Tong Tana - Bruno Manser Fonds

Switzerland – speaking of
wood – with disdain!
rg – The SHIV (Schweizerischer Sägereiund
Holzindustrie-Verband, the Swiss association
of sawmills and wood manufacturers)
and the WVS (Waldwirtschaft Verband
Schweiz, the Swiss forestry association) have
published their annual reports of 1998. The
reports are full of all kinds of snide remarks.
The WVS states that the issue of labelling according
to origin has been resolved by the Q-
label propagated by the WVS, 85% of the
wood having to be from Swiss forests. We
then asked ourselves: what about the remaining
15% and what about foreign wood which
... priori cannot receive a Q-label Three
years ago the same circles were fighting
against the so-called discrimination of wood
by a mandatory declaration. And now this
should not be the case anymore with a onesided
declaration of wood which is 85% worthy
of getting a Q-label
rg – Emil Mosimann, president of the SHIV,
formulated his “realistic demands” for the
favourable development of basic conditions
for the wood manufacturing industry in the association’s
annual report. Apart from fair
transport conditions, research capacity at universities,
a good presence at the Expo 2001
and “hopefully” at Sion 2006, he called for
“fair certifying partners (a. o. WWF, Pro
Natura, Greenpeace, BMF, etc. – the Ed.)
who are primarily interested in the actual state
of the forest and forestry, not in selling labels.”
The gentlemen responsible for the policies of
the association never tire in repeating the
same phrases about the eco-product wood
over and over again like a mantra and at the
same time shooting verbally at its potential
partners. As long as such gentlemen do not
disappear from the stage the goodwill of a
wide range of consumers can (unfortunately)
hardly be strengthened towards using native
wood.
rg – The newspaper “Neue Zürcher
Zeitung” dated June 8, 1999, printed a supplement
on the subject of paper manufacturing.
Under the title “The forest and paper –
widespread misunderstandings due to bad information”
the CEO of the paper factory
Biberist AG, Jürg Müller, could contribute his
personal truths. Müller formulated statements
such as, “Whereas in some countries outside
Europe more wood is cut than can grow back
in the same time span, the world’s forest land
is increasing” or “There is no global lack of
wood, on the contrary, in order to keep the
forests in balance more wood has to be
felled”. Furthermore, “It does not make sense
to forbid the renewal of a forest under the
pretext of wanting to save forests. It is just as
misleading to leave forests in their original
state without considering the economical
difficulties of the owners of the forests; environmental
protection should show consideration
for the economy.” The fact that the latter
point stated by Müller is still a common one at
the end of the 20 th century seems to be clear.
The assumption that economy has priority
over environmental protection does not really
show competence in someone who feels entitled
to write about “widespread misunderstandings
due to bad information on paper
and the forest”.
rg – The carpenters’ journal “Schreinerzeitung”
dated March 25, 1999, published
its views on the calls for the boycott of tropical
wood under the title “The use of tropical
wood: the facts”. According to the opinion of
the “Schreinerzeitung”, such renunciations
point in the wrong direction when measured
against the main reasons for the destruction of
the tropical forests – mismanagement and
social ills in the tropical wood producing
countries. Alleviation can only be achieved
through development aid in those areas
under the condition that the aid be used for
the given purpose and not disappear into
the pockets of corrupt government officials!
That the wood industry is interwoven with the
interests of a privileged class of politicians,
that the land rights of local peoples are disregarded
and that corruption is daily fare,
are, unfortunately, all facts. The “Schreinerzeitung”
indirectly confirms these facts – it just
sees the use of development money as the
problem...
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