[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index ][Thread Index ]

Reuters-Activists campaign to revok



Subject: Reuters-Activists campaign to revoke Unocal charter

This is a multi-part message in MIME format.

------=_NextPart_000_0034_01BE8C42.A988D640
Content-Type: multipart/alternative;
	boundary="----=_NextPart_001_0035_01BE8C42.A988D640"


------=_NextPart_001_0035_01BE8C42.A988D640
Content-Type: text/plain;
	charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

Monday April 19, 9:35 pm Eastern Time=20
Activists campaign to revoke Unocal charter
By Timna Tanners=20

LOS ANGELES, April 19 (Reuters) - Activists on Monday revived their =
calls for California to revoke oil company Unocal Corp.'s (UCL - news) =
state charter, saying its interests in Myanmar were tantamount to =
complicity in human rights abuses.=20

Unocal, the only big U.S. oil company with interests in Myanmar (Burma), =
strongly defended its operations in the country and called the =
accusations politically motivated.=20

The company also said it had called off talks for an Afghan pipeline =
project criticized by the group.=20

The United States imposed unilateral sanctions in 1997 against Myanmar =
to protest the military government's human rights record. The sanctions =
barred any new investments in the country but allowed existing projects =
to go ahead.=20

Human rights activists, including attorneys, feminist and gay groups and =
environmentalists, signed on to a second attempt to persuade the state =
attorney general to revoke Unocal's charter. Former state Attorney =
General Dan Lundgren rejected a previous petition last September.=20

But the activists hope that new Attorney General Bill Lockyer will =
reconsider the plea, led by human rights group, the National Lawyers =
Guild. They delivered a 120-page petition that documents what they call =
complicity in human rights violations in Myanmar and Afghanistan.=20

``The Attorney General has a duty to seek a court order forfeiting the =
company's corporate existence,'' said Jim Lafferty, head of the National =
Lawyers Guild chapter in Los Angeles.=20

El Segundo, Calif.-based Unocal is an investor and not an on-the-ground =
partner in the Myanmar natural gas pipeline, spokesman Mike Thacher =
said. French oil group Total supervises the pipeline, he said.=20

``We understand the complexity and sensitivities, but we feel very =
comfortable with our role in the Myanmar project (in Burma) and some of =
the changes and benefits that we have brought to the pipeline region,'' =
Thacher said.=20

The activists accuse Unocal of complicity in human rights abuse due to =
its pipeline talks in Afghanistan and the Myanmar pipeline. They cited =
crimes against women and homosexuals by the Taleban militia in =
Afghanistan and forced labor and relocations at the Myanmar pipeline.=20

``Unocal's pipeline project is in a civil war zone, which had to be =
pacified and must be guarded by troops,'' the group said in a report. =
``Unocal knew or should have known that the pipeline would lead to human =
rights violations and death.''=20

They also said Unocal did not condition its canceled Afghan pipeline =
negotiations on an improved women's rights record.=20

Thacher said Unocal decided not to participate in Afghanistan because =
its government was too unstable and was not recognized by the United =
Nations, adding that U.N. recognition would likely require an improved =
human rights record.=20

The activists encouraged California to take the example of New York =
state's lawsuits against cigarette research companies, charging them =
with deceiving the public about health risks. Unocal should answer to =
human rights violations overseas in its home state of California, =
according to the activists.=20

``We're a business and not a diplomatic corps,'' Thacher said. ``We make =
business investment decisions that follow ethical standards. We have =
consistently taken the position that it's better that we be there.''=20

A September 1998 report on Myanmar labor practices by the U.S. =
Department of Labor's Bureau of International Labor Affairs does not say =
Unocal participated in the forced labor or relocations, but says partner =
Total may have had knowledge of the military's abuses.=20

The last time California revoked a company's charter was in 1976 when a =
Republican Attorney General, Evelle Younger, dissolved a private water =
company after charges it served contaminated water.=20


