Tony Del Plato wrote: > This is a very big victory. > No patents on life!!
Sorry, but I'm not seeing anything in this report that would indicate a "big victory." The patent was revoked because "parts of the patent were not really new and others [sic] details were not described in a way that the invention could be really repeated by other experts." There's nothing in that to indicate a shift on any of the basic issues relating to "patents on life." The fact that Monsanto itself originally opposed the patent in question (until it acquired the company that owned it) shows that there was nothing essential at stake here. Even the group that spearheaded the opposition, No Patents on Life, could only say that "this is an important step against patents on seeds, because it shows that civil society will keep on fighting and can finally succeed even against powerful multinationals." If that's the only legal principle to be established from 13 years of litigation, I have to wonder how this organization sets its priorities. Jon > ---------- Forwarded message ---------- > From: Beth Burrows <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> > Date: May 3, 2007 3:35 PM > Subject: [Geactivists] CONGRATS TO ETC, GREENPEACE, and Others - Monsanto > Patent revoked in Europe!!!!!!!!! > To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > European Patent Office revokes Monsanto´s species patent on genetically > engineered soy beans > > Munich, May 3, 2007. In a public hearing at the board of appeal at the > European Patent Office a basic patent (EP 0301749) of US company > Monsanto was revoked today. Reasons were that parts of the patent were > not really new and others details were not described in a way that the > invention could be really repeated by other experts. > > The final decision was the outcome of appeals which were filed by > Canadian civil society organisation ETC Group and the European Company > of Syngenta. Further oppositions were filed orginally by the NGO "No > Patents on Life!" and four other companies when the patent was granted > in 1994. Even Monsanto filed an opposition, but then bought the company > Agracetus which originally owned the patent, withdrew its opposition > and started to defend the patent. > > According to Hope Shand of ETC Group, „The decision comes pretty late, > 13 years after the patent was granted. But the decision to revoke the > patent is wonderful news. The species wide soybean patent of Monsanto > is not allowed to stand." > > In its orginal version as granted the patent covered all genetically > engineered plant species and especially soybeans and was seen as one of > the broadest species patent ever granted on plants and seeds. The > background of the so called invention was a >particle gun< method by > which plants get bombarded by metallic particles and so introducing > foreign genes into plant material. A similar version of the particle > gun (which does not allow a precise transfer of gene sequences) is > still being used today to produce not only in Monsanto´s plants. > > Ruth Tippe from the organisation „No Patents on Life!" says: "This is > an important step against patents on seeds, because it shows that civil > society will keep on fighting and can finally succeed even against > powerful multinationals." > > The outcome of the procedure will not only affect Monsanto but also the > European Patent Office: "It is now shown that the Patent Office is > granting patents which are covering broad sectors of agricultural > diversity without really invention behind. There are many others > patents which simply satisfy the greed of companies but do not give > benefits to society," says Christoph Then from Greenpeace. > > Greenpeace which was supporting the legal challenge of No Patents on > Life and ETC Group, is urging for a worldwide ban on patents on seeds > and currently cooperating in a global coalition with farmers > organisation (www.no-patents-on-seeds.org). > > ************ > sent by: > No Patents on Seeds > and > forwarded by > The Edmonds Institute > 20319-92nd Avenue West > Edmonds, Washington 98020 > USA > phone:(001) 425-775-5383 > email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > website:<http://www.edmonds-institute.org> > > _______________________________________________ > Geactivists mailing list > [EMAIL PROTECTED] > http://geaction.org/mailman/listinfo/geactivists_geaction.org > > _______________________________________________ RSS, archives, subscription & listserv information for: [email protected] http://lists.mutualaid.org/mailman/listinfo/sustainabletompkins free hosting by http://www.mutualaid.org
