1. Bantoxics.

org , Mercury trade in the Philippines (An investigative research on the mercury flows in
the Philippines) 1, available at http://bantoxics.org/download/Mercury%20Trade%20in%20the
%20Philippines.pdf (last accessed 7/6/16).
2. Id.
3. Id.
4. WHO, Mercury and health, available at http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs361/en/ (last
accessed 7/6/16).
5. Id.
6. Bantoxics, Chasing mercury: Measuring mercury levels in the air across the Philippines, available at
http://www.gaialibrary.org/content/chasing-mercury-measuring-mercury-levels-air-across-
philippines (last accessed 8/4/16).
7. Mercury and health, supra note 4.
8. Id.
9. Bantoxics.org, Center for International Environmental Law, Human rights impacts of Mercury
Pollution, available at http://www.ciel.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/HR_Mercury.pdf (last
accessed 7/6/16).
10. Id.
11. Id.
12. Id.
13. American.edu, Minamata Disaster, available at http://www1.american.edu/TED/MINAMATA.HTM
(last accessed 8/7/16).
14. Pamela D. Harvey & Mark C. Smith, The Mercurys falling: The Massachusetts Approach to reducing
mercury in the environment, 30 AMERICAN JOURNAL OF LAW AND MEDICINE 245, 246 (2004).
15. Human rights impacts of Mercury Pollution, supra note 9, at 3.
16. Tsuda Toshihide et al., Minamata disease: Catastrophic poisoning due to a failed public health
response, 30.1 JOURNAL OF PUBLIC HEALTH POLICY, 54, (2009).
17. Id.
18. Id.
19. Id at 57 (emphasis supplied).
20. Gilbert Cruz, Top 10 Environmental Disasters, available
athttp://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1986457_1986501_1986450,00.html
(last accessed 7/6/16).
21. Mercury trade in the Philippines, supra note 1. At 2
22. Human Rights Watch, How Minamata Can Save Filipino Children, available at
https://www.hrw.org/news/2015/11/02/how-minamata-can-save-filipino-children (last accessed
7/6/16).
23. Id.
24. Id.
25. Id.
26. Id.
27. Ngo Forum On The Adb Is, ADB - Development Debacles: Marinduque Mining Project: The Worst
Mining Disaster in the Philippines ADB - Development Debacles (2008), available at
http://developmentdebacles.blogspot.com/2008/02/marinduque-mining-project-worst-mining.html
(last accessed 7/6/16).
28. Id.
29. Id.
30. Greenpeace Philippines, Bringing Calamities to Communities: Coal-fired power plants and Mirant,
available at http://www.greenpeace.org/seasia/ph/press/reports/bringing_calamities_to_communities/
(last accessed 7/6/16).
31. Mira S. Mendoza, Theres something about mercury, available at http://pcij.org/stories/theres-
something-about-mercury/ (last accessed 7/6/16).
32. Rappler, Ban Toxics calls for safe mercury disposal system, available at
http://www.rappler.com/nation/36114-safe-mercury-disposal-hospitals (last accessed 7/6/16).
33. Id.
34. Theres something about mercury, supra note 31.
35. Id.
36. Id.
37. Mercury and health, supra note 4.
38. Id.
39. PHIL. CONST. ART. II, 16.
40. Human rights impacts of Mercury Pollution, supra note 9.
41. UNITED NATIONS DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME, PROGRAMMING FOR JUSTICE:
ACCESS FOR ALL, 11 (2005 ed.).
42. Melissa Fung, Right to a healthy environment: The Core Obligations under the International
Covenant of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, 14 WILLAMETTE JOURNAL OF INTERNATIONAL
LAW AND DISPUTE RESOLUTION 97, 98 (2006).
43. PROGRAMMING FOR JUSTICE: ACCESS FOR ALL, supra note 41.
44. Id.
45. Id.
46. Id.
47. Id.
48. Id.
49. PROGRAMMING FOR JUSTICE: ACCESS FOR ALL, supra note 41.
50. Id.
51. Id.
52. Id.
53. Id.
54. Id.
55. DENR-EMB/UNEP, Inventories of mercury, Inventories of Mercury, mercury compounds and
mercury-containing product uses and releases and development of associated mercury action plan,
available at http://www.unep.org/chemicalsandwaste/Portals/9/Mercury/Waste%20management/02-
15-2010%20inventory%20presentation.pdf (last accessed 8/4/16).
56. Id.
57. Environment and Climate Change, Pollution and Waste - Mercury in the Environment - About
Mercury - Chemical Properties (2009), available at https://www.ec.gc.ca/mercure-
mercury/default.asp?lang=En&n=10C3AF2D-1 (last accessed 8/2/16).
