India reverses stand on asbestos at Rotterdam Convention meet: Down To Earth

India reverses stand on asbestos at Rotterdam Convention meet

Opposes its inclusion in prior informed consent list; campaigners accuse industry lobby of influencing government

In a retrograde move, India opposed the listing of chrysotile asbestos under Annex III of the Rotterdam Convention at the sixth meeting of Conference of Parties (COP6) on May 8 in Geneva. Substances listed under Annex III of the Convention—a global treaty to promote shared responsibilities in relation to import of hazardous chemicals—require exporting countries to advise importing countries about the toxicity of the substances so that importers can give their prior informed consent (PIC) for trade. The Convention does not ban or limit trade in such hazardous substances.

Civil society members campaigning for a global ban on asbestos expressed shock at India retracting from its earlier decision, and allege that the Indian delegation was influenced by the industry lobby to take such a stand. 

Chrysotile asbestos, the most common form of asbestos used in India, is a fibrous substance, often mixed with cement to create a fire-retardant mixture which is applied to corrugated steel sheets and pipes. Called “the poor man’s material”, it is often used in roofing structures by the poor in India because of its high insulation and low-cost.

The Chemical Review Committee, a subsidiary body of the Convention, had recommended listing of white asbestos under Annex III as the World Health Organisation (WHO) had found that asbestos was harmful to human health and environment. It is a carcinogen.

The Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for Certain Hazardous Chemicals and Pesticides in International Trade is aimed at helping developing countries in managing potentially hazardous chemicals imported by them.

Going back on its word
During the fifth Conference of Parties (COP5) in June 2011, the Indian delegation had agreed to the listing of chrysotile asbestos in the PIC list, and received a standing ovation at the plenary. Despite India’s support, COP5 had not been able to reach a consensus on the listing of chrysotile asbestos in the PIC list. The reason given was confusion over the meaning of 'listing' as opposed to 'banning'. With no consensus, the PIC listing was postponed to COP6.

At the ongoing COP6 in Geneva, the Indian delegation did not support the listing, citing reasons such as the utility of the substance, the finding of “no hazard” in domestic studies and the increased trade costs of the PIC Procedure. The Russian federation suggested removing the issue from further consideration by the COP as there had been no consensus earlier. The COP forwarded the issue to the Contact Group on Listing of Chemicals. However, the agenda item was closed today, with chrysotile asbestos still not included in PIC.
M Subba Rao, director of MoEF, did not comment on the matter and said RN Jindal, assistant director, MoEF, who is also a part of the Indian delegation in Geneva, should be contacted.

Lobbies at work
It is believed that India had changed its stand based on a study conducted by the National Institute of Occupational Health (NIOH) and the Department of Chemicals and Petrochemicals (DCPC) on effects of use of chrysotile asbestos on health and the environment. The study was done twice, in 2008 and in 2011, for big and small industries separately. The report released in May 2012 says the fibre concentration in predominant samples was found to be within permissible exposure levels.

The asbestos-cement industry is the largest user of chrysotile fibres, accounting for about 85 per cent of all use. The entire requirement of chrysotile asbestos is met through imports. The domestic industry in India is worth over USD 1 billion, and provides employment to a few thousand people.

“It is shocking that the ministry is quoting a discredited study by NIOH for not listing Chrysotile in PIC. Through RTI queries it had been exposed that the NIOH study was funded by major asbestos industries. The industry lobby bought the Indian delegates during COP6. We are thinking of moving court,” said Gopal Krishna of non-profit ToxicsWatch Alliance.

C Jayakumar, director of Thanal Conservation Action and Information Network, who attended the COP6 meet and is back in India, said that Indian delegates seemed clueless about what was going on at the meet. “My colleagues are still there attending the meetings and they informed me that India quoted a discredited study to oppose the listing of chrysotile asbestos,” he said, adding that the industry seems to have strong influence on the delegation.

Global push for a ban
WHO cites 107,000 occupational deaths yearly from exposure to asbestos. Chrysotile asbestos, in particular, is a toxic carcinogen. WHO, the International Labour Organization and the World Bank have all called for an end to the use of this substance. Over the past century, chrysotile asbestos represented 95 per cent of all asbestos sold, with all other forms of asbestos representing five per cent of asbestos sold. Today, it is the only form of asbestos in use.

