International Seminar on Civil Defence in Protection and Assistance against Chemical Weapons in Brazil

The International Seminar on Civil Defence in Protection and Assistance against Chemical Weapons, jointly organised by the Brazilian Ministry of National Integration and the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), was opened by OPCW Director-General José M. Bustani in Brasilia on 25 March, 2002.

This is the first seminar focusing on protection and assistance against chemical weapons to be held in the Latin American and Caribbean region since the terrorist attacks of 11 September 2001 in the United States of America. The Brazilian Minister for National Integration, H.E. Mr Ney Suassuna, and the Brazilian Minister for Science and Technology, H.E. Mr Ronaldo M. Sardenberg, as well as several senior officials attended the seminar.

In his opening remarks on 25 March 2002, Director-General Bustani referred to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) as "an unprecedented instrument of international disarmament, non-proliferation and the promotion of international cooperation." He urged all countries not yet States Parties to accede to the Convention, and spoke of the importance of achieving universal membership. With regard to the concerns generated in the wake of 11 September of the use of weapons of mass destruction by terrorists, Director-General Bustani emphasised the importance of enacting national legislation, including criminal legislation, to ensure that there are no safe havens for persons with criminal intent that could involve chemical weapons.

The seminar, which concludes on 27 March, 2002, has been organised in conjunction with the Third Regional Meeting of National Authorities in Latin America and the Caribbean charged with the implementation of the Convention..

Director-General Bustani thanked the Brazilian government for hosting this seminar, dealing with some of the core mandates of the CWC - those of protection and assistance against the use or the threat of chemical weapons, and of the implementation of legislation to enforce the CWC at the national level. Director-General Bustani called upon those countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, which are not yet State Parties to the CWC, to accede to this Convention without delay, with the aim of making the entire region a "chemical weapons free zone."

25/2002

Categories: Assistance and Protection, Latin America and the Caribbean