A Story on Human Rights

By Nikita Kheni

I have never been oblivious to the plethora of issues that impact our world. Growing up, I would always read the newspaper before school, fascinated by every headline and article. The news section intrigued me the most. My fascination turned into a daily routine, reading every newspaper I could get my hands on.

I was sixteen when the photo emerged of three-year-old Aylan Kurdi’s washed up body on a Turkish beach, revealing the extent of the worst humanitarian crisis in Europe in 70 years. I was horrified seeing the refugee crisis and that moment solidified that I wanted to pursue a career where I could help prevent such tragedies.

As a journalist, I was an advocate for pure truth, delving into an all-encompassing culture deserving of my sentiment. Journalism gave me a purpose I could have only dreamed of, not only as an expression of myself but as an avenue to voice my convictions. My love for it was not because of my love for writing. Rather, it is about standing up for those who can’t stand up for themselves, bringing out the truth, and creating a difference. It has shaped me to be more ardent and benevolent in my future endeavors. I’ve learned that every person is individualized by their experiences and that those experiences need to be addressed.

My ardor for telling the truth and my journalism career in high school has gradually led me to pursue a career in international affairs. I aspire to bring justice to refugees, women, and abuse and human trafficking victims. I hope to fight social issues, analyze wars and systematic oppression, and help provide aid to people in the developing world. Leaving nothing unreported and truthfully telling the stories of the world is

Currently, I am focused on building my knowledge about sustainable international development and building experience. My interest in sustainability is more recent. I took a course on Environmental Justice and Human Rights during college which discussed policy-making and activism. I found that applying a human rights framework can be especially used for environmental justice policy-making and activism.

For that course, we were required to conduct in depth research about an issue impacting the environment and human rights. This research played a major role in helping me decide what I want to pursue in the future. I chose to research the Bhopal gas disaster. It revealed the lack of accountability for corporations and the difficulties of achieving justice.

The world’s largest industrial disaster occurred in Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh, India on December 3rd, 1984 and continues to have widespread detrimental effects on the population of Bhopal. More than forty tons of methyl isocyanate gas leaked at the pesticide plant overnight due to UCC permitting double standards in safety in countries abroad. Eight thousand people died overnight, and over 20,000 people now continue to face respiratory issues and congenital disabilities due to no proper cleanup of the contamination (Sarangi 47). And it was not just people that died—dogs, cats, cattle, goats, buffalos—every animal, every tree and grass died as well (Eckerman). This was and remains both a human rights issue and an environmental justice issue. Hundreds died in their sleep, some tried to flee, but they ended up with burns of their skin and suffocation. The poisonous chemicals contaminated the groundwater that is the source of drinking water for the people of Bhopal. That contamination leads to lung diseases, cancer, eye irritation and diseases, blindness, and so many other respiratory illnesses (Indian Council of Medical Research).

While Union Carbide was responsible for the negligent act of not maintaining and operating the plant safely, they maintained that they were not accountable for what happened that night. Even their website states that an employee most likely deliberately sabotaged the systems instead of admitting the process safety systems were faulty. Warren Anderson, the Chairman and CEO of Union Carbide, and all other Union Carbide representatives left India and never showed up to the Bhopal District Court to face the criminal charges of manslaughter (Sarangi 48). The extradition treaty between the United States and India also was not successful in bringing Anderson back to India (Bajpai, Singh 110-111). In 1990, the Indian government settled with Union Carbide for 470 million dollars instead of the three billion it had initially sued for. After Union Carbide merged with Dow Chemical Company in 2001, there was no way to hold anyone accountable any longer since Dow maintained that they were not liable since they did not operate the factory.

Currently, the disaster site remains contaminated due to the dumping grounds surrounding the pesticide plant. Effluents were dumped in open pits, which would overflow when it rained. The contamination of soil and water is “500 times higher than the maximum limits recommended by the World Health Organization” (Bajpai, Singh 112).

The disaster had no effects on corporations seeking to industrialize in developing countries. Many pesticide plants continue to exploit communities due to the absence of environmental and safety regulations. Corporations avoid having to follow the same standards they would have to follow in the United States (Broughton).

Thirty-six years later, there is no justice for the victims of Bhopal. How can we pursue legal liability when the system is systematically designed to work in favor of the offenders? Neither the Indian government nor the United States government did anything to serve justice (Deva 25). There is an ongoing curative petition for the Supreme Court of India to order Dow to pay Rs 7,413 crore (about 1 billion USD). The compensation is necessary for victims to receive medical treatment (Dhingra).

The Bhopal gas disaster was essentially a massacre. It was an enormous human rights violation and a grave environmental injustice. Corporations are not only killing people due to negligence, but they are also hurting future generations. There needs to be an effective way of bringing environmental justice across borders and a way to hold overseas corporations responsible. There is a necessity to change the way we approach issues of environmental justice. Those who evade liability cannot continue to run and find loopholes. We cannot allow corporations to be able to get away with harming entire communities and not be held accountable.

Focusing on sustainability during a time when climate change is an immense threat to the entire planet is crucial to mitigating crises from rising. Holding corporations accountable and providing justice for victims of climate change is even more crucial. I joined the Sachh Foundation because it was an amazing opportunity to continue learning and building my experience in sustainability while writing to educate and demand change for better policy to help diminish the impacts of climate change. The foundation is working to meet the 17 Sustainable Development Goals, and it has been incredibly inspiring to see how it is growing. In the future, I hope to get involved with non-governmental organizations and policy-making to help countries sustainably mitigate climate change issues, and give communities what they need for sustainable development. My goal is to ensure that I can create an impact. There is no force that could push me away from being compassionate and kind. I hope the world gets to see greater positive change and more happiness.