Taíno Confederation joins the opposition to U.S. interference in Mexico’s phaseout of glyphosate and GM corn

Washington, DC (UCTP Taíno News) - Today, 80 U.S. organizations delivered a letter to US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Tom Vilsack and US Trade Representative (USTR) Katherine Tai, opposing the interference by U.S. government officials and agribusiness interests in Mexico’s planned phaseout of glyphosate and genetically modified corn. Signatories to the letter included representatives of Indigenous Peoples, American farmers, workers, consumers, public healths, sustainable agriculture, and other food systems research and advocacy groups. Further, over 6,900 petition signatures from concerned individuals were delivered as well. 

As revealed by a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request by the Center for Biological Diversity, under the Trump administration, public officials at USTR and USDA strategized with agrochemical industry representatives from CropLIfe America and Bayer AG (which produces glyphosate) on ways to urge the Mexican government to rescind its policy decisions. After, USTR warned Mexico’s Minister of Economy that Mexico’s action threatened the “strength of our bilateral relationship.” 

The United Confederation of Taíno People (UCTP) and the Caribbean Amerindian Development Organization (CADO) were signatories to the letter. UCTP President and CADO Co-President, R. Múkaro Borrero stated, "The COVID-19 pandemic has shown the world the importance of food security and food sovereignty at national and local levels. Moving toward a right relationship with food and the Earth should be at the top of our global priorities. Other countries should follow Mexico’s example for the phaseout. If you claim to care about the present and future generations, there is no sane reason to be in opposition." 

The joint letter and petition to USTR and USDA urged that the agencies should respect Mexico’s sovereignty and refrain from interfering with its right to enact its own protective policies. The U.S. groups and individuals echoed concerns from agricultural and civil society organizations in Mexico:

"We reject the pressure from corporations such as Bayer-Monsanto — and their CropLife trade association — which are working in both the United States and Mexico to undermine the presidential decree that phases out the use of glyphosate and transgenic corn," declared Fernando Bejarano, director of Pesticide Action Network in Mexico (RAPAM).

Bejarano went on to explain, “We are part of the No Maize No Country Campaign, a broad coalition of peasant organizations, non-profit NGOs, academics and consumers, which support the presidential decree and fight for food sovereignty with the agroecological transformation of agricultural systems that guarantee the right to produce and consume healthy, nutritious food, free of pesticides and transgenics.”

UCTPTN 04.30.2021

UCTP Liaison Addresses Indigenous Peoples Corn Conference in Mexico

UCTP Liaison Officier Tai Pellicier speaking at an international conference

Tlaxcala, México (UCTP Taíno News) - The International Indian Treaty Council held its 4th International Corn Conference in Vicente Guerrero, Tlaxcala México from March 7-8, 2019. Indigenous Peoples from throughout the hemisphere and the Pacific attended the conference whose theme was “By our ancestral rights, we protect and guarantee our Food Sovereignty and that of our future generations.” The United Confederation of Taíno People was represented at the conference by Tai Pellicier, a UCTP Liaison Officer. 

Taking place on day one of the conference, Tai’s presentation was entitled “Transgénicos, una amenaza que va más allá que semillas.” It focused on Borikén (Puerto Rico), as an example, and touch up colonialism; the U.S. invasion; land grabbing; contamination of soil, air, and water, environmental racism; subsidies given to corporations not provided to local people; and free corporate access to water.

Panel topics at the conference included the History and Importance of Corn for Indigenous Peoples; Threats to milpa systems by genetically modified seeds, pesticides, loss of fertility of the land, dispossession, false solutions and the green economy; Youth and Food Sovereignty; International Work on Food Sovereignty; Practical uses for corn; and Strategies, Projects and Solutions. A conference declaration was also developed and adopted.

UCTP Taíno News 03.8.2019

Treaty Council Expands Board of Directors

Panama (UCTP Taino News) - At its recent meeting held in Panama, the International Indian Treaty Council (IITC) voted in representatives from Mexico and the Caribbean to its Board of Directors. Founded in 1974, the IITC is an organization of Indigenous Peoples from North, Central, and South America, the Pacific, and most recently from the Caribbean, working together for the sovereignty and self-determination of Indigenous Peoples as well as the recognition and protection of Indigenous Rights, treaties, traditional cultures and sacred lands.

The nominations of Saul Vicente Vasquez (Zapoteca) of Oaxaca, Mexico and Naniki Reyes Ocasio (Taino) of Boriken (Puerto Rico) were unanimously accepted by all standing board members. Roberto Borrero (Taino) was also nominated for and accepted as an alternate Board member. Both Reyes Ocasio and Borrero are representatives of the United Confederation of Taino People.

The IITC Board meeting followed a special Human Rights Workshop and the annual International Treaty Council Conference with indigenous representatives arriving in Kuna Nation territory from throughout the Americas.

UCTPTN 09.29.2009

Caribbean Tops New 7 Natural Wonders Nominees

El Yunque Rainforest, a site of cultural and spirtual significance to the

Taino People is one of the Caribbean nominees for the "New 7 Natural Wonders of the World.

UCTP Taino News – The New7Wonders Foundation has announced the organization's next project: The New7Wonders of Nature. The natural heritage nominations for this category include 10 sites in the Caribbean. The nominated sites include El Yunque Nature Conservancy (Puerto Rico), Pink Sand Beach (Bahamas), Vinales Vally (Cuba), Twin Pitons Moutain Peak (Saint Lucia), La Brea Pitch Lake (Trinidad and Tobago), Dunn’s River Waterfall (Jamaica), and Boiling Lake (Dominica). Belize was nominated for 3 sites Blue Hole Underwater Sink Hole, Deans Blue Hole, and the Belize Barrier Reef.

Amir Dossal, executive director of the United Nations Office for Partnerships, recognized the New7Wonders Foundation's ongoing efforts to promote the UN's Millennium Development Goals. The organization’s previous campaign, The New 7 Wonders of the World announced its results during the Official Declaration ceremony in Lisbon, Portugal on Saturday, July 7, 2007. The “New Wonders” included two sites of significance to Indigenous Peoples - Chichén Itzá (Yucatan, Mexico) and Machu Picchu (Peru).

Nominations can be submitted for the New 7 Wonders of Nature campaign until December 31, 2008. A New 7 Wonders Panel of Experts will then select the 21 finalists, from which voters worldwide will elect the New 7 Wonders of Nature. Nominations must be for a clearly defined natural site or natural monument that was not created or significantly altered by humans for aesthetic reasons. For more information on the campaign, to suggest a site or to vote on your top seven sites visit the New 7 Wonders website at http://www.new7wonders.com/

UCTPTN 05.21.2008

Correction: Puerto Rico-Archaeological Find

Boriken (UCTP Taino News) - The Associated Press has issued a correction for its Oct. 28 story regarding the recent pre-Columbian archaeological find in Ponce, Puerto Rico. The Associated Press reported erroneously that Arawak Indians, including the “Taino” subgroup, migrated to the Caribbean from the Yucatan peninsula of present-day Mexico. The AP now reports that the Arawak migrated from South America “according to archaeological experts.”

UCTPTN 12.29.2007

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