VZCZCXRO3921
RR RUEHAG RUEHDF RUEHIK RUEHLZ RUEHROV
DE RUEHLE #0558 2920946
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 190946Z OCT 06
FM AMEMBASSY LUXEMBOURG
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 5625
INFO RUCNMEM/EU MEMBER STATES

UNCLAS LUXEMBOURG 000558 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EB/TPP/ABT/BTT JACK BOBO 
THE HAGUE FOR ROGER WENTZEL 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: EAGR TBIO PREL PGOV LU
SUBJECT: THE GMO DEBATE IN LUXEMBOURG 
 
¶1. (SBU) SUMMARY: Three members of the Luxembourg government 
were featured participants at a recent Greenpeace-sponsored 
anti-genetically modified organisms (GMO) event.  GOL 
officials stated their intent to do only the absolute minimum 
in order to comply with EU directives concerning GMOs, and 
indicated they had no plans to change their policy of staunch 
opposition to GMOs.  Statements like these and the high-level 
of GOL participation in this event underscore the depth of 
the GOL,s willingness to pander to a highly vocal group. 
END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2. (SBU) Luxembourg Minister of Transportation and 
Environment Lucien Lux and Minister of Health Mars di 
Bartolomeo were joined by Secretary of State for Agriculture 
Octavie Modert and MP Jean Paul Schaff at an October 8th 
Greenpeace-sponsored event entitled "Luxembourg Without 
GMOs."  As suggested by the title, this was an unbalanced 
event as every presenter and organization represented was 
firmly opposed to GMOs.  Most participants wanted Luxembourg 
to do more to combat GMOs and invoked Luxembourg,s 
UNESCO-designated World Heritage fortifications coining the 
phrase "Luxembourg: A Fortress Against GMOs." 
 
¶3. (SBU) Schaff, who is the MP responsible for shepherding 
the co-existence legislation through Luxembourg,s Parliament 
(Note:  This legislation has been an ongoing work-in-progress 
since 2004. End note), said that Luxembourg was not changing 
its position regarding its ban on the marketing and sales of 
GMOs.  He said that the government was seeking a way to 
placate the European Commission and implement the EU 
directives regarding co-existence, but not change its 
position on GMOs at all.  Several speakers, including Health 
Minister Bartolomeo said that they were not opposed to 
biotechnology research which would benefit humans; just GMOs. 
 They gave no details as to how they thought this division 
could be drawn. 
 
¶4. (SBU) Even though GOL officials presented a unified front 
at the Grenpeace event, Embassy officers spoke with an 
official from the Ministry of Agriculture who told us that he 
was disturbed at the one-sidedness of this conference and 
even confided that he personally was undecided on GMOs.  He 
added that despite his concerns, he had been instructed by 
his Ministry superiors to represent the GOL position as 
firmly opposed to GMOs. 
 
¶5. (SBU) Press reporting of the event was mostly positive, 
receiving coverage in three of the four major daily 
newspapers.  The one notable negative exception was a radio 
and newspaper editorial by former Luxembourg Minister of the 
Economy and current Luxembourg MEP Robert Goebbels.  In his 
comments, Goebbels blasted the GOL's anti-GMO position as 
anti-growth and derided the state of debate over GMOs in 
Luxembourg as "ridiculous" for being completely unscientific 
and dominated by groups such as Greenpeace.  He applauded 
efforts of those forward-looking members of Luxembourg,s 
cabinet, such as Economic Minister Jeannot Krecke, to promote 
biotechnology companies relocating to Luxembourg, but warned 
"those companies would never come to Luxembourg when they 
discovered...the GOL's anti-GMO position." 
 
¶6. (SBU) COMMENT: The festive atmosphere at this event 
included a satirical presentation entitled "The Genetically 
Modified Peach," games and face painting for children, and a 
certified GMO-free lunch.  The event provided a great 
opportunity for members of the GOL to cozy up to a highly 
vocal group which has managed to gain a stranglehold on the 
issue in Luxembourg.  It is obvious that the GOL has taken 
this position because it garners them the support of this 
active segment of society at little political cost. 
Unfortunately, the voices of those such as MEP Goebbels who 
plead for a scientific debate are drowned out by this group. 
Post will continue to engage with GOL decision-makers and 
through its public outreach efforts to promote a more 
balanced debate on GMOs. 
KRAFT