The Bhopal Massacre

THE BHOPAL MASSACRE

T.G. Jacob

The night of December 2 came early in the bastis of Bhopal surrounding the Union Carbide plant. Weary from a day’s heavy labour, the workers living in the slum colonies had their frugal meals and lay down for a much needed sleep. The few youth who had gone to the cinemas came in late and turned in. The thousands huddled in their blankets, in huts made of gunny sacks, tin sheets and mud, slept on, unaware of the death stalking them. By 12 pm the deadly gas had started ‘leaking’ from the plant. The first sensation of something wrong was irritation of the nose and throat. The few who woke up clutched their throats as the acrid gas crept in. Yet in their innocence the reaction of many was to think it was the smell of burning chillies. But within minutes they were forced to realise that it was something more serious. The killer gas crept in relentlessly and children started coughing. By now people were getting panicky. They opened the doors (in many cases a gunny sack to cover the entrance) and came out to see their neighbours coughing and rushing out into the open, only to expose themselves to a more severe attack as the gas lay heavily all around them. The deluge had started. Thousands fled the bastis, the narrow gullies were jammed. On the roads the human stream was joined by a stream of vehicles fleeing the city. Many fell dead on the streets, some due to sheer exhaustion and shock. A group which had fled terror stricken into a temple lay dead at the altars of the gods. 

Bhopal is the capital of Madhya Pradesh. The Chief Minister and his whole entourage, including the top bureaucracy, reside here. But while millions poured out into the streets and total chaos prevailed, the rulers were absent – they had fled at the first hint. By 3 to 4 am the Army was in action: to carry out an emergency effort to diffuse the gas and, more importantly, to cover up the evidence of the dimensions of the massacre. Heavy army trucks were used to dump the bodies in far away forests and in the river. Yet even at 6 am one of the few who went back to the plant area saw hundreds of bodies on the roads surrounding it. On the 3rd morning bulldozers were pressed into service – to dig up mass graves and shovel the remaining evidence out of sight. Now that the ‘accident’ was over the cover up had begun. It intensified over the following days as the rulers and Carbide officials backed up by official scientists spoke lie after lie. Yet the masses in the bastis of Bhopal know the truth – no lie will extinguish the anger burning in their hearts. They will not rest content till the killer Carbide company is uprooted from the soil of India and the culprits are punished. 

Genesis of the Massacre

The questions raised by the unprecedented mass murder in Bhopal, the responsibility for which rests directly on the Union Carbide company and the Government of India are many. Already, several viewpoints have emerged. These viewpoints range from the “cost of progress” thesis to extreme environmentalist positions like “back to nature.” These viewpoints have numerous variations within themselves also. Apart from the several political and economic aspects of what happened in Bhopal veiled military questions have also been raised. 

The commonly and repeatedly aired angle is that of the blatantly discriminatory standards on safety precautions in the case of industries using and producing hazardous materials. According to all reports the quality of safety precautions in the Bhopal killer plant was utterly insufficient to guarantee the safety of either workers or the people living around the plant. The comparison with the West Virginia plant in the US (owned by the same transnational) brings this out beyond the shadow of a doubt. There a five-tier computerised safety system is in operation, while here a crude and ineffective safety system (even this ghost of a safety system entirely ‘failed’ when the ‘accident’ occurred) was considered sufficient. In fact, even this much was considered unnecessary with the result that, under the pretext of maximising profits and economising costs, vital components of the utterly insufficient safety system, like the air conditioning plant, were shut down weeks prior to the leakage. 

Not only was the safety system deceptive and crude, the production process was itself built-in with serious dangers. An outdated production process which is disallowed in the capitalist/imperialist countries was applied here.  Yet another naked discrimination was the utter disregard about establishing such factories in thickly populated areas. in fact, the more populated the area is, the more happy are the capitalists because the cost of labour power can be further depressed and profits further hiked. All these factors are only too obvious in the case of Bhopal. 

