WHAT: Press Conference and Demonstrations outside Occidental Petroleum Annual Shareholders Meeting
WHERE: Outside Santa Monica Civic Auditorium (1825 Main Street, corner of Pico Blvd in Santa Monica, California)
WHEN: Friday, April 28 at 9:30 am
LOS ANGELES, CA – Riding a wave of growing international support and important victories, leaders of Colombia’s U’wa tribe have arrived in Los Angeles and will attempt to speak to Occidental Petroleum shareholders at the company’s Annual Meeting tomorrow. Roberto Perez and Berito Kuwaru’wa, spokesmen for the U’wa people, have come to LA to urge shareholders to divest from Occidental, which is threatening to drill for oil on their sacred traditional homeland. The U’wa are so opposed to the project that they have repeatedly stated that they are “willing to die” to stop the drilling.
On Friday, sympathetic investors, actor and activist Cary Elwes (the Princess Bride), The Aztec Dancers, and hundreds of U’wa supporters will join in a colorful protest and rally outside the meeting. Inside, the Sinsinawa Dominicans and Walden Asset Management will present a shareholder resolution urging Oxy to asses the financial risks of the Samoré project which has turned into a public relations debacle for Oxy.
Late last month, construction on the proposed drilling site, known as “Gibraltar 1” was stopped by order of a Colombian court, which ruled that drilling could violate the U’wa’s “fundamental rights.” Occidental and the Colombian government have appealed the ruling, despite growing opposition to the plan on the ground.
Over the last several months, a broad cross-section of Colombian civil society has come together in support of the U’wa. Thousands of farmers, students, and union members have joined the U’wa in peaceful blockades of the proposed well site. Several occasions this year, Colombian police broke up the blockades, leading in one instance to the deaths of three children.
Since February, when Colombian troops evicted the U’wa from their land, more than a hundred demonstrations have been held throughout the United States and Europe. Many of these demonstrations have targeted Al Gore, whose family connections to Oxy have become an issue in the presidential campaign. Over 40 demonstrations have also targeted Fidelity Investments, one of the largest shareholders in Oxy.
“Oxy’s Colombian project is a huge risk to investors” said Atossa Soltani, director of Amazon Watch. “Between troubles in the court, resistance on the ground, and the growing concern among international human rights and environmental groups, this project is not a wise investment. Since Oxy refuses to pull out, we’re urging investors to get out of Oxy.”
Roberto Perez and Berito Kuwaru’wa of the U’wa Traditional Authority are available for interviews by calling the contacts above. Beta copies of B-Roll, photos, and additional background information are also available upon request.
U’WA DEFENSE WORKING GROUP is endorsed by the following organizations: Action Resource Center, Amazon Watch, Earthjustice Legal Defense Fund, EarthWays Foundation, Indigenous Environmental Network, Project Underground, Rainforest Action Network, Sol Communications, U’wa Defense Project, International Law Project for Human Environmental and Economic Defense.