58. Interview with Myline Macabuhay, Chemicals Management Assistant Coordinator, Bantoxics, in 6C
Maningning Street, Sikatuna Village, Quezon City, Philippines (7/29/16).
59. Inventories of mercury, supra note 32 at 3.
60. General Chemistry Online, FAQ: The periodic table: Why is mercury a liquid at STP?, available at
http://antoine.frostburg.edu/chem/senese/101/periodic/faq/why-is-mercury-liquid.shtml (last accessed
8/2/16).
61. Id.
62. Inventories of mercury, supra note 55, at 14.
63. FAQ: The periodic table: Why is mercury a liquid at STP?, supra note 60.
64. Id.
65. Id.
66. LiveScience, Facts About Mercury (Hg), http://www.livescience.com/39232-facts-about-
mercury.html (last accessed 8/2/16).
67. Id.
68. Mercury, Chemical Element - reaction, water, uses, elements, metal, gas, number, name, , available at
http://www.chemistryexplained.com/elements/L-P/Mercury.html (last accessed 8/2/16).
69. Pollution and Waste - Mercury in the Environment - About Mercury - Chemical Properties, supra note 57.
70. Facts about Mercury, supra note 66.
71. Id.
72. Pollution and Waste - Mercury in the Environment - About Mercury - Chemical Properties, supra note 57.
73. Facts about Mercury, supra note 66.
74. Id.
75. Id.
76. Id.
77. Encyclopedia.com, Articles about Mercury (Metal), available at
http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Mercury_(Metal).aspx (last accessed 8/316).
78. Id.
79. Id.
80. Department of health, Understanding Mercury Exposure Levels, , available at
https://www.health.ny.gov/environmental/chemicals/hsees/mercury/mercury_exposure_levels.htm
(last accessed 8/3/16).
81. Id.
82. Inventories of mercury, supra note 55.
83. Id.
84. Id.
85. Environment and Climate Change Canada, Pollution and Waste - Mercury and the Environment -
About Mercury (2009), available at https://www.ec.gc.ca/mercure-mercury/default.asp?
lang=En&n=D64997D2-1 (last accessed 8/3/16).
86. United Nations Environment Programme, The Mercury Issue, available at
http://www.unep.org/chemicalsandwaste/Portals/9/Mercury/AwarenessPack/English/UNEP_Intro_U
K_WEB.pdf (last accessed 8/3/16).
87. Id.
88. Inventories of mercury, supra note 55.
89. The Mercurys falling: The Massachusetts Approach to reducing mercury in the environment, supra note
14.
90. Inventories of mercury, supra note 55.
91. Id.
92. The Mercurys falling: The Massachusetts Approach to reducing mercury in the environment, supra note
14.
93. Inventories of mercury, supra note 55.
94. The Mercury issue, supra note 58, at 5.
95. Pollution and Waste - Mercury and the Environment - About Mercury (2009), supra note 85.
96. Inventories of mercury, supra note 55.
97. Id.
98. Health and Environment Alliance, Mercury pollution - where does it come from? Chapter 2,
available at http://www.env-health.org/IMG/pdf/mercury_chapter2.pdf (last accessed 8/4/16).
99. The Mercurys falling: The Massachusetts Approach to reducing mercury in the environment, supra note
14.
100. The Mercury issue, supra note 86, at 5.
101. Inventories of mercury, supra note 55.
102. Id.
103. Pollution and Waste - Mercury in the Environment - About Mercury - Chemical Properties (2009), supra
note 57.
104. Id.
105. Id.
106. Id. (emphasis supplied).
107. Ying Teng, et al., How do persistent organic pollutants be coupled with biogeochemical cycles of
carbons and nutrients in terrestrial ecosystems under global climate change?, 28.5 GLOBAL
BIOGEOCHEMICAL CYCLES 553, 553 (2014).
108. Id.
109. Pollution and Waste - Mercury in the Environment - About Mercury - Chemical Properties (2009)
110., supra note 57.
111. Myline Macabuhay, supra note 58.
112. Inventories of mercury, supra note 55.
113. Id.
114. Id. at 14.
115. Id. at 20.
116. Mercury pollution - where does it come from? Chapter 2, supra note 98.
117. Inventories of mercury, supra note 55. At 22
118. Mercury pollution - where does it come from? Chapter 2, supra note 98.
119. Inventories of mercury, supra note 55, at 20.
120. Id. at 28.
121. Id.
122. Id.
123. Id. at 30.
124. Id. at 20.
125. Myline Macabuhay, supra note 58.; Human rights impacts of Mercury Pollution, supra note 9.
126. Articles about Mercury (Metal), supra note 77.
127. Id.
128. The Mercury issue, supra note 86, at 14.
129. Id.
130. Id.
131. Mercury and health, supra note 4.
132. Id.
133. Id.
134. Interview with Myline Macabuhay, supra note 58.
135. Human rights impacts of Mercury Pollution, supra note 9 at 2.
136. Mercury and health, supra note 4.
137.Chasing mercury: Measuring mercury levels in the air across the Philippines, supra note 6.
