "half life", it gradually becomes safer over thousands of years; but gene technology creates a pollution with "multiple life" - it keeps on replicating and cannot be recalled.

genetiX snowball is a campaign of nonviolent civil responsibility which aims to build active resistance to this new gene technology which is unwanted, unnecessary, unsafe and irreversible.

Genetically modified (GM) plants are being released into the environment at deliberate release sites all over Britain.

genetix snowball is calling for a five year moratorium on the deliberate release of GM plants in Britain, except for government sponsored ecological health and safety tests (in enclosed systems); and the safe removal of all GM crops already existing.

Our democratic system has failed us; government has waived its responsibility to respond to public concern and regulatory bodies are wholly inadequate. Meanwhile transnational corporations hold the reins and pull the strings of power. Profit is being prioritised over the health of people and our environment.

When biotechnology companies refuse to accept liability for the risks of GM; when our legal system becomes devoid of morals and ethics - then we must take responsibility. We believe that one way of taking responsibility is to safely remove a small, symbolic number of GM plants from the ground and then to encourage others to take similar action.

Since GM crop deliberate release 'trial' sites are sometimes several hectares in area, and there are possibly more than 300 in the UK, it is essential to involve lots of people. Each participant in genetiX snowball is asked to invite two or more people to join in the campaign, thus the image of the rolling snowball grows. Hopefully the action should not only perpetuate itself, but also get big enough to effect real democratic change.

The campaign is built on the cornerstones of nonviolence, openness and accountability. We believe that these will help us see effective and long- lasting change.

The first snowball action took place at Model Farm, Shirburn, Nr. Watlington, Oxfordshire on the 4th of July.

We walked to the site carrying a banner, brightly coloured flags, tape to cordon off the area and heavy duty plastic bags marked with the biohazard symbol for the GM plants. As an example of a more sustainable way of producing our food we also took an apple tree to plant at the site.

Five people took the decontaminating role and four others did support work: liaising with and explaining the action to press, farmer and police and recording what was happening. We took known and trusted press with us whilst Andrew (press liaison) met other press at a point nearby.

The "decontaminators" used ordinary gardening tools and wore decorated protective suits. Each puller chose a number of plants significant to them; Jo chose to pull up 25 as she is 25 years old, Kathryn pulled 64 for the number of experimental trials currently in progress, Mel wanted to do 74 in memory of her friend Ray who had died recently aged 74, Rowan plucked one plant symbolic of the number of genetiX snowball actions, Zoe chose 99 as she wanted them out of the ground as quickly as possible.

We arrived about five minutes before the police and just about had time to put on our protective clothing and begin digging up the plants. The police were met by Jane and Phil (farmer and police liaison), who introduced themselves and explained who we were and what we were doing. An agent for Monsanto then arrived and gave us a warning to leave the site.

When the police tried to stop us digging one of us explained that we couldn't as we had work to do. Rowan said: "Arrest Monsanto! They're causing criminal damage to other farmer's crops through genetic pollution and we are preventing this by removing Monsanto's GM crops". The police officer went off to speak to his superior. We continued digging up, snapping in half and bagging up the plants. Soon after we were again asked to leave, we continued decontaminating.

The police began to arrest us for criminal damage after about 20 minutes. Our action/legal observer busily noted down significant events, the time that they happened and names, numbers or descriptions of people involved At this point more press arrived and Zoe and Mel both managed interviews with them before being arrested. Jo managed to hold an impromptu press conference with some journalists before being led away. The decontaminators left their signed statements for the farmer and the company.

The arrested decontaminators were taken a few miles from the site and released without charge. No criminal charges have been pressed so far, although subsequently Monsanto has filed a civil case injuncting the five women from any further 'snowballs' on its sites and are persuing a claim for damages.

Before doing the action, we'd distributed several thousand leaflets giving information about the campaign at public events and through publications. We'd also written to farmers hosting GM release sites, all the companies releasing GM crops, the Thames Valley Police to let them know about the genetiX snowball campaign and the Environment Agency specifically to let them know that there would be bags of biohazard which needed their attention.

