US lawmakers ask Dow to clean up Bhopal

Lalit K Jha

Washington, June 18 (PTI) As many as 27 US lawmakers
have asked Dow Chemical Company, which now owns Union
Carbide, to immediately take steps towards providing medical
and economic rehabilitation to victims of Bhopal gas tragedy.

"We request that Dow ensures that a representative
appear in the ongoing legal cases in India regarding Bhopal,
that Dow meets the demands of the survivors for medical and
economic rehabilitation, and cleans up the soil and
groundwater contamination in and around the factory site,"
the lawmakers said in a letter to Andrew Liveris, the Dow
Chairman and CEO.

The letter endorsed the survivors' demands for
remediation, as put forth by the International Campaign
for Justice in Bhopal (ICJB), chiefly that Dow provide
medical and economic rehabilitation and clean up the factory
and groundwater contamination.

Congressman Frank Pallone led the effort to support the
ICJB demands. A coalition of Bhopal survivors and their
supporters worldwide, ICJB is working to force Dow to face
trial in India and to pay for the disaster cleanup. Nearly a
quarter-century after the initial disaster, the factory sits
in ruins, with toxic chemicals strewn about the grounds, just
yards from the homes of thousands of Bhopali families, ICJB
said in a statement.

"After 25 years, the human and environmental tragedy of
the Bhopal chemical disaster remains with us," Pallone said,
adding while thousands continue to suffer, Union Carbide and
its successor, Dow Chemical, have yet to be brought to
justice.

Members of Congress will continue to fight against
companies that evade civil and criminal liability by
exploiting international borders and legal jurisdictions, he
said.

The "polluter pays" principle in the domestic laws of
both India and America state that the polluter, rather than
the public agencies or taxpayers, should be held responsible
for its environmental pollution in its entirety, the
Congressmen said in the letter.

"Despite repeated public requests and protests around the
world, Union Carbide has refused to appear before the Bhopal
District Court to face the criminal charges pending against it
for the disaster," the letter said.

Union Carbide was served with a summons to appear in
Bhopal District Court in 1992 and publicly stated it would
not respond to the summons.

"Although Dow Chemical set aside USD 2.2 billion in 2002
to put towards Union Carbide's pending asbestos liabilities in
the United States, it has continued to evade the liabilities
it inherited from Bhopal," the lawmaker said.

"However, the disaster continues, and is likely to
worsen," the letter said. PTI