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It’s official: the investigating judges of the Paris health center have decided to dismiss the investigation into the poisoning of the West Indies with chlordecone, a powerful pesticide widely used in banana plantations between 1972 and 1993, long after it was banned in France in 1990. One of the victims’ lawyers, master Christophe Lèguevaques, announced that he wanted to appeal this decision.
In a letter addressed to the lawyers of the Martinican and Guadeloupean associations, the two investigating judges of the Paris health center, Brigitte Jolivet and Fanny Bussac, announced a decision of dismissal by order, concerning the investigation into chlordecone.
Chlordecone: what are we talking about?
Chlordecone is a powerful pesticide, used in the West Indies until 1993 in banana plantations to fight against an insect, the weevil. Either well after its ban in France, which dates from February 1990.
Chlordecone has contaminated all of the West Indian fauna and flora, but also its population. According to Public Health France (2018 report), more than 90% of the adult population in Guadeloupe and Martinique has been contaminated with chlordecone. The pesticide is at the origin of many cancers, in particular of the prostate.
“The French West Indies hold the sad world record for the annual incidence rate of prostate cancer”, declared Agnès Buzyn, then Minister of Solidarity and Health in 2019, during a committee in the Senate.
Two arguments put forward to justify this decision
“The two arguments put forward by the investigating judges do not hold“explains Maître Christophe Lèguevaques, lawyer for two individuals on the criminal side of the case, but also representing 1,250 people and several associations for the administrative side of the case. “The first concerns the prescription of the facts. It is not necessary because children born today in the West Indies are exposed to chlordecone, which continues to pollute tap water today” reminds the lawyer.
The risks of the pesticide are known
The second argument put forward by the courts is based on the causal link between the pesticide and the explosion of cancer cases in the West Indies. “And with regard to the characterization of the offences, the body of scientific arguments did not make it possible to establish “the certain causal link required by criminal law” between the substance in question on the one hand and the impact on health. the other“write the magistrates, who still qualify the case as a “health scandal”.
Another Argument”which does not hold up, again” for Christophe Lèguevaques. “Causality is impossible to prove, unless the people of the West Indies are in fact the subject of immense experimentation on chlordecone. On the other hand, what should be emphasized is that in other countries of the world and in the United States in particular, chlordecone was banned in 1975, with a ban on sale or use on the territory and depollution, as much as possible. Because chlordecone is recognized by the WHO as being a probable carcinogen, we know that it accumulates in the body, especially in soft tissues such as the liver and that it behaves like an endocrine disruptor, causing cancer. hormone-dependent“he hammers.
A “scandalous” decision for the lawyer, who intends to appeal
The lawyer does not intend to stop there. Christophe Lèguevaques announces that he wants to appeal this decision and wants to pursue another criminal procedure, without wanting to say more for the moment.
“The investigation was poorly carried out, the judges are playing with words but it is a scandal, a chlordeconnerie, which cannot go unpunished! In addition to the feeling of impunity of the polluters, a decision of this kind could set a precedent and for other pesticides, such as glyphosate, for example, the degree of proof to be provided will become impossible to hold” he fears.
Générations Futures is also appealing this decision.
In a press release, the NGO Générations Futures, with its lawyers, also decided to appeal this decision. “VShis case is emblematic of the pesticide scandal that has been brewing for decades in France and elsewhere. The shortcomings of the French State and the colossal damage, whether environmental or health, are proven here. Remember that since 2022 prostate cancer has been recognized in the context of occupational exposure to pesticides, particularly chlordecone. says Nadine Lauverjat, General Delegate of Générations Futures.
“It is unbearable for the victims not to be able to defend their rights during a trial that has become essential. We will therefore be by their side once again, this is the meaning of our appeal, so that the truth comes out and justice is finally done.” she concludes.