The Union for the International Control of Cancer (2012), comprising more than 700 member organisations in 155 countries, the World Federation of Public Health Associations (2005), the International Commission on Occupational Health (2000), the International Social Security Association (2004), the Collegium Ramazzini (1999, 20105) and the International Trade Union Confederation (2004) – representing 175 million workers in 151 countries – have all called for a global ban on the use of all forms of asbestos, particularly chrysotile asbestos.

India earlier had not supported the inclusion of paraquat dichloride, a highly toxic substance used as a herbicide in diluted form, under Annex III of the Rotterdam Convention, similarly stating there was no scientific basis for the stated threshold limit in the proposal.

Soma Basu
Down To Earth

Comments

The asbestos lobby is transparently behind the about turn in India's stand. With elections around the corner, is it any wonder? Vistasp Mehta

Glare on asbestos risk U-turn: The Telegraph

Glare on asbestos risk U-turn

OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

New Delhi, May 15: India’s environment ministry has ignored domestic laws and reneged on its own pledge by telling a global convention there is not enough evidence to show that asbestos is hazardous to health, a non-government group said today. The group, called Toxics Watch Alliance, has complained to the Centre that the ministry delegation’s position at the UN’s Rotterdam Convention in Geneva earlier this month was contrary to Indian laws and the ministry’s own earlier decision. Toxics Watch Alliance said the ministry delegation had told the convention that studies by Ahmedabad’s National Institute of Occupational Health (NIOH) had shown no hazards from white chrysotile asbestos, widely used in the construction industry to make asbestos-cement material. The convention was debating the need to include chrysotile asbestos into a special list of hazardous substances that would make it obligatory for exporting countries to alert importing countries about shipments. In a letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Toxics Watch Alliance has said it appears (asbestos) industry representatives have “overwhelmed government representatives who were made to take a position against human health and the environment”. The group has cited several domestic laws that classify asbestos as a hazardous substance. The ministry’s own vision statement says: “Alternatives to asbestos may be used to the extent possible and use of asbestos may be phased out.” Toxics Watch Alliance also cited a concept paper by the Union labour ministry circulated at an India-European Union conference on occupational health that said the Indian government was “considering a ban on the use of chrysotile asbestos in India to protect the workers and general population against primary and secondary exposure to chrysotile form of asbestos”. It said the ministry stand this year was a “volte-face” over its support for the listing of asbestos as a hazardous substance indicated by the environment ministry’s own delegation at the previous Rotterdam Convention meeting in 2011. “In 2011, India received a standing ovation for its support, we are saddened by what happened this year,” said Gopal Krishna, a representative of Toxics Watch Alliance in New Delhi. The Union environment secretary and the head of the environment ministry delegation to the convention this year were not available for comment. Another member of the delegation declined to provide any response. Toxics Watch Alliance has said documents it obtained through the Right to Information Act have shown that the chrysotile asbestos industry had provided Rs 16 lakh to the NIOH study that cost about Rs 60 lakh. The non-government group said the documents also reveal that a review committee of the NIOH study had said that the report of the findings would be “finalised after due discussions with the asbestos industry”. The International Agency for Research on Cancer had said in 2009 that “there is sufficient evidence in humans for the carcinogenicity of all forms of asbestos”.

In Geneva, India U-turn on chrysotile asbestos:The Asian Age

In Geneva, India U-turn on chrysotile asbestos

In a dramatic turnaround, India has altered its earlier position and opposed listing of chrysotile asbestos as a hazardous substance at the sixth meeting of the Conference of Parties (COP-6) in Geneva.

Substances listed under annex 111 of the Rotterdam Convention of COP-6 demand that exporting countries must give details about the toxicity of the substances to importing nations in order that the latter can give their prior informed consent (PIC) in matters of trade.

In COP-6, India has, under obvious pressure from the asbestos lobby, taken a viewpoint that since chrysotile asbestos possesses utility, it cannot be brought under the ambit of the PIC.

