Corporate Watch News Updates 11/10/02

World bank pulls out of controversial Romanian gold mine
The World Bank announced on Thursday that it is cancelling participation in the Rosia Montana opencast gold mine project in Romania. If completed, the project would be Europe’s largest opencast gold mine, would displace around 2000 people and would turn a neighbouring valley into a 600 hectare unlined cyanide storage pond.  http://www.corporatewatch.org.uk/news/romania_gold.htm

Want any illegal drugs? I got herbs, I got E. Vitamin E, that is…
It’s not often you’ll find Corporate Watch calling for less regulation of industry, but on this occasion, strange though it seems, we think the European Union is going a bit far. Proposals currently being considered could see sales of high-dosage vitamin supplements banned and herbal remedies which have been on the market for years with no health worries suddenly forced to undergo the same expensive tests as new pharmaceutical drugs.  http://www.corporatewatch.org.uk/news/vitamin_e.htm

Roads not Rights! “State of Emergency” to be imposed in Poland
by Pippa Gallop
Poland is privileged to have relatively few motorways compared to almost everywhere else in Europe, but with EU accession looming, the possibility that the government would keep it this way and instigate a programme of strengthening the national rail network was never very likely.  http://www.corporatewatch.org.uk/news/polish_roads.htm

Genetix RoundUp™
Let them eat GM
Research published last week by Greenpeace exposes the Bush administration's use of the famine in southern Africa as a marketing tool to push GM food in the continent. The document details how the offer of GM food aid by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is the latest move in a long-running marketing campaign designed to facilitate the introduction of US-developed GM crops into Africa.  http://www.corporatewatch.org.uk/news/let_them_eat_gm.htm

Around the Web
Bush’s arms trade links exposed…climate change could bankrupt insurers…Cape PLC fails to pay up on asbestos damages…Mark Moody-Stuart ‘greenwashed'…spying on farmers…’sweatships’… http://www.corporatewatch.org.uk/news/around_the_web_oct02.htm