Executive director : G. CHAMPY, professor of Universities

Bio-terrorism or biological warfare is a new weapon used within the framework of the predator-prey relationship that prevails since the origins of our Universe. Only man, who became the absolute predator, is inclined to use certain forms of life, particularly well-armed to attack or defend himself, and to modify them to make them even more aggressive in order to use them against his own kind.

Currently, the law is incredibly behind concerning the advancement and the control of biotechnologies. The protection of the citizens and the environment has become a priority objective. Some issues are raised concerning the research programs and use of biotechnologies:
· Are biotechnologies really necessary to fight world hunger?
· Isn't the race after short-term profit, prevailing over the Principle of Precaution, going to lead to irreversible disasters?
· Isn't the power of certain private societies, richer than the States, going to threaten the States in their application of political agendas?
· Aren't biotechnologies an everlasting/endless source of supply of weapons for bio-terrorism?
In effect, this new form of violence not only implies microbiological weapons but also everything that uses a biological being (virus, bacteria or man) against humanity with the political goals of hegemony or hatred.

For example:
-Beings produced throughout genetic manipulations like bacteria (anthrax, botulism, plague…) or viruses (AIDS, Ebola, flu, smallpox…).
-Animals (such as dolphins) trained by armies to place mines under the ships at sea.
-Plants or animals produced by genetic manipulation (GMO, MBO, GURT…).
-Addition of chemical or radioactive products to food or water (chemical contamination).
-Kamikaze-humans carrying bombs or sexually transmittable diseases.
-Use of the Internet to submit entire populations to virtual lives that will make them apathetic, docile and incapable of reaction.
-Sterilization of specific vegetables and plants that have an agronomic interest in order to starve entire countries.
-Agronomic bio-terrorism (control and sterilization of seeds, chemical or radio-active contamination of the soils…).
-Psycho-terrorism (information inducing uncontrollable panic attacks among populations).

 The 27th Article of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights stipulates:
"everyone has the right freely to participate in […] and to share in scientific advancement and its benefits."

In fact, scientific progress, which goal should be the happiness of humanity, now facing overpopulation problems difficult to manage, might give rise to a science with infinite powers, uncontrolled, without consciousness or ethics because deprived of responsibility.

So what are the factors of this uncontrolled drifting?
-Public research is funded according to themes and issues as defined by states' policies.
-To that day, the different states have not harmonized their research programs.
-Big private companies have patents that give them a durable exclusivity according to their own profit.
-Results obtained by public research only profit to those private companies from the wealthy and rich countries, at the expenses of poor or developing countries.
-When results are applicable, they have uncertainties and risks that are not evaluated.

Bio-terrorism is inseparable from the biotechnologies. To fight one we need to control the other. Therefore, the commission works on proposals for a better information and training, while insisting on the absolute necessity to include a good legal knowledge in the training and formation of future scientists so that they can take their responsibilities. Meanwhile, the state, as the main funding resource of public research, must take its own responsibilities by controlling the goals of the research programs and by managing their applications.