Thousands of people, most of them poor, were killed by a massive leak of toxic chemicals in Bhopal, India in 1984. Hundreds of thousands were left ill and further impoverished because of exposure to the fumes. A quarter of a century later the community remains ravaged.

This year marks the 25th anniversary of the disaster and the people of Bhopal are still struggling to rebuild their lives, campaigning for justice and fighting for adequate compensation. No one has ever been held accountable for the massive gas leak and its impact.

The disaster and its aftermath raise fundamental questions about the accountability and morality of the world’s giant corporations. Read Amnesty International’s report, Dodging Responsibility: Corporations, Governments and the Bhopal Disaster(pdf 299kb)

Rashida Bee, President, Bhopal Gas Affected Women
© Maude Dorr

Amnesty International is calling for:

  • The Government of India to take urgent and decisive action to ensure that those accused face justice in the ongoing criminal proceedings.


  • The Dow Chemical Company to cooperate fully in the ongoing legal proceedings in order to ensure that those responsible are held accountable


  • Support for the campaign for justice in Bhopal, including prosecution and punishment of those found to be criminally responsible. We will continue to join survivors and activists to demand justice, accountability and an end to 25 years of human rights violations.


A human rights travesty

In the immediate aftermath, between 7,000 and 10,000 people died and a further 15,000 died over the next 20 years. After a quarter of a century more than 100,000 people continue to suffer from health problems. Most of the people affected by the gas leak were poor and many lost the main wage earner in the family or their animals - a key source of income. Thousands of people lost their jobs or their ability to earn money because of health problems and virtually all those affected by the leak were driven deeper into poverty.

Corporate doublestandards

Even before the disaster, there was evidence of serious failures by Union Carbide at the Bhopal plant. The company stored a dangerous substance without adequate safety mechanisms, failed to set up a comprehensive emergency plan to warn local communities about leaks, even though it had such a plan in place in the USA.

Such corporate double standards often place the human rights of the poor in developing countries at greater risk. In the immediate aftermath of the Bhopal tragedy, Union Carbide provided some support to relief operations. However, the company also sought to limit its compensation responsibilities and walked away from Bhopal without adequately cleaning up the factory site, leaving the victims to cope with the pollution.

To this day the site has never been properly cleaned up and the leak not properly investigated.

Government failings

An out-of-court compensation settlement of US$470 million was reached between Union Carbide and the Government of India four years after the disaster but was considered inadequate by victims, civil society groups and others. Even then, those trying to access compensation faced corruption, long delays and no appropriate appeal mechanisms.

State action since the leak has been inadequate, the plant site remains contaminated and the government has repeatedly failed to deliver on promises to the survivors and their families.

Amnesty International supports the campaign for justice in Bhopal and its members will continue to join survivors and activists to demand justice, accountability and an end to 25 years of human rights violations.

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