Bhopal / Dow Info & Strategy Meeting

Dear friends,

OVER 100,000 PEOPLE IN BHOPAL, INDIA ARE SUFFERING DEVASTATING HEALTH EFFECTS BECAUSE OF A CRIME COMMITED BY A U.S. COMPANY THAT HAS NEVER BEEN REDRESSED.

THIS COMPANY, DOW-CARBIDE, IS NOW AT U.C. BERKELEY TRYING TO RE-INVENT ITSELF AS 'SUSTAINABLE'.

WHY SHOULD YOU CARE AND WHAT CAN YOU DO TO SUPPORT THE PEOPLE IN BHOPAL?
COME FIND OUT...

Join us on Monday, Feb 4th, 2008, for a discussion on the Bhopal Gas Disaster, the current situation in the Bhopal survivors' campaign in India, and ongoing efforts in US and Indian universities to pressure Dow Chemical Company to redress the situation in Bhopal.

Dow is the sole owner of Union Carbide, which is responsible for the gas tragedy of December 3, 1984. The International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal (ICJB), which spans three continents, continues the struggle for justice. ICJB also recognizes and continues to build links with organizations holding Dow Chemical accountable for other horrors such as production of Napalm and Agent Orange during the Vietnam War as well as production of dioxin.

We are especially fortunate to be joined by Aquene Freechild of ICJB, also a Students for Bhopal Board Member. We will show a SHORT FILM, SHARE INFORMATION AND UPDATES, AND HOLD AN OPEN DISCUSSION ON THE DIRECTION AND STRATEGY OF THE CAMPAIGN at Berkeley and in the Bay Area.

** DATE AND TIME: Monday, February 4, 2008, 6.30 to 8.00 pm
** PLACE: Room 166 Barrows Hall, UC Berkeley campus. This building is on the south side of campus, near the intersection of Bancroft Wy & Telegraph Ave, for a map, pls see, http://www.berkeley.edu/map/maps/large_map.html

CONTACT: 415-728-8292, the Berkeley chapter of the International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal

PLEASE FORWARD WIDELY.


More Information about Bhopal and Dow Chemical:

In 1984, an explosion at a Union Carbide factory in Bhopal, India resulted in the leak of a deadly gas that killed more than 8,000 people within a few days. Today, almost 23 years after the Bhopal disaster, an estimated 100,000 people continue to suffer respiratory, neurological and other health effects. Carbide's toxins are found in breast milk, and children are born with congenital disorders attributed to Carbide's chemicals.
While initially portrayed as an "accident," recent court proceedings have revealed that the company designed the plant with unproven and untested technology and cut corners on safety and maintenance to save money.

The Dow Chemical Company bought Union Carbide in 2001, and refuses to accept any liability for the incident and its aftermath. The current structure of international law makes it extremely difficult for Bhopal victims to seek justice. Dow is also responsible for a series of other crimes, including sterilizing banana plantation workers in the Caribbean, contaminating the drinking water of Louisiana residents, production of Napalm, Agent Orange and dioxin.

Dow Chemical Company’s recent record in the U.S. includes the following:

* Abandonment of a site contaminated with their toxic chemicals, which is poisoning the ground water. The factory site in Bhopal is still contaminated and leaching toxic chemicals into the groundwater that 20,000 people drink. In the U.S., under the Superfund Law, any company ever associated with a contaminated site is required to clean it up.

* The CEO of one of Dow's subsidiaries is facing criminal charges, and refuses to appear in court. The former CEO of Union Carbide, Warren Anderson, is wanted on charges of culpable homicide in the Bhopal District Court and has been declared an absconder from justice. He lives in great luxury and wealth in Hamptons, NY.

* Dow bribed politicians to register a toxic chemical and got caught at it. In February 2007 (earlier this year!) The Dow Chemical Company admitted to the United States Securities and Exchange Commission that it paid bribes to Indian officials at the Indian Ministry of Agriculture. The bribes were paid to get three pesticides registered. One of these is Dursban - a product banned for home and garden use in the United States because it is poses risks to the nervous system of children.