In response to the threats to Prof. Damián Verzeñassi and his team from the Institute of Socio-Environmental Health (Medicine School of the National University of Rosario, Argentina), ENSSER wrote and endorsed a letter of support {link}. Since 2010, Prof. Damián Verzeñassi together with his medical students conducted perhaps the largest epidemiological study to date by collecting a data set consisting of records from 96,000 Argentinian people living in the areas where GM soy heavily sprayed with Roundup is grown. Final year medical students under Prof. Verzenassi’s supervision are required to practice in one of the ‘health camps’ of the areas, following the people with questionnaires and recording diagnostic elements provided by the people. This allowed Prof Verzenassi to compile a massive medical record basis of almost 65% of the population living in these areas.
Prof. Damián Verzeñassi served as a witness to the Monsanto Tribunal in the Hague (the Netherlands, 15-16th October 2016). On October 28th, shortly after he returned, his team found the office where they kept the results of the health camp investigations locked with chains and locks, preventing them from entering their workplace. Previously the Adjunct Professor had been fired from management positions days after he had appeared in the media reporting some of the results of the health camp investigations and the same happened with the Co-Chair of the Socio-Environmental Health course, who guaranteed the inclusion of these topics in the curricula. These actions provoked the resignation of other members of the team.
After international protests from CRIIGEN and other organisations, the office of the team was unlocked, access to the data was restored and the team members were restored to their previous positions. However, since this harassment of Prof. Verzeñassi‘s team, which strikingly coincided with his participation in the Monsanto Tribunal in The Hague, was hardly noticed in the international media, ENSSER has also sent a letter of protest to the Rector of the University of Rosario to express full support to Prof. Verzeñassi and his team from the Institute of Socio-Environmental Health.
Please find the letter attached
