Pollution Prevention Unit IV

Global public policy driven by the ideology of neo-liberalism over the past 30 to 40 years has had many adverse effects on health and health policy. The core reason behind the formulation of International Health Regulations was to evade the spread of disease with minimum intrusion. Its origin dates back to the mid-nineteenth century, after outbreaks of cholera were reported in Europe between 1830 and 1847. These outbreaks led to intense diplomatic activity and the first International Sanitary Conference, meeting in Paris in 1851 marked the beginning of multilateral cooperation in the field of public health. In the next hundred years, essential evolution was observed in the international cooperation with regards to infectious diseases and states got together along with adopting treaties while creating quite a few international health organizations in order to improve and control the spread of such diseases (Fidler, 2001. The global threat and the increasing attention over the century led to the prologue of processes, rules, and formulation of institutions for global health governance. The article analyzes the global risks and the international legal responses to in the hundred years.

In the 19th century, the industrial revolution across the Europe raised several concerns about health threats due to unsafe working conditions. Workers were mistreated and exploited by the industrial enterprises that invited global attention leading to formation of International Labor Organization to care of their concerns regarding occupational safety and health. Such analysis of global health issues often mentions about international organizations and law since it is a central instrument in designing a common approach when a state confronts a threat (Fidler, 2001. During the hundred year period from 1851-1951, a great quantity if diverse international regimes on global health have been witnessed. Also, treaties and international organizations were used to control international trade ...