138. Id. at 11.
139. Id.
140. Id.
141. Id.
142. Mercury and health, supra note 4.
143. Chasing mercury: Measuring mercury levels in the air across the Philippines, supra note 6.
144. Id.
145. Id.
146. Id.
147. Id. at 5.
148. Id.
149. Chasing mercury: Measuring mercury levels in the air across the Philippines, supra note 6.
150. Chasing mercury: Measuring mercury levels in the air across the Philippines, supra note 6 (citing
Langford, N.J. & Ferner, R.E. Toxicity of mercury. J. Hum. Hypertension 13, 651-656. (1999)).
151. Pollution and Waste - Mercury and the Environment - About Mercury (2009)
152., supra note 85.
153. Id (emphasis supplied).
154. Id.
155. David Lennett & Bantoxics, Minamata Convention on Mercury: Ratification and Implementation
Manual, available at bantoxics.org/download/Minamata Manual ENGLISH.pdf (last accessed
8/10/16).
156. Minamata Convention on Mercury > Convention, available at
http://www.mercuryconvention.org/Convention/tabid/3426/Default.aspx (last accessed 8/10/16).
157. Minamata Convention on Mercury > Countries, available at
http://www.mercuryconvention.org/Countries/tabid/3428/Default.aspx (last accessed 8/10/16).
158. United Nations Environment Programme, Minamata convention on mercury at a glance, available at
http://www.mercuryconvention.org/Portals/11/documents/Awareness%20raising/FACT
%20SHEETS/Minamata%20Convention%20on%20Mercury%20at%20a%20glance_04%2016.pdf
(last accessed 8/10/16).
159. Id.
160. Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties art. 15, entered into force Jan. 27, 1980, 1155 U.N.T.S.
331[hereinafter Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties].
161.The consent of a State to be bound by a treaty is expressed by accession when: (a) The treaty provides that
such consent may be expressed by that State by means of accession; (b) It is otherwise established that the
negotiating States were agreed that such con sent may be expressed by that State by means of accession; or
(c) All the parties have subsequently agreed that such consent may be expressed by that State by means of
accession.
162. Minamata Convention on Mercury: Ratification and Implementation Manual, supra note 153.
163. Minamata Convention on Mercury > Convention, supra note 154.
164. Minamata convention on mercury at a glance, supra note 156.
165. United Nations Environment Programme, Overview of the Minamata convention on mercury,
available at http://www.mercuryconvention.org/Portals/11/documents/Awareness%20raising/UNEP
%20PPT/Overview%20of%20the%20Minamata%20Convention%20on%20Mercury%20EN.pdf
(last accessed 8/10/16).
166. ZeroHg mercury working group, Summary of the Minamata treaty on Mercury on the basis of
conference room papers (CRPs) at the end of INC 5, available at http://mercurypolicy.org/wp-
content/uploads/2013/01/summaryofthemercurytreatyzmwgjan2013.pdf (last accessed 8/10/16).
167. Minamata Convention on Mercury art. 3 6, adopted Oct. 10, 2013.
168. Overview of the Minamata convention on mercury, supra note 162.
169. Minamata Convention on Mercury, supra note 164.
170. OITA US EPA, Minamata Convention on Mercury, available at https://www.epa.gov/international-
cooperation/minamata-convention-mercury (last accessed 8/10/16).
171. Minamata Convention on Mercury, supra note 164, at art. 7.
172. Summary of the Minamata treaty on Mercury on the basis of conference room papers (CRPs) at the end of
INC 5, supra note 163.
173. Minamata Convention on Mercury, supra note 164, at art. 9.
174. Id.
175. Id.
176. Id.
177. Summary of the Minamata treaty on Mercury on the basis of conference room papers (CRPs) at the end of
INC 5, supra note 163.
178. Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and Their
Disposal, 1673 UNTS 126; 28 ILM 657 (March 22, 1989).
179. Overview of the Minamata convention on mercury, supra note 162.
180. Id. at 20.
181. Id. at 23.
182. Id.
183. Id.
184. Id. at 30.
185. Summary of the Minamata treaty on Mercury on the basis of conference room papers (CRPs) at the end of
INC 5, supra note 163.
186. Minamata Convention on Mercury, supra note 164, at art. 17.
187. Overview of the Minamata convention on mercury, supra note 162.
188. Providing for the revision of Republic Act No. 3931, commonly known as the Pollution Control Law,
and for other purposes [National Pollution Control Decree of 1976], Presidential Decree No. 984, 2
(1976).
