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by Reuters
The charge was issued in a statement from Greenpeace in Bangkok as UNCTAD prepared to open its four-yearly ministerial conference in the Thai capital. In terms often reserved by radical environmental groups for the World Trade Organisation, the statement accused UNCTAD of ``eroding the fundamental rights of Third World citizens to a clean environment...'' The U.N. agency, it said, was violating an agreement covering the export of hazardous waste, the Basel Convention, by encouraging governments in poorer economies ``to open their borders to receive toxic waste from richer countries.'' In its response, the 190-nation UNCTAD said this was totally untrue. ``On the contrary, UNCTAD works closely with governments and civil society in various Asian developing countries to build national capacity on sustainable resource management, which includes environmentally sound management of hazardous wastes generated in the region,'' the U.N. agency declared. One WTO official, whose organisation is more accustomed to criticism from non-governmental bodies like Greenpeace, voiced surprise that UNCTAD was now a target. ``They're stealing our bad press,'' the official said. FAIR USE NOTICE. This document contains copyrighted material whose use has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. The Basel Action Network is making this article available in our efforts to advance understanding of ecological sustainability and environmental justice issues. We believe that this constitutes a `fair use' of the copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond `fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. More News |
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