The International Council of Experts held a meeting with the UN Special Rapporteur on toxic substances and human rights
Another working meeting of the International Council of Experts was held in the Office of the Prosecutor General, dedicated to the issue of combating crimes against the environment. The UN Special Rapporteur on Toxic Substances and Human Rights Markos A. Orelyana, who is visiting Ukraine, was an important guest of this event.
Participants meetings discussed the possibilities of effective exchange of information between civil society organizations and the UN Special Rapporteur within the framework of his mandate. The focus was on monitoring and reporting on environmental impacts caused by hostilities, munitions use, damage to chemical facilities, and toxic residue. All these factors violate human rights and cause serious damage to the environment.
Maksym Popov, adviser to the Prosecutor General, emphasized the importance of such cooperation to determine the impact of war on the environment. According to him, now representatives of the public sector have a unique opportunity to directly share with the UN Special Rapporteur their research on the damage caused by Russian aggression. This will allow better documentation of human rights violations and environmental crimes committed during the war.
“We must use all available mechanisms to record and highlight the devastating impact of war on the environment and human rights”Popov emphasized.
In his speech, Marcos A. Oreliana spoke in detail about the mandate of the UN Special Rapporteur, explaining the key aspects of his work. He called on all civil society organizations to actively cooperate and submit information relevant to his mandate for the creation of a thematic report on the impact of armed conflict on the environment. This report is expected to be released in mid-2025.
The meeting was an important step in strengthening cooperation between international experts and civil society organizations aimed at identifying and documenting environmental crimes and human rights violations in the context of armed conflict.
