Refleksi : Hebat juga perusahaan pertambangan di wilayah NKRI, kelihatannya tidak ada yang merugikan masyarakat setempat bila dibandingan dengan di Ecuador. Apakah hal ini bisa terjadi karena penguasa NKRI sangat cinta alam ataukah rakyat tidak bekutik untuk memprotes? Ataukah media tidak tertarik, karena penguasa tambang dan konco-konconya menguasai media?
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010\04\08\story_8-4-2010_pg3_3 Thursday, April 08, 2010 COMMENT: Crude violation of rights in Ecuador -Miranda Husain The most impressive feature of this documentary is its refusal to pay homage to the Michael Moore school of filmmaking. Meaning that just as it never becomes a one-man show, nor, too, does it fall into the trap of base stereotyping Back in March, we saw 'The Hurt Locker' sweeping the Academy Awards, picking up a total of six Oscars. The film was applauded for reminding us of the human face of war and for daring to pursue this from a micro-military narrative. In a not entirely dissimilar vein, another American film - this time seeking to share the narrative of the exploited to reconnect us to the very human face of suffering - was, in February, awarded the International Green Film Award. Directed and Produced by Joe Berlinger - the man behind the utterly mesmerising 'Paradise Lost' - 'Crude: The Real Price of Oil' is set against the backdrop of Ecuador's Amazon jungles. Its protagonist comes in the form of a 30,000-strong plaintiff collective, hailing from five different indigenous tribes. Their only weapon is a class action $ 27-billion-lawsuit (filed in 1993) against Texaco, over the latter's alleged dumping of 18 billion gallons of toxic waste in the area. The film reminds us that Texaco began oil drilling in Ecuador in the 1970s, leaving the country in 1991 and handing over operations to the state-run PetroEcuador. When Chevron merged with Texaco in 2001, the resulting entity, Chevron-Texaco, inherited the lawsuit. 'Crude', which was released in 2009, follows the progress of the lawsuit between 2006 and 2007. The most impressive feature of this documentary is its refusal to pay homage to the Michael Moore school of filmmaking. Meaning that just as it never becomes a one-man show, nor, too, does it fall into the trap of a base stereotyping seeking to caricature the 'enemy' in contrast to the measured dignity of the other. Thus we are introduced to a Chevron-Texaco environmental scientist as well as lawyer, both of whom are tasked with responding to the charge sheet before them. The same goes for the Ecuadorian lawyers in the role of defence counsel. Nevertheless, the central focus of the film's narrative does rest on the victims of this 'Amazon Chernobyl'. We hear stories from the indigenous communities. Of petrol-contaminated water resulting in cancer increases; of an overwhelming lack of resources for treatment; of newly-bought livestock dying before any impact on income levels can be secured. Yet, even here, Berlinger ensures that his narrative does not give way to the sensationalism of poverty, suffering or disempowerment. The key to this is his primary focus on a home-grown lawyer who, through his collaboration with an American advocate, comes to represent both the suffering and empowerment of Ecuador's indigenous communities. Pablo Fajardo, recounting how his 14-year-old self worked for Chevron-Texaco, stressed how he witnessed first-hand its systematic degradation of the environment. Yet instead of surrendering to reactive emotions, Mr Fajardo made up his mind to study law - understanding even then that justice can only be fought for within legal parameters. And it is for this reason that he appears to embody fully the empowerment of his country's indigenous communities, given their own search for a legal redressing of this inexcusable violation of their human rights. As the documentary progresses, we come to realise that Berlinger's commitment to allowing the 'villains' to articulate their defence beyond mere soundbytes results in the audience not only receiving a more balanced insight into the issue, but also in posing yet more questions. Consider. The plaintiffs hold Chevron-Texaco solely responsible for the toxic waste dumping, despite the state's complicity in according it full impunity regarding past, present and future degradation. Yet the spotlight limits itself to a first-ever presidential visit to the contaminated areas, which naturally succeeds in securing widespread media coverage of the case. This brings us to another point touched upon by Berlinger: the media-professional celebrity activism marriage being the most effective means of highlighting injustices that should have long ago penetrated global public consciousness. Thus while Vanity Fair's coverage of the lawsuit is hailed as a mainstream media breakthrough, Mr Fajardo is seen lamenting the spotlighting of his own persona over that of cancer-stricken families. Nevertheless, this coverage paves the way for the Rainforest Foundation Fund - founded by celebrity activist power-couple Sting and Trudie Styler - to become involved in the case, thereby raising its profile to the next level. In addition, the Foundation teams up with the Amazon Defence Front and UNICEF to provide a short-term emergency measure of securing clean drinking water for 4,000 people in the contaminated areas. By the film's close, we discover that the 'global assessment' report filed by an independent expert calls for Chevron-Texaco to pay up the $ 27 billion in damages. Yet there is no sense that justice may finally be done. Predictably, the company rejects the report's findings, claiming that Ecuador's judicial system is flawed. This, despite having spent nine years fighting to have the case moved to that country. Similarly, news that Ecuador indicts the Chevron-Texaco lawyer for fraud while charging seven government officials simply represents a long overdue first step. The beauty of 'Crude', therefore, lies not in the hope of a happy ending. Rather, it lies, in the words of one reviewer, in its ability to look "beyond the compassion of the disenfranchised and the corruption of those in power to ask how justice itself is being denied in the 21st century". And it is the answer to this that should haunt us all. The writer is a Lahore-based freelance journalist and is currently working on her first novel. She can be reached at [email protected]
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