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(歡迎翻印、流通本文及網路連接； 欲做其他用途，請先連絡作者易象乾博士。電郵地址:
epstein@sfsu.edu)
為了特定用途而種植「基因工程作物」時，既要阻止它們散佈到野外，又要阻止它們和野生植物近親互相授粉，而須將它們孤立，這不容易做到。已經證明(註30)相互授粉的情況，能發生在離基因工程種植處一哩之外。人類與鳥獸可能在偶然的情況下，將基因工程改造的種子，帶往遠方。因為已有過有害雜草與異國品種的前科，而運輸途中或加工製造廠的洩漏也不可避免。基因工程改造的植物，繼而可能排擠掉其他與之競爭的植物，從而徹底地改變生態系統的平衡，甚至將之摧毀。
根據目前美國政府的法規，以基因工程改造的生物進行實地試驗的公司，毋須知會公眾，其所試驗的生物被添加了何種基因，它們可以宣稱為商業機密，公眾的安全因此便取決於企業科學家與政府管理人員的判斷，而這些人一時為政府工作，一時又為曾歸他們管的企業服務，如此輪流著。(註31
)
附註：
30.「最直接，也最容易觀察到基因轉換過的植物對生態環境的衝擊，起源於基因轉換過的植物與其野生近親交叉授粉而產生的超級雜草。實地追蹤己證實，交叉混種已經於基因轉換抗除草劑的Brassica
napa(油菜/蕓薹)及其野生的近親中出現......
」何[譯音]著《基因工程：美夢抑噩夢》第一三三頁。某些證據顯示，基因轉換過的植物對其他植物授粉的能力，高出普通植物，從而更增加了超級雜草出現的危險。見J.博格森
(J. Bergelson) C.B.普凌頓 ( C.B. Purrington) 與 G. 惠克曼(
G.Wichmann)所著，刊載於一九九八年九月三日第395冊
6697期《自然》第二十五頁的「基因轉換植物的雜交情形增加」一文，以及一九九八年九月三日刊載於《洛杉磯時報》(合眾社新聞)
「基因工程引發『超級雜草』的恐慌」一文。 31.舉例，孟山都公司(Monsato Corporation) - -
眾所週知，稱雄世界的跨國基因工程工司-與白宮之間，有一條地下通道：
.....米奇﹒坎特(Mickey Kantor) - -
前美國商業代表，去年一月二十一日之前仍是美國商務部長--已成為跨國生物科技大公司--孟山都的董事會員，一位在坎特先生開的，位於華盛頓特區的律師事務所職員，證實了此項聘任。坎特先生從公職轉至私職，緊步其他人士的後塵，也改行到生物科技工業。
瑪莎﹒賀爾(Marcia Hale)
於月初自美國總統的政府部門助理，轉為孟山都公司的資深職員，負責協調英國與愛爾蘭方面的公共事務與企業策略。同樣於本月搖身變為企業人的是L.費格鼎斯(L.
Val
Giddings)，不到兩個星期前，格鼎斯從美國農業部(USDA/APHIS)的的生物科技管理員，轉為「生物科技工業組織」(BIO)的食品與農業的副總裁。在「開放式特別運作團體」舉辦的「生化安全計劃」
(Note: here, "protocal” =a detailed plan of a scientific or
medical experiment, treatment, or Procedure)第一屆年會時
，格鼎斯是美國代表團的成員，上星期他以BIO代表的身份，參加第二屆計劃( protocal) 的年會。
(「愛德蒙研究院」的貝絲柏瑞斯的(Beth Burrows)
，於一九九七年五月十九日，以電郵發佈的新聞稿，標題為「政府雇員轉向生物科技」同時於網路上公佈在http://www.
corpwatch.org/ trac/corner/worldnews/ other/
other53.html»Phttp://www.geocities.com/Athens/1527/atppt.html
。)
柏瑞斯於一九九八年八月十七日，在蒙特案舉行的生化安全磋商會議上，分發以下備忘錄：
基於對此事的關注，我們再一次註明以下職位的變更，此次名單按字母順序排列：
大衛.貝爾 (DavidW. Beier) ....
