Let¹s force the multinationals to refund the workers of bananeras in Nicaragua.

national | miscellaneous | news report Friday May 31, 2002 09:25 by associazione Italia-Nicaragua - Associazione Italia-Nicaragua itanica at iol dot it 02.2140944

Let¹s force the multinationals to refund the workers of bananeras in Nicaragua.

Let¹s force the multinationals to refund the workers of bananeras in Nicaragua.
Tumours, infertility, inability to work, deformations, congenital malformations, loss of hair, nails and skin, progressive blindness, nervous alterations.
These are only some of the damages caused by indiscriminate use of pesticides by the multinationals on workers of bananas¹ plantations in Nicaragua and, in general, all over Central America.
Nemagon: short history
Already in 1977, some North American scientific researchers discovered that this chemical induced sterility in workers who produced it. This caused the immediate prohibition of its use in California, which was extended, after two years, to the whole territory of the USA. So, the use and production of Nemagon (dibromine propane chloride) were prohibited in the very hearth of the empire, but the same didn¹t happen with the possibility of exporting it to other countries. The aim was to consume the unsold stocks which were stored in the warehouses of the multinationals, that would have lost millions of dollars in case of total prohibition.

Chinandega, the region of Nicaragua in which, still now, are concentrated the biggest bananas¹ plantations in lands put out to contract by little owners to Dole, Chiquita and Standard fruit, which ³have employed² during the years more than 8000 workers, will inherit, in addition to a devastating number of victims, a general pollution and contamination of water layers for about 120 years. The majority of people living in the area draws water from those layers.

The beautiful bananas of the multinationals that we see in the biggest chains of distribution, also in Italy, and their reassuring ads, hide behind their beautiful aspect an indiscriminate use of pesticides and fertilizers.

Nemagon was used because it was noticed that it eliminated a microscopic worm which prevented bananas from being exported to the United States, but also because it increased production and improved the appearance of bananas.

On 17th January 2001, after a long wait and more than two years of hard fights of banana tree workers, the Law 364 was promulgated: ³Special Law to Promote Trials demanded by Persons Affected by the use of Pesticides Produced with DBCP². It represents a very important step in Central America, as it is the unique specific law in the whole continent which laid the basis to force the multinationals that produced, distributed, used and sold Nemagon and Fumazone to refund the enormous damages caused, during all these years, to the workers of bananas¹ plantations.

Following this law, the 28th of February 2001, the victims of Nemagon, who created the ASOTRAEXDAN (Asociación de trabajadores y Ex Trabajadores Afectados por el Nemagón), represented by the lawyer¹s office Ojeda, Gutierrez, Espinosa and associated, took before the Third Civil Jurisdiction of the District of Managua the first legal actions for damages and lesions. The three lawyers from Nicaragua who started proceedings against seven multinationals from USA are supported, thanks to a meeting almost casual with Victorino Espinales Reyes (the president of ASOTRAEXDAN), by the lawyers Thomas Gerardi and Walter Lack, also from USA, who already won some proceedings for ³massive damages² against powerful companies, obliging them to refund those people who took legal action through Legal Authorities.
Up to now 3600 legal actions have been taken
Now in Nicaragua there are almost 4000 new workers in the plantations put out to contract to Chiquita and Standard Fruit, which have re-launched the production of bananas so that now it is almost on the same levels as in the seventies, but also their condition is similar to that of those years. One dollar for a working day of 8 hours, suspects of use of dangerous chemicals, lack of welfare contributions.
Perché The campaign
We are convinced that ³a different world is possible² and that ³another word is under construction² and, because of this, we want to make our contribution to nail the multinationals to their responsibilities. Today it seems not only possible, but feasible to force multinationals to respect at least some behaviour rules.
We want to make our contribution to focus on behaviours of the multinationals of bananas, and to reaffirm that the world cannot be governed only by profit strategies.

The campaign follows two main routes:
1. Collecting funds on behalf of the workers of bananas¹ plantations to afford the immediate medical charges.

2. Sending pressure post cards to the multinationals responsible for the production of Nemagon, to those which used it in the plantations and to those which sold the products, that are the same against which the workers of Association ASOTRAEXDAN took legal action.

Dow Chemical Company, Shell Oil Company, Occidental Chemical Company. Dole Limited Company, Chiquita Brand, Del Monte, Standard Fruit Company

Post cards can be sent also by Internet, visiting the Web www.itanica.org in the section ³Campagna bananeras².
Who would like to contribute to organising costs can use the post office account n. 13.68.54.66, or the bank account n. 19.990 (b.p. Milano ag.21) registered in the name of: Associazione Italia -Nicaragua Via Saccardo 39 - 20134 Milano (specifying in the description of payment if the contribution is for the campaign or for the costs to promote it).
To get further information, tel. and fax: 02.2140944
E-mail: [email protected]

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