Bhopal Seethes, Pained and Poor 18 Years Later

When a gas cloud leaked out of the Union Carbide plant in Bhopal 18 years ago, the health threat was the immediate concern. Although health complications continue to loom over the residents – 30,000 people have been diagnosed as suffering from long-term harm – new worries plague the community. The desire for accountability, retribution, and compensation play out on a local stage that seeks global justice. Many local residents want the chief executive of Union Carbide to be extradited and brought to trial; some call for his head. Others simply want the balance of the compensation package promised to the victims to be paid out. Much of the money Union Carbide gave to the government has been lost in corruption and bureaucracy. Even though Union Carbide built a hospital to help the victims, the hospital’s administration costs have been double the amount most victims have received. Ironically, the Bhopal disaster has given women an opportunity. In their own fight for justice, women’s voices have found a broader forum. For the moment, the end of the Bhopal story remains unwritten. Union Carbide has not revealed the composition of the gas, preferring to protect trade secrets. Consequently, doctors are unable to monitor the gas’s health effects. Meanwhile, local officials think that residents blame every disease on the gas leak, hoping for more compensation. Health professionals claim that many of the current ailments are as much a result of poor sanitation as the after effects of the gas. And the company asserts that the leak was the result of sabotage. With insufficient information, will global justice be served across continents and time? And will the residents of Bhopal ever forget the presence of a multi-national like Union Carbide? - YaleGlobal