This kind of criminal policy can by no means be the result of any ‘accident.’ What it shows is the philosophy of the local ruling classes and imperialist capital. Both of them don’t give a damn for the lives of hundreds of crores of people living in the third world and these people are only fodder for generating ever increasing profits. They have no other philosophy and the regular perpetuation of war and pogroms ably shows that these vultures will stop at nothing in their drive to protect and further their economic and political power over the rest of the world. History, both past and present, shows no indications to the contrary. Human lives are easily expendable at the altar of profit and nature itself gets disfigured and destroyed. Everything gets poisoned – air, soil, water, vegetation and living organisms, whether animal or human, dependant on nature get affected. 

It is not that people are unaware of all this. When industrialisation propelled by the insatiable greed of the ruling classes gained ever more speed and rapid technological innovations become the key to grabbing super profits, the poisoning and ravaging of living organisms and nature gained unprecedented velocity. As a result of the partial recognition of this serious problem various ecological and environmental movements developed and gained momentum especially in the industrially advanced capitalist/imperialist countries. At present this trend has even developed into the formation of reformist political parties like the Greens in West Germany programmatically centred on environmental and ecological questions. The banning of numerous harmful drugs as well as the production and production processes of several chemical products in capitalist and imperialist countries is partly catalysed by the growth of these movements. 

The development of consciousness about ecological and environmental questions in the dominating countries also helped the crystallisation of a new international division of labour. Outdated technology and equipment could be sold, at fabulous profits, to neo-colonial countries and thus imperialist capital could manage to expand its market as well as avoid the loss which would have otherwise resulted. Even without this development of environmental and ecological consciousness the older and cruder production processes would have become inoperable in those countries due to the essential dynamism of their economies. With the steep rise in the cost of labour power, more and more labour-saving production processes had to be developed and this necessitated the phenomenal development of technology. Modernisation became the key to maximum profits and the technological gap between different parts of the world became even wider. 

At the same time, capital and other resources that have gone into the production of the now obsolete technology and equipment have to be profitably recovered. Otherwise the whole game of high speed modernisation is bound to crash. Under the given world economic and political situation this was not a very difficult proposition because the continents of Africa, Asia and Latin America, which were utterly impoverished due to long periods of colonial plunder, easily provided a vast potential market for not only obsolete technology, plant and equipment, but also surplus capital accumulated by imperialist economies. Those third world countries which never wrested complete freedom from imperialist domination and under pressure to develop the production base started getting industrialised within this broad pattern. 

The Bhopal Union Carbide plant having scores of similar establishments (not necessarily under foreign ownership) came into being in India as part of the above mentioned plan of economic development. Imperialist capital and technology was invited with folded hands and the state, private, and directly foreign owned sectors registered spectacular expansion. And, of course, the market, external debt and dependence also developed in magnitude as well as complexity. It is but natural that the political influence of imperialist capital also will develop along with the other developments. As is pointed out by the case of Bhopal the ruling political leadership of the country is in no position to alienate the multinationals even when the cost is in terms of tens of thousands of human lives. 

By this time it is well known that the much trumpeted developmental model, which contained ‘green revolution’, ‘white revolution,’ etc. was an imposed one without much relevance to the local conditions or resources. The basic criterion was the profitability to imperialist capital and their wholesale agents within the country, not the interests of the people of the land.  They did not pursue the path of organic agriculture as hammered home by Gandhian economists like JC Kumarappa, who had pointed out long back about the need for utmost caution regarding the use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides, and warned against inviting imperialist capital into this or other important fields. Instead they begged the multinationals with folded hands to come in and establish their own subsidiaries or give the raw materials, capital and technology to produce the same products. 

