KORONADAL CITY - Despite claims of groups favoring genetically modified organisms (GMOs) that Vatican has "endorsed" the propagation of transgenic crops, Catholic leaders here vowed to continue opposing the controversial Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) corn.

Fr. Romeo Catedral, director of the Social Action Center (SAC) in the Diocese of Marbel, said they will not waver in their anti-Bt corn stance even with the release of the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, the official catechism approved by the Holy See and the Secretary of the State.

Cardinal Renato Raffaele Martino and Bishop Gian Paolo Crepaldi of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace issued the compendium last year, which the pro-Bt corn groups in the country use to promote the transgenic crop.

On Chapter 10 (Safeguarding the Environment) page 268, the compendium states, "The Christian vision of creation makes a positive judgement on the acceptability of human intervention in nature, which also includes other living beings, and, at the same time, makes a strong appeal for responsibility."

It added, "In effect, nature is not a sacred or divine reality that man must leave alone… For this reason the human person does not commit an illicit act when, out of respect for the order, beauty and usefulness of individual living beings and their function in the ecosystem, he intervenes by modifying some of their characteristics or properties."

Dr. Benigno Peczon, president of the Biotechnology Coalition of the Philippines, asserted during a seminar last week in Alabel, Sarangani, that the Vatican's stance on biotechnology is a big booster "in terms of the efforts in pushing the acceptability of Bt-corn use in the country."

"But even without it, Bt corn is really safe. The transgenic plant will not be allowed for commercialization in the country, or around the world, if it has not undergone rigorous safety tests," Peczon said.

But Catedral insisted there is still no worldwide overwhelming scientific consensus on the safety of Bt corn to human health and the environment.

Catedral, however, conceded that man has the right to tinker with nature but pointed out the need to observe the precautionary principle.

"At the rate Bt corn is propagated, they make experiments out of human beings. What if 10 years from now Bt corn would be discovered to be causing hazards to human health and the environment? They should have ensured its safety first," Catedral told TODAY on Monday.

"If it is proven to be really safe through a worldwide overwhelming scientific consensus, then we will even help promote it. What we are saying is that, at this point, we are not yet really sure whether Bt corn is safe to the human health and the environment so there's a need to observe the precautionary principle," he added.

Peczon's group has not highlighted the precautionary principle although the same Vatican compendium mentioned it also in the chapter under Safeguarding the Environment.

On page 265, the compendium stressed, "The authorities called to make decisions concerning health and environmental risks sometimes find themselves facing a situation in which available scientific data are contradictory or quantitatively scarce. It may then be appropriate to base evaluations on the precautionary principle."

Precautionary principle, the compendium continued, does not mean applying rules but certain guidelines aimed at managing the situation of uncertainty.

Catedral suggested that the Bt corn advocates in the country are apparently "misleading" the public because they pointed out only a portion of the compendium favorable to their cause.

The priest said a complete picture should be given to the public so that they will have sufficient basis for conclusions.

Father Romeo Buenaobra, vicar general of the Diocese of Marbel, also said the compendium would not sway the stance of the diocese against Bt corn until there is an absolute scientific assurance of the transgenic crop's safety to human health and the environment.

The Diocese of Marbel, headed by Bishop Dinualdo Gutierrez, has been a noted hotbed for Bt corn opposition in the country. In August 2001, anti-Bt corn advocates stormed and uprooted a Bt-corn field trial of multinational company Monsanto in the diocesan territory of Tampakan, South Cotabato.

Guttierez, who is based in this city, has brought the battle against Bt corn at the national level. He is the chairman of the National Secretariat for Social Action-Justice and Peace, the social action arm of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP).

Catedral said that Gutierrez, whom this reporter tried but failed to reach since Monday morning for comment, "did not show any hint of reversing his position against Bt corn."

The CBCP has no official position on modern biotechnology, or specifically on the GMO Bt corn. The position by the Catholic religious leaders "in favor" or against are their own personal positions.