WORLDWIDE
RELAY HUNGER STRIKE FOR JUSTICE IN BHOPAL:
Keep it Alive. Keep it Growing.
Extradite Anderson
Hold Dow Liable
Rehabilitate Survivors
Following the hunger strike by two gas survivors and one activist outside
the Indian parliament in New Delhi in protest at the Indian government’s
proposal to dilute criminal charges outstanding for 11 years against former
Carbide CEO Warren Anderson, concerned and outraged people all around the
world are joining a mass hunger strike. The mass action is led by Diane Wilson,
a shrimp boat captain, who is fasting outside the gates of Dow (formerly Carbide)
in Sea Drift, Texas, USA. Thousands around the world are expected to join
her. Hunger strikers to date have included French author Dominique Lapierre,
Spanish writer Javier Moro and Gianfranco Bettin, Mayor of Venice, Italy.
What you can do: Join the protest, join the fast. Go to www.bhopal.net/worldwide-action/index.html , where you can register the days that you will fast. Visit www.corpwatchindia.org to send an electronic fax of protest to the Indian government. Check these websites for the latest news and for other ways to help.
Observe a
day-long or longer fast. This is a powerful way of saying you care for
the survivors of the Bhopal disaster and support them in their demands for
justice. You can fast wherever you are, doing whatever you usually do for
a living or with your life. In India, the hunger strike (Un Shun in Hindi,
Patni Porattam in
Tamil) is a well-known and much used form of satyagraha (Satya – Truth;
Agraha: Insistence) or “Insisting on the Truth.”
The Truths
we’re talking about in the context of Bhopal are:
1. There is compelling evidence that Warren Anderson and senior executives
of Union Carbide Corporation knew and approved the cuts in safety systems
at the factory in Bhopal. The factory in Bhopal was far inferior – in
terms of safety, alarm and disaster management systems – than Union Carbide’s
own factory in the US. This is one of the primary causes for the magnitude
of the disaster. Anderson and his men have never yet appeared in court to
face questioning about decisions that led to the deaths of more than 20,000
people.
2. Carbide’s pending liabilities in Bhopal belong to the Dow Chemical
Company, Carbide’s new owner. Dow knew about Carbide’s pending liabilities
in Bhopal before purchasing the company. Dow inherited Carbides assets: plants,
products, people (many of whom are still in the same jobs in the same offices),
markets and profits. Dow also accepted liability for several Carbide cases
in the USA, so why not in India?
3. The survivors in Bhopal have been re-victimised by the Government of India’s
reluctance to part with their compensation money, rehabilitate them or have
those accused of causing the disaster brought to justice. In these grave violations
of the rights of the survivors, the US Government has played an important
role in
obstructing justice and shielding the companies and people – Union Carbide,
Dow Chemical, Warren Anderson -- that ought to be held criminally liable for
the disaster.
The Relay Hunger Strike allows people, just common people, not NGOs or activists alone, to take action for what they feel is right. The strength of the act of large numbers of people undertaking the satyagraha by simultaneously fasting in solidarity with the survivors of Bhopal ensures that these truths are kept alive – in the media, in people’s minds.
If you believe
in the truths above, here’s what you can do to help ensure justice in
Bhopal:
1. Register to join the hunger strike by logging onto www.bhopal.net.
Decide the day(s) on which you’ll go on hunger strike. You can do it
for a day, two days or longer. If you decide to do it longer, please consult
your doctor/physician ensure that you are medically ok to fast, that you have
EASY access to a doctor and hospital, and that you will be able to constantly
monitor your health. DO NOT FAST if there is any danger or threat to your
health.
2. Notify us about your intent with the following details.
Name
Address
Email
Telephone number
(if going on a fast of longer than 2 days)
Date(s) on which
you plan to be on hunger strike
Optionally please
also tell us a little about yourself (What do you do, your age, what makes
you feel so
strongly about Bhopal)
3. Start your fast carefully.
On the day(s) of the hunger strike, you can start the day by drinking
a glass of lime juice (no sugar) with three to four teaspoons of honey. End
the day with a similar glass of lime juice. PLEASE DRINK sufficient quantities
of water through the day, and electrolytes sometime in between.
4. Tell your friends, family, co-workers that you are on a hunger strike,
and tell them why you’re doing it. You can download information
about the Bhopal campaign for justice from
www.corpwatchindia.org or www.bhopal.net
and circulate it to your friends. Ask them to join the campaign for justice
in Bhopal by going on a fast for a day or longer.
5. Print support materials. If you’re planning to go on a fast
at a public place along with other people in your community, you may want
to download and use the posters,information sheets and petition forms prepared
by the UK Campaign for Justice in Bhopal from www.bhopal.net/campaigningresources/index.html
6. Notify the local media about your action and your reasons for doing
this. You can put out a basic press statement to the media, accompanied by
downloaded materials (see point 5 above).
7. Keep track of the people in your town who go on a fast. Please keep
us informed about each person joining the hunger strike, by providing us with
the details requested in item 2 above. You can bring these people together
after a week or 10 days for a meeting at a convenient time. Arrange for all
these people to do
something collectively – hold a press conference or a candle-light vigil
for
justice, or a simple protest activity with posters and placards outside the
Indian
embassy or the US embassy or your local Dow/Union Carbide facility.
8. Most importantly send a letter to the Indian Government, and to CEO
Michael Parker, Dow Chemical Company, Midland, Michigan, USA. The easiest
method is to send this letter by fax to the Indian embassy in Washington D.C.
by visiting the “Take Action” section (Top Right Hand corner) of
www.corpwatchindia.org. All faxes will be conveyed by the Embassy to the Ministry
of External Affairs, Government of India. It would help if you actually included
a personalized note in the form letter on the website indicating that you
are a hunger striker and your reasons for going on hunger strike.
By doing these things you'll send a clear message to the Government of India, the Government of the United States of America and to the Dow Chemical Company:
WE WILL NEVER LET YOU BURY JUSTICE IN BHOPAL
Latest
update from the Delhi hunger-strike, victory and 40 days in the wilderness:
At a mass rally in Delhi on Tuesday 16th July, the 18th day of fasting, the
two women hunger strikers Tara Bai and Rashida Bi collapsed and are being
cared for in hospital. Sathyu Sarangi continued to fast. The government conceded
the strikers’ second demand - gas victims’ money will not be distributed
to non gas-affected wards. On 17th July, the Bhopal court accepted our petition
opposing the dilution of charges. The judge adjourned the case until 27th
August. Sathyu then ended his fast with some orange juice. The fast was immediately
taken up around the world by volunteers in a mass relay hunger strike to keep
pressure on the Indian government.
We’ll keep
you updated through these websites:
www.corpwatchindia.org,www.bhopal.net,
www.indiatogether.org, www.greenpeaceusa.org
Nityanand
Jayaraman & E. Deenadayalan
The National Campaign for Justice in Bhopal
NITY: nity68@vsnl.com
DEENA: admin@del3.vsnl.net.in
UK Campaign
for Justice in Bhopal
TIM: tim@lifecycle.demon.co.uk
INDRA: indra.sinha@virgin.net
US Campaign
for Justice in Bhopal
NEILl: ntangri@essential.org
GARY: gcohen@igc.org