Who is Driving Mexico's Asbestos Policy?

Abstract

The publication of an article on the global asbestos industry in April 2011 provided a fitting reminder of the contradictory forces engaged in the international struggle over asbestos. In his essay, author James Rice wrote: "Asbestos is now widely recognized as an occupational hazard and an ambient environmental contaminant....[Nevertheless] production and consumption appear to have stabilized and, indeed, have been increasing in recent years". A pertinent question to ask, and one often posed by ban-asbestos campaigners, is, why has the developing world seen an escalation of asbestos consumption in the face of ever more knowledge about the deadly risks associated with its use? After all, human beings have an extraordinary capacity to learn from their mistakes. A child who has burned his finger on an open flame will be wary of repeating the experience. Why, then, do governments, consumers, workers, and members of the public refrain from acting, when the dangers of not doing so are so widely known? The answer is to be found in the complex interaction of asbestos industry stakeholders, government officials, diplomatic representatives, politicians, and professional advisors; the dirty dealings engaged in by the global band of asbestos profiteers rival anything you will have read about "Big Tobacco". A good place to begin the unraveling of the industry's machinations is Mexico.