If you are living in the U.S., or are a U.S. citizen, please take a few minutes to take this action:
While in Washington D.C. for the Survivors’ Tour, we met with Congressman Pallone of New Jersey, who has been a strong supporter of the Bhopal Campaign for many years. This year, he has circulated another sign on letter to his colleagues in the House of Representatives, which is addressed to the CEO and Board of The Dow Chemical Company.
We need your help to make sure that the letter has as many members of Congress signed on to it as possible. We’re in the process of setting up a fax action, but in the meantime, we need people to start making calls!
Please take a moment to call your member of the House of Representatives today. You can find their name and number here.
If you can call today or during a work day, great. Otherwise, it’s great to leave messages as well!
Some sample talking points:
1. I am a volunteer/member of the Campaign for Justice in Bhopal.
-> If you get someone on the phone, you could ask to deal with the person Foreign or Environmental issues
2. I’m calling about the Congressional Sign on letter that Congressman Pallone has circulated. It’s addressed to Dow Chemical Company’s CEO and Board and it urges Dow to clean up the site of the world’s worst industrial disaster in Bhopal, India and to face the rule of law in India.
3. I want to make sure the Congress member knows how strongly his/her constituents, like myself, feel about the Bhopal Issue. I sincerely hope that Congress member XX will sign on to the letter.
-> If you’re actually talking to an environmental or foreign affairs aide, you could ask them if they think that the Congress member will sign it or if they want you to send a copy if they haven’t seen it.
Please email shana@panna.org and let us know how your calling went and if the representative signed on. Don’t be shy about following up!
Some more background info:
In 2003, Congressman Pallone sponsored a Congressional letter to Dow that had 16 members signed on. In 2006 and 2008, he sent a letter to the Prime Minister of India, each carrying the signatures of 16 members.
We need to make sure that the letter this year has more signatures than ever before!
The letter Pallone has written is very strong and urges Dow to take responsibility for cleaning up Bhopal and to show up in court.
The letter says:
“There is a “polluter pays” principle in the domestic laws of both India and the United States, as well as both domestic and international law. It states that the polluter, rather than the public agencies or taxpayers, should be held responsible for its environmental pollution in its entirety…. At the time of your company’s acquisition of Union Carbide, Bhopal survivors, supporters, and Dow shareholders warned Dow against acquiring the company because of its pending liabilities. As the parent company of Union Carbide, Dow bears the responsibility for Union Carbide’s liabilities.”
Congress letter:
Linked here is the full letter, in case you are asked for a copy.
Please make sure that Dow hears from your Congress Representative!
Many thanks!
Shana Ortman, Rachna Dhingra, Sarita Malviya, Safreen Khan
International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal and Children Against Dow Carbide
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