189. Id.
190. Id.
191. Myline Macabuhay, supra note 58.
192. An act to control toxic substances and hazardous and nuclear wastes, providing penalties for
violations thereof, and for other purposes [Toxic Substances and Hazardous and Nuclear Wastes
Control Act of 1990], Republic Act No. 6969, 3 (1990).
193. Id.
194. Republic Act No. 6969, available at http://www.wepa-db.net/policies/law/philippines/ra6969.htm (last
accessed 8/10/16).
195. Toxic Substances and Hazardous and Nuclear Wastes Control Act of 1990, supra note 189.
196. Id. at 9.
197. Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Implementing Rules and Regulations of
Republic Act 6969, Administrative Order No. 29, [DENR AO 29], (1992).
198. Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Implementing Rules and Regulations of
Republic Act 6969, Administrative Order No. 29, [RA 6969 IRR], (1992).
199. Id.
200. Id.
201. Id.
202. Id.
203. Id.
204. Department of Environment and Natural Resources, Chemical Control Order for mercury and
mercury compounds, DENR Administrative Order No. 38, [DAO 97-38], (1997).
205. Geukeko v. Araneta, 102 PHIL 706, 714 (1957) (citing Columbia Broadcasting System vs. United
States, 87, L. Ed. [Adv. 1066]).
206. DAO 97-38, supra note 201.
207. Id.
208. Id. at 7.3.
209. Id. at 13.
210. Id. at
211. Department of Health, Gradual Phase-out of Mercury in all Philippine Health Care Facilities and
Institutions, Administrative Order No. 2008-0021, [AO 2008-0021], I (2008).
212. Id.
213. Id. at III.
214. Id. at V.
215. Id. at IV.
216. Id. at V.
217. Department of Environment and Natural Resources and Department of Energy, Lighting Industry Waste
Management Guidelines, Joint Administrative Order No. 2013-09-0001, [JAO 2013-09-0001], 1 (2013).
218. Id.
219. Id. 3.14.
220. Id. at 5.
221. Id. at 7.
222. Id. at 8.
223. JAO 2013-09-0001, supra note 214.
224. An act institutionalizing and implementing reforms in the Philippine mining sector providing policies and
guidelines to ensure environmental protection and responsible mining in the utilization of mineral
resources, Executive Order No. 79, 11 (2012).
225. Myline Macabuhay, supra note 58.
226. Philippine Institute for Development Studies, Mercury Pollution Due to Small-Scale Gold Mining in the
Philippines: An Economic Analysis, available at http://dirp4.pids.gov.ph/ris/rps/pidsrp0202.pdf (last
accessed 8/12/16).
227. Universal Declaration of Human Rights. G.A. Res. 217 (III) A, U.N. Doc. A/RES/217(III) (Dec. 10, 1948)
[hereinafter UDHR].
228. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights 1948 - humanrights.ch, available at
http://www.humanrights.ch/en/standards/udhr/ (last accessed 7/19/16).
229. Australian Human Rights Commission, What is the Universal Declaration of Human Rights? (2012),
available at https://www.humanrights.gov.au/publications/what-universal-declaration-human-rights (last
accessed 7/1916).
230. Press Unit of the European Court of Human Rights, Factsheet Right to Life (A Review of Relevant
Jurisprudence from the European Court of Human Rights Regarding Interpretation of the Right to Life),
available at http://www.echr.coe.int/Documents/FS_Life_ENG.pdf (last accessed 7/20/16).
231. Id.
232. Id.
233. DOUWE KORFF, THE RIGHT TO LIFE: A GUIDE TO THE IMPLEMENTATION OF ARTICLE 2 OF THE EUROPEAN
CONVENTION ON HUMAN RIGHTS (1ST ed. 2006).
234. Id.
235. Id.
236. Id. at 60.
237. Id. at 61.
238. Guerra and Others v. Italy (116/1996/735/932) 19 February 1998.
239.THE RIGHT TO LIFE: A GUIDE TO THE IMPLEMENTATION OF ARTICLE 2 OF THE EUROPEAN CONVENTION ON
HUMAN RIGHTS, supra note 230.
240. Id.
241. International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, G.A. Res. 2200A (XXI), art. 6, U.N. Doc. A/6316
(1966) (Mar. 23, 1976) [hereinafter ICCPR].
242. U.N. Human Rights Committee (HRC), CCPR, General Comment No. 6: Article 6 Right to Life (Art. 6),
5, HRI/GEN/1/Rev.9 (Vol. I) p.188, (30 April 1982) [hereinafter General Comment No. 6: Right to life].