In mid August, the third snowball action took openness further by informing the farmer (Sharpes Seeds), police and press the exact time and location of the action. Complete openness meant the whole action was calm and minimalised the stress for all concerned. Eighteen people took part aged five to fifty. For eight of the eleven people who were arrested, it was their first act of nonviolent direct action. An affinity group has now formed in Lincoln to continue the resistance in the heartland of GM deliberate release sites. No criminal charges have been brought to date and Sharpes seeds have said they will not take any civil action.

Ground rules

We are nonviolent because we want to help to create a peaceful world. The use of any kind of violence alienates people, polarises opinion and deflects from the real issues at stake. Taking nonviolent action in a group needs thorough preparation including discussing what each of you may consider to be violence. We need to confront the violence within us and to learn ways of dealing with the violence of others.

Openness and accountability are cornerstones of a real democracy. Multinational companies, and the majority of those involved in the biotech industry, are largely unaccountable to the rest of society. They have, for example, taken no steps to accept liability if anything goes wrong with gene technology. We show our openness by writing to the farmer in advance of the action - either the specific farmer, or all farmers hosting GM crops in the county in which we plan to do our action. We show our accountability by leaving personal statements explaining why we have taken nonviolent action.

An intrinsic part of our action is our readiness to accept the consequences of our action as part of our resistance. We recognise that people may well be arrested for participating in this action but by making ourselves vulnerable we are challenging the opponent. It is more difficult and challenging to condemn somebody who is apparently proud of their action, shows no violent resistance and seems undaunted by the consequences. There are however essential roles within each action which have a lower risk of arrest, such as talking with the farmer, police, media and legal support.

We believe that GM plants are a biohazard and we will be decontaminating the test site in a safe way. The measures we are taking are primarily to guard against the spread of genetic pollution which could result in further horizontal gene transfer.

We have tried to reach a definition of nonviolence and a way of being open and accountable that is appropriate for the circumstances in which genetiX snowball is taking place. We are inviting everyone who takes part in genetiX snowball to sign a pledge agreeing to these groundrules. There are opportunities to experiment within the terms of our pledge and we do not know how circumstances will change in the future so we need to be adaptable.

We want to challenge the sheep-like habit of doing as others do and not stepping out of line. Whilst individuals unthinkingly follow others, or give their consent by their failure to act, our society will never grow out of making war and destroying the Earth

The genetiX snowball draws inspiration from three sources: the Snowball nonviolence campaign which resisted the presence of US military nuclear arms bases in Britain in the 80s; the Swords into Ploughshares tradition which uses simple hand tools to nonviolently disarm weapons; and nonviolent actions in defence of the environment.

GETTING INVOLVED

Informing yourself about the issues will help you to argue your case with those you hope to influence. See the resources section for details of campaign groups who can provide briefings on GM crops.

Form a genetiX snowball group

Group preparation

Establish how much time each person has to contribute; it is important to be realistic and honest about what you can offer so that the group can look for more people if necessary. Be aware that if arrests take place your commitment will still be needed after the action.

Group training: Explore nonviolence by reading and discussing with each other and by role playing different scenarios. You could organise a nonviolence training session and invite an outside trainer to help you (see resources). We recommend that you make decisions by consensus to ensure that everyone taking part in your action feels good about group decisions. You could do some training and practice this process as it can be difficult and slow at first.

Finding a test site: The easiest way to find out the location of a GM crop test site is to ask friends and neighbours if they know of any GM crops being grown in your locality. Most of us however will not be living close enough to a test site to find out about it in this way, and will initially need to consult the GMO Public Register which contains details of all deliberate releases of GM organisms to the environment. The government is required by law to provide this info to the public. You can get a copy of the register free of charge from the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions, Biotechnology Unit (see resources). The info in this register is often inadequate or out of date. More up-to-date info on test site locations is available from Friends of the Earth or GEN (see resorces section). Several farmers have written to genetix snowball claiming to no longer have GMOs on their land - contact the snowball number for latest news on your area.

