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July 18, 2005
What joy! What singing! What dancing! We have given Dow a bloody nose!
July 18, 2005 -- PRESS STATEMENT
Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Stationery Karmachari Sangh
Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Purush Sangharsh Morcha
Bhopal Group for Information and Action
Bhopal ki Aawaaz
BHOPAL, JUNE 18, 2005: Survivors of the 1984 Union Carbide disaster today celebrated their success in torpedoing a lucrative business deal between Indian Oil Corporation [IOC] and the Dow Chemical Company.
The eight month long campaign by survivors and their supporters demanded that IOC cancel its plans to buy technology from Dow for its proposed mono ethylene glycol plant in Panipat, Haryana.
Indian Oil has now communicated to Dow that the deal is off. The reason cited is that critical submissions made by Dow as part of contract negotiations had proven to be false. In its response to IOC, Dow officials have alleged that the cancellation of the deal has caused a loss of 1.5 million US dollars, the publication of this complaint caused further delight to the Bhopalis. The Indian government has yet to communicate its final decision on this matter.
It was Bhopal campaigners who gave the lie to Dow's assertions. They presented the Indian government with evidence that confirmed the Meteor process being offered by Dow is technology that had been patented and is owned by American multinational Union Carbide.
Union Carbide is officially a fugitive from justice in India, Since 1992 the company has been absconding from ongoing criminal proceedings in which it and its top executives are charged with causing the death of over 20,000 people in Bhopal and injuring half a million more.
Union Carbide Corporation wound up its business in India in 1994 and in February 2001 merged with US multinational Dow Chemical. Dow had an eye to expanding its business in India and Asia by building on the network of the tainted corporation. While cashing in on Carbide's assets, Dow denies having inherited Carbide's liability for Bhopal, a position which is widely regarded as untenable under both US and Indian law.
Survivors in Bhopal today hailed this first serious setback to Dow's expansion plans with drums and dancing on the street opposite the abandoned Union Carbide factory. "This is just the beginning," cried numerous voices. "Dow must accept responsibility for Bhopal or be swept out of India." "With our brooms we'll sweep them away." Dow can no longer dismiss such speeches as mere rhetoric.
In their campaign against the proposed IOC-Dow deal Bhopal survivors and their supporters launched a nationwide boycott of IOC’s petrol pumps under the banner "Don't fill your tank with Bhopali blood".
Survivors also wrote letters to the Prime Minister in their own blood calling for cancellation of the Dow deal.
Supporters of the Bhopal campaign staged a rally in Mayiladuthurai, near Chennai, the parliamentary constituency of Petroleum Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar.
More information:
Rashida Bi, Champa Devi Shukla
Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Stationery Karmachari Sangh
+91 9303132298
Syed M Irfan,
Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Purush Sangharsh Morcha
+91 9329026319
Shahid Noor
Bhopal ki Aawaaz
+91 9826182226
Satinath Sarangi, Rachna Dhingra,
Bhopal Group for Information and Action
+91 9826167369
Contact :
House No. 12, Gali No. 2, Near Naseer Masjid, Bag Umrao Dulha, Bhopal 462 010
For official confirmation of this news please contact Mr. Srikumar, Head of Corporate Communications, Indian Oil Corporation at +91 98113 54000.
Posted by bhola at 03:27 PM | Comments (0)
Carbide legacy fouls Dow's buiness deal with Indian Oil Corporation
For immediate release
18 JULY, 2005. BHOPAL, NEW DELHI, CHENNAI Dow Chemical's business
expansion plans in India suffered their first serious setback after a
campaign by survivors of the 1984 Union Carbide disaster resulted in a
dramatic reversal of Indian Oil Corporation's decision to purchase
technology from Dow for IOC's proposed mono ethylene glycol plant in
Panipat, India. The Bhopal streets were agog today with survivors
celebrating the victory.
