AT ITS FIFTY-FIRST SESSION, THE COMMISSION ON HUMAN RIGHTS,

AWARE OF THE GROWING PRACTICE OF THE DUMPING IN AFRICAN AND OTHER DEVELOPING COUNTRIES BY TRANSNATIONAL CORPORATIONS AND OTHER ENTERPRISES FROM INDUSTRIALIZED COUNTRIES OF HAZARDOUS AND OTHER WASTES, ADOPTED RESOLUTION 1995/81 IN WHICH IT NOTED WITH GRAVE CONCERN THAT THE INCREASING RATE OF ILLICIT DUMPING OF TOXIC AND DANGEROUS PRODUCTS AND WASTES IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES CONTINUES ADVERSELY TO AFFECT THE HUMAN RIGHTS TO LIFE AND HEALTH OF INDIVIDUALS IN THOSE COUNTRIES....

METAL OF DISHONOR
Reportedly, the use of hundreds of tons of depleted uranium (DU) bullets in the Persian Gulf during Operation Desert Storm (1991) coupled with unexplained illnesses experienced by veterans who had been exposed to numerous potentially toxic substances have focused public attention on a possible link between these illnesses and the health hazards associated with DU munitions. The military use of DU poses threats to both humans and the environment; also, the expense of DU clean-up seems to be immense. Yet, DU munitions are sold in the world arms market and the United States has apparently led in their development, use and commercialization. Approximately 50,000 veterans in the United States and 4,000 in allied countries who served in Operation Desert Storm subsequently suffered from a variety of ailments, usually referred to as the Gulf War Syndrome or Desert Storm Illness. (Feb. 1997)