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IX. China and the Cartagena Protocol on Bio-Safety

2001-07-09 00:00
Article 19 of the Convention on Bio-Diversity signed in May 1992 and going into force in December 1993 requires the contracting parties to formulate a protocol to regulate the transportation, disposal and use behavior of the LMOs which may cause negative impact on the bio-diversity and its composition. Since the 1st Conference of the Contracting Parties to the Convention, the delegates of various countries have been discussing this topic. In 1994 and 1995, the Experts Group on Bio-Safety and the Ad Hoc Working Group were set up without membership limitation. Between 1996 and 1999, 6 meetings of the working group were held and the framework text of the Protocol on Bio-Safety was basically formulated but there existed serious difference over the scope of application, the issues related to trade and the disposal of the LMOs as food, animal fodder and raw material. These problems were not settled either at the Special Meeting of the Contracting Parties in 1999. Between 1999 and January 2000, 3 informal consultations and negotiations were respectively held. The Cartagena Protocol on Bio-Safety was finally adopted by the follow-up session of the Special Meeting of the Contracting Parties in Montreal, Canada on January 29, 2000.

From January 24 to 28, 2000, the follow-up session of the Special Meeting of the Contracting Parties was held in Montreal, Canada. In attendance were delegates from 132 contracting parties, 5 non-contracting countries, 120 international, intergovernmental organizations and NGOs. According to the orientations of their interests, the parties to the meeting fell into 5 groups: the Miami group consisted of the US, Canada and other countries, representing the interests of the export countries of the LMOs, the group consisted of the great majority of the developing countries including China who share the same views, representing the national interests of the destination countries of the export of the LMOs, the compromise group consisted of some medium developed countries without any stake in the contents of the protocol, the EU group and the group of central and eastern Europe. These 5 groups held heated negotiations on the nucleus topics such as the scope of application of the protocol, the relations between the protocol and other international agreements, the prior informed consent procedure and the documents on board of the LMOs. Consensus was finally reached on the last day of the meeting on the final text of the protocol.

From May 15 to 26, 2000, the 5th Meeting of the Contracting Parties to the Convention and its ministerial meeting were held in Kenya. During the meeting, 67 countries and the EU signed the protocol. The meeting also discussed and adopted the work program for the 1st and 2nd sessions of the intergovernmental committee of the protocol.

The 1st session of the Intergovernmental Committee without Membership Limitation of the Cartagena Protocol on Bio-Safety was held in Monpelier, France from December 11 to 15, 2000. 575 delegates from 83 countries, 131 intergovernmental, non-intergovernmental and industrial organizations attended the session. The delegates were divided into two groups and respectively discussed the 6 major issues of the exchange of information, capacity building, the directory of experts, the decision-making procedure, the disposal, transportation, packaging and marking of the LMOs and the observance of the protocol.

China is one of the countries which enjoy the richest bio-diversity in the world, the management of bio-safety has an important bearing on the protection of its bio-diversity and sustainable utilization, the people's health, the development of bio-technologies, its international trade and national economy and the sustainable and steady development of agriculture and animal husbandry in particular. Therefore, the Chinese Delegation participated in the foregoing series of negotiations and signed the protocol on August 8, 2000. In the course of the negotiations, the Chinese Delegation took an active and secure position and took the initiative to communicate with the relevant countries, particularly the developing countries and timely coordinated their positions, strengthened cooperation with them and brought into play China's unique role in the negotiations, strove to make the relevant articles and clauses of the protocol on bio-safety favorable to the development of China's bio-technologies and safeguarded the rightful rights and interests of China's management of bio-safety.
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