But in 2011, during COP 5, India received a standing ovation when leader of the delegation Meera Mahrishi, additional secretary in the environment ministry, had declared at the plenary that chrysotile asbestos must be so listed.

The turnaround is all the more strange because the ministry’s own website has placed it under the list of hazardous substances.

The present delegation, led by Ajay Tyagi, joint secretary in the environment ministry, was not willing to go public on India’s changed stance but a senior bureaucrat cited a study conducted by the National Institute of Occupational Health (NIOH) and the department of chemicals and petrochemicals (DCPC) on the effects of the use of chrysotile asbestos on both workers health and environment.

The report stated that it was not hazardous and that it was within permissible exposure levels.
Panning the NIOH and DCPC study, Gopal Krishna, heading Toxics Watch Alliance, said, “We have done a series of RTIs to show that the asbestos industry was the major funder for the NIOH study. We also question why the Indian delegation to Geneva had included two representatives from the asbestos industry.
We are planning to move court over this issue.”

Activists have been demanding that chrysotile asbestos be listed as a hazardous substance. A similar recommendation has been made by the United Nations’ Chemical Review Committee which comprises a group of 31 leading scientists from across the globe.

India’s asbestos cement industry is a large consumer of chrysotile fibres and uses 85 per cent of its imports.

Rashme Sehgal

US does not mine asbestos since 2002

Asbestos has not been mined in the United States since 2002. U.S. asbestos consumption is likely to decline over time as the few remaining consuming industries slowly replace older asbestos-based technology or phase out its use.

Statement from US Surgeon General Steven K. Galson about National Asbestos Week

In recognition of ‘National Asbestos Awareness Week,’ I urge every American to become aware of the public health issues of asbestos exposure and the steps they can take to protect their health.

In recent decades, because of concern about asbestos’ health effects, production and use has declined substantially. Most individuals exposed to asbestos, whether in a home, in the workplace, or out-of-doors will not develop disease- but there is no level of asbestos exposure that is known to be safe and minimizing your exposure will minimize your risk of developing asbestos-related disease.

Asbestos is the name given to a group of fibrous minerals that occur naturally in the environment.  Low levels of asbestos are commonly in the air as fibers enter the environment from natural rock outcroppings, products that contain asbestos, former asbestos mining and milling operations, and from disturbance of asbestos-containing material. It is when we are exposed to much more concentrated levels of asbestos that we should be concerned.  Therefore, it is important for all Americans to be aware of asbestos levels in their environment.

Asbestos can be dangerous if it is inhaled.  Activity that disturbs asbestos causing these small fibers to float in air increases the chances of inhalation and the contraction of asbestos-related diseases. Disturbance is what leads to exposure. Do not attempt to touch or remove asbestos by yourself. Only people professionally trained and certified to safely handle asbestos should remove it.

Once breathed in, asbestos fibers can remain in the lungs for years and even decades. Inhalation of asbestos fibers can cause inflammation and scarring of the lungs, changes in the lining of the chest cavity around the lung, and certain cancers. Remember that tobacco smoke greatly increases your risk of lung cancer if you have also been exposed to asbestos.

If you think you have been exposed to asbestos, I encourage you to speak to your health care provider. Your provider can tell you if any of your health problems might be caused by asbestos exposure.
To learn more about asbestos and asbestos related diseases, please visit:

• http://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/asbestos/
• http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/asbestos/
• http://www.epa.gov/asbestos/

In 2011, according to the United States Geological Survey, the U.S. exported about $27 million worth of asbestos products. Source: http://minerals.usgs.gov/minerals/pubs/commodity/asbestos/myb1-2011-asbes.pdf

Ban Asbestos in America Act of 2007 was passed in the US Senate by unanimous consent on October 04, 2007. 

