Genetix RoundUp™

Bayer AGM stormed
Seven GM activists from the UK and the Netherlands managed to sneak into Bayer AG´s shareholder meeting in Cologne, Germany on April 26th. Their mission - to let the directors, employees and shareholders of Bayer know that Bayer´s new venture into GM crops will not go unopposed.

At 10:30 am after the introductory speeches, one person jumped on to the stage and began addressing the audience over the PA. Simultaneously 2 activists climbed the side of the stage, managing to reach a height of about 30 feet and staying aloft for 3-4 minutes shouting anti-GM slogans before being removed by security. Other activists miraculously leapt out of a wheel chair and stormed the stage and attempted to hang a banner reading ‘Bayer raus aus dem Gen-tech Anbau’ (‘Bayer get out of GM crops’) before being foiled by plain clothes security hidden in the audience. Meanwhile, people occupied the speaking podium grabbing the microphone and ranting at the board in German, blowing whistles and generally causing chaos.

All seven activists were eventually removed from the 3,000 capacity venue by heavy handed private security, sustaining cuts and bruises and were handed over to the police. They were arrested and held for an hour before being released without charge having been banned from the area of the conference centre. In a bizarre twist to the story, before being driven away by police all the activists (as Bayer shareholders themselves for the day) were given the chance to vote on a number of shareholder resolutions by Bayer representatives apparently anxious that they should not be denied their voting rights.

Following its acquisition of Aventis CropScience Bayer will own over 85% of the GM field trials in the UK and will be the company doing most to push for the commercial growing of GM crops in Europe.Pictures: www.arbeiterfotografie.com
Additional Information: http://www.bayerhazard.com

The Pink Castle
taken from www.sayhi.to/thecastle
‘By the light of the moon in the early hours of April 25th, protesters moved into a pink castle on one of the two GM sites that besiege Littlemoor near Weymouth.

The pink fortification stands guard over the entrance of the field in which the mutant remains of last years GM maize crop can still be found. The residents hope to stay in the field long enough to prevent Aventis' controversial GM maize from being planted this year.

The protesters intend to defend the field and the castle. There are lock-on's built into structural parts of the two towers and mono-poles have been erected in key positions around the field.

The 25th was the first day that the maize could legally be planted and in theory it should not be planted elsewhere without another six week public notification period - by which time it would be too late to successfully plant.’

STOP PRESS – 40 police and the farmer moved onto the field on Thursday May 16th and supervised the planting of the crop – 4 people were arrested for locking on to tractors and some of the seeds were removed by pixies later that night. The occupation of the castle itself continues.
www.sayhi.to/thecastle for more info and directions to the site