Essay
30 years ago, on December 9, 1995, the company was founded in the city of Osasco, São Paulo. Brazilian Association of People Exposed to Asbestos (Abrea)
In the city operated Eternit, a well-known multinational producer of asbestos-cement tiles, pipes, water tanks and other items.
Eternit remained in Osasco for 56 years, between 1937 and 1993, leaving behind an enormous socio-environmental liability, a legacy of contamination and death, as was the case in several countries, mainly Italy and Belgium.
Today, December 9, Abrea celebrates its 30th birthday.
Ultimately, Abrea was fundamental for Brazilian society to become aware of the harm caused by asbestos and for this killer fiber to be banned.
However, Abrea’s operations were not limited to Brazilian territory.
It spread, making Abrea a symbol of the fight against asbestos in Brazil and around the world.
The proof is the statement (in full, below), congratulating her on her 30th birthday.
Ten associations from the United Kingdom, Australia, Japan and Italy have signed.
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Congratulations to ABREA!
It’s been 30 years since the creation of Brazilian Association of People Exposed to Asbestos – ABREA –, December 9, 1995, in Osasco, Brazil.
For decades, asbestos companies made exorbitant profits while victims died without recognition, treatment or compensation. Step by step, ABREA members, composed entirely of volunteers, worked to change this reality.
ABREA has exposed the deadly legacy of this deadly industry, exposing complicit corporate doctors, challenging ineffective government officials, and documenting the existence of a hostile legal environment.
The successes achieved by ABREA are numerous and include:
• revolutionize the national debate on asbestos, by moving from a position of acceptance of the “controlled use” of asbestos to a position of denunciation of all use;
• establish jurisprudence which recognizes the right of injured persons to claim compensation for moral damages as well as for physical damages;
• facilitate the banning of asbestos at the municipal, state and national levels;
• promote regional and international collaborations between victims’ groups, labor unions, medical associations, occupational health and safety organizations and independent scientists.
The Italian Association of Asbestos Families and Victims (Associazione Famigliari e Vittime dell’Amianto/AFeVA) maintains close emotional and family ties with ABREA; Many Brazilians affected by asbestos-related diseases have immigrated from economically deprived regions of Italy.
Congratulating ABREA on its milestone anniversary, in her message of solidarity, AFeVA President Giuliana Busto highlighted the fundamental role played by ABREA “in the common fight against asbestos”.
In his statement, Sugio Furuya of the Asian Asbestos Ban Network (ABAN) noted that: “ABREA is a symbol of solidarity and camaraderie across Asia. Your continued efforts to ban asbestos exports to Asia have and will save many lives as we work towards an asbestos-free future for all!
For 25 years, the International Secretariat for the Ban of Asbestos (IBSA) has been an active and supportive partner of ABREA. Remembering the many ABREA members who have lost their lives to asbestos, IBSA Coordinator Laurie Kazan-Allen said:
“ABREA has put a face to a global human catastrophe. Its members have led efforts at home, in Latin America and around the world to support victims, challenge industry dogmas and overturn unjust laws and legal precedents. The ABREA-IBSA alliance has been the cornerstone of initiatives that have shifted the debate on asbestos, transforming it from an occupational health issue into a central dialogue on public health, human rights, social justice and sustainability.”
The groups issuing this press release represent asbestos victims’ associations, unions, health professionals and others who support people exposed and injured by asbestos in Europe, Asia and Australia.
We are united in sending our best wishes, on this milestone anniversary, to the entire ABREA Board of Directors and members for their three decades of hard work. The world is better and safer thanks to ABREA!
Sign this declaration:
International Secretariat for the Ban of Asbestos (Ban Asbestos Secretariat/IBSA)/UK
Italian Association of Asbestos Victims and Their Relatives (Associazione Famigliari e Vittime dell’Amianto/ AFeVA)/Italy
Asian Asbestos Ban Network/ABAN/Japan
Union Aid Abroad (APHEDA)/Australia
Australian Asbestos Disease Society of Australia
Asbestos and Dust Disease Research Institute/ADDRI/Australia
Asbestos Support Group Forum/UK
Support for asbestos victims in Merseyside/UK
Mesothelioma United Kingdom (Mesothelioma United Kingdom) /United Kingdom
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