On the 13th anniversary of Chevron’s historic $9.5 billion environmental crimes verdict, Ecuador’s current government may be betraying its people for the benefit of big oil interests.
Thirteen years ago, indigenous peoples and others in the Amazon region of Ecuador made climate justice history when, after 18 years of legal battles, they won a $9.5 billion verdict against the Chevron Corporation for its environmental crimes.
This groundbreaking case was first reported in 1993 and was one of the first cases in history in which affected communities approached an oil company and received such a court order.
A court of its own choosing found Chevron guilty, largely based on its own evidence, of knowingly dumping more than 16 billion gallons of toxic and carcinogenic waste in the northern Ecuadorian Amazon, leaving nearly 1,000 waste ponds in an area the size of an island Manhattan.
An estimated 30,000 Ecuadorians were affected by one of the worst oil-related environmental crimes in history (the number has since increased).
Although today is considered a historic day because of this unprecedented victory, the issue itself is not “historic.” Firstly, because the rubbish is still there today and is constantly contaminating the water, drinking and bathing water of all the people living there.
Second, because Chevron has never paid a dime for its environmental crimes and cleanup efforts and continues to “run away” and harass the growing global movement demanding justice for Ecuador.
What happens after the verdict is announced?
In the 13 years since the environmental crimes verdict, Chevron has earned more than $200 billion for its continued destruction of the global climate – 21 times its debt.
However, he stated that he would never pay for the cleanup of Ecuador and that “I would fight until hell froze over and then I would fight on the iceInstead, his bosses O’Reilly, Watson and now Wirth have spent more than $2 billion paying lawyers and PR firms to attack their victims and the public.
His law firm, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, known as “Fossil fuel mafia lawyers“.
He persecuted lawyers who supported the Ecuadorian people, particularly Steven Donziger, and defamed all defenders of the Ecuadorian community, calling them “co-conspirators” in a fraud against the oil giant.
The RICO-SLAPP lawsuit is exposed and rejected by much of the global community as a fraud against Chevron and serves as a rallying cry against the company’s attacks on human rights and environmental activists in the United States.
The United Nations, the EU, members of the European Parliament and the US Congress, as well as the world’s largest environmental and human rights organizations condemned the action.
What happens in the fight for justice?
Yes, Chevron continues to avoid lawsuits, but the net is getting narrower. This moment is important because one of Chevron’s secret attempts to evade justice poses an imminent threat. Chevron is using its enormous influence in the oil industry to pressure Ecuador to ignore the court ruling, assume corporate responsibility and legislate for national taxpayers. Ecuador’s right-wing government, which has historical ties to Chevron, might be listening.
A few years ago, while pursuing its RICO-SLAPP fraud attack in U.S. courts, Chevron also filed a lawsuit under the U.S.-Ecuador bilateral trade agreement and received a ruling in its favor.
Despite Chevron’s lies, this international arbitration is not a justice system, but a mechanism through which companies can sue and pressure governments.
For this reason, the United Association of Those Affected by Chevron-Texaco (UDAPT) recently petitioned the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, asking that its efforts to seek justice from Chevron be protected from undue interference by the Ecuadorian government. The government has a choice: defend its own judgment by delivering justice to its citizens, or give in to corporate pressure.
“Today is a bittersweet moment for us. Our historic legal victory will not be enough if we do not receive the justice we so need and deserve“said Donald Moncayo, President of UDAPT. “Chevron is a climate justice criminal, a fugitive from the law and must be held accountable. Time is running out. We need cleanliness, healthcare and clean water. This company destroyed the Amazon, polluted people, was tried and found guilty, but still hasn’t cleaned up or paid up. We need our government to defend us. And we need the world’s support to ensure that Chevron is not above the law, either in Ecuador or anywhere the company operates.“.
What will happen after these environmental crimes?
Today, Ecuador is in many ways on the edge of the abyss. The recent violence and internal unrest have given President Daniel Noboa an excuse to continue drilling in key oil fields in Yasuní National Park, despite a recent referendum by the vast majority of all Ecuadorians loudly calling for a halt to these activities.
This oil, like most of the oil already produced in Ecuador, is expected to be refined by Chevron in California. With every day that passes, Chevron’s debts remain unpaid and, even worse, the company continues to increase its profits by $200 billion at the expense of people and the planet. We have to stop this.
This May, affected communities in several countries marked the day as “Anti-Chevron MonthChevron’s business model pollutes, poisons and attacks frontline communities around the world, prompting the release of a 2021 report titled “Chevron’s global collapse“, which details the more than $50 billion the company owes to communities and countries around the world for crimes against human and environmental safety.
Chevron, a global criminal enterprise, is even facing legal action from the US state of California for environmental violations and contributing to climate change, which poses significant risks to public health and the environment.
Thirteen years later, Chevron hasn’t been forced to pay, but it still can’t avoid the trouble. We won’t forget it and we won’t stop the hunt.
With information from: