Fiona on her foldaway ‘Brompton’ Bike

Fiona who is 73 years old from Oxford is undertaking a bike ride from Dieppe to Versailles in June to raise funds jointly for The Bhopal Medical Appeal and The Iraqi Association.

Fiona’s route, devised by Donald Hirsch will be a low-traffic route covering 120 miles. Fiona will pay all of her own expenses.

Fiona has a passion for cycling as well as worldwide equality. Sickened by materialism, she considers that no one should have to live in poverty. In particular, she believes that every child has the right to a good childhood. “I would not normally tackle such a long journey by bike, but I want to try and achieve this in order to raise money for needy children” said Fiona.

“Please don’t expect me to go as fast as Sir Bradley Wiggins! At my modest 8mph I anticipate covering 25 miles a day, so the journey should take 5 days”

You can sponsor Fiona online here

Thank you Fiona!

Caitlyn Schuchhardt and other campaigners in solidarity with the ICJB protest outside the Dow AGM in Michigan.

Last week, protesters gathered outside Dow Chemical’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) at the Dow headquarters in Michigan to urge Dow to take responsibility for the ongoing tragedy in Bhopal, India.

In December 1984, 27 tonnes of deadly gasses leaked from a Union Carbide pesticide factory in Bhopal killing 8-10,000 people instantly. An additional 1000,000 people have died as a result since. The abandoned factory has not been cleaned up and continues to leak toxic chemicals into the water supplies of many of the city’s poorest residents.

Union Carbide has been a wholly owned subsidiary of Dow Chemical since they took over the company in 2001. Since the take over, protesters around the world have challenged Dow Chemical over the outstanding liabilities within the Indian Courts and for allowing Union Carbide chairman Warren Anderson to continue to abscond from justice.

Concordia College graduate and International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal (ICJB) advisory board member Caitlyn Schuchhardt who organised the AGM protest told us; “people don’t realize it is still going on today. There is lots of ongoing water contamination. There are medical issues of children still being born with defects.”

Although the Bhopal disaster happened almost 30 years ago, the protest must still go on, Schuchhardt said. “This issue is not going to go away. People really do care about this and want to see them do the responsible thing,” she said.

In light of the Olympic sponsorship deal between Dow Chemical and the International Olympic Committee (IOC), Dow Chemical’s moral reputation has been widely regarded as controversial at best.

Last year’s 2012 Olympic Games in London prompted significant protests over the corporate sponsorship of the event and Schuchhardt doesn’t see the Bhopal protests going away.

“The backlash from last year’s Olympics was awful, absolutely awful for Dow,” she said. “I feel like if they want to do something about that, that they could really use the Olympics as a way to kind of turn this around and address the Bhopal disaster. They could turn this around and make it look good for themselves if they want to, but that does involve admitting responsibility and stepping up and doing what’s right and what’s ethical. We would love to see them do that.”

You can visit the International Campaign for Justice in Bhopal (ICJB)’s website here

Purple Sunbird (Cinnyris asiaticus) on Hibiscus (Hibiscus rosa-sinensis)

Turmeric (Curcuma longa) and Hibiscus (Hibiscus rosa-sinensis)

Danaid Eggfly (Hypolimnas misippus)

Hibiscus flower (Hibiscus rosa-sinensis)

Aloe Vera

Purple Sunbird (Cinnyris asiaticus)

Medicinal Garden, Sambhavna

Purple Sunbird (Cinnyris asiaticus)

Medicinal Garden, Sambhavna

Asian Honey Bee (Apis cerana) on Garden cress, known as ‘Chandrasur’, (Lepidium sativum)

Plain Tiger (Danaus chrysippus) amongst garden cress (Lepidium sativum)

Ashy Prinia or Ashy Wren-Warbler (Prinia socialis)

Thank you for the beautiful photographs Francesca!

Last week Giles Clarke spoke to students at the British International School in New York

Last week Bhopal Medical Appeal supporter Giles Clarke gave his third talk to students at the British International School in New York.

Giles has traveled to Bhopal on numerous occasions and has taken some stunning and dramatic pictures which can be seen here. After seeing the problems in Bhopal first hand, and after getting to know some of the many children born sick, or disabled, as a result of Union Carbide’s poisons, Giles knew he had to help spread the story in as many ways as he could.

Giles has two young sons and had told them many tales of the children of the Chingari Rehabilitation Centre. At this amazing clinic, funded by The Bhopal Medical Appeal, children come every day for various therapies, treating their physical or mental disabilities, and helping them to lead a more normal life. Giles had told his children many times that, despite their problems, and the poor conditions that many of them lived in, that the children at Chingari were fun-loving kids just like themselves. They laugh, cry and play with each other just like children all around the world.

Giles’ sons both go to the British International School in New York, a small school on the East River in Manhattan, and the school has allowed Giles to speak to it’s students on numerous occasions. The students were captivated by Gile’s tales and have been also inspired to do what they can to help the children of Bhopal.

The picture above shows Giles giving a talk to students last week but this is now the third year that the school have been kind enough to invite us to address their students and, each time, they have held a fundraising coin drive event for us.

