Côte d'Ivoire Toxic Waste Dumping

On February 2, 2007, the British Court agreed to hear a class action suit instituted by British Law firm Leigh Day and Co., on behalf of the victims of the August 2006 dumping of toxic wastes in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.

Similarly, on Monday, a Dutch lawyer announced that he is demanding damages from the Dutch authorities on behalf of the victims.

The wastes on board a Panamanian flagged ship, the Probo Koala, chartered by international oil trader and Switzerland based company, Trafigura, were believed to have contained a mixture of petroleum distillates, hydrogen sulphide, mercaptans, phenolic compounds and sodium hydroxide. They were dumped around various sites in Abidjan, including its lagoon and near other water sources with the knowledge of certain Côte d’Ivoire government officials.

Inhalations and other human contacts with the waste led to the death of 10 Ivorians and made over 78,000 ill. Leigh Day and Co., is seeking financial compensation for the victims of the incident. Meanwhile, victims of the toxic waste dumping had gone on hunger strike in Côte d’Ivoire demanding the Ivorian president make good his promise to compensate them.

In this case, the culpability of the Ivorian government should be investigated and pursued. Certain officials of the government willfully or negligently permitted such heinous act to happen under their watch. And, as if that was not enough, the president reinstated some of these officials who initially resigned at the wake of the crisis. Talk about transparency and accountability in governance!

While the efforts of the lawyers are commendable, it is important to go beyond seeking compensation and hold the government accountable for violating the human rights of the victims. Côte d’Ivoire is party to several U.N. international human rights treaties as well as African regional human rights treaties.

These treaties are not in the books for fun. They should be invoked and enforced on behalf of the people whose interests they were made to protect; in this case, the dead and injured Ivorians whose right to life, right to health, and the right to water were violated. For me, seeking compensation is just the beginning; the ultimate goal would be to hold the government of Côte d’Ivoire accountable for these violations.

Although, UUSC does not have partners in Côte d’Ivoire, the UUSC Environmental Justice Program works with partners in other parts of Africa to promote and protect the human right to water one of the key elements of which is that water must be unpolluted and safe for human consumption.