FOCUS ON ASIA

Greenpeace raids Khon Kaen lab
The Nation, Jul 28, 2004
http://nationmultimedia.com/page.news.php3?clid=3&id=118017&usrsess=1

A government researcher and an environmental group yesterday clashed over experiments on genetically engineered (GE) papaya at an agricultural research station in Khon Kaen, the country’s largest supplier of papaya seeds.

Greenpeace Southeast Asia raided and sealed off the research station, accusing the government of breaking a ban on genetically modified organisms (GMOs).

Greenpeace executive director Jiraporn Gajaseni said lab checks from Hong Kong confirm the research station distributed GMO papaya seeds to farmers.

"This is a huge violation of the GMO ban," she said.

Rebutting Jiraporn, research station chief Kanwajee Srisuwan said she had filed a police complaint against the environmental group for trespass and destroying government property.

Kanwajee said she has been studying ways to improve papayas, particularly the popular Khaek Dam strain, for more than two decades.

"I am certain that my genetically engineered papaya have not been contaminated with GMOs, as alleged by Greenpeace," she said.