A big thank you to Giles and to all of the teachers at the British International School in New York. We can’t thank them enough, for taking us to heart in this way, and for their continued support and generosity.

Is your school interested in teaching your students about Bhopal? Or would you like to hold a fundraising event for us? We’d love to hear from you! Get in touch here

Come and watch the extremely talented guitarist/ singer/ songwriter Dick Gaughan in this exclusive performance for Scottish Friends of Bhopal at the Pleasance Cabaret Bar in Edinburgh.

Tickets can be purchased from Word Power Books priced at £15/10.
For more information or to buy tickets via email contact ingridneil@bhopal.org

Ed Page on his way to completing the Marathon

Congratulations and thanks to all of our runners for all of their hard work in training and fundraising for Sunday’s Brighton Marathon. It was a great day with plenty of sunshine for the runners as they attempted the 26.2 mile route across the city.

Sian after finishing this year’s Brighton marathon

This year we had 12 runners who have raised over £5,000 with more yet to come in. You can sponsor them on our Justgiving page here

Tara ‘Ratty’ running for the BMA

Inspired? We still have places in this year’s London 10K run which is taking place on Sunday 14th July 2013. For more info or to sign up get in touch here or call us on 01273 603278.

Rupert who works for the BMA completed his 4th marathon on Sunday.

Our sincerest condolences go to the family and friends of Sam Harper Brighouse who sadly passed away whilst running in Sunday’s Marathon.

Satinath Sarangi protesting outside the offices of Dow Chemical, the owners of Union Carbide, in Mumbai, India. Photo: AFP/ Getty Images

Today in Mumbai more than 200 survivors of the Bhopal gas disaster occupied the offices of Dow Chemical Corporation in Vikhroli, Mumbai. Union Carbide has been a wholly owned subsidiary of Dow Chemical since 2001. The protestors were chanting “No Justice in Bhopal – No Business in India” and demanding that the company recognise the criminal, civilian and environmental liability of Union Carbide.

Security and police officers attempted to lock the gates as the survivors arrived but 150 survivors managed to enter the Dow premises. At first, the police told the protestors that there were no Dow Chemical offices in the area but the survivors persisted and found out there were at least two Dow offices close by. The demonstrators submitted a charter of demands to the representatives of Dow.

Lakhmi Bai came from Bhopal to demand Dow take responsibility for Bhopal. Photo by Kamayani Bali Mahabal.

Union Carbide were responsible for a lethal chemical leak at its plant in Bhopal in 1984 which has led to the deaths of over a hundred thousand people in the past 28 years. The factory lies abandoned and the site remains contaminated to this day. Dow Chemical denies any responsibility for the disaster and refuse to provide remediation to the site.

The survivors were protesting against Dow Chemical who continue to trade in dangerous chemicals while the legacy of Union Carbide continues in Bhopal.  “From the year 2000, we have been making it clear to Dow Chemicals that if they decide to buy Union Carbide, they will have to take all the liabilities too,” said Satinath Sarangi who led the demonstrations. “Cleaning toxic material is one of them and they are simply ignoring that.”

Patients wait to be seen at the Sambhavna Clinic in Bhopal. Photo by David Graham

Press Statement, April 7th 2013

At a press conference organized on the occasion of the World Health Day, staff at the Sambhavna Trust Clinic in Bhopal presented the findings of a recent study that show that the survivors of the December 1984 Union Carbide disaster are more prone to develop high blood pressure than unexposed people from the same socio-economic background.

The study was carried out by the community health workers at the clinic using a sample of 195 persons above 30 years of age from the Rajgarh Colony near the Union Carbide factory and a similar number from 100 Quarters near BHEL Jamboree Grounds. The study showed that 28 % of survivors of the disaster were hypertensive whereas in the unexposed population the figure was 23 %.

Curiously the study showed that 31 % of women had hypertension in comparison to 23 % of men in the gas exposed population. According to World Health Organisation’s ‘global health statistics 2012’ in India, 23.10% of men and 22.60 % of  women over 25 years of age suffer from hypertension. In the unexposed population more men are hypertensive than women.

The study pointed to an alarming fact that 82 % of people in both exposed and unexposed communities were not aware that they were hypertensive. This is particularly worrisome because untreated hypertension can lead to heart attacks, strokes, and kidney failure. Another health risk identified by the study was the prevalence of obesity particularly among female gas victims. 44 % of the women in the gas exposed population were overweight or obese and 68 % of such women were hypertensive.

Dr Mohammad Ali Qaisar, one of the physicians working at the Sambhavna Clinic said that many scientific studies have shown that exposure to pesticide and other toxic chemicals causes hardening and narrowing of blood vessels, called atherosclerosis, that results in high blood pressure in the exposed individuals.

Dr Qaisar pointed out that a large proportion of the Bhopal disaster survivors registered at the Sambhavna Trust Clinic have been diagnosed with hypertension, and in fact, it is the second most common diagnosis.  Among the 7681 gas affected persons over 30 years of age registered at the clinic, 3508 (46 %) have been diagnosed with hypertension. More gas affected women (54%) than men (33%) were found to suffer from hypertension. It is interesting to see that women in the age group 41 to 50 years of age were most diagnosed with hypertension compared to men who were most hypertensive in the age group 51 to 60.