ToxicsWatch mourns death of man who pushed for asbestos registry for public buildings

ToxicsWatch Alliance (TWA)

Press Release

ToxicsWatch mourns death of man who pushed for asbestos registry for public buildings

Russia may ban asbestos, French leader charged with manslaughter for promoting asbestos use 

Indian Navy against Russian asbestos, Govts ignore NHRC’s notice seeking response on banning white asbestos 

New Delhi November 9, 2012: Governments continue to pretend ignorance about the sick buildings having asbestos, the death of Howard Willems, a building inspector who had asked his Saskatchewan provincial government in Canada to release a list of public buildings that contain asbestos underlines the significance of his demand. He died on November 8 from mesothelioma, a form of cancer that develops from inhaling asbestos fibres. In India, no building is marked asbestos due to the collusion between Government agencies and the asbestos companies. ToxicsWatch Alliance (TWA) demands that all the buildings having asbestos must be marked with asbestos sign and a Danger Symbol. TWA demands that details about asbestos containment in public buildings be listed online.

Before his death, Howard Willems said in media interviews last week that people should know if they’re going into buildings that have asbestos — especially if there is construction work. In India, asbestos continues to be used in the buildings all the constructions workers, labour inspectors and residents under those buildings are under threat of exposure of asbestos fibers. 

In India, National Human Rights Commission (NHRC)’s notices on gnawing public concerns from lung cancer causing asbestos have been ignored in general.Howard Willems died after a long battle with mesothelioma, a rare form of cancer that comes from inhaling asbestos fibres. Willems used to work as a building inspector for 31 years. Willems had said the buildings he entered were not marked and there was no warning on the insulating material. He added he would have taken steps to protect himself had he known there was asbestos in the buildings he inspected.

Ongoing anti-asbestos struggle in Bihar and Odisha shows that if the governments do not act to save public health informed citizens and villagers can act to stop such hazardous factories which are harmful to the present and future generations. In a related development, District Magistrate, Vaishali, Bihar has convened a meeting with Khet Bachao Jeevan Bachao Jansagharsh Committee, Vashali on October 10, 2012 to hear villagers’ grievance against the proposed asbestos based factory of Utkal Asbestos Limited.        

Revealing growing awareness about hazards from asbestos fibers, the news report on the delivery of the INS Vikramaditya, a former Russian naval aircraft carrier (formerly Admiral Gorshkov) dated Sep 17, 2012 published in  DefenseWorld.net stated, “India refused to use asbestos to protect the boilers from heat, fearing that the material was dangerous for the crew" according to Russian officials. The statement of the official spokesperson for the Indian Navy, Commander PVS Satish, read: “There is no question of India’s refusal to use of asbestos since it’s internationally banned. At the time of signing the contract, it was simply specified in the agreement.” This merits serious attention of the Indian ministries of commerce, finance and rural development which have been promoting its use despite concerns expressed by ministries of environment, labour, chemicals and health besides Kerala State Human Rights Commission.

It is noteworthy that Russian company is the largest supplier of asbestos to India unmindful of the fact that almost the entire developed world has banned its use. It has come to light that on September 7, 2011, the Russian Justice Ministry promulgated a law (standard SanPiN1 2.2.3.2887-11) that recognized the hazard posed by chrysotile asbestos and chrysotile-containing materials. SanPiN stands for sanitary/epidemiological rule and standard. SanPiN is a standard issued by the Russian authorities responsible for the regulation of the manufacture and use of, and exposure to, chemicals. In the recent past, Russian asbestos companies have frustrated efforts by the WHO to adopt measures to prevent future asbestos-related diseases and regulations by UN’s Rotterdam Convention. In June 2011, a technical regulation drafted by the Russian Federal State Unitary Enterprise proposed a ban on asbestos in friction materials, enforceable throughout the Eurasian Economic Community, members of which include Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Belarus. The adoption of standard SanPiN 2.2.3.2887-11 signals the beginning of the end of Russian asbestos production. ToxicsWatch Alliance (TWA) hopes that Russian Government will succeed in resisting the harmful influence of Russian asbestos industry.

It is strange that Russian authorities who are rightly planning to ban asbestos allowed presence of asbestos in INS Vikramaditya, a former Russian naval aircraft carrier (formerly Admiral Gorshkov) although asbestos use is banned by International Maritime Organisation and World Health Organisation (WHO) and International Labor Organisation (ILO) has called for elimination of all kinds of asbestos.  

