Big business and slave labor in Burma
by Sophie Hardach, Digital Freedom Network
(June 8, 2000) Two petroleum companies, the French Total SA and the California-based Unocal, have been accused of using forced labor and collaborating with the Burmese military during the construction of the Yadana pipeline in Burma.
Lawsuits were issued against UNOCAL in California in 1996, and Burmese refugee groups have now discovered further evidence to strengthen their appeal. The case is scheduled to go before a judge on July 10.
A 1995 U.S. State Department cable documents an interview with UNOCAL employee Joel Robinson: "On the general issue of the close working relationship between Total/UNOCAL and the Burmese military, Robinson had no apologies to make," the transcript said. "He stated forthrightly that the companies have hired the Burmese to provide security for the project and pay for this through the Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise." According to the notes taken down by a U.S. government official, Burmese military officers were informed by UNOCAL employees of the next day's activities so that soldiers could secure the area and guard the work perimeter.
Unethical practices
UNOCAL, Total, and the Burmese state-controlled oil company Myanmar Oil and Gas enterprise (MOGE) started a US$1.2 billion joint venture in 1995, building a pipeline to transport natural gas from the Yadana field in Burma to an electric power plant in Thailand. UNOCAL paid approximately US$20 million to the Burmese government for the extraction license.
(The military junta that seized control of Burma in 1989 changed the country's name to Myanmar in 1991. Many dissidents do not recognize the name change.)
From the very beginning of the project,UNOCAL has been targeted by labor organizations, human rights groups, various democratic governments, and the United Nations for its unethical and environmentally unsound practices.
A commission of inquiry appointed by the International Labor Organization (ILO) in 1998 denounced the "widespread and systematic use of forced labor in Myanmar," combined with complete lack of health and safety standards. A U.S. embassy report backed these claims.
The Yadana pipeline cuts through rainforests and wetlands, threatening species unique to the region. It also crosses the traditional territory of three tribal peoples such as the Karen; hundreds of families have been displaced from their homelands.
Local witnesses report that the Burmese troops have forced entire villages to build the pipeline as well as roads, airports, military facilities, and multinational oil company buildings. The military ruthlessly use torture, rape, and murder, leaving the workers no choice but to obey. Kevin Hepner, a spokesperson of the Karen Rights Group, says that: "In rural villages, anyone who fails to serve the army is executed; they don't even have the option of being a political prisoner."
Lawsuits against UNOCAL
The first lawsuit against UNOCAL was filed in 1996 by the Center for Human Rights and Constitutional Law, the International Labor Rights Fund, and Cristobal Bonifaz, a lawyer experienced in representing indigenous communities against petroleum multinationals.
A second lawsuit was filed the same year by the Center for Constitutional Rights,EarthRights International, Hadsell & Stormer, and Paul Hoffman on behalf of 15 victims of human rights abuses related to Unocal's pipeline.
In April 1997, U.S. District Judge Richard Paez of Los Angeles ruled that if the abuses committed by the Burmese government can be proven, then UNOCAL's payments to the military junta for providing labor and security would be akin to "participation in slave trading." However, on-site investigations are almost impossible given the limited access to the territory.
Total SA was dismissed as a defendant in 1998 because American courts do not have jurisdiction over the French company.
The case, originally scheduled for a May 23 hearing before Judge Paez, was reassigned to Judge Ronald S. W. Lew after Judge Paez was elevated to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. The new hearing is scheduled for July 10.
Denying the charges
UNOCAL denies all charges and filed several motions for summary judgment for the lawsuits earlier this year.
In a section of its Web site called UNOCAL in Myanmar, the company argues that engagement, not isolation, is the best strategy for bringing democracy to Burma.John Imle, former president and vice chair of the board of UNOCAL, said that, "If you threaten the pipeline, there's gonna be more military. If forced labor goes hand in glove with military, yes, there will be more forced labor. For every threat to the pipeline there will be a reaction."
UNOCAL says the activists who filed the lawsuit are out of touch with what is really going on in Burma. "UNOCAL does not defend the actions and policies of the government of Myanmar," the Web site states. The company lauds improvements in health care and development along the pipeline route.
Human rights activists counter that UNOCAL is clouding the issue by framing it as isolation versus engagement. Larry Dohrs of the Free Burma Coalition said the issue really is "whether direct partnership with, and support of the brutal Burmese military junta serves or harms the interests of the United States, U.S. citizens, and the people of Burma."
Poor human rights record
The Burmese military junta is notorious for its shocking human rights record. As a reaction, the U.S. Government prohibited new American ventures in Burma three years ago. Most U.S. companies have now withdrawn from Burma — UNOCAL is one of the last U.S. businesses to operate in collaboration with the regime.
Aung San Suu Kyi, the opposition leader who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991, told the Times Magazine: "These people are hurrying in to make cozy business deals while pretending that nothing is wrong. They need to be reminded that this is one of the most brutal military regimes in the world and putting money into the country now is simply supporting a system that is severely harmful to the people of Burma."
Depending on its outcome, the California slave labor trial could set a milestone for the eradication of bloody business in Burma.