press release |
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42/2002
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Culprits of corporate crimes boast with "responsible
care"
Greenpeace demands global principals for corporate responsibility
 Prague,
27th August 2002 - Organization Greenpeace has published today the
study "Corporate Crimes" at the Earth Summit in Johannesburg
(1). It is drawing attention to the irresponsible behaviour of an amount
of large industries, including chemical firms such as Spolana Neratovice.
Despite these firms causing serious damage to the environment and human
health on their conscience, chemical industry is granting them the logo
"Responsible Care" (2).
One
of the holders of this sign is Spolana Neratovice, which during the
past two weeks threatened its surroundings with repeated leaks of toxic
substances. The management of Spolana ignored securing the huge pollution
from dioxins and mercury on the bank of the river Elbe for tens of years.
The firm was repeatedly publishing false information as well as refusing
to give data concerning the toxic pollution. For more than two years
Spolana is also refusing to compensate the damages caused to farmers,
whose crops have been destroyed in connection to a chlorine leak from
the company (3).
"The
example of Spolana shows that the "Responsible Care"-program
is under Czech circumstances only a worthless scrap of paper. Its requirements
are met neither by companies themselves nor by the Association of Chemical
Industries, which is repeatedly not providing demanded information connected
with the companies and with the maintaining of the program," said
MUDr. Miroslav Šuta, expert consultant on toxic substances (4).
Today
Greenpeace activists from Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria and Finland
placed boards of chosen corporate crimes of chemical industries carrying
the sign "Responsible Care" in front of the headquarters of
the Association of Chemical Industries. Activists in T-shirts with the
sign "Corporate Crimes = irResponsible Care" folded out a
banner saying "Vy říkáte péče, my vidíme zločiny" ("You
say care, we see crimes"). In the end of the activity a letter
was handed to ing. Miroslav Krejč, the president of the Association
of Chemical Industries.
Furthermore,
the study "Corporate Crimes" includes eg. the chemical giant
Dow Chemicals, liable for the consequences of the catastrophy in Bhopal,
the German firm Bayer and Dutch-British corporate Shell.
"Greenpeace
demands the delegates of the Summit in Johannesburg to accept the so-called
Bhopal Principles obligating companies to global responsibility for
their activities that threaten the environment, human health and human
rights," said ing. Jiří Tutter, ED of Greenpeace Czech Republic
and added: "The example of Responsible Care shows clearly how naive
it is to trust the voluntary commitments of industry. Therefore governments
and international organizations have to create globally valid and obligatory
principals for corporate responsibility."
Further
information:
Ing.
Jiří Tutter,
(Czech, English) ED/Greenpeace Czech Republic, tel. +420-2-24319667,
mobil: +420-604-881178,
e-mail: jiri.tutter@cz.greenpeace.org
MUDr.
Miroslav Šuta, (Czech, English), expert consultant on toxic substances,
tel.: 02/2431 9667, fax: 02/3333 2289,
e-mail: miroslav.suta@cz.greenpeace.org
Mgr.
Tomáš Tetiva, (Czech, English), media assistant/Greenpeace Czech
Republic
mobil: 0602 - 775 044,
e-mail: tomas.tetiva@cz.greenpeace.org
Internet: http://www.greenpeace.cz/agentorange/index.htm
Poznámky
pro editory:
1)
(1) The study "Corporate Crimes; The need for an international
instrument on corporate accountability and liability" can be found
at
http://www.greenpeace.org/multimedia/download/1/15643/0/corporatecrimes_entire.pdf
Basic information in Czech (including a translation of the Bhopal Principles)
in Greenpeace press release "Spolana among corporate crimes"
from 4th June 2002 at http://www.greenpeace.cz/release/02/020604.htm
(2)(2)
Responsible Care is a program for chemical industry, which was trying
to improve its bad picture in the eyes of the people of the world after
the catastrophy at the chemical factory Union Carbide (today a part
of Dow Chemicals) in Bhopal, India, which in year 1984 caused the deaths
of thousands and injured tens of thousands of people. The abandoned
factory site and its surroundings are polluted even today with toxic
substances, local people are forced to drink contaminated water, and
the employees of the American company responsible for the catastrophy
are not punished. More in Czech in Greenpeace press release "The
world remembers 17th anniversary of the accident in Bhopal, caused by
the company Union Carbide: Poison water from Bhopal handed over to chemical
company Dow Chemicals" from 3rd December 2001 at, http://www.greenpeace.cz/release/01/011203.htm
(3)
(3) More in Czech in Greenpeace press releases: "Is Spolana theratening
its surroundings only with chlorine?" from 21st July 2000, http://www.greenpeace.cz/release/00/000721.htm,
"Greenpeace: Ecological catastrophy threatening from Spolana Neratovice,
dioxins are a time bomb waiting for a flood!" from 8th November
2001, http://www.greenpeace.cz/release/01/011108.htm,
"The false statements of the representatives of Spolana are competing
for 'The Green Pearl'" from 20th March 2002, http://www.greenpeace.cz/release/02/020320.htm,
and in the Arnika press release "Arnika demands an examination
of the explosion at Spolana" from 20th June 2002, http://bezjedu.arnika.org/spolana
(4)
(4) Greenpeace demanded information from the Association of Chemical
Industries about the program "Responsible Care" on 12th July
2001. Because there was no answer, Greenpeace sent a personal letter
directly to the president of the Association, ing. Miroslav Krejčí,
on 14th February 2002. Neither this time was Greenpeace provided with
any information.
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