243. Id. at 5.
244. Id.
245. UDHR, supra note 224, at art. 3.
246. Id. at art. 25.
247. International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, Dec. 16, 1966, S. Treaty Doc. No. 95-19,
6 I.L.M. 360 (1967), 993 U.N.T.S. 3, 2b (1966) [hereinafter ICESCR].
248. Id.
249. Id.
250. U.N. Committee on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, General Comment No. 14: The Right to the
Highest Attainable Standard of Health (Art. 12), 8, U.N. Doc. E/C.12/2004/4 (Aug. 11, 2000) [hereinafter
General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health].
251. Id.
252. Id.
253. Aart hendriks & Brigit Toebes, Towards a Universal definition of the Right to Health, 17 MEDICINE AND
LAW, 319, 323 (1998).
254. Essex Autonomy Project, Legal Status of General Comments, available at http://autonomy.essex.ac.uk/wp-
content/uploads/2014/07/Legal-status-of-General-Comments-.pdf (last accessed 8/15/16).
255. UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Fact Sheet No. 31, The Right to Health 1, (June
2008), available at http://www.refworld.org/ docid/48625a742.html (last accessed 7/23/16) [hereinafter
OHCHR Fact Sheet No. 31].
256. Id.
257. Id.
258. Id.
259. Id. at 2.
260. Towards a Universal definition of the Right to Health, supra note 250, at 8.
261. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247, 4.
262.Towards a Universal definition of the Right to Health, supra note 250, at 8.
263. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247, at 10.
264. Id. at 3.
265. Ian Carter, Positive and Negative Liberty, in The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Edward N. Zalta
ed., Spring 2016 ed. 2016), available at http://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2016/entries/liberty-positive-
negative/ (last accessed 7/24/16).
266. OHCHR Fact Sheet No. 31, supra note 252, at 3.
267. Id.
268. Id.
269. Id.
270. Y.M. Donders, Exploring the Cultural Dimensions of the Right to the Highest attainable Standard of
Health, 18 POTCHEFSTROOM ELECTRONIC LAW JOURNAL, 179, 181 (2015).
271. OHCHR Fact Sheet No. 31, supra note 252, at 4.
272. Id.
273. Id.
274. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247, at 12.
275. Id.
276. Id.
277. Id.
278. Id. 12 (b).
279. Id.
280. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247, at 12.
281. Id.
282. Peter James B. Abad et al., Cultural beliefs on disease causation in the Philippines: challenge and
implications in genetic counseling, 5 J. COMMUNITY GENET. 399, 407 (2014).
283. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247, at 12.
284. Id. 12 (c).
285. Id. 12 (d).
286. ICECSR, supra note 244, at art. 12.
287. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247, at 14.
288. ICECSR, supra note 244, at art. 12.
289. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247, at 4.
290. Right to a healthy environment: The Core Obligations under the International Covenant of Economic,
Social and Cultural Rights, supra note 42.
291. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247. (citing
ILO Convention No. 155, article 4.2).
292. Id.
293. Marinduque Mining Project, supra note 20.
294. Mercury trade in the Philippines, supra note 1.
295. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247, at 15.
296. Id.
297. Id.
298. Id. 16.
299. Benjamin Mason Meier & Larisa M. Mori, The highest attainable standard: advancing a collective human
right to public health, 37 COLUMBIA HUMAN RIGHTS LAW REVIEW, 101, 102 (2005).
300. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247.
301. ICECSR, supra note 244, at 12.
302. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247, 17.
303. Id. 17.
304. The highest attainable standard: advancing a collective human right to public health, supra note 296.
305. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247, 17.
306. ICECSR, supra note 244, at art. 2.
307. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247, 31.
308. Id.
309. OHCHR Fact Sheet No. 31, supra note 252, at 24.
310.Benjamin Mason Meier & Larisa M. Mori, The highest attainable standard: advancing a collective human
right to public health, 37 COLUMBIA HUMAN RIGHTS LAW REVIEW, 101, 102 (2005)., supra note 296. At
113.
311. Id.
312. OHCHR Fact Sheet No. 31, supra note 252, at 24.
313. Id.
314.Towards a Universal definition of the Right to Health, supra note 250, at 327.
315.The highest attainable standard: advancing a collective human right to public health, supra note 296, at 116.
316. Id.
317. OHCHR Fact Sheet No. 31, supra note 252, at 24.
318. Id.
319. The highest attainable standard: advancing a collective human right to public health, supra note 296, at
134.
320. OHCHR Fact Sheet No. 31, supra note 252, at 25.
321. Id.
322. Towards a Universal definition of the Right to Health, supra note 250, at 115.
323. U.N. Committee on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, General Comment No. 3: The Nature of States
Parties Obligations (Art. 2, Para 1), U.N. Doc. E/1991/23 (Dec. 14, 1990) [hereinafter General Comment
No. 3: The Nature of States Parties Obligations].
