RFK's daughter backs Ecuadoreans in Chevron suit

[Judi Lynn]

RFK's daughter backs Ecuadoreans in Chevron suit
October 9, 2009 12:01 AM ET

QUITO, Ecuador (AP) - Robert F. Kennedy's daughter sided with Ecuadorean Indians and farmers in their $27 billion environmental lawsuit against oil giant Chevron, saying Thursday after visiting former Amazon drilling sites that the case compares unfavorably to the 1989 Exxon Valdez tanker spill.

Kerry Kennedy, who toured parts of the Amazon province of Sucumbios by invitation of the plaintiffs to witness ecological damage, promised to lobby hard back in the United States.

"When I return home, we'll mobilize the human rights and environmental communities," said Kennedy, who is president of the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Human Rights. "We'll call on political leaders in the United States to investigate Chevron and its practices."

The plaintiffs, who say they represent 30,000 inhabitants of the region, are seeking damages for cleanup and to compensate for illnesses they attribute to oil-drilling contamination from operations carried out by Texaco.

More:
http://news.moneycentral.msn.com/provider/providerarticle.aspx?feed=AP&date=20091009&id=10432540

[Braulio]

1. Hereditary "Democracy"

Isn't it interesting, how the USA is wobbling so close to hereditary democracy, whereby mediocre relatives of politicians endlessly get the press and attention to move into political careers? I'm thinking in particular of President Bush, the ultimate failure as president, and Hillary Clinton, whose claim to fame is to have been Bill Clinton's wife.

[Judi Lynn]

2. Making an accurate point:

~snip~
Chevron must be held responsible and compensate the local populations, Kennedy told reporters in Ecuador's capital, Quito.

"Exxon Valdez was an accident," she said. "What happened here in Ecuador was done on purpose."

[AnnaKay]

3. Environmental Criminals

Great. The more people hear about Chevron's crimes in Ecuador,
the better. We need to do everything we can to make sure
Chevron is held responsible for the contamination in Ecuador.
For more info, see this blog:
http://www.thechevronpit.blogspot.com

[Braulio]

4. It's not that simple

I looked at the situation in Ecuador in 1982 - and I did it in person. At the time what bothered me the most was the way the upland Ecuadorian Indians were moving into the jungle and killing the natives there. They were using the roads cut by Texaco (later bought by Chevron) to move. It was easy to see the killings were clustered around the roads. However, nothing is ever said about that. Ever since, I've kept an eye on it to see if things would improve, but they haven't.

The pollution issue is overblown, a lot of it has been caused by the Ecuadorian national oil company AFTER it took over the oil operations. There are places around the world where the oil industry has caused much worse pollution, and the worst spots by far are in the former Soviet Union.

So this issue isn't that significant. There is a hell of a lot worse going on. Maybe RFK's daughter ought to go visit the natives who are still getting massacred in the jungle by their friendly cousins from the Andean tribes, or the relatives of the people the USA bombed to shreds in Belgrade in the spring of 1999.

[Judi Lynn]

5. Thank you so much, AnnaKay, for informing us about this site.

Just bookmarked it so I will be able to check in, and plan to read through it A.S.A.P.

DU posters will find this to be a great resource. Many of us have been following any and all info. we can get on this for years. We are serious people, looking to learn as much truthful material as possible.

Welcome to D.U. So glad to see you. :hi: