The American Society of International Law ( ASIL), the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network ( ACS CAN), and ASH hosted:
Tobacco and International Law:
Evaluating and Enforcing the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control
Wednesday, September 16, 2015
The world’s first public health treaty, the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) expresses the “concern of the international community about the devastating worldwide health, social, economic, and environmental consequences of tobacco consumption and exposure to tobacco smoke.” However, the treaty lacks any enforcement mechanisms and its structure focuses on state behavior while struggling to deal with the impact that multi-national corporations have on the tobacco industry. As the treaty has reached its 10th year in force, a growing number of global health and international law experts are advocating for the use of the United Nation’s human rights system as a mechanism for its enforcement. But does that system represent the best model for achieving the treaty’s goals? Which rights would be implicated? What specific human rights enforcement systems would be best suited to any particular case? A panel of international law and global health experts will address these questions and examine progress being made in the Inter-American system and around the world.
PANELISTS:
- Oscar A. Cabrera, Executive Director, O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law, Georgetown University Law Center
- Laurent Huber, Executive Director, Action on Smoking and Health
- Mary Rouvelas (moderator), Senior Counsel, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network
- Carlos Vazquez, Professor, Georgetown University Law Center; Member, United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
We welcome viewers to share their thoughts on this event with @asilorg and @ashorg! And, use the hashtag #IntlTobacco.