324. Towards a Universal definition of the Right to Health, supra note 250, at 326.
325. Id (emphasis supplied).
326. OHCHR Fact Sheet No. 31, supra note 252, at 25.
327. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247, at 44.
328. Id.
329. Id.
330. Id.
331. Id.
332. Id.
333. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247, at 44.
334. Id.
335. Id.
336. Id.
337. OHCHR Fact Sheet No. 31, supra note 252, at 25.
338. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247, at 47.
339. Id.
340. Towards a Universal definition of the Right to Health, supra note 250, at 328.
341. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247, 37.
342. Id.
343. Id. 47.
344. Id. 48.
345. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247.
346. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247, 49.
347. Bantoxics, The Price of Gold: Mercury Use and Current Issues surrounding Artisanal and Small-scale
Gold Mining in the Philippines, available at http://bantoxics.org/download/The_Price_of_Gold.pdf, (last
accessed 8/11/16).
348. Id. at 35.
349. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247. 20.
350. ICECSR, supra note 244, at art. 9.
351. Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, G.A. Res. 34/180, at art.
11, 12, 14 (Sep. 3, 1981) [hereinafter CEDAW].
352. Aart Hendriks, The Right to Health, 1 EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF HEALTH LAW, 187, 192 (1994).
353. OHCHR Fact Sheet No. 31, supra note 252.
354. Aart Hendriks, The Right to Health, 1 European Journal of health law, 187, 192 (1994)., supra note 348, at
189.
355. OHCHR Fact Sheet No. 31, supra note 252, at 4.
356. Id.
357. ICECSR, supra note 244, at art. 10.
358. OHCHR Fact Sheet No. 31, supra note 252, at 16.
359. Id.
360. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247, 22.
361. OHCHR Fact Sheet No. 31, supra note 252, at 17.
362. Id.
363. PHIL. CONST. ART. II, 2.
364. PHIL. CONST. ART. II, 11.
365. PHIL. CONST. ART. II, 15.
366. PHIL. CONST. ART. XIII, 11.
367. PHIL. CONST. ART. XIII, 11.
368. JOAQUIN G. BERNAS, THE 1987 CONSTITUTION OF THE REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES: A COMMENTARY
1270 (2009 ed.).
369. ICECSR, supra note 244, at art. 12.
370. Right to a healthy environment: The Core Obligations under the International Covenant of Economic,
Social and Cultural Rights, supra note 42, at 3.
371. Declaration of the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment, June 16, 1972, princ. 1, U.N.
Doc. A/CONF.48/14, [hereinafter Stockholm Declaration].
372. Right to a healthy environment: The Core Obligations under the International Covenant of Economic,
Social and Cultural Rights, supra note 42, at 106.
373. Id.
374. Sumudu Atapattu, Right to a healthy life or the right to die polluted: The Emergence of a Human right to a
healthy environment under International Law, 16.1 TULANE ENVIRONMENTAL LAW JOURNAL, 65, 70
(2002).
375. Id. at 70.
376. Gabcikovo-Nagymaros Project (Hung. v. Slovk.), 1997 I.C.J. 7 (Sept. 25).
377. Right to a healthy life or the right to die polluted: The Emergence of a Human right to a healthy
environment under International Law, supra note 370, at 71.
378. Id.
379. Right to a healthy environment: The Core Obligations under the International Covenant of Economic,
Social and Cultural Rights, supra note 42, at 99.
380. Id. at 105. (citing Atapattu, supra note 9, at 286.)
381. Hague Declaration on the Environment, Mar. 11, 1989, 28 I.L.M. 1308.
382. Right to a healthy life or the right to die polluted: The Emergence of a Human right to a healthy
environment under International Law, supra note 370, at 72.
383. Id. (citing See Hague Declaration on the Environment, Mar. 11, 1989, 28 I.L.M. 1308.)
384. Right to a healthy environment: The Core Obligations under the International Covenant of Economic,
Social and Cultural Rights, supra note 42, at 105.
385. Id. at 105.
386. Id. at 106.
387. Id.
388. Id. (citing Lopez Ostra v. Spain, App. No. 16798/90, 20 Eur. Ct. H.R. 277, 295 (1994).).
389. Lopez Ostra v. Spain, App. No. 16798/90, 20 Eur. Ct. H.R. 277, 295 (1994).
390. Right to a healthy environment: The Core Obligations under the International Covenant of Economic,
Social and Cultural Rights, supra note 42, at 107.
391. Id.
392. Additional Protocol to the American Convention on Human Rights in the Area of Economic, Social, and
Cultural Rights, Protocol of San Salvador, Inter-Am. C.H.R. 67, OEA/ser. L.V./II.82, doc. 6 rev. 1 (1992)
[hereinafter San Salvador Protocol].
