Dr. Shiva is one of the three main petitioners against the Patent

In an exclusive interview with BBC Sandeshaya from Munich after the ruling, Dr. Vandana Shiva, who was in the forefront of the campaign for ten years, expressed satisfaction that the ten year struggle has been fruitful.

"The tree is free at last."

She said the ruling was a triumph for traditional knowledge and practices, giving millions in developing countries the right to use their natural resources.

"We are hopeful that a struggle of ten years will start changing the way western governments and western corporations think about pirating the knowledge and biodiversity of South Asia claiming it to be their invention," Dr. Shiva said.

Tree is free

Asians had used the Kohomba tree in agriculture, medicine, toiletries and cosmetics for centuries

The campaigners argued that Indians had used the Neem (Margosa) tree in agriculture, medicine, toiletries and cosmetics for centuries.

The president of the Green Alliance in the European Parliament, Magda Aelvoet, said the judgement dealt a blow to bio-piracy.

Vandana Shiva told BBC Sandeshaya that the ruling would help to bring an end to the "whole epidemic of bio piracy".

She said the repercussions of the ruling are huge as third world countries are blessed with bio diversity.

"It is what kept people alive; it is the source of their food, the source of their healing, and the chemical age in a way is over. That's why the companies which gave us toxic chemicals are now turning to the third world. But the third world has every right to use the new global advantages coming from the failure of the chemicals and the non sustainable model of development with which we were associated."

"Bio pirates have taken 80-100 Patents for Sri Lanka's trees and herbs"

Sri Lanka

Environmental lawyer Jagath Gunawardhana told BBC Sandeshaya that many trees in Sri Lanka have been victims of "bio- pirates".

"Patents were taken for seven varieties of the Binara tree, nine types of Murutha tree and many herbal mixtures," Gunawardhana said.

He said four Patents were taken only for Sri Lanka's Kohombo (Margosa) tree and there are about 80-100 Patents for Sri Lanka's trees and herbs.

The European Patent Office originally granted the patent to the United States Department of Agriculture and the multinational company, WR Grace, in 1995, but India had this overturned on appeal in 2000.

In the latest ruling, the Americans have now lost their battle to have the patent restored.

However, Vandana Shiva says they are yet to achieve the final goal.

Criminalise

History of the case On December 12, 1990 the multinational corporation W.R. Grace of NY and the US Department of Agriculture filed a European Patent application with the EPO In June 1995 a legal opposition against the grant of this patent was filed by Magda Aelvoet, MEP, Dr. Vandana Shiva, on behalf of the RFSTE, New Delhi, and the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements, in Germany In a first preliminary statement of September 30, 1997, the Opposition Board of EPO held that in summary, it appeared that "the present patent cannot be maintained" for lack of novelty and inventive step

"I think we need to be proud of our knowledge we need to recognise ourselves as biodiversity experts. We need communities to document what they know and document the biodiversity."

"We need those rights and knowledge of the communities to be the base of national legislation that says we have this knowledge we have these resources and we need to change the intellectual property rights regimes of the Word Trade Organisation. Bio piracy must be turned into a crime because that is a crime in a normal civilised society."