Thursday marks the 25th anniversary of one of the world’s deadliest industrial disasters.

In 1984, a chemical plant released a toxic gas into the atmosphere in Bhopal, India, killing 23,000 people and leaving 100,000 chronically ill. Now, 25 years later, students from the Columbus chapter of the International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal are protesting against the chemical plant company, Dow Chemical, for negligent behavior and violation of the Bhopalis’ basic human rights.

“The Bhopal gas tragedy was the worst industrial disaster in the world, and the victims haven’t received justice and basic human needs [such as] clean water, medical treatment for congenital diseases, [and] a toxic-free environment both from Dow Chemicals and the government of India even 25 years after the mishap,” said Sridhar Vedachalam, a doctoral student in environmental science. “This level of discrimination against the victims is against basic human values and violates any notion of equity and justice.”

Vedachalam is the president of the Association of India’s Development, the Columbus chapter of the ICJP in Bhopal, which is a coalition of more than 20 international organizations, nonprofit groups and people’s movements. The group aims to represent the Bhopalis in their struggle for justice and pressure the international community, Dow, and the government of India to clean up the toxic site and deliver adequate health care and rehabilitation to victims.

On Thursday, the Association of India’s Development will set up three tables across central campus to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the chemical plant disaster and talk to students about the tragedy and how they can help. On Friday, the group will air a Bhopal documentary highlighting the tragedy, followed by a discussion with audience members, from 6 to 8 p.m in 335 Campbell Hall.

Dow Chemical is a chemical company that “combines the power of science and technology with the ‘human element’ to constantly improve what is essential to human progress,” according to the company’s Web site. Dow Chemical, found liable for the disaster, has denied responsibility.

“While Dow has no responsibility for Bhopal, we have never forgotten the tragic event and have helped to drive global industry performance improvements,” the Web site states. The Web site states that Dow has paid nearly $470 million to the victims of the disaster.

“Many students are unaware of this tragedy that occurred 25 years ago and the long struggle for justice that is still going on and the fact that the perpetrator of the crime, Dow Chemical, has been an active recruiter on OSU campus and contributes millions of dollars to our university,” Vedachalam said.

Previously known as Union Carbide, Dow Chemical has donated significantly to Ohio State. According to studentsforbhopal.org, Dow donated over $2 million to OSU in 2005. As of June 2005, the University Endowment Fund held 34,860 shares of Dow Chemical with an approximate market value of $1,550,000. Information about current financial ties between Ohio State and Dow Chemical was not immediately available.

“Dow Chemical has donated financially to OSU and continues to recruit our graduates, thereby taking in some of the best minds while continuing to pursue discriminatory practices with the people of Bhopal,” Vedachalam said. “We would request OSU to review their association with Dow, much like the anti-sweatshop campaign that forced the campus to stop purchasing from vendors that employed sweatshop labor in developing countries.”

Since the disaster, representatives from Dow Chemical have drawn criticism for their insensitive remarks about the Bhopalis. In 2002, Dow public affairs specialist Kathy Hunt said that “$500 is plenty good for an Indian,” referring to the average compensation Bhopali victims received.

Union Carbide and the former CEO of the company, Warren Anderson, have also been named in several lawsuits. In the Jan. 21, 1985, issue of U.S. News and World Report, Anderson was quoted saying, “It never occurred to anyone that this would happen … I didn’t want to get in the Guinness Book of World Records for the worst industrial accident in history.”

According to unioncarbide.com/Bhopal, in the wake of the gas release, the chemical plant “worked diligently to provide immediate and continuing aid to the victims and set up a process to resolve their claims — all of which were settled 18 years ago at the explicit direction and with the approval of the Supreme Court of India.”
Vedachalam disagrees.

“The Bhopal issue is a web of highly interconnected issues involving corporate malpractice and lack of accountability, government inaction, environmental pollution, denial of basic rights and injustice to a section of the society, and a continuing human rights struggle,” he said.

Vedachalam said students can help Bhopal victims and other victims of human rights abuse by making conscious decisions at every step in their lives. He said a small step toward this would be to pressure the OSU administration to decline further financial support from Dow and to terminate all of its future recruitment efforts on campus.

“Small actions … carry the message that injustice toward people, wherever they [are], cannot and should not be tolerated, and every effort must be taken to ensure them a reasonable standard of living,” Vedachalam said.

The Dow Chemical Company could not be reached for comment.