José Bové

Joseph " José " Bové ( born June 11, 1953 in Talence, Gironde ) is a French farmer, politician ( EELV ), critics of globalization and environmental activist. He is a founding member and a leading figure of the Confédération Paysanne, a French farmer's association, which in the 1980s as a national alternative - left counterpart to established farmers' association Fédération des syndicats d' exploitants Ferme ( FNSEA ) has formed. Bové since 2009 Member of the European Parliament. In January 2014, the European Greens elected him to their top candidates for the European elections in 2014. He leads the Greens together with Ska Keller in the election campaign.

Protests on the Larzac

Bové comes from a renowned family of academics. His native of Luxembourg Father Joseph -Marie Bové ( born 1929 ), an eminent authority in the field of microbiology ( area of ​​plant diseases), was made ​​head of the Biochemistry Department of the Research Institute IRFA (Institute of Recherches sur les Fruits et Agrumes ), then to 1984, Director of the Laboratoire de Biologie Cellulaire et moléculaire ( laboratory of Cell and Molecular Biology) at the Institut national de la recherche agronomique (INRA ) (National Institute for Agronomic Research ) in Aquitaine and 1984-1994 president of this regional center of INRA. 1994 to 1999 he led the creation of the Institut de Biologie Moléculaire Végétale ( IBVM ) (within the INRA ) in Villenave -d'Ornon (today: Structure Fédérative de Recherche en Ecologie et Integrative Biology - SRFBIE ) and until 2000 was its director. At the same teaching as a professor of microbiology at the University of Nancy (1968 to 1971) and Bordeaux (1978 to 1998 / retirement ). Joseph Bové has received numerous awards - among others He was appointed a member of the Académie des sciences in 1993.

His mother Colette (b. Dumeau ) - originally a doctor - later taught as a professor of biology. 1956, José Bové was just 3 years old, his parents were invited by the University of California, Berkeley Agricultural Economics and biochemistry research and José spent his early childhood (up to 1959) in the United States. After returning to France, the family settled in a suburb west of Paris, Bové was sent to a private, bilingual school of the Jesuits near Athis -Mons, Essonne département. Already as a teenager rebelled against traditional Bové, decrepit structures. At the age of 15 years - it was the time of the '68 riots - he had to leave after a student rebellion the school. His diploma ( baccalauréat ) he made in 1970 at a different school with honors. He enrolled briefly in philosophy at the University of Bordeaux, but then came across the protest movement of the 1970s to agriculture. In the period from 1973 to 1981, he was one of the leaders of the protest movement on the Causse du Larzac, which had been formed against the expansion of the existing there (to date) the training area on the remaining area of predominantly agricultural plateau in south-western France. He also appeared in the 1990s as a Greenpeace activist in appearance.

Bové has since lived on the plateau and has in the hamlet of Mont Redon (Aveyron ) is a wooden house built in the New Age style 2006.

Actions and protests

José Bové, 1998 was one of the founding members of the organization Attac.

Large gained popularity José Bové 1999 through the so-called " McDonald's affair ". Background of this affair was the destruction of a McDonald's restaurant by protesting farmers in Millau. The protest was directed against punitive tariffs on products such as French Roquefort cheese, the United States introduced as " retaliation ", as the European Union had, in turn, previously denied the import of genetically modified food from the United States. For this reason, farmers 1999 published on 12 August in front of the McDonald's restaurant in Millau and destroyed without the need of people came to harm. Bové was sentenced as an instigator of this action in 2000 to three months in prison.

At the affair, this event therefore expanded, because the trade conflict between France and the United States continued to exist and the American policy, both the destruction of the McDonald's restaurant as well as in their opinion, too little punishment for Bové as " anti-Americanism " interpreted. France forbade his turn any U.S. interference in its internal affairs.

Through this event, the notoriety Bové rose sharply. So his admission to prison and his release from prison, this time on the media event were, though he had already been convicted several times for similar actions. Bové now had the opportunity to his protest against the " malbouffe " ( loosely translated " muck muck " ) - a popular concept made ​​by him by Joël de Rosnay - to present a hitherto not so much interested public. He was sentenced several times because he destroyed genetically modified plants.

2005 José Bové was sentenced to four months in prison for the Verwüstens of genetically modified maize plantations as part of a so-called field liberation. The judgment is final since February 2007.

In another method, Bové was sentenced to a fine of 180 daily units because of which took place on 30 July 2006 Verwüstens of genetically modified maize plantations of MON810.

Policy Achievements

On 1 February 2007, José Bové announced his candidacy for the office of President. The first round of the 2007 presidential election was held on April 22, Bové reached 1.3% of the valid votes cast ( 483,008 votes).

On 7 June 2009 Bové was selected as the top candidate of the Alliance Europe Écologie in southwestern France in the European Parliament. There he is Deputy Chairman of the Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development. As a parliamentarian, he has the Green Group in the EP connected. Likewise Bové is a member of the Delegation to the Cariforum -EU Parliamentary Committee.

Author

Even his most famous literary work Le Monde n'est pas une marchandise - the paysans contre la malbouffe ( "The world is not a commodity farmers against agricultural multinationals. " ) Became a bestseller. Due to its clever provocation Bové became a media star of the ecological and left protest movement. Bové is also compared because of its appearance with the comic hero Asterix, which is also the spirit of resistance of the " indomitable Gauls " embodies in an original way.

Works

• Nous, Paysans, with Gilles Luneau - Hazan - 2000
• Le Monde n'est pas une marchandise - the paysans contre la malbouffe, together with François Dufour - Pocket - 2000 ( German: The world is not a commodity farmers against agricultural multinationals. ) Kiepenheuer & Petrovich, Cologne 2002
• In paysans contre la malbouffe, together with François Dufour and Gilles Luneau - Pocket - 2001
• Retour de Palestine - Mille et une nuits - 2002
• Paysan du Monde, with Gilles Luneau - Fayard - 2002
• La Confédération Paysanne, together with Yves Manguy and Georges Bartoli - Eden 2003
• Pour la désobéissance civique, with Gilles Luneau - 10 / 18-2004

• Candidat rebelle, together with Denis Pingaud - Hachette Litteratures - 2007
• Du Larzac à Bruxelles, in association with Jean Quatremer - Cherche Midi - 2010