もう一つのCOP

冒頭の動画は前回の会議のものですが、水銀に関する水俣条約の締約国会議の第4回がオンラインで今月初旬に開かれていたそうです。環境省ウエブサイトでの説明は以下の通り。

平成25（2013）年10月に熊本市・水俣市で開催された外交会議において「水銀に関する水俣条約」（Minamata Convention on Mercury）が採択されました。この条約は、水銀及び水銀化合物の人為的排出から人の健康及び環境を保護することを目的としており、採掘から流通、使用、廃棄に至る水銀のライフサイクルにわたる適正な管理と排出の削減を定めるものです。

02 NOV 2021 PRESS RELEASE CHEMICALS & POLLUTION ACTION

Minamata Convention COP-4 focuses on global commitment to end mercury pollution

Geneva, 02 November 2021 - The first segment of the fourth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Minamata Convention on Mercury (COP-4) takes place online from 1 to 5 November with over a thousand participants and an ambitious programme of work.

Under the presidency of Indonesia, the first segment of the fourth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Minamata Convention on Mercury (COP-4) is taking place online from 1 to 5 November 2021. More than 1,000 representatives from governments, intergovernmental organizations, UN bodies, academia, and civil society, are participating in the plenaries, working groups and several side events.

COP26と同時期でもあり、日本のメディアの反応は薄いのですが、水俣の市民団体が製作された動画が公式サイトでも取り上げられていることがニュースになっていました。

「水銀規制につなげて」　水俣病患者らの日常を動画に

毎日新聞 2021/11/5 11:05（最終更新 11/5 11:05） English version 712文字

　熊本県水俣市の市民団体が制作し、水俣病患者らの日常を描いた13分の動画が国連環境計画（UNEP）のホームページ（HP）に掲載された。患者らは「多くの人に見てもらい、水銀規制につなげてほしい」と話している。【西貴晴】

　手掛けたのは市民団体「水銀に関する水俣条約推進ネットワーク」（MICOネット）。水俣病の原因となった水銀の世界的な規制を目指し、1～5日の日程で始まった「水俣条約」の第4回締約国会議に合わせ、メンバーらが約1カ月かけて制作した。

毎日新聞が使いやすいのは、英訳記事がある場合は、タイトル脇下にEnglish versionというリンクが貼ってあり簡単に飛べることです。英語学習にとても便利です。

Japan citizens' group makes video on Minamata patients to promote mercury regulation

November 12, 2021 (Mainichi Japan)

MINAMATA, Kumamoto -- A 13-minute video on the daily lives of Minamata disease patients, produced by a citizens' group in this southwestern Japan city which was the hypocenter of pollution-triggered mercury poisoning, is up on the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)'s website, and patients say they want it to be seen by many people to promote mercury regulation.

The video was made by a network of people promoting the Minamata Convention on Mercury, or Mico Net. The group aims for the establishment of international regulations on mercury -- the cause of Minamata disease -- and members spent a month to make the video in line with the fourth meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Minamata Convention on Mercury (COP-4) held from Nov. 1 to 5.

国連の方は別に以下のような紹介サイトと動画をあげていました。

First Person: Telling the tragic story of mercury poisoning in Japan

30 October 2021Health

Masami Ogata is a survivor of Minamata Disease, a debilitating illness caused by industrial mercury poisoning, which originated in the Japanese town of the same name in the 1950s. As a UN conference on preventing future poisoning outbreaks gets underway, we hear Mr. Ogata’s story.

As a storyteller at the Minamata Disease Municipal Museum, Mr. Ogata helps to keep alive the memory of what is considered to be one of the most serious Japanese pollution incidents of the Twentieth Century.

The incident was caused by the release of toxic chemicals from an industrial plant, which accumulated in shellfish and fish, and were then eaten by the local population.

More than 2,000 people have been recognized as victims, many of whom, including Mr. Ogata, had to fight for recognition and compensation: around 20 members of his family were affected by the disease, which causes muscle weakness, loss of peripheral vision, and hearing and speech impairment.