BRITISH PRIME MINISTER David Cameron has responded to demands the London 2012 organisation end its relationship with Dow Chemical, claiming the multinational has no case to answer regarding the 1984 Bhopal gas disaster, an industrial catastrophe that claimed over 15,000 lives.
Dow Chemical acquired Union Carbide, the company directly reponsible for the gas leak and widespread contamination of the city, in 2001, over a decade after the company agreed a $470 million out-of-court settlement with victims.
Since the merger, however, ongoing efforts to decontaminate the region and care for those severely effected by the accident (up to 40,000 people are thought to be living with injuries suffered during the leak and its immediate aftermath) have allegedly fallen foul of legal interference by the Michigan-based multinational.
Amnesty International and a significant number of politicians, both British and Indian, have voiced concern over the International Olympic Committee’s decision to grant Dow Chemical privileged status as a “Worldwide Partner” of the summer games.
It’s a view David Cameron believes at odds with both legal history and the integrity of the IOC’s decision-making process.
From a report by the Guardian’s Owen Gibson:
“We have to recognise two important points. The first is that Dow was not the owner of Union Carbide at the time, so this is a different company and a different business,” Cameron told the Indian broadcaster CNN-IBN.“Secondly, and more importantly, the sponsorship of Dow for the Olympics is arranged by the IOC. It is their decision-making process and I don’t criticise their decision-making process.”
Dow’s sponsorship agreement with the IOC is thought to be worth approximately $100 million.