Meanwhile, in a significant development, a former French leader Martine Aubry has been charged with manslaughter and is under investigation for failing to protect industrial workers from asbestos. According to the news article published in Expatica, November 7, 2012, “Aubry was accused of having helped to delay the implementation in France of a 1983 European Union directive designed to strengthen the protection of workers dealing with asbestos.” Aubry denied the charges and allegations against her, stating it is a “profound insult to who I am and the professional and political choices I have made throughout my life.” Martine Aubry, the former leader of France's governing Socialist Party, has been charged with manslaughter in a probe into whether state negligence contributed to thousands of deaths caused by asbestos exposure. The charges against Aubry relate to her time as a senior official in the ministry of social affairs, a major figure in French politics. As the ministry's director of industrial relations from 1984-87, Aubry is accused of having helped to delay the implementation in France of a 1983 European Union directive designed to strengthen the protection of workers dealing with asbestos.

Aubry bowed to pressure from industrialists lobbying against a complete ban on the use of the material and that she ignored warnings from French health authorities of a mushrooming epidemic of cancers and terminal lung diseases. Aubry, the daughter of former European Commission President Jacques Delors is caught in a far-reaching probe into how the French authorities handled the emerging evidence of the dangers posed by asbestos between 1970 and 1997, when the material was finally banned. The specific charges against her relate to the case of workers employed at the Fereo-Valeo auto-components factory in Normandy. Asbestos was once widely used for car brake pads. An estimated 3,000 people currently die prematurely every year in France as a result of asbestos poisoning and there have been pessimistic predictions that the death rate could nearly treble over the next decade because of exposure in the 70s and 80s. Aubry was formally charged in the early hours of November 7, 2012.

Signaling the possibility of Indian asbestos manufacturers facing a similar fate, in a path breaking judgment, an Italian court in Turin convicted Schmidheiny, a Swiss tycoon and De Cartier, a Belgian baron of negligence over some 2,200 asbestos-related deaths on February 13, 2012. The court held that the two had failed to comply with safety rules at building firm Eternit, where they were key shareholders. Their charges carry a maximum 12-year term. Eternit closed its operations in Italy in 1986 - six years before asbestos was banned in the country.

It is noteworthy that the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) had issued notices on July 6, 2011 on banning the use of white asbestos, to all states and territories along with several Union Ministries and asked them to file a status report on it within four weeks.  The NHRC's action came as it took cognisance of a complaint by TWA alleging that around 50,000 people die every year in the country due to asbestos related cancer. Only the States of Mizoram, Nagaland and the National Institute of Occupational Health Ahmedabad have submitted the reports. The NHRC issued reminders on 21st May, 2012, returnable in six weeks, to the Chief Secretaries of all States/Union Territories and other concerned authorities at Centre who have failed to submit requisite reports so far.

NHRC's intervention has been sought for a ban on the use of Chrysotile Asbestos known as white asbestos, which is hazardous for the health and causes various incurable diseases. In the complaint, contradictory position of the government has been cited on the issue and alleged that though mining of asbestos has been technically banned by the government, the government allows its import and that too from the countries which do not prefer its domestic use.  TWA, the complainant has also requested for grant of a compensation package for present and future victims of asbestos related diseases.

The NHRC has issued notices to secretaries of Ministries of Chemical Fertilizers, Environment and Forest, Health and Family Welfare, Industry and Commerce, Labour and Chief Secretaries of all the States and Union Territories. The white asbestos is a fibrous material used for building roofs and walls. White asbestos is considered a hazardous chemical substance for human lung and over 55 countries in the world have banned its use. However, it is being used in a number of industries like construction in India, affecting the workers, their families, communities in the vicinity of the asbestos based factories and consumers.  

For Details: Gopal Krishna, Convener, ToxicsWatch Alliance (TWA), Mb: 9818089660, E-mail: krishna1715@gmail.com, Web: toxicswatch.blogspot.com

Man who pushed for asbestos registry for Sask. public buildings dies

Regina Leader Post, Canadian Press November 8, 2012  http://www.leaderpost.com/health/pushed+asbestos+registry+Sask+public+buildings+dies/7521282/story.html#ixzz2BhGpyrmw

 

Howard Willems, who had asked the province to release a list of public buildings that contain asbestos, died Thursday from mesothelioma, a form of cancer that develops from inhaling asbestos fibres.

