Volume 59 - December 16, 2004
A REAL LIFE SCROOGE vs. BOLIVIA'S POOR - A CALL FOR ACTION!
Dear Readers:
At Christmas time one of the characters that comes to life anew is Scrooge, the man of great wealth who treats the poor with disdain and abuse. Here is the real story of a real life Scrooge - and a plea for you to take a very simple action (see below) that can make a real difference.
Last week I met with the Bolivian Vice Minister who is dealing with the Bechtel Corporation's $25 million legal action against the people of Cochabamba over the now famous water revolt. The Vice Minister confirmed that Bechtel is ready to drop its case for a token payment of what amounts to thirty cents! This is clearly the result of all of the public pressure people around the world have put on Bechtel and it would be a huge victory for Bolivians and the people who have helped fight their behalf.
However, Bechtel's junior partner in the Cochabamba deal, the Spanish engineering giant Abengoa, has refused to agree to the settlement - the Scrooge from Seville intent on sacking poor Bolivian families for millions of dollars the company never invested and never earned.
Up until now Abengoa and its leaders have enjoyed anonymity while public attention has focused on Bechtel. Today that changes. Today The Democracy Center is launching a worldwide citizen campaign to demand that Abengoa drop its demand against the Bolivian people.
We need your help! Our own letter to Abengoa's chairmen is below. I hope you will take the sixty seconds necessary right now to add your voice with a simple email to them as well. Here's how:
1) Highlight and copy the text below:
Felipe Benjumea Llorente
Javier Benjumea Llorente
Chairmen, The Abengoa Corporation
Along with thousands of others across the world I believe that it is unjustified and unconscionable that you and Abengoa continue to demand $25 million from the people of Bolivia, some of the poorest families on earth. Your water company in Bolivia has already done enormous damage to the Bolivian people, including the death of a 17 year old boy. If you and Abengoa have any sense of decency and morality you will drop your World Bank case against Bolivia and do so immediately. I look forward to hearing your response.
2) Please add your name at the bottom and feel free to add to or edit the note anyway you like. Then send it to these addresses below (a copy will come to us at The Democracy Center).
abengoa@abengoa.com, info@democracyctr.org
In "A Christmas Carol", in the end, Scrooge had a change of heart. Please help us take aim at the real life Scrooges from Seville and keep them from gouging millions of dollars from Bolivia's poor. We'll keep readers up to date on new developments through this newsletter and through The Democracy Center's new "Blog from Bolivia" accessible at:
Many thanks to all,
Jim Shultz
The Democracy Center
OUR LETTER TO THE CHAIRMEN OF ABENGOA
Felipe Benjumea Llorente
Javier Benjumea Llorente
Chairmen, The Abengoa Corporation
Seville Spain
(via e-mail)
Dear Sirs:
I am writing to you from Cochabamba, Bolivia. It was here five years ago that the company you co-own with Bechtel, Aguas del Tunari, took over the water and raised rates so unconscionably for poor families that the entire population of the city rebelled.
You surely know the history here. When your company refused a permanent reduction in your price hikes the government declared a state of martial law to protect your interests. A seventeen year old boy, Victor Hugo Daza, was killed. More than a hundred others were wounded. An entire city was thrown into turmoil as your managers declared their intent to stay and charge prices for water so high that families earning a minimum wage of $60 per month were forced to choose between water and food.
Today you are still demanding money from the poor families whom you have already made suffer so much - a $25 million demand that far exceeds any investment that you could have made in the brief months you were here. Until now the attention of the world has focused on your corporate partner, Bechtel. It is now, however, a matter of public record that it is Abengoa that is preventing settlement of this case and starting today citizens all over the world will begin sharing that news with the media, your investors, your colleagues in Seville, and your current and potential clients.
Please forgive the harsh tone of this correspondence but Abengoa has had more than two years to consider the public opposition to its action against Bolivia, and Abengoa has chosen to continue its irresponsible demands against the poor nonetheless. I and thousands of others worldwide urge you to immediately join with Bechtel in dropping your $25 million demand against the Bolivian people.
Sincerely,
Jim Shultz
Executive Director
The Democracy Center
Cochabamba, Bolivia
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THE DEMOCRACY CENTER
SAN FRANCISCO: P.O. Box 22157 San Francisco, CA 94122
BOLIVIA: Casilla 5283, Cochabamba, Bolivia
TEL: (415) 564-4767
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