OECD complaints against Shell
16-05-2006
Victims of Shell filed complaints regarding the behaviour of the oil company in the Philippines and Brazil on Monday, May 15th, one day before Shell’s Annual General Meeting. Coletivo Alternativa Verde and the Labor Union of Petroleum By-Products Workers in the State of São Paulo (Brazil), the United Front to Oust Oil Depots and the Fenceline Community for Human Safety and Environmental Protection (Philippines), Friends of the Earth the Netherlands, and Friends of the Earth International submitted the complaints to the Dutch National Contact Point (NCP) of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in The Hague. The complaints reveal that Shell has violated national legislation, damaged the environment and human health, and manipulated people and governments.
In the Philippines, Shell is guilty of
manipulating local authorities and failing to adequately inform local residents
and employees about the dangers of its operations. This involves the
withholding of information on the environmental, health and safety consequences
of Shell’s activities. Furthermore, the company lacks plans to diminish the
dangers around its oil depot.
In São Paulo, Brazil, the main allegations
concern chemicals that Shell has stored at and below its facilities for over
twenty years. In January, 2005, the Brazilian government demanded that the
company stop this practice and that it help workers and local residents with
health complaints related to chemicals and high levels of heavy metals in their
blood. However, the company has not taken a proactive response to this
requirement and has shown little concern for its own employees and local
residents.
Anne van Schaik, Globalization campaign manager at Friends of the Earth
Netherlands states, “The complaints show that Shell is still not respecting the
environment and human rights worldwide. Therefore we ask the government to
help. They have to take care Shell is behaving the same way in other countries
as they do in the Netherlands”.
“Now it is of importance that the NCP quickly takes action regarding the filed
complaints. People and the environment have already suffered too long because
of the socially irresponsible way in which Shell operates”, relates Paul de
Clerck, international coordinator of the Corporates Campaign of Friends of the
Earth International.
Complaints about companies that do not comply with the internationally agreed
OECD Guidelines for Multinational Enterprises can be submitted to OECD
Governments. It is the first time in three years that Dutch NGOs have filed
complaints to the Dutch NCP. Dutch NGOs had lost faith in the OECD Guidelines
complaint mechanism and the functioning of the NCP due to disappointing
outcomes in the past. However, the Dutch NCP recently undertook an evaluation
and expressed a willingness to improve its functioning and handling of cases.
Friends of the Earth and its partners now call on the Dutch NCP to put these
good intentions into practice by playing an effective role in the resolution of
the issues raised on an expedited basis.
To read the complaints against Shell click here
| This news item originates from: | OECD Watch |
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