Minamata Convention Manual Launched at International Meeting

Angelica Carballo-Pago

(02) 239-4392/ 0998-959-5785

angelica@bantoxics.org

BANGKOK, Thailand (November 4, 2014)  – International NGO coalition Zero Mercury Working Group (ZMWG) launched a comprehensive book designed to help governments and stakeholders to understand and implement the groundbreaking treaty at the 6^th Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee of the Minamata Convention on the Control of Mercury.

The book, entitled “Minamata Convention Manual for Ratification and Implementation” explains the technical and legal provisions of the treaty to make it understandable for policymakers and civil society and raises critical questions that countries need to consider as they evaluate their positions prior to ratifying the treaty.

In his foreword to the Manual, Fernando Lugris, the Chairman of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee of the Mercury Convention of Mercury, enthuses “readers should look to this useful companion resource while reading the Minamata Convention text. The Manual will contribute to a better understanding of the Convention obligations and the issues/challenges still before us, and thus facilitate completion of our work.”

The Manual was co-authored by lawyer Richard Gutierrez, founder and executive director of environmental justice group BAN Toxics and David Lennett, senior attorney of the Natural Resources Defense Council. The two authors have considerable experience on the issue of mercury and were closely involved in the negotiation and development of the treaty.

“Knowledge is power. Governments need to understand what their responsibilities are and how the Convention operates in order to ratify it. The civil society, on the other hand, also needs to understand what these obligations are in order to hold both their countries and international community accountable,” explains Gutierrez. 

“We wanted the Manual to show and establish this dual nature of the Convention and make the information accessible to both rights holder and beneficiaries.” Gutierrez added.

The book underwent a rigorous peer review process and was reviewed by experts from government, academia, and civil society groups that worked on mercury. The Manual is available in French and Spanish languages.

The development of the book was made possible through the support of the Sigrid Rausing Trust, the European Commission, and the Swedish Public Development Cooperation Aid (SIDA) through the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation (SSNC).

You can download copies of the Minamata Manual at www.bantoxics.org.