Distinguished Delegates, Ladies and Gentlemen, To begin with, I feel so honoured and privileged to be in this wonderful capital and largest city of Switzerland on behalf of my delegation. It is a great pleasure for me to address the 148th IPU Assembly...
Sri Lanka is deeply troubled about the death of over hundred people who were waiting to receive aid in Gaza and joins the call for investigation into the incident. The latest incident underscores the immediate need to end the blockade imposed on Gaza,...
Attending the 54th Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) 2024 in Davos, Switzerland at the invitation of its Founder and Chairman Prof. Klaus Schwab, President Ranil Wickremesinghe interacted with world...
Eleventh Meeting of States Parties to the Convention on Cluster Munitions 11 – 14 September 2023 Statement by Sri Lanka Agenda Item 8: General Exchange of Views Thank you Mr. President, Sri Lanka joins...
General Intervention by H.E. Himalee Arunatilaka, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the UN in Geneva, on 28 August 2023 Mr. Chair, Sri Lanka compliments the work accomplished...
Intervention by Dr. Samiddhi Samarakoon, National Coordinator, Disaster Preparedness and Response Division of the Ministry of Health on National Inventory of Dangerous Pathogens (NIDP) Thank you...
Intervention by Dr. Samiddhi Samarakoon, National Coordinator, Disaster Preparedness and Response Division of the Ministry of Health on the Implementation of Biological Weapons Convention Plan in...
NOTICE
Launching website of the new visa system from 16 April 2024.
The previous online visa website (Electronic Travel Authorization-ETA) has expired since 16 April 2024.
Please use the following link to apply for ETA from 17 April 2024 onwards.
Sri Lanka signed the global treaty to protect human health and the environment from the adverse effects of mercury. Dr. Palitha Kohona, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations, signed the Minamata convention on Mercury on behalf of the Government of Sri Lanka on 8th October 2014 at the United Nations Headquarters in New York.
The Minamata Convention is a global treaty to protect human health and the environment from the adverse effects of mercury. It was concluded at the fifth session of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee in Geneva, Switzerland. One hundred and twenty five countries have signed this agreement, while six countries have so far ratified it.
The Convention is named after Minamata city in Japan, where a massive mercury spill in 1956 caused people and fish and those who consumed the fish to become seriously ill. In all, 900 people died and 2,265 people are still suffering from mercury poisoning.
The Minamata disease is a neurological syndrome caused by severe mercury poisoning. Not only does Minamata create numbness in the body, it also creates damage to hearing and speech as well as narrowing of the field of vision.
Courtesy: www.priu.gov.lk
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