Damn India, WHAT THE HELL??

Amnesty International on Monday said that 28 years after the Bhopal gas tragedy tens of thousands of victims of ``the world’s worst industrial disaster’’ were still awaiting justice.

In a statement, it said that not only had the victims not been adequately compensated, there had ``yet to be a thorough investigation into the health effects of the disaster on people’s lives’’.
 

“The industrial skeleton of the former Union Carbide factory still lies abandoned in the centre of Bhopal, with more than 350 tonnes of toxic waste untreated inside. Some 40,000 people are living next to the factory, and have been exposed to the toxic waste for years,” it said urging the Indian Government and Dow Chemical to clean up the site immediately.
 

Nearly 150,000 people were battling chronic illnesses of the lungs or liver. Women had suffered disproportionately with many complaining of gynaecological and reproductive health disorders.

“28 years is too long to wait for justice. The Indian government and Dow must finally compensate the victims properly, and the Indian authorities must also hold those responsible for this disaster to account,” said Madhu Malhotra, Director of Amnesty International’s Gender programme.

I vividly remember when I first heard the word 'Bhopal'. It was one of those events that formed my opinion about the evils that corporations are capable of especially in third world countries. Like everyone I assumed that at least SOMETHING had been done since that time to balance the scales. I should have realized the truth.

I admit that I don't have the answers but you would think that just for appearances sake that Union Carbide would have torn down this plant and tried to dispose of the hazardous waste in the area. If you can't bring the materials to Europe for safe disposal then can't you transport the technology to India to do the same job?

The 350 tonnes of waste – which is not directly linked to the deadly gas leak of 1984 but rather comes from chemical pollutants dumped by Union Carbide from 1969 onwards – is merely one part of the more than one million tonnes of contaminated soil and other wastes still present at the site. Bhopal residents say this waste is still seeping out, poisoning land and groundwater all around the plant.

Attempts to dispose of the 350 tonnes of waste in several Indian incinerators — with the last effort at Pithampur in Madhya Pradesh — were vociferously opposed by people living nearby. Now, protests as far away as Germany have ensured that the waste cannot be taken to Europe either.