Kathleen Ruff, RightOnCanada.ca
Two dozen asbestos industry lobbyists will be attending the Rotterdam Convention conference in Geneva this month to seek to prevent chrysotile asbestos from being put on the Convention’s list of hazardous substances.
The Convention’s committee of scientific experts (the Chemical Review Committee) has repeatedly recommended that chrysotile asbestos should be put on the Convention’s list. This would require countries to obtain Prior Informed Consent before exporting chrysotile asbestos to another country.
Among the lobbyists who will at the Rotterdam Convention conference are four from India, 5 from Russia, 2 from Brazil, 3 from Vietnam, 2 from Ukraine, 1 from Kazakhstan and 5 from the International Chrysotile Association (ICA), which is based in Quebec. Included in the ICA delegation are Clément Godbout, former head of the Canadian Chrysotile Institute, Jean-Marc LeBlond, also formerly a director of the Canadian Chrysotile Institute and a director of the Quebec asbestos company, LAB Chrysotile, and Serge Boislard of the Quebec Pro-Chrysotile Movement.
Below is a list of asbestos industry lobbyists who will be working to sabotage the Convention at the May UN conference in order to protect industry profits.
The asbestos industry and the handful of countries who profit from mining and selling asbestos are continuing their campaign to sabotage the Rotterdam Convention. It is time for the rest of the world to take a strong stand and put a stop to this sabotage.
Asbestos industry lobbyists attending May 2015 Rotterdam Convention Conference
Asbestos Cement Products Manufacturers’ Association (ACPMA)
Mr. Manohar Lal Director General, Asbestos Cement Products Manufacturers’ Association New Delhi, India Mr. Arun Kumar Saraf Chairman, Chrysotile Usage and Transportation UAL Industries LTD. Kolkata, India Mr. Vivek Chandra Rao Sripalle Director, Safety, Health and Environment Asbestos Cement Products Manufacturers’ Association New Delhi, India
Asbestos Information Centre
Mr. Manish Sanghi Vice Chairman All Matters Concerning Chrysotile Usage and Transportation Everest Industries Ltd New Delhi, India
Association Ukrainian Chrysotile Corporation
Mr. Ruslan Koval Executive director Association Ukrainian Chrysotile Corporation Mr. Oleksandr Sierkin Chairman Association Ukrainian Chrysotile Corporation
Chrysotile Association NPO
Mr. Vladimir Galitsyn Executive Director Chrysotile Association NPO Moscow, Russian Federation Ms. Larisa Porsina Coordinator on Foreign Affairs Chrysotile Association Moscow, Russian Federation Mr. Konstantin Saranchuk Legal Advisor Chrysotile Association Moscow, Russian Federation
Confederation of Employers of Kazakhstan
Mr. Nurlan Omarov Advisor Confederation of Employers of Kazakhstan
Federação Internacional dos Trabalhadores do Amianto Crisotila (FITAC)
Mr. Adilson Conceiçao Santana President Federação Internacional dos Trabalhadores do Amianto Crisotila (FITAC) Brazil
Instituto Brasileiro do Crisotila (IBC)
Mr. Marcondes Braga De Moraes International Affairs Coordinator Instituto Brasileiro do Crisotila (IBC) Goiãnia, Brazil
International Alliance of Trade Union Organizations “Chrysotile”
Mr. Andrey Kholzakov Chairman / Adviser for International Affairs International Alliance of Trade Union Organizations “Chrysotile” Asbest Town, Russian Federation Mr. Dmitrii Selianin Adviser for International Affairs International Alliance of Trade Union Organizations “Chrysotile” Asbest Town, Russian Federation
International Chrysotile Association
Mr. Emiliano Alonso Legal Advisor International Chrysotile Association Quebec, Canada Mr. Serge Boislard Special Guest International Chrysotile Association Quebec, Canada Mr. Clément Godbout Consultant International Chrysotile Association Quebec, Canada Mr. Pierre Laroche Special Guest International Chrysotile Association Quebec, Canada Mr. Jean-Marc LeBlond Chairman International Chrysotile Association Quebec, Canada
National Roof Sheet Association (RC)
Ms. Bui Thi Thu Hang Secretary Vietnam National Roof Sheet Association Hanoi, Vietnam Ms. Giang Lam Le ssistant to Secretariat Vietnam National Roof Sheet Association Hanoi, Vietnam Ms. Thi Dao Nguyen PR Executive Vietnam National Roof Sheet Association
May 2nd, 2015 at 11:43 pm
Pl. stop import of asbestos & follow the Pujya Mahatma Gandhi Bapu’s sentence to read/recall the faces of poorest & weakest…. to whom you have never seen. All these Asbestos Lobbyists are requested to visit Digvijaynagar colony, where live dead body is taking their last breadhes, means living to die in each house.Asbestos dust have ruined their lives & millionaire are becoming rich more & more.
I am sure that once you visit their colonies near Digvijay company, Kaligam, where asbestos sheets are manufactured in Ahmedabad city of Gujarat state in India.
Pl. try to recall the faces of them or once you imagine.
So, in any case pl. stop human killer substance Asbestos on the earth.
Live & let live.
M V Prajapati
Social Worker
3rd May 2015
May 4th, 2015 at 12:50 am
This is so cogently and brutally clear, Kathleen. Thanks to you and your tireless colleagues for your incalculable, critical work.
May this be the year.