Sources from Indian Oil have confirmed that their agreement with Dow
was cancelled after IOC found that critical submissions made by Dow
were false. Dow had conveyed to IOC that the technology in question
was a patented Dow technology, developed and marketed by Dow. However,
Bhopal campaigners unearthed and presented evidence to the Government
and IOC that confirmed that the Meteor technology remained a Union
Carbide technology. Despite that, the Ministry of Chemicals and the
Secretariat for Industrial Approvals have failed to reject Dow's
proposed business in India. "The Government must be ashamed of its
lack of courage and decisiveness in dealing with fraudulent
corporations like Dow. If the WorldCom scandal demonstrates the high
levels at which the corporate crime game is played, the casual manner
in which Indian Oil and the Government of India are dealing with Dow's
dishonesty and lack of respect for law tells you why WorldComs
happen," said Satinath Sarangi of Bhopal Group of Information and
Action.
In their response to IOC, Dow officials have reportedly alleged that
the cancellation of the deal has caused a loss of 1.5 million US
dollars.
Dow subsidiary Union Carbide was declared an absconder by the Bhopal
Chief Judicial Magistrate's court for the company's failure to appear
in a criminal case against it for its role in perpetrating the Bhopal
disaster. In November 2004, Bhopal survivors and their supporters
launched a nationwide agitation demanding the blacklisting of Dow
Chemical by the Government, and protesting against Indian Oil's
proposal to do business with a company that has refused to address its
pending Bhopal liabilities. In January 2005, the Bhopal Magistrate
ordered the issuance of summons to Dow Chemical requiring the parent
company to produce Carbide in Court. Dow says that it does not
recognise the Indian court's criminal jurisdiction over Carbide.
"Dow has been implying that it can and will do nothing to help the
people of Bhopal, and that the unresolved troubles in Bhopal have no
impact on Dow as the parent corporation of Union Carbide. Indian Oil's
actions demonstrate the enormous reputational costs of Dow's inaction
and lack of accountability," says Sanford Lewis, a Boston-based
attorney who assisted some Dow shareholders to move a resolution in
2004 urging Dow to disclose its unresolved liabilities in Bhopal.
On 27 May, 2005, Shahid Noor, a survivor youth leader, launched a
boycott of Indian Oil petrol stations with the support of student
organisations and transport worker unions in Chennai and Bhopal.
Madras Bulls, a Chennai-based collective of Royal Enfield motorcycle
enthusiasts, led a rally from Mayiladuthurai – Petroleum Minister
Mani Shankar Aiyar's constituency – to Chennai.
Says attorney Rajan Sharma, who is conducting the Bhopal survivors' class action suit against Dow in New York, "The success of the survivors' campaign should send a message to Dow Chemical that it cannot do business as usual in India unless it resolves Union Carbide's liabilities for Bhopal, including the New York civil claims for environmental remediation and the criminal charges for the 1984 disaster which remain pending."
Indian Oil's u-turn is a significant blow to Dow, which has earmarked
South Asia as a critical region for future growth of its global
businesses. More than the financial loss, Dow's problem arises from
the fact that a blue-chip Indian company has rejected its bid due to
suppression of facts relating to Carbide's ownership of the technology
in question. Dow retains four major subsidiaries in India, all of
which now look vulnerable to further protests.
At the Dow shareholders AGM in May 2004, survivor leaders and Goldman
award winners Rashida Bee and Champa Devi Shukla issued an ultimatum
to Dow that they would preventing Dow's expansion in Asia. "Dow's true
face as a company that resorts to untruths to further its business now
stands revealed. Dow shareholders and investors have refused to
question their company on humanitarian grounds. Let this be a message
to shareholders that the Bhopalis too mean business, and we'll work to
erode Dow's shareholder value by preventing its expansion in India,"
said Rashida Bee.
For more information, contact:
Mr. Srikumar, Head, Corporate Communications, Indian Oil:
+91 9811354000.
IOCL Switchboard: +91 (0)11 26260140. Fax: +91 (0)11 26521949
Rachna Dhingra,
ICJB. Tel: +91 9826167369
Nityanand Jayaraman,
ICJB. Tel: +91 9444082401
Email: nity68@vsnl.com
More information on www.bhopal.net, and www.studentsforbhopal.org
Posted by bhola at 07:07 AM | Comments (0)
July 13, 2005
Coca-Cola threatens to sue top Indian photographer
MULTINATIONALS ON THE RUN IN INDIA
London: July 12, 2005: The Hindustan Coca-Cola Beverages Private Limited, a subsidiary of the Atlanta based Coca-Cola company, has threatened Mr. Sharad Haksar, one of India's celebrated photographers, with a lawsuit.