393. Right to a healthy environment: The Core Obligations under the International Covenant of Economic,
Social and Cultural Rights, supra note 42, at 107 (citing Marina T. Acevedo, The Intersection of Human
Rights and Environmental Protection in the European Court of Human rights, 8. N.Y.U. ENVTL. L.J. 437,
462 (2000).).
394. Id. at 107 (citing San Salvador Protocol, supra note 39, at art. 11).
395. Id. at 112.
396. Id.
397. Id.
398. Id. at 127 (emphasis supplied).
399. Right to a healthy environment: The Core Obligations under the International Covenant of Economic,
Social and Cultural Rights, supra note 42.
400. Id (emphasis supplied).
401. Id.
402. Id.
403. Id. at 127.
404. Id. (citing General Comment No. 14, supra note 5, 36.) (emphasis supplied).
405. PHIL. CONST. ART. II, 16.
406. Oposa et al. v. Factoran, et al. 224 SCRA 792, 805 (1993).
407. Id (emphasis supplied).
408. Id. (citing Record of the Constitutional Commission, vol. 4, 913) (emphasis supplied).
409. ICECSR, supra note 244.
410. U.N. Committee on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, General Comment No. 12: The Right to
Adequate Food (Art. 11), 4, U.N. Doc. E/C.12/1999/5 (May 12, 1999) [hereinafter General Comment No.
12: The Right to Adequate Food].
411. Id. (emphasis supplied).
412. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247, 15.
413. General Comment No. 12: The Right to Adequate Food, supra note 406, 10.
414. Right to a healthy environment: The Core Obligations under the International Covenant of Economic,
Social and Cultural Rights, supra note 42, at 124.
415. U.N. Committee on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, General Comment No. 15: The Right to Water
(Art. 11 and 12), 1, E/C/12/2002/11, (20 January 2003) [hereinafter General Comment No. 15: The Right
to Water].
416. Id.
417. Id. at 6.
418. Id. at 8 (citing See also paragraph 15, general comment No. 14).
419. Right to a healthy environment: The Core Obligations under the International Covenant of Economic,
Social and Cultural Rights, supra note 42, at 124.
420. Id. at 124.
421. General Comment No. 15: The Right to Water, supra note 411, at 7.
422. Id.
423. PROGRAMMING FOR JUSTICE: ACCESS FOR ALL, supra note 41.
424. GENERAL COMMENT NO. 14: THE RIGHT TO THE HIGHEST ATTAINABLE STANDARD OF HEALTH, supra note
247.
425. PHIL. CONST. ART. II, 11.
426. Human rights impacts of Mercury Pollution, supra note 9, at 1.
427. PROGRAMMING FOR JUSTICE: ACCESS FOR ALL, supra note 41.
428. Id.
429. ICECSR, supra note 244.
430. What are the obligations of States on economic, social and cultural rights?, available at
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/ESCR/Pages/WhataretheobligationsofStatesonESCR.aspx (last accessed
8/5/16).
431. Id.
432. General Comment No. 3: The Nature of States Parties Obligations, supra note 319, at 3.
433. Id. at 5.
434. Id. at 6.
435. Id. at 9.
436. Id.
437.Id.
438.General Comment No. 3: The Nature of States Parties Obligations, supra note 319, at 9.
439. Id.
440. Id. at 10.
441. Id.
442. Id. at 12.
443. Id.
444. General Comment No. 3: The Nature of States Parties Obligations, supra note 319, at 13.
445. OHCHR Fact Sheet No. 31, supra note 252.
446. Right to a healthy environment: The Core Obligations under the International Covenant of Economic,
Social and Cultural Rights, supra note 42, at 124.
447. Id.
448. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247, at 34.
449. Right to a healthy environment: The Core Obligations under the International Covenant of Economic,
Social and Cultural Rights, supra note 42, at 127.
450. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247, at 35.
451. Id.
452. General Comment No. 15: The Right to Water, supra note 411, at 24.
453. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247.
454. Id.
455. General Comment No. 12: The Right to Adequate Food, supra note 406, at 8.
456. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247, at 36.
457. OHCHR Fact Sheet No. 31, supra note 252.
458. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247, at 44.
459. Myline Macabuhay, supra note 58.
460. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247.
461. Human rights impacts of Mercury Pollution, supra note 9.
462. Overseas Workers Welfare Administration v. Chavez, 524 SCRA 451, 466 (2007) (citing Bernas, The
Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines, A Commentary, Volume I, First Edition, 1997).
463. The Price of Gold: Mercury Use and Current Issues surrounding Artisanal and Small-scale Gold Mining in
the Philippines, supra note 343.
