Bhopal. Living poisoned daily courtesy DOW.
On the 6th of January 2005, in a significant step for the
campaign for justice in Bhopal, the Chief Judicial Magistrate of
Bhopal, Mr. Anil Kumar Gupta, ordered "a notice to be issued
(through the appropriate legal procedure) to Dow Chemical
Corporation, Midland, Michigan, USA". The order came in response to
an application filed by the Bhopal Group for Information and
Action, that held that Dow Chemicals as the sole owner of Union
Carbide Corporation (UCC), should be required to ensure that the
"absconding accused UCC" be present in the ongoing criminal trial
in the Bhopal court.
The court will now proceed to issue a letter Rogatory to the
United States Department of Justice to request them, in the
interest of justice, to serve a summons on the head quarters of Dow
Chemical Corporation at Midland Michigan, USA.
For the first time, Dow Chemicals is directly named in the
criminal trial in India in connection with the 1984 Bhopal
disaster. This is a serious blow to the company, which has, against
massive public pressure, still held on to its lies. Despite taking
over UCC's assets, they have held that they are in no way
accountable for its liabilities. In the words of Dow's own
spokesperson John Musser, "There is no legal foundation for
application of liability. Union Carbide resolved their liability in
regards to the Bhopal tragedy, so when we purchased their shares,
there was no liability left." "This is a significant step forward
towards finally compelling Union Carbide to address its unresolved
criminal liability for the Bhopal disaster in keeping with the
final orders of the Indian Supreme Court in this case. Now, it is
time for Dow Chemical and Union Carbide to defend their repeated
public protestations of innocence before a court of law. The
refusal to appear in response to this lawful summons should speak
volumes to the world about the truth of the frivolous claims and
arguments that they have been repeating for the past 20 years."
said Rajan Sharma, a New York-based lawyer representing the
survivors in a class action suit against UCC in the United
States.
Dow
would now have to explain why it shouldn't be required to produce
Union Carbide to face trial in Bhopal and allow for the resolution
of long pending criminal case. If Dow fails to respond, it runs the
risk of being accused of sheltering a fugitive. This could possibly
place Dow's Indian assets in jeopardy, harm future business plans
in India, apart from seriously affecting its reputation in the
world.
Greenpeace has been campaigning against Dow worldwide along with
Bhopal survivors groups to tell them that they can never run away
from the legacies they have inherited and by their inaction,
contributed to.
Scientific analysis of samples of soil and water collected in
and around the factory by Greenpeace in 1999 and 2002 has revealed
severe chemical contamination in the area. The chemicals discovered
by the investigation are toxins that are known to be injurious to
the central nervous system, liver, kidneys as well as other organs.
The Carbide factory grounds in Bhopal are to this day strewn with
hundreds of tonnes of dangerous chemicals that are not safely
contained. These, and other chemicals from Union Carbide's earlier
operations have poisoned the soil and groundwater in this part of
the city where more than 20,000 people live - guaranteeing them a
life that is poisoned daily. Every year that Dow delays action the
contamination becomes more deadly and critical.
The
honourable court's decision endorses what Greenpeace and the other
groups have been saying all along. Dow cannot wish away its pending
liabilities in Bhopal. The earlier they acknowledge the writing on
the wall the better", says Vinuta Gopal of Greenpeace India. At
least one person a day still dies from gas exposure related
diseases and 150,000 are in urgent need of medical attention.
Hundreds of families living near the site still routinely use the
poisoned water.
The noose is slowly and surely tightening around Dow's neck. Not
long ago, on the 20th anniversary of the Bhopal disaster, BBC ran
an interview with someone falsely claiming to be a Dow Chemical
official who said Dow had taken responsibility for the disaster. It
seems like the day they would be forced to do so is not far
away.
Read the Order