Asbestos is a group of naturally occurring fibrous minerals with historical commercial usefulness due to their extraordinary tensile strength, poor heat conduction, and relative resistance to chemical attack. However, all forms of asbestos are carcinogenic. Exposure to asbestos, no matter if it is chrysotile or any other form, may cause cancer of the lung, larynx, and ovaries, and also mesothelioma.

Unfortunately, the production or use of Chrysotile is prominently increasing in the Asia-Pacific region, in particular South Asian & ASEAN countries. Many of our workers continue being exposed to asbestos.

That’s why ITUC-AP organised Regional Conference on Asbestos last year which decided to take actions to ban the use of Asbestos and endorsed the joint communique “Realising an Asbestos-free World”.

The follow-up meeting on Asbestos was organised receiving 29 participants to prepare for the 9^th Meeting of the Conference of Parties (COP9) to the Rotterdam Convention and to reaffirm taking actions to ban the all means of the use of asbestos and lobby governments to list asbestos as a hazardous chemical.

During the meeting, participants were sharing updates including progress and challenges and exchanges ideas to activate our networks and strengthen the solidarity to promote ban asbestos campaigns nationally, regionally and internationally. Also, they developed national action plans to immediately take after the meeting.