Years of pressure by US diplomats on the Vatican
for stronger public support of genetically modified foods has yielded
little results, said a document released through WikiLeaks, reports the
Catholic News Service.
The latest batch of diplomatic cables written by officials of the US
Embassy to the Vatican, released in mid-December, contained two
assessments of the Vatican's cautionary stance on biotechnology under
Pope Benedict XVI.
A 2005 cable, citing embassy meetings with two Vatican officials,
reported that church leaders had no great fears about the safety of
genetically modified organisms, but were concerned about the economic
issues involved.
It quoted Father Michael Osborn of the Pontifical Council Cor Unum,
which coordinates international Catholic charitable activities, as
saying that "the science is solid" on the safety of GMOs and that the
people who were using "scare tactics" would gradually cease to be a
factor in the church's thinking.
The cable said Father Osborn
identified the economic angle of biotech food as the main issue for the
church, specifically the fear that they would make developing-world
farmers more dependent on outsiders and simply serve to enrich
multinational corporations.
The cable cited a separate conversation with Msgr James Reinert of
the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, who reportedly said
Vatican efforts to move forward on biotechnology were met with strong
objections from some church quarters, especially in developing countries
such as the Philippines.
It said Msgr Reinert had joked that the Filipino church would "go
into schism" if the Vatican came out any stronger for biotech food.
Four years later, a 2009 cable from the embassy summarised the
Vatican position with these words: "Vatican officials remain largely
supportive of genetically modified crops as a vehicle for protecting the
environment while feeding the hungry, but - at least for now - are
unwilling to challenge bishops who disagree."
The cable ended by stating: "Post will continue to lobby the Vatican
to speak up in favor of GMOs, in the hope that a louder voice in Rome
will encourage individual church leaders elsewhere to reconsider their
critical views."
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