OPEN LETTER TO DR. MANMOHAN SINGH
Dear Prime Minister,
In Bhopal, hundreds of children with horrific deformities are being born to parents affected by Union Carbide’s poisons. People are forced to drink contaminated water, and tons of toxic wastes lie in the open.
More than 23,000 people have died from the 1984 Bhopal Gas Leak. Over 100,000 still suffer from diseases of the lung, brain, eye and other systems.
Meanwhile the Government of India is reported to be negotiating deals to let Dow Chemical (Union Carbide’s current owner), off the hook in return for its investment in more toxic plants. In April 2006, after a long march and 7 day fast, you promised you would do all within your power to help the victims of Bhopal and all within the law to punish the offending corporation. Now the survivors have walked the 800km to Delhi again, to remind you of these promises that have not been kept.
We fully support the Demands of the Bhopal survivors:
1. Set up a Special Commission on Bhopal for the next 30 years to address the following issues affecting people (and their children) exposed to Union Carbide’s poisons. The Bhopal Commission must have survivors’ representatives and the necessary funds and authority to carry out its tasks.
a) Medical Care Research and Monitoring
b) Social and Economic Rehabilitation
c) Environmental Remediation
d) Safe Drinking Water
2. Take legal action against Dow
a) Pursue Clean up by Dow in High Court
b) Move to extradite Carbide and its former CEO
c) Revoke approval given for purchase of Union Carbide technology, which must be confiscated as Carbide has been absconding from Indian court since 1992
d) Cancel registration for Dow pesticides obtained by bribes
Sincerely
1. Association for India’s Development.
2. Friends of South Asia, California
3. People’s Resolve to Account for Justice and Accountability, California
4. India Resource Center, California
5. Indians for Collective Action, California
6. AIMS India, Washington DC
7. Young India, Washington DC
8. Art of Living Portland, Oregon
9. Greater Portland Tamil Mandram, Oregon
10. Portland Hindi Sangam, Oregon
11. SAWERA, Oregon
12. Pragati, Texas
13. Asha for Education, Austin, Texas
14. Stop HIV and AIDS Initiative, Washington DC.
15. Alliance for a Secular and Democratic South Asia, Massachusetts
16. Women’s Institute for Leadership and Development (WILD) for Human Rights, San Francisco, CA
17. SAMAR Magazine, Massachusetts
18. Harvard South Asian Law Student Association, Massachusetts
19. Sangati, Washington
20. Chaya, Washington
21. Allgorhytms, Washington
22. Child Relief and You, Washington.
23. Greenpeace, USA
24. Amnesty International, Austin, Texas.
25. Omega Phi Alpha, Austin, Texas.
26. Environmental Law Society, Austin, Texas.
27. Campaign for Alternative Industry Network (CAIN), Thailand
28. Women in Europe for Common Future, Germany.
29. Pesticide Action Network, Latin America, Uruguay
30. Northwest Atlantic Marine Alliance, Maine
31. Clean New York, A Project of Women’s Voices for the Earth
32. Communities Against Toxics, Cheshire, UK
33. Citizens’ Environmental Coalition, NY
34. Mother Earth Foundation, Phillipines
35. TEST Foundation
36. Communities Against Toxics (CATs), Scotland
37. Programa Ambiental Fronteras Communes A.C., Mexico
38. AerztInnen fur eine gesunde Umwelt (ISDE), Austria
39. Central Asian Toxic Action network
40. Galveston Bay Keeper, Texas.
41. Dominican Sisters of Hope
42. Mercy Investment Program
43. Sisters of Mercy Regional Community of Detroit
44. Ursuline Sisters of Tildonk-U.S. Province
45. Stay-Green Foundation, Gambia
46. Arnika – Toxics and Waste Programme, Czech Republic
47. Santos-SP, Brazil
48. Citizens Environmental Coalition, New York
49. National Association of Professional Environmentalists (NAPE), Uganda
50. Pesticide Action Network Asia and the Pacific, Malaysia
51. Health Care Without Harm-Boston
52. North Carolina Fair Share, North Carolina
53. Alaska Community Action on Toxics
54. For a Better Bronx, New York
55. Kentucky Environmental Foundation
56. Chemical Weapons Working Group
57. Farmworker Association of Florida
58. Environmental Research Foundation, New Jersey
59. Healthy Child Healthy World, California
60. Green Action for Health and Environmental Justice, California
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