Dr. Qaisar has called upon the Department of Bhopal Gas Tragedy Relief and Rehabilitation to pay special attention to surveillance, treatment, follow up and health education focused on hypertension in the gas affected population.

PhysioNet volunteers refurbishing some of the equipment before it was shipped to Bhopal

PhysioNet, a UK-registered charity, collects redundant paediatric physiotherapy equipment, mobility aids, wheelchairs and other ‘care in the community’ items from around the UK. The equipment is refurbished by volunteers and through their sister charity, HM Prison Service. PhysioNet are the only organisation doing this work and as well as helping the disabled overseas, they are also saving these items from going to scrap or to the landfill.

The collected items are sorted, and once refurbished, are packed in industrial film and stored prior to being shipped, usually in 40ft containers to their overseas ‘customers.’ In the last 14 months shipping containers or the equivalent have rolled out of North Yorkshire destined for Bulgaria, the Democratic Republic of  Congo, Fiji, Kenya, South Africa and Samoa. In nearly all cases the recipients could not afford the equipment which is well beyond the budget of all but a fraction of the disabled.

PyhsioNet was approached by the Bhopal Medical Appeal which supports the Chingari Trust Rehabilitation Centre in Bhopal. The Bhopal gas disaster in 1984 killed 25,000 people and some 120,000 more people still suffer from the continuing effects of the leak. Another charity, the Bilga Hospital Charitable Trust which supports a hospital in the Punjab was also looking to send items to northern India so it was decided that they should share the contents of a single 40ft shipping container.

PhysioNet pride themselves in always filling a contained to capacity and in this instance 754 items were shipped including 160 pieces of paediatric physiotherpay equipment, 270 pairs of crutches and walking sticks, 60 other mobility items, 130 wheelchairs and boxes of spares and 60 items of medical; hardware etc. For customs purposes PhysioNet provides an invoice valuing everything at about 10% of the new cost (a conservative estimate of this consignment if new, would be £125,000).

Over the past few months, volunteers from PhysioNet have been collecting items specifically requested by the Chingari Trust and Rehabilitation Center–items that are critical for the growth and development of disabled Bhopali children affected by the gas disaster and water contamination crisis.

Melanie from the BMA with the equipment before it was shipped to Bhopal

The Journey

The container travelled by road from North Yorkshire to Leeds, then by train to Tilbury where it was loaded onto the container ship Vietnam Express which set sail on the 20th March 2013. On arrival at Mumbai, the consignment will again travel by road, this time to the Contained Depot in Ludhiana (Punjab), where it will clear Indian customs. The Bhopal Medical Appeal are then responsible for opening the container and transporting the items destined for Chingari to Bhopal.

Thanks to Melanie Hadida and Peter Thompson for all of their hard work with the coordination of the consignment. Thank you also to Dr Robert Arnott who allowed the BMA to share his shipping consignment to India.

Thousands of people suffered agonising deaths in 1984 when Union Carbide released a cloud of toxic gas in Bhopal, India. Another 15,000 died afterwards, victims of the toxic cloud of methyl-isocyanate gas (MIC), and 100,000 still require constant care.

The abandoned factory continues to leak chemicals into the surrounding environment, sickening another 30,000 people. The poisonous gas and the chemicals leaching into the environment have caused birth defects, cancers, infertility, learning disabilities and chronic diseases.

Dow Chemical now owns Union Carbide. Neither company accepts responsibility. Neither has agreed to clean up the poisonous remains of the factory.

Although the long nightmare continues, the Sambhavna Clinic is growing hope. Since 1996 the clinic has offered free medical care to Bhopal survivors. An important part of the care offered is the clinic’s medicinal garden.

Health Care without Harm (HCWH) created the film below, telling the story of the clinic’s approach to treatment. In a press release about the film, they say:

In the video, Satinath ‘Sathyu’ Sarangi, a founding trustee of the Sambhavna Clinic, discusses one of the most traditional aspects of the clinic’s treatment: a healing garden. Medicinal plants and herb are grown in the garden, and staff harvest and prepare them for use in treatment of illness. During their visits to the clinic, patients are allowed to dig plants from the clinic’s healing garden to take home to grow. They are given instructions on how to prepare their own treatments from the plants. In some parts of the city, community gardens containing these herbs and plants are shared by residents.

“This clinic sends a powerful message to the people of Bhopal,” stated Bill Ravanesi, co-chair of the HCWH Green Building Work Group and producer and director of “A Garden Grows in Bhopal. “Many of the injuries suffered from the toxic spill are debilitating, and would give anyone a reason to despair. Yet, when you see the empowerment that is now being made possible through education and outreach, you feel that hope and opportunity is being provided by this clinic.” The clinic’s name, “Sambhavna,” means “possibility.”

Heath Care without Harm is an international coalition of more than 500 organizations in 53 countries, working to transform the health care sector, without compromising patient safety or care, so that it is ecologically sustainable and no longer a source of harm to public health and the environment.

You can visit their website here