Mr. Haksar, a leading international photographer and winner of the 2005 Cannes Silver Lion, has placed a large billboard in one of Chennai's busiest areas - one of India's largest cities - with his own "work (which) is solely an expression of creativity."
The billboard features the ubiquitous red Coca-Cola wall painting, commonly found across India. In front of the Coca-Cola ad is a dry water hand-pump with empty vessels waiting to be filled - a common scene in India, particularly in Chennai. (See image above and here.)
On July 11, 2005, the law firm of Daniel & Gladys, who represent Coca-Cola's Indian subsidiary, sent a letter to Mr. Haksar threatening him with serious legal actions unless the billboard was replaced 'unconditionally and immediately'. Coca-Cola would seek Indian Rupees 2 million (US$ 45,000) for "incalculable damage to the goodwill and reputation" of Coca-Cola, and also sought an 'unconditional apology in writing'.
Mr. Haksar said, "I have no intentions of issuing any apology. Because I have not committed anything wrong. If Coke pursues this legal course, my lawyers shall take appropriate counter action."
Mr. Haksar's billboard highlights the severe water shortages being experienced by communities that live around Coca-Cola's bottling plants across India. A community close to Chennai, in Gangaikondan, has already held large protests - protesting against an upcoming Coca-Cola plant. In the neighboring state of Kerala, in the village of Plachimada, Coca-Cola has been unable to open its bottling facility for the last 16 months - because the community will not allow it to.
Coca-Cola is in serious trouble in India. A massive rural movement has emerged to hold the company accountable for creating water shortages and polluting the remaining water and soil.
"We appreciate Mr. Haksar's efforts and we condemn Coca-Cola's attempts to silence a public discourse on the issues," said Amit Srivastava of the international campaigning organization, India Resource Center. The campaign continues to receive tremendous public support internationally and has put the Coca-Cola company on the defensive.
The recently held Live - 8 concerts pulled out with negotiations with Coca-Cola over sponsorships because of public opposition, spearheaded by the India Resource Center. Coca-Cola was also banned from the Make Poverty History March as a result, on July 2, 2005, a march of close to 300,000 people in Edinburgh in Scotland.
Contact:
Amit Srivastava, India Resource Center
Email: info@IndiaResource.org
T: +44 7731 865 591 (UK) +1 415 336 7584 (US)
Mr. Haksar's work can be viewed at www.sharadhaksar.com.
For more information, visit www.IndiaResource.org.
Posted by bhola at 10:43 AM | Comments (0)
July 08, 2005
Survivors demand criminal proceedings against Bhopal Memorial Trust Chairman
Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Stationery Karmachari Sangh
Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Purush Sangharsh Morcha
Bhopal Group for Information & Action
Bhopal ki Aawaaz
PRESS STATEMENT
More than 200 survivors of the December 1984 Union Carbide disaster in Bhopal today demonstrated before the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers at Shastri Bhavan, New Delhi demanding punitive action against the Chairman of the Bhopal Memorial Hospital Trust in Bhopal. Undaunted by the presence of over 100 policemen the demonstrators demanded to see the Director of the Bhopal Cell at the Ministry of Chemicals for an official response to the serious irregularities in the Bhopal Memorial Hospital Trust.
The demonstrators succeeded in obtaining a meeting with the Director of the Bhopal Cell, Yashvir Singh and a delegation of six members – Rashida Bee, Shahid Noor, Syyed M Irfan, Rachna Dhingra and Satinath Sarangi all from Bhopal and Madhumita Dutta from New Delhi presented their demands to the official.
The Bhopal delegation asked for reconstitution of the Bhopal Memorial Trust to ensure representation of survivors of the disaster and employees of the hospital. They also demanded that criminal proceedings must be initiated against the Chairman of the Trust Mr. A M Ahmadi and the working trustee Mr Aziz Siddiqui for causing the death of 3 survivors by locking them out of the Trust’s hospital.
