On this page:
- August 8, 2008, Government will Set Up Empowered Commission on Bhopal Disaster
- June 10, Bhopalis call hunger strike in New Delhi
- April 17, Group of Ministers agrees to pressure Prime Minister on Bhopali demands
- 2008 Marchers arrive in New Delhi, March 28; demand "Walk your talk" Prime Minister
- The world's worst chemical disaster
- 2006 Bhopal hunger strike wins Indian government concessions
- Bhopal Medical Appeal and International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal
- Donations for Bhopal
- For more information
Government will Set Up Empowered Commission on Bhopal Disaster
8 August 2008: "Giving in to demands of Bhopal gas tragedy survivors, the Government on Friday announced that an Empowered Commission will be set up to look into all aspects of rehabilitation of the victims and cleaning-up of hazardous waste lying in the area. The Union Minister for Chemical and Fertilisers Ram Vilas Paswan made the announcement at Jantar Mantar in the national Capital, where the survivors of the country's worst industrial disaster have been protesting for the last 130 days," The Press Trust of India reports. The Minister's statement "finally represents a full response to the 172 day 'Walk Your Talk' campaign begun by Bhopalis on February 20th, 2008. The object of the campaign - the longest sustained campaign by the Bhopalis yet - was fulfillment of a set of clear demands," said the International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal. "The statement achieves this." Click here for the full statement.
Read in detail about the three stages of the campaign at the following links: 38 day Padyatra (500 mile pilgrimage by foot from Bhopal) - 73 day Dharna (demonstration in New Delhi) - 60 day Global Relay Hungerstrike.
The campaign for justice will now turn to monitoring progress of the new commission, holding Dow Chemical responsible for paying for cleanup and rehabilitation, and prosecuting Dow for registering pesticides in India via bribery. Click for complete press releases.
Bhopalis call hunger strike in New Delhi
At
noon on June 10, nine Bhopal activists, including supporters and
survivors of the 1984 Union Carbide disaster and victims of water
contamination, began an indefinite fast in Delhi. Supporters in the
U.S., France, U.K. and around the world are joining them in rolling
solidarity fasts. This strike comes after numerous attempts have failed
to get India's Prime Minister to make concrete commitments to address
the grave situation in Bhopal. After a 500 mile pilgrimage from Bhopal
to Delhi, and more than three months of demonstrations, on May 30 the
Prime Minister announced he would create a commission to look into the
issues of health and clean water in Bhopal, but remains silent on
details and about holding Union Carbide and Dow Chemical accountable
for cleanup and compensation. On June 9, 36 Bhopali demonstrators were arrested
for staging a "die-in" in front of the Prime Minister's office. In the
jail, more than 15 policepersons, including one woman and two in plain
clothes, strip-searched, whipped and slapped Bhopali youth and
children, sending at least one teenager to the hospital. Two of the
women who remain in jail are among the hunger strikers.
Group of Ministers to pressure Prime Minister
17 April 2008, The Hindu reports that representatives from three organizations representing the survivors, now emcamped in New Delhi, received assurances from the Group of Ministers on Bhopal that they would press the Prime Minister to create a special commission “to address rehabilitation and pursue legal action” against Union Carbide and Dow Chemical, the current owner of the site. Human Resources Minister Arjun Singh noted that, while there was no precedent for a special commission, he endorsed the plan “because the Bhopal disaster itself is of an unprecedented nature.” Chemicals and Fertilizers Minister Ram Vilas Paswan promised continued efforts to make Dow pay Rs. 100 crores ($251 million) as an “advance for environmental remediation” of the contaminated site, where persistent pollution still threatens residents’ health. Meetings with other government officials were planned throughout the week.
Bhopal Marchers arrive in New Delhi
28 MARCH, 2008. NEW DELHI (adapted from Bhopal.net) – Marking two years since their last padayatra [pilgrimmage by foot] from Bhopal to Delhi, 50 people, including survivors of the 1984 gas tragedy, their children, people exposed to contaminated drinking water and their suupporters, today concluded their second 500 mile march. "We were forced to undertake this grueling walk because the Prime Minister failed to keep his word. This time, we are not going back until we get a public declaration from him that he will deliver on his promise," said Hazra Bee, a survivor and one of the padayatris.
The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) has rejected a request for an appointment with the PM, and two further requests have not elicited a reply. However,international support for the survivors is pouring in. More than 1300 faxes from 18 countries have already reached the PMO, prompting officials there to threaten survivors with legal action. Yesterday, members of the Scottish parliament marched to the Indian embassy in Edinburgh, even as other Bhopal supporters in London went to the Indian embassy there to submit a memorandum urging the Prime Minister to meet the Bhopalis' demands.
In the evening of March 29, 30 people, including children and old women, and many padyatris who had just completed their march from Bhopal, were arrested at India Gate during an awareness-raising event on the Union Carbide disaster in Bhopal. They were released an hour later following a mass call-in protesting the arrests.