Both ways imperialist capital stood to gain tremendously. They found a way out for their obsolete technology, surplus capital and dangerous raw materials. And because of the particularities of countries like India with its cheap labour, utter lack of consideration for matters like safety of the workers or people living around overhead costs are much lower than in any imperialist or capitalist country. Profits are huge and the vultures are not the ones to miss such golden chances. Imperialist governments lent their full weight to these efforts at penetration and plunder and in the process tremendously strengthened their political power over the dependent countries. And these governments will see to it that even if something bigger than Bhopal occurs, those directly responsible will not come to any harm. 

Thus we see that imperialist production relations play the most crucial role in why mass murders like that in Bhopal take place. Ecological and environmental problems involved in such episodes are only a product of the basic malady plaguing the society and only the destruction of the essential cause can effectively set right the ecological and environmental questions. Same is the situation with regard to safety systems, etc. One important advantage for imperialist capital in starting factories here is that they don’t have to go in for such niceties like computerised safety systems, and so on, which obviously will reduce their super profits. A differential standard with regard to safety systems is not something that has come into existence with Bhopal. This particular differential standard is only one among many differential standards which operate at every level. And it is not only the transnational subsidiaries who are the beneficiaries. The so-called Indian industrial sector—whether owned by private compradors or the biggest single comprador, i.e. the state,—also practises the same level of safety systems. The state-owned mines are perpetual death traps for the workers. The chemical industries owned by the state and other compradors working on the base of foreign technology are all constantly poisoning the workers and other people. 

The Bhopal mass murder has also brought to sharp focus the real nature of the Indian state. Though we can say in a general way that it is the pattern of economic development taken by the ruling classes that results in such massacres, the political inter-linkages have to be understood better in their intricacy. In this regard the shameless servility of the Government of India to the imperialist masters can have no better illustration than Bhopal. Even after a minimum of 20,000 people were killed and several lakhs of others ‘injured,’ the government and the entire bourgeois media is consistently telling lies about the dimensions of what happened. No official or bourgeois media reports have gone beyond the estimate of over 2500 people killed. Moreover, the government is repeatedly stating that everything is alright in Bhopal. But other reports clearly state that the after-effects of gas poisoning are deadly, and it is even estimated that at least half of the affected people will die a slow death within a period of five years. The official scientists state that the vegetation in Bhopal is unaffected. They are incredibly shameless because anybody can see with his/her own eyes that even giant trees withered and turned black under the effect of the gas. 

Why do the government and bourgeois media go in for all these lies and desperately hide the reality from the masses? They are all bonded to imperialist interests by strong economic chains. They derive benefits and owe their continued existence to the imperialist masters and in this sense both the interests merge together. Their common enemy is the masses, and that is why the imperialist media, Indian bourgeois media and the Indian state are all unitedly trying every means to keep the people ignorant about what actually happened in Bhopal. 

Not only is the government trying its best to underplay the Bhopal massacre and hide the truth from the people but its statements are riddled with contradictions. This shows that the government is not even willing to concede that the people have common sense. The subsequent events after the deadly gas killed tens of thousands and permanently maimed several lakhs are even better illustrations of its servility. 

First came the mockery of the Union Carbide chairman’s arrest and release. Warren Anderson flew into India just after the massacre was committed. He was given a red carpet welcome and lodged in the posh Union Carbide rest house in Bhopal by the M.P. government. At the same time, the government proclaimed that Anderson is arrested for his “criminal complicity in the accident.” Now it is reported that when this statement from the Madhya Pradesh CM was published the PM himself intervened and the top murderer was flown into Delhi in a special plane and subsequently seen off to his bastion with full honours. And after reaching America he arrogantly declared that Union Carbide has no intention of closing down its Bhopal plant!

Then there was the scene of hundreds of US lawyers chasing the corpses. They came, hired locals, and started an elaborate process of getting affidavits filled and signed by the surviving victims in the hope of pocketing huge sums as compensation in US courts. The government knew full well what was going on, but did not raise even a small finger against this gruesome exhibition of absolute freedom for imperialist leeches. An American multinational committed the mass murder and then there came the American lawyers to grab some of the compensation. So much for the integrity and self-respect of the government of the so-called republic of India!

