Gas emissions and empty rhetoric at Rio+20 Summit

| by Pearl Thevanayagam

(June 28,2012, London, Sri Lanka Guardian) The timing of the news in The Island which quoted a top agriculturist that Sri Lanka is placed sixth in the world in organic farming coincided with the Rio+20 Summit. A pronouncement such as this coming from a scientist is rather serious considering that Sri Lanka ranks high among deaths by pesticide poisoning.

Lying come easily to politicians and diplomats but they are neophytes when compared to experts who convincingly issue `terminologically inexactitude' (euphemism for outright lie) statistics to put forward their own selfish agenda enthused by corporate, academic or political interests.

It was not even April Fools' Day.

Further, according to the afore-mentioned news story on June 19, 2012, 0.65 percent of total agricultural land in the country under it comprising around 3,300 such farms were engaged in organic farming, according to a top agriculturist who remains conspicuously anonymous.

Compare The Island story with what Drs A.D.Weerasuriya and Ravindra Fernando at the National Poisons Information Centre, National Hospital of Sri Lanka. Colombo have to say, “Data of the Medical Statistic Division of Ministry of Health showed that 247,638 cases of poisoning were admitted to state hospitals during the period of year 2001-2005. Of those 83347 (34%) were pesticide poisoning, 7015, (8.4%) of pesticide poisonings died”..

Flemming Konradsen, Department of International Health, University of Copenhagen, states:

Studies from Asia have documented that self-poisoning with pesticides is one of the most predominant means of suicide. For example, in China, Sri Lanka and Malaysia more than 60% of all suicides in rural areas are from pesticide poisoning . Also, a large proportion of the beds in intensive care units are taken up by poisoning cases. The problem of self-poisoning with pesticides is now so severe that it accounts for 50%-75% of all deaths among young women in the 10-19 year age groups in south India , and 14% of all deaths among women in Bangladesh in the 10-50 year age group .

In Sri Lanka, studies have shown that there are more than 160 hospital admissions for severe pesticide poisoning per 100.000 inhabitants per year . Although acute pesticide poisoning is still not as pronounced in Africa as in Asia it is a growing problem and the increasing intensification of agricultural production in Africa and a more widespread use of pesticides will result in an increased number of pesticide poisoning cases .

Where does this place Sri Lanka as a top exponent of organic farming? The memory of 20,000 people dying due to arsenic poisoning in paddy last year in Padaviya is still vivid.

Rio+20 Summit sounded much like the LLRC (Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission), a local fact-finding mission which was set-up by the government under pressure from the UN and many nations across the world raising concerns the government could have violated IHL (International Humanitarian Laws) during the final phase of the war, emitting enough gaseous material and no tangible deposits. Bluntly put, it is all f**** and no s****.

The summit executed with military precision to accommodate over 130 heads of state, their entourage and environmental and humanitarian NGO representatives in five star hotels not to mention the stringent security arrangements and limousines which cost a a colossal amount, came out with just five of the 163 proposals to reduce third world poverty, greening of the economy, curbing CO2 emissions rights of women, enshrining the right of poor people to have clean water and adequate food and so on and so forth.

Among those who opposed the rights of women including control over their reproductive system was none other than the Vatican, the Catholic church's official headquarters. It is a bit rich, this coming from the Catholic church, since Jesus was the first child born of artificial insemination in history. Joseph was only the adopted father to give legitimacy to Mary' child. Mary was a single mother.

Developing countries asked for cash to tackle their insurmountable problems and not proposals. The summit did not commit and instead said they are studying their problems. Of course no big powers are concerned with third world poverty except Bob Geldof and other Hollywood and football stars who made mega-bucks and hold their own fund-raising without the support any governments.

This is only a drop in the ocean but at least they are concerned with those who are less fortunate. The heads of these powers are heavily dependent on corporate hegemony. Developing nations do not fund their political campaigns but major corporations do.

Until 2015, the Rio+20 Summit will be held in cold storage and it would be business as usual. No big changes happened in the last 25 years and the poor remain poor.

The writer is Asia Pacific Journalism Fellow at UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism, California and a print journalist for 22 years. She can be reached at pearltheva@hotmail.com