Justice still eludes victims of the Bhopal gas disaster, according to the Campaign for Justice in Bhopal, a coalition of health, human rights, environmental and economic justice organisations founded in the wake of the Bhopal disaster. In 1984, a Union Carbide pesticide plant in Bhopal, India, released more than 40 tons of lethal methyl-isocyanate gas, killing at least 16,000 people.
The campaign is demanding stronger laws to protect workers, communities and the environment and hold corporate managers accountable for wrongdoing. It is calling for Union Carbide Corporation to be dissolved, and for Union Carbide executives accused of culpable homicide and grievous harm to be brought to trial.
Several Union Carbide executives, including the chairman and chief executive officer at the time of the disaster, Warren Anderson, stand accused of criminal charges in India. According to the campaign, Union Carbide did virtually nothing to fix serious flaws in the design and operation of its Bhopal plant, of which it was aware from past accidents and internal safety audits.
In October 1991, the Supreme Court of India reinstituted criminal charges, but Union Carbide executives refused to appear in court, and neither the Indian nor US governments have forced them to do so.
When Union Carbide finally reached a settlement with the Indian government in 1991 for claims by those injured in the disaster, it was for a mere US$470 million. This payment, distributed among more than 600,000 victims and families at the rate of approximately US$800 per injured person and US$3000 per death, apparently pleased Wall Street: soon after the settlement, Union Carbide's stock value increased by US$2 per share. In 1994, Union Carbide reported profits of US$379 million.
The Campaign for Justice in Bhopal is calling for legal dissolution of Union Carbide based on the corporate code of New York, where Union Carbide is chartered. The corporate code allows for dissolving corporations that cause mass harm. The campaign is encouraging citizens to contact the CEO of Union Carbide and the New York state attorney general and tell them that it is unacceptable for companies to leave the US to "ruin the lives of others."
The campaign states that Union Carbide's handling of the Bhopal disaster signals a frightening trend among transnational companies eager to take advantage of countries that do not have the resources to enforce environmental and safety laws, even where those laws appear strong on paper.
Meanwhile, victims of the Bhopal disaster continue to suffer. According to the campaign, 10 or 15 people die each month from medical causes related to the catastrophe, and more than 200,000 residents continue to suffer from injuries caused by their exposure to methyl-isocyanate. Although local organisations have requested information about the toxins released that could potentially aid the injured, Union Carbide officials have refused.
[From Pesticide Action Network North America Updates Service.]