A/HRC/7/21 page 5 II. UPDATE ON THE ACTIVITIES OF THE SPECIAL RAPPORTEUR A. Country missions 7. The Special Rapporteur carried out a country visit to Ukraine from 22 to 30 January 2007 (A/HRC/7/21/Add.2). During his mission, he visited Kyiv, Lviv and the Zakarpatya regions. The Special Rapporteur would like to thank the Government of Ukraine for its invitation, which showed its commitment to human rights and environmental matters. He would like to thank, in particular, the Ministry of Environmental Protection for the openness and transparency demonstrated during the visit, which gave him the opportunity to meet all relevant public authorities. 8. The Special Rapporteur would like to recall, as in his previous reports, the importance of country visits. He believes that country visits provide an invaluable opportunity to obtain information from different interlocutors at the national level and to engage in an in-depth study of different phenomena related to the adverse effects of the illicit movement and dumping of toxic and dangerous products and wastes on human rights. Country visits also provide the opportunity to share experiences of best practices in combating the illicit movement and dumping of toxic wastes and to understand this multidimensional problem from a national, regional and international perspective. 9. In this context, the Special Rapporteur would like to call on Governments to respond positively to his requests for in situ visits. In 2006 and 2007, the Special Rapporteur sent several requests for official invitations mainly to the African and Asian regions, since both regions had not yet been visited by the current mandate-holder. 10. The Special Rapporteur thanks a number of Governments for responding positively to his requests. The Special Rapporteur is looking forward to his visits to the Côte d’Ivoire and India in 2008. He would like to thank the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania, where he recently concluded a country visit, for their invitation. 11. The Special Rapporteur has submitted to the Council a preliminary note on his recent mission to the United Republic of Tanzania. B. Statements and interventions 12. The Special Rapporteur conveyed a statement to the expert group meeting on indigenous peoples and the protection of the environment held from 27 to 29 August 2007 in Khabarovsk, Russian Federation. The Special Rapporteur would like to thank the government of Khabarovsk, the United Permanent Forum of Indigenous Peoples and the Association of Indigenous Peoples of the Russian North, Siberia and the Far East for the opportunity to contribute to that initiative. In his statement, the Special Rapporteur stressed the importance of receiving information from a variety of interlocutors, including indigenous groups and peoples. He noted his concern about allegations he had received concerning health problems affecting areas populated by indigenous communities caused by the use of pesticides or other toxins. He explained that such incidents had resulted in significant adverse effects on the ecosystem, the rural and indigenous communities living in the affected areas complaining of deterioration in the health of humans and livestock, crop damage and contamination of surface waters.