The delegation alleged misappropriation of Trust’s funds by Ahmadi and Siddiqui and called for a full disclosure of the Trust’s Corpus fund and account of income and expenditure since its inception. Representatives of the survivors organizations also demanded that people poisoned due to contamination of ground water by Union Carbide’s chemical wastes must also be provided treatment at the Bhopal Memorial Trust’s hospital. The delegation demanded to know what role the Ministry of Chemicals has played in the running of the Memorial Trust.
The delegation blamed the Ministry of Chemicals of deliberate neglect towards implementation of the May 2004 order of the Supreme Court regarding supply of clean water to the communities affected by ground water contamination. They also charged the Ministry of collusion with American Dow Chemical Company in the clean up of the toxic waste in and around the Union Carbide factory and in proposing to buy Union Carbide’s technology for the Panipat refinery run by Indian Oil corporation - a public sector undertaking.
Mr Yashvir Singh promised the delegation of sending a response to these demands and also to personally visit Bhopal to gain first hand information regarding the various issues that continue to ail the victims of the world’s worst industrial disaster more than 20 years after its occurrence.
Rashida Bee, Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Stationery Karmachari Sangh
+91 9303132298
Syyed M Irfan, Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Purush Sangharsh Morcha
Shahid Noor, Bhopal ki Aawaaz
Rachna Dingra, Satinath Sarangi, Bhopal Group for Information & Action
+91 9826167369
Madhumita Dutta, The Other Media
Contact :
House No. 12, Gali No. 2, Baug Umrao Dulha, Bhopal 462 010
For latest news updates please visit www.bhopal.net
Posted by bhola at 04:03 PM | Comments (0)
July 04, 2005
Survivors groups condemn intransigent hospital management. Arrogant Chairman Ahmadi puts 50,000 lives at risk
Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Stationery Karmachri Sangh
Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Purush Sangharsh Morcha
Bhopal Group for Information and Action
Bhopal ki Aawaaz
July 1, 2005
PRESS STATEMENT - FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Today, four organizations working for the victims of the December 1984 Union Carbide disaster condemned the intransigent attitude of the Bhopal Memorial Hospital Trust management, with regard to the ongoing strike by the staff of the hospital thereby causing much suffering to ailing victims. Victims admitted with serious medical problems are being sent home or redirected to government hospitals by the hospital management, while the trustees continue to refuse to even convene a meeting to discuss the issues of under staffing and poor salaries raised by the striking staff.
"Quit making fools of the gas victims"
The organization met with one of the trustees and the Director General of the hospital this afternoon and found that the authorities have no plans to address the important and long standing grievances of the resident doctors, nurses, technicians and other staff. Although they are on strike, junior doctors and other striking staff are running a parallel OPD within the hospital premises. They assured the leaders of the organization that they are doing their best to ensure that gas victim patients still receive necessary care. The striking staff accused the hospital management of deliberate neglect of their mandate to provide care to those affected by the 1984 Union Carbide gas disaster.
Striking staff accuse management of deliberate neglect
The leaders were told that although the number of outpatients vising Bhopal Memorial Hospital was four times greater in 2004 than in 2000, during that same time period the number of junior doctors went down from 63 to 28. Similarly, the number of patients admitted was eleven times greater in 2004 than in 2000, while the nursing staff was reduced by half. It was brought to the notice of the organizations that nursing staff at the Bhopal Memorial Hospital are paid less than the minimum salary stipulated by the government. In the last year as many as 25 senior doctors have left the hospital, and many departments are now severely understaffed. The reduction in staff have had grave consequences on the quality of care available to gas victims.
Survivors leaders and supporters question hospital director
The organizations charged the Bhopal Memorial Hospital Trust with misutilization of funds and demanded that the Trust disclose information on the funds available with it and details of its income and expenditure. The organizations also demanded that the Trust address the grievances of their staff without delay so that gas victims do not suffer the consequences of their mismanagement.
Rashida Bi, Champa Devi Shukla
Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Stationery Karmachari Sangh
+91 9303132298, 9303132959
Syed M Irfan,
Bhopal Gas Peedit Mahila Purush Sangharsh Morcha
+91 9329026319
Shahid Noor
Bhopal ki Aawaaz
+91 9303122784
Satinath Sarangi, Rachna Dhingra,
Bhopal Group for Information and Action
+91 9826167369
Posted by bhola at 10:08 AM | Comments (0)