------=_NextPart_001_0035_01BE8C42.A988D640
Content-Type: text/html;
	charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN">
<HTML><HEAD>
<META content=3D"text/html; charset=3Diso-8859-1" =
http-equiv=3DContent-Type><BASE=20
href=3D"file://C:\Program Files\Common Files\Microsoft =
Shared\Stationery\">
<STYLE>BODY {
	COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAMILY: "Arial"; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: =
0em; MARGIN-TOP: 0em
}
P.msoNormal {
	COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAMILY: "Arial"; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: =
0em; MARGIN-TOP: 0em
}
LI.msoNormal {
	COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAMILY: "Arial"; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: =
0em; MARGIN-TOP: 0em
}
PRE {
	COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAMILY: "Arial"; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: =
0em; MARGIN-TOP: 0em
}
BLOCKQUOTE {
	COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAMILY: "Arial"; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: =
0em; MARGIN-TOP: 0em
}
A {
	COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAMILY: "Arial"; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: =
0em; MARGIN-TOP: 0em
}
MENU {
	COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAMILY: "Arial"; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: =
0em; MARGIN-TOP: 0em
}
DD {
	COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAMILY: "Arial"; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: =
0em; MARGIN-TOP: 0em
}
UL {
	COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAMILY: "Arial"; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: =
0em; MARGIN-TOP: 0em
}
DT {
	COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAMILY: "Arial"; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: =
0em; MARGIN-TOP: 0em
}
DIR {
	COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAMILY: "Arial"; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: =
0em; MARGIN-TOP: 0em
}
ADDRESS {
	COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAMILY: "Arial"; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: =
0em; MARGIN-TOP: 0em
}
H1 {
	COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAMILY: "Arial"; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: =
0em; MARGIN-TOP: 0em
}
H2 {
	COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAMILY: "Arial"; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: =
0em; MARGIN-TOP: 0em
}
H3 {
	COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAMILY: "Arial"; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: =
0em; MARGIN-TOP: 0em
}
H4 {
	COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAMILY: "Arial"; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: =
0em; MARGIN-TOP: 0em
}
H5 {
	COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAMILY: "Arial"; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: =
0em; MARGIN-TOP: 0em
}
H6 {
	COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAMILY: "Arial"; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: =
0em; MARGIN-TOP: 0em
}
HR {
	COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAMILY: "Arial"; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; MARGIN-BOTTOM: =
0em; MARGIN-TOP: 0em
}
</STYLE>

<META content=3D"MSHTML 5.00.2014.210" name=3DGENERATOR></HEAD>
<BODY background=3Dcid:003301be8bf7$39906560$b506fea9@xxxxxxx =
bgColor=3D#ffffff>
<DIV><B>Monday April 19, 9:35 pm <SMALL>Eastern Time</SMALL></B>=20
<H2>Activists campaign to revoke Unocal =
charter</H2><!--rf|924582900--><!-- TextStart -->
<P>By Timna Tanners=20
<P>LOS ANGELES, April 19 (Reuters) - Activists on Monday revived their =
calls for=20
California to revoke oil company Unocal Corp.'s (<A=20
href=3D"http://quote.yahoo.com/q?s=3Ducl&amp;d=3Dt";>UCL</A> - <A=20
href=3D"http://biz.yahoo.com/n/u/ucl.html";>news</A>) state charter, =
saying its=20
interests in Myanmar were tantamount to complicity in human rights =
abuses.=20
<P>Unocal, the only big U.S. oil company with interests in Myanmar =
(Burma),=20
strongly defended its operations in the country and called the =
accusations=20
politically motivated.=20
<P>The company also said it had called off talks for an Afghan pipeline =
project=20
criticized by the group.=20
<P>The United States imposed unilateral sanctions in 1997 against =
Myanmar to=20
protest the military government's human rights record. The sanctions =
barred any=20
new investments in the country but allowed existing projects to go =
ahead.=20
<P>Human rights activists, including attorneys, feminist and gay groups =
and=20
environmentalists, signed on to a second attempt to persuade the state =
attorney=20
general to revoke Unocal's charter. Former state Attorney General Dan =
Lundgren=20
rejected a previous petition last September.=20
<P>But the activists hope that new Attorney General Bill Lockyer will =
reconsider=20
the plea, led by human rights group, the National Lawyers Guild. They =
delivered=20
a 120-page petition that documents what they call complicity in human =
rights=20
violations in Myanmar and Afghanistan.=20
<P>``The Attorney General has a duty to seek a court order forfeiting =
the=20
company's corporate existence,'' said Jim Lafferty, head of the National =
Lawyers=20
Guild chapter in Los Angeles.=20
<P>El Segundo, Calif.-based Unocal is an investor and not an =
on-the-ground=20
partner in the Myanmar natural gas pipeline, spokesman Mike Thacher =
said. French=20
oil group Total supervises the pipeline, he said.=20
<P>``We understand the complexity and sensitivities, but we feel very=20
comfortable with our role in the Myanmar project (in Burma) and some of =
the=20
changes and benefits that we have brought to the pipeline region,'' =
Thacher=20
said.=20
<P>The activists accuse Unocal of complicity in human rights abuse due =
to its=20
pipeline talks in Afghanistan and the Myanmar pipeline. They cited =
crimes=20
against women and homosexuals by the Taleban militia in Afghanistan and =
forced=20
labor and relocations at the Myanmar pipeline.=20
<P>``Unocal's pipeline project is in a civil war zone, which had to be =
pacified=20
and must be guarded by troops,'' the group said in a report. ``Unocal =
knew or=20
should have known that the pipeline would lead to human rights =
violations and=20
death.''=20
<P>They also said Unocal did not condition its canceled Afghan pipeline=20
negotiations on an improved women's rights record.=20
<P>Thacher said Unocal decided not to participate in Afghanistan because =
its=20
government was too unstable and was not recognized by the United =
Nations, adding=20
that U.N. recognition would likely require an improved human rights =
record.=20
<P>The activists encouraged California to take the example of New York =
state's=20
lawsuits against cigarette research companies, charging them with =
deceiving the=20
public about health risks. Unocal should answer to human rights =
violations=20
overseas in its home state of California, according to the activists.=20
<P>``We're a business and not a diplomatic corps,'' Thacher said. ``We =
make=20
business investment decisions that follow ethical standards. We have=20
consistently taken the position that it's better that we be there.''=20
<P>A September 1998 report on Myanmar labor practices by the U.S. =
Department of=20
Labor's Bureau of International Labor Affairs does not say Unocal =
participated=20
in the forced labor or relocations, but says partner Total may have had=20
knowledge of the military's abuses.=20
<P>The last time California revoked a company's charter was in 1976 when =
a=20
Republican Attorney General, Evelle Younger, dissolved a private water =
company=20
after charges it served contaminated water.=20
<!-- TextEnd --></P></DIV></BODY></HTML>

