The “Green Tunisia” Network, which brings together more than 100 active NGOs, on Monday, warned to file a complaint before the International Court of Justice and the European Court of Human Rights in the case of waste imported from Italy.
During a press conference, Representatives of the network pointed out that “the Italian state has violated the sovereignty of the national territory, given that this activity is harmful to the environment and human health”.
Cited by the TAP agency, Afef Marrakchi, a member of the network, called on the President of the Republic to convene the National Security Council to look into this issue, considering that “it is a matter of national security of the country”.
The network, composed of environmental experts and associations, stressed the imperative to urgently return to Italy the waste containers, which are still at the port of Sousse, Italy, warning against the danger threatening the health of workers at this port.
| Representatives of the network also expressed fear that the case would be treated and classified as a simple customs offence.
It recalled that this is a “flagrant violation of international agreements such as the Basel Convention”. The network also expressed its astonishment at the lack of action on the part of the Presidency of the Republic and the government calling for determining responsibilities in this case. The General Directorate of Customs and the Ministry of Local Affairs and Environment are concerned by this case since international law requires the approval of the environment ministries of both countries to conclude such contracts, noted the speakers. They also believe that “the Tunisian Ministry of the Environment receives international donations but does not fulfill its mission of environmental protection and does not communicate on the international conventions ratified by Tunisia in the field of waste management”. The network went so far as to accuse the Environment Department of «environmental terrorism”, blasting “a system gangrenous by corruption and manipulated by lobbies more powerful than justice, the Ministry and the State”. It called on the ministry to stop the policy of burying waste that threatens the water table and the soil and to adopt more efficient waste management techniques. The company involved in this case of waste import is also accused of “ecological terrorism”, according to Green Tunisia, which said it has filed a complaint with the Judicial Counter-Terrorism Division. It said it was surprised that no official structure has referred the matter to the courts in this sense, noting that the public prosecutor of in Sousse spontaneously took up the case. |
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