Crimes Against Humanity committed by Chevron Corporation.
The most recent action made by the UDAPT (Union of Peoples Affected by Chevron), related with the long process against the american company Chevron Corporation, looks for the criminal responsibility of the persons up-right in the company. For this the UDAPT appealed to the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Fatou Bensouda and presented a communication describing the facts that are taking place in the territory of Ecuador at this moment – equivalent to a complaint at the nationals systems. In this communication is explained why the decisions and actions toked by John Watson as a CEO of Chevron, besides other functionaries of the company, have the characteristics of a widespread and systematic attack directed against the civilian population of the Ecuadorian Amazonia.
The victims of the contamination left by Texaco lodge a complaint to the persons up-right the hierarchical organization of Chevron for the decisions made and the actions toked in accordance to avoid the remediation of the environmental damages. Thus, we accuse the company for its actions of delaying, slanderous of the activists and contrary to the restoration of the environmental damages, for us that represents a widespread attack against the inhabitants of the Amazon. And confirms that Chevron’s executives “continue to evade its responsibility and contribute, every single time, to evade the remediation of the contamination in the Oriente region”.
For this reason, the complaint is supported by the positions of recognized jurists that understand today the attacks, where the massacres take place, haven’t the classical characteristics, that is using weapons. Furthermore, the creation of a contaminated space for the develop of life, the harassment of the inhabitants of the region, or the worst example, the undefined maintenance of violatory conditions of the Fundamental Rights make us to qualify this bunch of actions as a Crime against Humanity in the terms of the Rome Statute.
There are many examples of those decisions and actions, so we’re convinced the facts of the complaint are a clear criminal contribution to the environmental damage recognized by the three rulings of the ecuadorian tribunals, that after 10 years of litigation found responsible of it to Chevron Company.
To confirm this, the communication firmly describes the personal interest of Mr. Watson into avoid the reparation of the environmental damages that Texaco provoked in Ecuador, since he was the principal promoter of the fusion between Chevron and Texaco. This fusion created the second biggest oil company in The United Stated and it launched the career of Mr. Watson; a setback in this case will be terrible for him and for his interests in the hierarchical structure of power that he manages today.
The crimes of the complaint lodged before the International Criminal Court against Mr. Watson could be made in regard of his position of power up-front of Chevron (President and CEO), taking strategic decisions related the judicial process with the objective of preserving the contamination in Ecuador, from the top of the Pyramid of Power that the company represents. Thereby we consider his conduct as a contribution to the crime against the population of the Ecuadorian Amazonia, and for this he should be indicted as an author in the grounds of the article 25 of the Rome Statute.
For this reason, the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court to investigate a crime committed in the territory of Ecuador is granted by articles 11, 12, 13 and 15 of the Rome Statute (RS), that was ratified by this country on May 5th of 2002. Precisely, we accuse Mr. Watson for the crimes against humanity in the terms of the article 7 RS, it dispose that “crime against humanity” means any of the following acts when committed as part of a widespread or systematic attack directed against any civilian population, with knowledge of the attack: a) Murder; b) Extermination; d) Deportation or forcible transfer of population; h) Persecution against any identifiable group or collectivity on political, racial, national, ethnic, cultural, religious, gender as defined in paragraph 3, or other grounds that are universally recognized as impermissible under international law, in connection with any act referred to in this paragraph or any crime within the jurisdiction of the Court; k) Other inhumane acts of a similar character intentionally causing great suffering, or serious injury to body or to mental or physical health.”
Finally, the communication fulfill the formal requisites and demonstrates that a crime against humanity has been committed, the UDAPT is confident in the result of the process. This presentation is the first step in the international criminal judgement, starting with the preliminary exam that the Prosecutor will make, and with reasonable basis to proceed she will bring the fact before the judges of the Pre-Trial Chamber of the International Criminal Court. Thus, we wonder to achieve the judgement, and to obtein a proper sanction against Mr. John Watson, CEO of Chevron and head of the widespread and systematic attack directed against the inhabitants of the Amazon.
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Contacts:
Ecuador:
Unión de Afectados y Afectadas por las Operaciones de Texaco (UDAPT)
Quito Ecuador
Teléfonos: (593) 2 273533
Correo electrónico: casotexaco@gmail.com
Pablo Fajardo: 593993977811
María Eugenia Garcés: 593999225516
Nancy Rodríguez: 593999949337