Photograph by: Gord Waldner , The StarPhoenix files

SASKATOON — A Saskatchewan man who urged the province to make lists available to everyone of public buildings that contain asbestos is dead.
The family of Howard Willems says he died peacefully Thursday after a long battle with mesothelioma, a rare form of cancer that comes from inhaling asbestos fibres.
Willems’ stepson, Jesse Todd, says his stepfather had been sedated for the last 48 hours and last spoke Tuesday.
“He gathered the family around and said he’d had enough and he was tired,” Todd said in a phone interview from Saskatoon. “Just wanted to go in peace.”
Willems worked as a building inspector for 31 years. Last week he said in media interviews that people should know if they’re going into buildings that have asbestos — especially if there is construction work.
Asbestos was frequently used in building materials, such as insulation and roofing, until the late 1970s. It is not considered harmful if undisturbed, but construction work stirs up hazardous fibres that can be inhaled.
Willems had said the buildings he entered were not marked and there was no warning on the insulating material. He added he would have taken steps to protect himself had he known there was asbestos in the buildings he inspected.
Willems spoke out as the Opposition NDP introduced a private member’s bill in the Saskatchewan legislature that would require that details about asbestos containment in public buildings be listed online.
Todd says Willems tried to make a difference.
“He just hopes that all this does bring about change in the end. You know, this was his wish.”
The World Health Organization estimates that 107,000 people die globally each year from asbestos-related disease.

French Leader Charged with Manslaughter, Under Investigation for Asbestos Related Deaths

Below is an article in English, French Leader Charged with Manslaughter, Under Investigation for Asbestos Related Deaths, and below that is an article on the same topic that appeared in the Quebec La Presse newspaper. The La Presse article also referred to the possibility of taking legal action against Canadian officials. Kathleen Ruff's translation of that part:

(Paris) While Quebec is putting an end to the mining of asbestos, the French court questioned the use of this product, that was permitted by the public authorities to be used in the country until 1997. The exercise could lead to the indictment of several former officials suspected of having neglected the health warnings, says our reporter.............................

The judicial developments taking place in France and Italy are inspiring Canadian activists opposed to asbestos, like Kathleen Ruff, who does not exclude seeing the possibility of seeing Canadian officials one day brought before the courts.

The Quebec and federal governments, together with industrial asbestos, minimized the hazards posed by the use of the product, she says, and should be held accountable in this regard.

"Nothing will change if people are not held accountable for what they did," said the activist, joined Vancouver. 

            ==                                                                                                                                                                                                == 

French Leader Charged with Manslaughter, Under Investigation for Asbestos Related Deaths

Expatica, 07/11/2012

Former French leader Martine Aubry has been charged with manslaughter and is under investigation for failing to protect industrial workers from asbestos. According to the article, “Aubry was accused of having helped to delay the implementation in France of a 1983 European Union directive designed to strengthen the protection of workers dealing with asbestos.” Aubry denied the charges and allegations against her, stating it is a “profound insult to who I am and the professional and political choices I have made throughout my life.” Staff Report, Expatica 11/07/2012

Martine Aubry, the former leader of France's governing Socialist Party, has been charged with manslaughter in a probe into whether state negligence contributed to thousands of deaths caused by asbestos exposure.

The charges against Aubry relate to her time as a senior official in the ministry of social affairs, before she became a major figure in French politics.

As the ministry's director of industrial relations from 1984-87, Aubry is accused of having helped to delay the implementation in France of a 1983 European Union directive designed to strengthen the protection of workers dealing with asbestos.

The examining magistrate in the case believes Aubry bowed to pressure from industrialists lobbying against a complete ban on the use of the material and that she ignored warnings from French health authorities of a mushrooming epidemic of cancers and terminal lung diseases.

Aubry has strongly denied all the charges, describing them as a "profound insult to who I am and the professional and political choices I have made throughout my life."