To send a fax to the Indian Prime Minister, go to PAN Alert Bhopal fax Action. Updates on the survivors' demonstration in New Delhi are available at Bhopal.net.
Donations for the ongoing medical work in Bhopal and the International Campaign are still needed. You may donate here.
The world's worst chemical disaster
At
five minutes past midnight on the night of December 3, 1984, the Union
Carbide pesticide plant in Bhopal, India exploded, releasing a toxic
gas that caused 8,000 deaths within a few days, and more than 20,000 in
the years since. People continue to die each month from long-term
effects of the poisoning, and an estimated 150,000 suffer significant
health impacts.
On the night of the disaster, six safety measures designed to prevent a leak were either malfunctioning, shut down or otherwise inadequate. The refrigeration unit was turned off in order to save $40 a day.
Union Carbide Escapes Responsibility
The Indian government originally sought more than US$3 billion dollars as compensation for the disaster. In 1989 Union Carbide agreed to pay US$470 million. Victims have each received less than US$350 for injuries they are likely to suffer all their lives. It is estimated that the world’s largest industrial accident cost Union Carbide just 48 cents a share.
In 2001 Dow Chemical purchased Union Carbide, but has refused to take responsibility for Bhopal cleanup, despite the fact that Dow took over Union Carbide assets, and has been held liable for other Union Carbide sites in the United States.
The Indian government charged Warren Anderson, Union Carbide CEO at the time of the disaster, and several other executives with negligent homicide in 1989, but Anderson has never been extradited from the U.S. to stand trial.
Union Carbide in Court
In 1999 Bhopal survivors filed a class action suit in U.S. courts against Union Carbide, asking that Union Carbide be held responsible for violations of international human rights law and for cleanup of environmental contamination in Bhopal.
The case is one of a handful of international corporate liability cases that test the limits of corporations’ ability to use the laws of one nation to escape responsibility in another.
A Community Still Being Poisoned
The site of the closed factory remains a toxic hotspot, with concentrations of carcinogenic chemicals and heavy metals. Chemicals continue to seep into the water supplies of an estimated 20,000 people in surrounding communities. Yet survivors have no choice but to drink, wash and cook with this water every day.
Bhopal hunger strike wins Indian government concessions
On
March 19, 2006, after “fourteen days of fasting, 2000 faxes into the
Indian state government, 500 phone calls from around the world,
solidarity fasts in front of the Indian Embassy in Washington, and
major upheaval and organizing in Bhopal, the Indian government
yesterday conceded to the demands of the Bhopal survivors for clean
water, economic rehabilitation, increased medical care and pay for
doctors and other core demands of the Bhopal campaign,” writes Gary
Cohen of the International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal. Pragya, an
activist in Bhopal declared: “Thanks to all who sent their prayers and
faxes and other good vibes. Bhopal remains not only ground zero of the
chemical industry's global wounding, but also ground zero for the fight
for people's basic human rights to live in a poison-free environment,
to drink water that is free of toxic chemicals, and receive basic
medical care for their injuries. See full report at Bhopal.net
Bhopal Medical Appeal and International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal
Two important projects for the people of Bhopal are the Bhopal Medical Appeal and the International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal.
Bhopal Medical Appeal
As time goes on, exposure related symptoms are increasing. Three times more people reported respiratory symptoms in 1991 than in 1987. Survivors bear a host of symptoms. Recently tuberculosis, cancers and menstrual disorders among young women have risen alarmingly.
Since 1995 the Bhopal People’s Health and Documentation Clinic, known as the Sambhavna Clinic, has treated gas survivors with an integrative system of health care combining western medicine, Ayurveda (3000 year old system of traditional herbal medicine), Yoga (breathing discipline), and Panchakarma (treatments to remove toxins and boost the immune system). The clinic treats 1,000 each month and documents exposure related deaths in the community, work abandoned by the government eight years ago.
Six of the 17 clinic staff are victims themselves. The clinic is funded entirely by donations and was awarded the Margaret Mead Centennial Award in 2002 for outstanding work.
For more information, see the Bhopal Medical Appeal Web site.
International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal (ICJB)
The International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal (ICJB) is a coalition led by Bhopal survivors and concerned people around the globe. Based in Bhopal, ICJB works to bring justice to Bhopal survivors by focusing world attention on Dow Chemical’s liability for the Union Carbide disaster.
For more information, see the International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal Web site.
Donations for Bhopal
PANNA is the North American fiscal sponsor for the Sambhavna Clinic in Bhopal and the International Campaign for Justice for Bhopal. 100% of your donation goes directly to the organization(s) you choose to support.
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For more information
See the following for more information about Bhopal:
- Information from PANNA about Bhopal
- International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal Web site
- Bhopal Medical Appeal Web site