Formal Escalation

To: The Secretariat of the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants

United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)

Subject: Formal Submission – Allegation of Non-Compliance by Australia under the Stockholm Convention (TCDD / Second-Generation Harm)

Dear Secretariat,

I respectfully submit this formal communication regarding Australia’s persistent failure to meet its obligations under the Stockholm Convention in relation to 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD)—a chemical classified as a persistent organic pollutant (POP).

I am the child of an Australian Vietnam veteran who was exposed to Agent Orange during service in 1969–70. I was born in 1974 and have lived with severe, chronic medical conditions—17 in total—many of which were present at birth. These include skeletal deformities, neurological impairments, reproductive abnormalities, autoimmune issues, and degenerative diseases. My medical history aligns with international evidence of intergenerational harm caused by TCDD.

For over five decades, the Australian government has failed to acknowledge or respond to evidence of second-generation harm. Despite abundant international research and my own medical data confirming patterns consistent with TCDD exposure, my requests for recognition, care, and redress have been ignored or denied.

My formal submission includes:

• A publicly accessible, evidence-based website documenting my medical history and the suppressed or dismissed evidence of second-generation harm:

  
  

  https://agentorangechild.wixsite.com/agent-orange-child

  
  

• A timeline of inaction showing that Australia has had access to relevant research for decades

I allege that Australia is in breach of:

• Article 11 (Information exchange) and Article 16 (Effectiveness evaluation) by failing to monitor or report on TCDD’s long-term health effects, particularly across generations,

• Article 10 (Public information and participation), having excluded affected individuals from decision-making and denied them access to information and redress,

• The spirit and purpose of the Convention, which includes protecting human health from POPs over the long term.

I respectfully request:

1. That the Secretariat formally acknowledge this submission,

2. That it be referred to the Compliance Committee for review under established procedures,

3. That the Secretariat request Australia to explain its ongoing refusal to investigate, monitor, or report on the intergenerational health consequences of TCDD exposure.

Warm Agent Orange Burns regards,

Danielle