Aubry, the daughter of former European Commission President Jacques Delors, has found herself caught up in a far-reaching probe into how the French authorities handled the emerging evidence of the dangers posed by asbestos between 1970 and 1997, when the material was finally banned.

The specific charges against her relate to the case of workers employed at the Fereo-Valeo auto-components factory in Normandy. Asbestos was once widely used for car brake pads.

An estimated 3,000 people currently die prematurely every year in France as a result of asbestos poisoning and there have been pessimistic predictions that the death rate could nearly treble over the next decade because of exposure in the 70s and 80s.

Lawyers for Aubry, who was formally charged in the early hours of Wednesday following a marathon session with the magistrate, were expected to lodge a request for the charges to be dropped later in the day.

France: après le sang contaminé, l'amiante?

La juge d'instruction Odile Bertella-Geoffroy souhaite mettre en examen pour «homicides involontaires» l'ex-première secrétaire du Parti socialiste Martine Aubry.
Photo : Kenzo Tribouillard, AFP

Marc Thibodeau  La Presse, le 03 novembre 2012

(Paris) Tandis que le Québec met le holà sur la production d'amiante, la justice française s'interroge sur l'utilisation de ce produit, permise par les autorités publiques sur le territoire national jusqu'en 1997. L'exercice pourrait mener à la mise en accusation de plusieurs anciens hauts responsables soupçonnés d'avoir négligé les mises en garde sanitaires, relate notre journaliste.

Le dossier de l'amiante débouchera-t-il en France sur l'inculpation de plusieurs hauts responsables de l'État comme l'a fait le scandale du sang contaminé?
Le scénario, que les associations de victimes de l'amiante appellent de leurs voeux depuis longtemps, pourrait se concrétiser prochainement après des années d'enquête et risque de toucher au moins une personnalité politique connue.
La juge d'instruction chargée du dossier, Odile Bertella-Geoffroy, souhaite notamment mettre en examen pour «homicides involontaires» l'ex-première secrétaire du Parti socialiste Martine Aubry, pour son rôle comme directrice des relations du travail au ministère du Travail, dans les années 80.
Selon le quotidien Le Figaro, Mme Aubry se voit notamment reprocher d'avoir transposé trop tardivement une circulaire européenne de 1983 destinée à réduire l'empoussièrement dans les usines.
La politicienne a été convoquée en octobre par la magistrate, mais a évoqué un problème d'horaire pour reporter la rencontre, qui doit avoir lieu mardi prochain.
Cette semaine, ses avocats ont fait savoir qu'ils entendaient présenter des requêtes en nullité pour contester toutes les mises en examen «qui ont été ou qui pourraient être prononcées» contre elle. D'autres anciens hauts fonctionnaires des ministères du Travail et de la Santé entendent en faire autant.
Les avocats se sont dits «stupéfaits de voir que ceux qui ont consacré la plus grande partie de leur vie à protéger les droits de nos concitoyens soient mis en examen ou susceptibles de l'être, et non entendus comme témoins».
L'Association nationale de défense des victimes de l'amiante (Andeva) se félicite pour sa part des derniers développements dans ce dossier.
«Après 16 ans d'instruction, il serait temps qu'en France, les pouvoirs publics fassent enfin preuve de leur détermination à voir tous les responsables de cette catastrophe rendre des comptes à la justice», relève l'organisation.
Marc Hindry, administrateur d'Andeva, note que la justice française a longtemps traîné les pieds. L'affaire a d'abord été confiée, dit-il, à des magistrats surchargés ou peu intéressés par les questions de santé publique avant d'être prise en charge par Mme Bertella-Geoffroy au sein d'un pôle d'enquête consacré à ce type de question.
Les difficultés multiples qu'elle a dû surmonter pour faire avancer l'enquête témoignent, selon lui, du fait qu'il n'y a «au minimum aucune volonté» sur le plan politique de la voir réussir.
Pas de volonté politique
«Dans un pays où l'on fait une enquête dès qu'il y a un mort sur la route, il est quand même bizarre de constater qu'il n'y a pas de volonté de la part des autorités de faire la lumière sur une affaire qui a fait entre 40 000 et 50 000 morts», dit-il.
M. Hindry, qui enseigne à l'Université Jussieu, établissement où plusieurs personnes ont été victimes d'une forte exposition à l'amiante, ne s'attendait pas à ce que l'enquête mène à une mise en cause de Martine Aubry, mais il ne s'en étonne pas.
L'ancienne haute responsable a joué un rôle important dans la mise sur pied d'un fonds d'indemnisation pour les victimes de l'amiante. Elle était néanmoins en poste, dit-il, à un moment-clé dans les années 80 où la France ne faisait «rien» pendant que plusieurs autres pays s'inquiétaient du produit.
«Il est tout à fait normal que la juge veuille l'entendre pour comprendre pourquoi les autorités n'ont rien fait», souligne M. Hindry, qui espère voir un procès ciblant des responsables publiques se concrétiser d'ici «deux ou trois ans».
L'enquête cible aussi une demi-douzaine d'anciens membres du Comité permanent amiante, un comité mixte qui a tout fait dans les années 80, au dire d'Andeva, pour prolonger l'utilisation du produit malgré les risques.
Les militants de l'organisation se disent encouragés par la condamnation cette année, en Italie, de deux hauts responsables d'une firme, Eternit, qui produisait de l'amiante-ciment. Des peines de prison de 16 ans fermes leur ont été imposées pour la mort «volontaire» de 3000 personnes indûment exposées à l'amiante.
Les développements juridiques en cours en France et en Italie inspirent les militants canadiens opposés à l'amiante comme Kathleen Ruff, qui n'exclut pas de voir de hauts responsables canadiens amenés un jour devant les tribunaux.
Les gouvernements québécois et fédéral, de concert avec les industriels de l'amiante, ont minimisé, selon elle, les risques posés par l'usage du produit et devraient rendre des comptes à ce sujet.
«Rien ne va changer si les gens ne sont pas tenus responsables de ce qu'ils ont fait», affirme la militante, jointe à Vancouver.