Timelines: Our aim is that genetiX snowball actions will happen on the first and third weekends in every month. The reason for this time structure is to give the genetiX snowball some kind of momentum, and the possibility to increase in size. Dates are set frequently enough for snowballers to choose the best time for them to take action. It also gives space for people from other campaigns to do other kinds of actions. Lots of groups of people all acting at the same time builds a sense of community, shows a unified presence and will carry stories better in the local and national media. The dates are set at weekends to allow the majority of people who work regular hours to participate more easily.

Reaching into your community is vital and is more democratic than taking small isolated actions which do not make reference to their locality. Some people may not feel able to form a snowball group but will be very keen to help in other ways. You might be able to get help with legal advice, banner making, transport, child minding, making food, conflict mediation. Local people who may be interested in supporting your group include organic farmers, allotment associations, churches and temples, women's groups, health food shops and grocers, local 'green' groups. Tell your friends and colleagues, put up posters, distribute leaflets, hold a meeting, organise a debate - use your imagination...

Generating dialogue and debate: In preparation for the action you could write some letters to voice your concerns about GM (see resources section). You could arrange to meet with representatives of the company doing the test, your local supermarket manager, your MP. These letters and meetings will open dialogue with others in a position to influence the issue and give space for them to use their power to stop the GM test field experiments. At least one farmer, in Wiltshire, has cancelled a proposed contract to plant GM crops after hearing about the dangers.

Public meetings and debates are an excellent way of informing people about the arguments around the issue of GM. You could invite speakers from campaigns against GM and from the GM companies.

How the genetiX snowball campaign is organised:

For background information, contact:

FRIENDS OF THE EARTH (FoE):

26-28 Underwood Street, London, N1 2PN, Tel: 0171 490 1555 or 0113 242 8153 Very active on GE within their Food and Biotech campaign, good briefings on GE.

GENETIC ENGINEERING NETWORK (GEN):

PO Box 9656, London, N4 4JY. Tel: 0181 374 9516 Provides information on all aspects of GE, publishes newsletter "Genetix Update" and has an e-mail information list. Email genetics@gn.apc.org putting 'Subscribe Genetics' in the subject box.

GENETICS FORUM:

94 White Lion Street, London, N1 9PF. Tel: 0171 837 9229 geneticsforum@gn.apc.org Publishes magazine "Splice of Life".

GREENPEACE:

Canonbury Villas, Islington, London, N1 2PN. Tel: 0171 865 8214 Direct action on GE and good briefings.

WOMENS ENVIRONMENTAL NETWORK (WEN):

87 Worship Street, London, EC2A 2BE, Tel. 0171 247 3327 Fax: 0171 247 4740. Produces useful briefing sheets on setting up local campaigns and ideas for action

TURNING THE TIDE:

A Quaker programme on nonviolent social change, Quaker Peace and Service, Friends House, Euston Road, London NW1 2BJ. Tel: 0171 387 3601, contact Steve Whiting. Provides free briefing sheets and runs trainings on nonviolence.

ADDRESSES TO WRITE TO

• Tony Blair, PM. (10 Downing Street, London, SW1A 2AA), Michael Meacher, Minister of the Environment, (Dept. of the Environment, Transport and Regions, Sanctuary Buildings, Great Smith St London SW1P 3BT)

• Frank Dobson, Sec. of State for Health, (Dept. of Health, Richmond House, 79 Whitehall, London SW1A 2NS.)

• Lord Donoghue, Minister for Farming and Food Industries Nick Brown, Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, (MAFF, Whitehall Place West, London, SW1A 2HH)

• To find details of your MP call 0171 219 4272 (it helps if you know your post code)

• To find your MEP call 0171 227 4300.

Order a copy of the GMO Public Register from:-

The Biotechnology Unit, Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions, Ashdown House, 123 Victoria Street, London, SW1E 6OE. Tel: 0171 890 5275/5277 Fax: 0171 890 5259.

You can also visit one of the ten DETR regional offices to inspect the register, get the address from the Biotech Unit.

LOCAL CONTACT INFORMATION

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