Ten years on, the survivors of illegal toxic waste dumping in Côte d’Ivoire remain in the dark GENEVA (17 August 2016) – Speaking ahead of the 10th anniversary of the illegal dumping of toxic waste in Côte d’Ivoire, a group of United Nations experts* urge the Ivorian Government, all responsible…
Urgent Global Action Necessary to Reduce Human Rights Impacts of Highly Hazardous Pesticides (HHPs)
A Statement from the UN Special Rapporteur on Right to Food and the UN Special Rapporteur on Human Rights and Hazardous Substances and Waste Delivered at Fourth Session of the International Conference on Chemicals Management (ICCM4) Geneva, Switzerland — 28 September-2 October 2015 Highly hazardous pesticides (HHPs) continue to have detrimental…
Flint: Fundamentally about human rights
GENEVA (3 March 2016) – Today, a group of United Nations human rights experts called on the United States to increase its efforts to address environmental threats to human rights. Recent outrage over lead-contaminated water in the town of Flint, Michigan, has drawn international scrutiny to the toxic threats faced…
Germany, 2015
Issues addressed: Final report available here Comments by the State available here End of visit statement (in German here) Introduction In my capacity as the United Nations Special Rapporteur on human rights and hazardous substances and wastes, I undertook an official country visit to the Germany, at the invitation of the…
Republic of Korea, 2015
End of Visit Statement Introduction 23 October 2015 — In my capacity as the United Nations Special Rapporteur on human rights and hazardous substances and wastes, I undertook an official country visit to the Republic of Korea, at the invitation of the Government, from 12 to 23 October 2015. The…
Statement at the 4th Session of the International Conference on Chemical Management
28 September 2015 Mr. President, excellencies, distinguished delegates, ladies and gentlemen: Thank you for the opportunity to speak to you today—a crucial meeting with the potential to set the pace and trajectory of efforts to achieve the sound management of chemicals globally. Nine years ago, SAICM participants made an explicit…
Statement at the 30th session of the Human Rights Council
16 September 2015 Excellencies, distinguished delegates, ladies and gentlemen: Today I am presenting my first full report to the Human Rights Council on the right to information in the context of hazardous substances and wastes, and the report of my mission to Kazakhstan. I would at the outset like to…
Climate Change and Human Rights – Joint statement on the occasion of World Environment Day
(5 June 2015) This year, World Environment Day occurs during a meeting of the Ad Hoc Working Group on the Durban Platform for Enhanced Action (ADP), which is meeting in Bonn, Germany, to negotiate a climate agreement to be adopted this December in Paris. The theme for World Environment Day…
End of Visit Statement – Kazakhstan 2015
26 March-8 April 2015 Introduction In my capacity as the United Nations Special Rapporteur on human rights and hazardous substances and wastes, I undertook an official country visit to the Republic of Kazakhstan, at the invitation of the Government, from 26 March to 8 April 2015. The purpose of the…
Peru / Indigenous peoples: “New oil project threatens further harm for human rights victims”
GENEVA / LIMA (15 December 2014) – The proposed re-licensing of heavily polluted land in the Department of Loreto region of Peru would perpetuate and exacerbate serious violations of human rights of indigenous peoples, including their right to health, food and water, two United Nations experts on indigenous peoples and…