Kathleen Ruff	9:28 AM (54 minutes ago)
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French Leader Charged with Manslaughter, Under Investigation for Asbestos Related Deaths

Socialist leader on manslaughter charge over asbestos deaths, Expatica, November 7, 2012

Martine Aubry, the former leader of France’s governing Socialist Party, has been charged with manslaughter in a probe into whether state negligence contributed to thousands of deaths caused by asbestos exposure.
The charges against Aubry relate to her time as a senior official in the ministry of social affairs, before she became a major figure in French politics.
As the ministry’s director of industrial relations from 1984-87, Aubry is accused of having helped to delay the implementation in France of a 1983 European Union directive designed to strengthen the protection of workers dealing with asbestos.
The examining magistrate in the case believes Aubry bowed to pressure from industrialists lobbying against a complete ban on the use of the material and that she ignored warnings from French health authorities of a mushrooming epidemic of cancers and terminal lung diseases.
Aubry has strongly denied all the charges, describing them as a “profound insult to who I am and the professional and political choices I have made throughout my life.”
Aubry, the daughter of former European Commission President Jacques Delors, has found herself caught up in a far-reaching probe into how the French authorities handled the emerging evidence of the dangers posed by asbestos between 1970 and 1997, when the material was finally banned.
The specific charges against her relate to the case of workers employed at the Fereo-Valeo auto-components factory in Normandy. Asbestos was once widely used for car brake pads.
An estimated 3,000 people currently die prematurely every year in France as a result of asbestos poisoning and there have been pessimistic predictions that the death rate could nearly treble over the next decade because of exposure in the 70s and 80s.
Lawyers for Aubry, who was formally charged in the early hours of Wednesday following a marathon session with the magistrate, were expected to lodge a request for the charges to be dropped later in the day.

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France: après le sang contaminé, l’amiante?

An article on the same topic in the Quebec La Presse newspaper also raised the possibility of taking legal action against Canadian officials.
Translation:
While Quebec is putting an end to the mining of asbestos, the French court questioned the use of this product, that was permitted by the public authorities to be used in the country until 1997. The exercise could lead to the indictment of several former officials suspected of having neglected the health warnings, says our reporter ……..