Day 284 - 22 Oct 96 - Page 45
1 cleared within the last 25 years -- they in fact are
2 prepared to use land deforested, as we have heard, in Costa
3 Rica, within 10 years, out of their own admission; and,
4 indeed, the policy they came up with in the courtroom --
5 which had not been heard before in any documents -- was
6 they are quite prepared to use land that was deforested a
7 year earlier if it was the year before they came into a
8 country; and that applied to Brazil, for example, where
9 they came in 1979; they were quite prepared to use land
10 that has been deforested six months or a year -- this is by
11 their own admission. Obviously, our case is that they are
12 still using land which has been deforested and has been
13 continuously over the last 20 years, in the state of
14 Gioias.
15
16 So what I am saying there is, we would say that
17 Edie Bensilum has defined for us, in an admission that
18 McDonald's will accept that "recently deforested" was
19 within the last 25 years as far as a definition of what
20 anyone should be concerned about. We would say it is
21 longer than 25 years. But that should be the minimum for
22 the timescale of concern. But the reality is, as we have
23 heard from Mr. Cesca and Mr. Gonzales, that despite that
24 recognition of concern, McDonald's are prepared to use land
25 that was deforested a year earlier, in their policy, under
26 their policy as given on oath in this courtroom.
27
28 So we are saying that that policy -- I have sort of moved
29 on to policy now -- quite clearly offers no protection
30 whatsoever in certain circumstances where they are about to
31 move into a country or, indeed, have been in a country for
32 less than 25 years. They are breaking their own admission
33 that they should not be using ex-rainforest land deforested
34 within the last 25 years.
35
36 Obviously, we go further, and we would say that the key is
37 that forest should not be destroyed and that any
38 responsible organisation, because of the biodiverse nature
39 of tropical forest, any responsible organisation would want
40 those forests to regenerate and, therefore, they should be
41 left to regenerate; and that should be made completely
42 crystal clear, so that the people that are destroying the
43 forest know that there is no prospect that companies are
44 going to accept their beef supplies -- responsible
45 companies.
46
47 I have kind of ground to a halt here.
48
49 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Yes. We can break off if you want. Tell me
50 what you are going to go on to tomorrow. Are you going to
51 go on to what the evidence is in relation to Brazil,
52 Costa Rica and Guatemala?
53
54 MR. MORRIS: What I was hoping to do, apart from maybe clearing
55 up a few bits and pieces that I have neglected to say, is
56 go on to the labelling and import and export policies, and
57 to see if they are in any way effective.
58
59 MR JUSTICE BELL: Very well. Do not forget, at the end of the
60 day, whatever the policy is, whatever the labelling law is,