464. Id.
465. The Mercury issue, supra note 86.
466. Id.
467. Id.
468. Id.
469. Human rights impacts of Mercury Pollution, supra note 9.
470. Myline Macabuhay, supra note 58.
471. Human rights impacts of Mercury Pollution, supra note 9.
472. The Price of Gold: Mercury Use and Current Issues surrounding Artisanal and Small-scale Gold Mining in
the Philippines, supra note 343.
473. Id. at 25 (citing The paper was presented by Engr. Elnor Roa, Mindanao State University).
474. Human rights impacts of Mercury Pollution, supra note 9.
475. Id.
476. Id.
477. Id.
478. Minamata convention on mercury at a glance, supra note 156.
479. Minamata Convention on Mercury: Ratification and Implementation Manual, supra note 153.
480. DAO 97-38, supra note 201.
481. Id. at 5.
482. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247, at 37.
483. Id.
484. DAO 97-38, supra note 201.
485. Id.
486. General Comment No. 14: The Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health, supra note 247, at 37.
487. Id.
488. DAO 97-38, supra note 201.
489. Myline Macabuhay, supra note 58.
490. DAO 97-38, supra note 201.
491. Id.
492. Sen. Juan Miguel F. Zubiri, Press Release - Artisanal and Small-Scale Gold Mining in the Philippines:
Mercury Rising, available at http://www.senate.gov.ph/press_release/2010/1208_zubiri1.asp (last accessed
8/11/16).
493. The Price of Gold: Mercury Use and Current Issues surrounding Artisanal and Small-scale Gold Mining in
the Philippines, supra note 343.
494. Id.
495. Id.
496. Myline Macabuhay, supra note 58.
497. The Price of Gold: Mercury Use and Current Issues surrounding Artisanal and Small-scale Gold Mining in
the Philippines, supra note 343.
498. Id.
499. Mercury Pollution Due to Small-Scale Gold Mining in the Philippines: An Economic Analysis, supra note
223.
500. Id.
501. Id.
502. Id.
503. Id.
504. Id.
505. The Price of Gold: Mercury Use and Current Issues surrounding Artisanal and Small-scale Gold Mining in
the Philippines, supra note 343.
506. Mercury Pollution Due to Small-Scale Gold Mining in the Philippines: An Economic Analysis, supra note
223.
507. Id.
508. The Price of Gold: Mercury Use and Current Issues surrounding Artisanal and Small-scale Gold Mining in
the Philippines, supra note 343.
509. Id.
510. Id (emphasis supplied).
511. Id.
512. Id.
513. Mercury Pollution Due to Small-Scale Gold Mining in the Philippines: An Economic Analysis, supra note
223.
514. The Price of Gold: Mercury Use and Current Issues surrounding Artisanal and Small-scale Gold Mining in
the Philippines, supra note 343.
515. How Minamata Can Save Filipino Children, supra note 22.
516. Id.
517. Minamata convention on mercury at a glance, supra note 156.
518. Id.
519. Id.
520. Minamata Convention on Mercury > Countries, supra note 155.
521. Minamata Convention on Mercury: Ratification and Implementation Manual, supra note 153.
522. Id.
523. Id.
524. United Nations Industrial Development Organization & Department of Environment and Natural
Resources, Proposed Amendment to the DENR Administrative Order 1997-38: Chemical Control Order for
Mercury and Mercury Compounds (2016) (emphasis supplied).
525. Id (emphasis supplied).
526. Id (emphasis supplied).
527. Id.
528. Id.
529. Id.
530. DAO 97-38, supra note 201.
531. Minamata Convention on Mercury: Ratification and Implementation Manual, supra note 153.
532. Id.
533. Id.
534. Id.
535. Minamata Convention on Mercury > Countries, supra note 155.
536. Cheryl Wetzstein, Treaty on mercury would not affect vaccines with thimerosal, available at
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/jan/19/treaty-on-mercury-would-not-affect-vaccines-with-t/
(last accessed 8/13/16).
537. Id.
538. Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Understanding Thimerosal, Mercury, and Vaccine safety,
availabe at http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/hcp/patient-ed/conversations/downloads/vacsafe-thimerosal-color-
office.pdf (last accessed 8/13/16).
539. Id.
540. Id.
541. Proposed Amendment to the DENR Administrative Order 1997-38: Chemical Control Order for Mercury
and Mercury Compounds, supra note 520.
542. Id.
543. Id.
544. Id.
545. Bantoxics, Responsible, mercury-free gold from the Philippines may soon be in the international market,
available at http://bantoxics.org/responsible-mercury-free-gold-from-the-philippines-may-soon-be-in-the-
international-market-ban-toxics/ (last accessed 8/13/16).
546. Id.
547. Id.
548. Proposed Amendment to the DENR Administrative Order 1997-38: Chemical Control Order for Mercury
and Mercury Compounds, supra note 520.
549. Id.
550. Id.
551. Id.