Into the Belly of the Beast

SUBHEAD: Kauai residents are heading to Basil and the world headquarters of pesticide company Syngenta.

By Gary Hooser on 19 April 2015 for HAPA -
(http://islandbreath.blogspot.com/2015/04/into-belly-of-beast.html)


Image above: Greenpeace puts banner titled 'Syngenta Pesicides Kill Bees!" on Syngenta headquarters in Basil, Switzerland. From (http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/news/Blogs/makingwaves/eu-bans-three-bee-killer-pesticides-a-light-o/blog/45023/).

[IB Publisher's note: HAPA is the Hawaiian Alliance for Progressive Action (http://www.hawaiiallianceforprogressiveaction.org/)]

Yes, myself and two other Kauai residents are heading this coming week to share our Kauai story with the people and government of Switzerland, home to the world headquarters of Syngenta.

Syngenta, you will remember, is the primary plaintiff presently suing the people and County of Kauai for the right to spray poisons next to our schools, hospitals and homes.

We are attending an international conference in Basel, Switzerland sponsored by organizations who share our concern with regards to the environmental and health harm caused from the actions of large transnational chemical companies.

Our hosts in Switzerland have also arranged for me to attend and speak briefly inside the actual Syngenta shareholders meeting.

I will have only a few minutes on the microphone and intend to tell Kauai's story and ask the Board and shareholders of Syngenta to withdraw from their lawsuit against Kauai County, honor the laws passed by our community, and provide Kauai County with the same respect and protections afforded to the people of Switzerland.

Syngenta is a Swiss corporation and many of the restricted use pesticides they apply regularly on Kauai are banned in Switzerland.  Atrazine, paraquat and 4 other highly toxic pesticides that Syngenta uses on Kauai are forbidden from use in their own country. 

Please help me carry a strong message to Syngenta from Kauai, from all Hawaii and from all over the world by signing this petition (http://tinyurl.com/StandWithKauai) and sharing it with your friends and contacts.

I intend to present this petition and copies of all signatures, along with my formal statement directly to the Syngenta Board of Directors and shareholders.

Syngenta must know and understand that our movement and our commitment to protect the health and environment of our community is not going away, but rather only grows stronger every day. 

Please sign and share this petition (https://ujoin.org/campaigns/44/actions/public) Text below:


I join the residents of Kauai and support them in asking the government and people of Switzerland to instruct Syngenta, which is headquarted in Switzerland, to:
  1. Offer Kauai and all Hawaii the same respect and protections that are afforded to the residents of Switzerland.
  2. Stop spraying Atrazine, Paraquat and 4 other pesticide "active ingredients" which are banned in Switzerland but are sprayed by Syngenta on a regular basis next to and upwind from Kauai schools, hospitals and homes.
  3. Honor Kauai's laws as they honor the people and the laws of Switzerland. Ask Syngenta to drop their lawsuit against the people of Kauai over a democratically passed law (Bill 2491/Ordinance 960) that would establish pesticide buffer zones around the places we live and go to school. Ask them to stop using the courts to hide information about what they spray and to what they expose Kauai's people on a daily basis.
I stand with Kauai and all the people of Hawaii in asking the Swiss people and the Swiss government for their support.


Why sign the petition?

Syngenta, one of the world's largest chemical corporations, sprays tons of restricted use pesticides on the tiny island of Kauai - next to schools, hospitals, and homes. Many of these pesticides are banned in Switzerland, Syngenta's HQ. Show your support for Kauai by signing this petition!
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