Quite naturally, it is beyond this government to raise even its little finger against Union Carbide, American lawyers, or any other imperialist vice grip and it is against its guiding philosophy to alienate imperialists. This is especially so because the government is desperately trying to step up the imperialist plunder through every possible avenue; it has opened up every nook and corner of the economy to imperialist penetration. In this context, it is utterly inconceivable that it will be able to seek appropriate redressal.  

It is not just the structural factors that stand against officially booking Union Carbide. As it came out in the press immediately after the mass murder, Union Carbide (like any other imperialist blood sucker) has established intimate relationships with powerful individuals in the administrative and political hierarchy. Many of the top dogs in the state politics were being regularly entertained at the Union Carbide rest house. Their kith and kin were given lucrative jobs with the Bhopal plant or any one of its other units. Similarly, Union Carbide had looked after many in the central government also. We know it very well that the vision of the bureaucrat bourgeoisie in India, for that matter in any neo-colony, is extremely limited and crumbs like regular supply of wine or a paying job for a near relative or a plain and simple cash bribe is enough to make them serve anybody’s purpose. Imperialists are masters of this art. It is obvious from the countless reported incidents of corruption, etc. linked to their operations in the neo-colonies. 

The ruling class in India and their political representatives are chained to imperialism in countless ways and as is shown by Bhopal the imperialists can get away with any dastardly crimes. It is in this context that we have to seriously investigate the exact nature of the brutality committed on the people of Bhopal. It is a well-known fact that Union Carbide is actively engaged in production for the war machinery. In fact, Union Carbide specialises in manufacturing various products using deadly chemicals which were used as weapons for chemical warfare in the First World War. In other words, it is an active warmonger thriving on the production of maximum potency chemical killers. Its connections are obvious and it spends billions of dollars on research and development every year. 

Apparently, the Union Carbide told the Madhya Pradesh government a couple of years back that their factory is running at a loss. Ironically, a factory running at a loss established a R&D unit at almost double the cost of the factory itself in 1982. And now when Union Carbide became the focus of attention the top scientist of the central government admitted that none of them knew anything about what was going on in the costly R&D unit. Also, another report which came out in the press stated that in 1982, after the establishment of the Rs 25 crore R&D unit, a whole lot of US chemical warfare experts descended on Bhopal. Now, after the mass murder, there are unconfirmed allegations that all those who came under the guise of doctors from the US to Bhopal are chemical warfare experts to study in detail the real effects of the gas(es) released from Union Carbide. Supporting evidence to this contention is provided by the deliberate withholding of the antidote to the gas poisoning that occurred. It is alleged that the Union Carbide doctor was well aware of what the actual effects are and how to deal with them. But he chose to keep it a secret and even went as far as misleading others. 

Another highly suspicious aspect concerns the technicalities of the gas leak itself. To date, no one has bothered to give any convincing explanation of how about 45 tonnes of MIC escaped from a stainless steel tank and the given explanations are full of gaping holes. The hypothesis of experiment held out by Bhopal residents gains even more credibility when we look at the massive cover up promoted by all the arms of imperialism. Though people were freely allowed to die in hospitals one person was singled out for special care. An employee of the Union Carbide who had complained about the possibility of danger much before the actual massacre occurred was affected by gas and he was put in hospital under police guard. None was allowed to meet him and he died under police guard. From all angles, the cover up was massive which unmistakably points at some murderous conspiracy. 

Bhopal is not something mysterious or impossible. Such massacres are quite possible taking into account the nature of the ruling classes and the political and economic structures that they have built up under the guidance of imperialists. Under the given conditions imperialists are not accountable to the government, which in turn is not accountable to the people. And unless the people take on and remove these masters Bhopal is bound to be repeated in one form or the other.

[First published in Mass Line, Jan-Feb 1985]