Bechtel to Drop World Bank Trade Case
Over Water Revolt
Over Water Revolt
It is official. On Thursday, representatives of the Bechtel Corporation and its co-investor, Abengoa of Spain, will be in Santa Cruz to sign an agreement ending their four year effort to sue Bolivia over the Cochabamba water revolt. Bechtel and Abengoa have been seeking $50 million in damages and lost profits before a secretive trade court (International Center for the Settlement of Investment Disputes) operated by the World Bank, the same institution that coerced Bolivia to privatize its water to begin with.
Bechtel and Abengoa will sign an agreement dropping the case for a token payment of 2 bolivianos, about 30 cents. For a couple of weeks I have been communicating back and forth between Bechtel, the Bolivian government, and water activists here in Cochabamba, trying to force disclosure of the agreement details. As of last night, we have the last of those in hand.
This is a huge victory for activists worldwide who have fought this case on five continents. It is a huge precedent for the growing Web of legal cases in which the world's most powerful corporations seek to tie the hands of people and governments to shape their own economic futures. We know of no other case in the world where a major corporation like Bechtel has dropped its action in response to global citizen pressure.
To reporters just tuning into Bolivia, this is a story well worth your attention. Here's a link to the background. You can get more information by contacting us by email. The Democracy Center will have much more to say about this on Thursday. Keep watching.
