EU debates biopiracy law to protect indigenous people

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http://www.guardian.co.uk/global-development/2013/may/01/eu-biopiracy-protect-indigenous-people


Men chop up roots and plants for use in Zulu medicine at the Muti market in Durban, South Africa, 2010. Photograph: Javier Soriano/AFP/Getty Images

The European parliament is debating a draft biopiracy law requiring industry to compensate indigenous people if it makes commercial use of local knowledge such as plant-based medicines.

Under the law – based on the international convention on access to biodiversity, the Nagoya protocol – the pharmaceuticals industry would need the written consent of local or indigenous people before exploring their region's genetic resources or making use of their traditional knowhow.

Relevant authorities would have the power to sanction companies that fail to comply, protecting local interests from the predatory attitude of big European companies.