------=_NextPart_001_0035_01BE8C42.A988D640--

------=_NextPart_000_0034_01BE8C42.A988D640
Content-Type: image/gif;
	name="tech.gif"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: base64
Content-ID: <003301be8bf7$39906560$b506fea9@xxxxxxx>

R0lGODlhFAAUAPcAAP//////zP//mf//Zv//M///AP/M///MzP/Mmf/MZv/MM//MAP+Z//+ZzP+Z
mf+ZZv+ZM/+ZAP9m//9mzP9mmf9mZv9mM/9mAP8z//8zzP8zmf8zZv8zM/8zAP8A//8AzP8Amf8A
Zv8AM/8AAMz//8z/zMz/mcz/Zsz/M8z/AMzM/8zMzMzMmczMZszMM8zMAMyZ/8yZzMyZmcyZZsyZ
M8yZAMxm/8xmzMxmmcxmZsxmM8xmAMwz/8wzzMwzmcwzZswzM8wzAMwA/8wAzMwAmcwAZswAM8wA
AJn//5n/zJn/mZn/Zpn/M5n/AJnM/5nMzJnMmZnMZpnMM5nMAJmZ/5mZzJmZmZmZZpmZM5mZAJlm
/5lmzJlmmZlmZplmM5lmAJkz/5kzzJkzmZkzZpkzM5kzAJkA/5kAzJkAmZkAZpkAM5kAAGb//2b/
zGb/mWb/Zmb/M2b/AGbM/2bMzGbMmWbMZmbMM2bMAGaZ/2aZzGaZmWaZZmaZM2aZAGZm/2ZmzGZm
mWZmZmZmM2ZmAGYz/2YzzGYzmWYzZmYzM2YzAGYA/2YAzGYAmWYAZmYAM2YAADP//zP/zDP/mTP/
ZjP/MzP/ADPM/zPMzDPMmTPMZjPMMzPMADOZ/zOZzDOZmTOZZjOZMzOZADNm/zNmzDNmmTNmZjNm
MzNmADMz/zMzzDMzmTMzZjMzMzMzADMA/zMAzDMAmTMAZjMAMzMAAAD//wD/zAD/mQD/ZgD/MwD/
AADM/wDMzADMmQDMZgDMMwDMAACZ/wCZzACZmQCZZgCZMwCZAABm/wBmzABmmQBmZgBmMwBmAAAz
/wAzzAAzmQAzZgAzMwAzAAAA/wAAzAAAmQAAZgAAMwAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACwAAAAAFAAUAEAIQwBJCBxI
sKBBAAgTKlyYUCDDhwsdQpwoceLDihYjksh4cSNHjR9BhmzocSQAjCFRflTJkWVGlxZhUiw5UiZE
gzhzBgQAOw==

------=_NextPart_000_0034_01BE8C42.A988D640--