..前「基因科技公司」的政府事務主管，現為美國副總統高爾的國內政策顧問。
待續
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(Permission is granted to reproduce this
article, to distribute it without charge, and to provide
links to it. Please contact the author at epstein@sfsu.edu
regarding other uses.)
When genetically engineered crops are
grown for a specific purpose, they cannot be easily isolated
either from spreading into the wild or from
cross-pollinating with wild relatives. It has already been
shown30 that cross-pollination can take place almost a mile
away from the genetically engineered plantings. As has
already occurred with noxious weeds and exotics, human
beings, animals and birds may accidentally carry the
genetically engineered seeds over far vaster distances.
Spillage in transport and at processing factories is also
inevitable. The genetically engineered plants can then force
out plant competitors and thus radically change the balance
of ecosystems, or even destroy them.
Under current United States government
regulations, companies that are doing field-testing of
genetically engineered organisms need not inform the public
of what genes they have added to the organisms they are
testing. They can be declared trade secrets, so that public
safety is left to the judgment of corporate scientists and
government regulators, many of whom switch back and forth
between working for the government and working for the
corporations they supposedly regulate.31
NOTES:
30. "The most immediate and easily observable impacts of
transgenic plants on the ecological environment are due to
cross-pollination between transgenic crop-plants and their
wild relatives to generate super-weeds. Field trials have
shown that cross- hybridization has occurred between
herbicide resistant transgenic Brassica napa and its wild
relatives... " Ho, Genetic Engineering: Dream or Nightmare?,
p. 133. Some evidence indicates that transgenic plants have
a greater ability to pollinate other plants than ordinary
plants, which increases the danger of the emergence of
superweeds. See J. Bergelson, CB.
Purrington & G. Wichmann, "Promiscuity increase in
transgenic plants," Nature 395, no. 6697 (Sept. 3, 1998) 25,
and "Genetically Engineered Plant Raises Fears of 'Superweeds'"
(Associated Press), printed in the L os Angeles Times (Sept.
3, 1998).
31. For example, it is public knowledge
that there is a revolving door between Monsanto Corporation,
one of the major transnational forces in genetic
engineering, and the White House:
" ... Mr. Mickey Kantor, former United
States Trade Representative and, until January 21 of last
year, the Secretary of Commerce for the United States, has
been made a member of the board of directors of Monsanto
Corporation, a leading transnational biotechnology firm. The
appointment was confirmed by a staff member of Mr. Kantor's
Washington, D.C law firm Mr. Kantor joins others in the US
who recently changed job assignments from service in
government to positions in the biotechnology industry.
Marcia Hale, earlier this month, moved from assistant to the
President of the United States for intergovernmental
affairs, to senior official with Monsanto to coordinate
public affairs and corporate strategy in the United Kingdom
and Ireland. Also putting on the industry hat this month was
L. Val Giddings. Less than two weeks ago, Giddings went from
being a biotechnology regulator at the United States
Department of Agriculture (USDA/APHIS) to being the vice
president for food and agriculture at the Biotechnology
Industry Organization (BIO). Giddings, who had been a member
of the US. delegation at the first meeting of the Open Ended
Ad Hoc Working Group on a Biosafety Protocol, attended last
week's second meeting on the protocol as the representative
of BIO.” (Emailed news release from Beth Burrows of the
Edmonds Institute entitled "Government Workers Go Biotech,"
May 19, 1997. Also posted on the
Internet at
<http://www.corpwatch.org/trac/corner/worldnews/other/other53.html
>and <http://www.geocities.com/Athens/1527/appt.html>.)
Burrows distributed the following
addendum at the biosafety negotiation meetings in Montreal,
August 17, 1998:
Once again, this time in alphabetical
order, we note with interest the following changes in job
assignments:
David W Beier... former head of
Government Affairs for Genentech, Inc., now chief domestic
policy advisor to Al Gore, Vice-President of the United
States.
~ To be continued
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