For
Immediate Release:
ALCAN Commits to Releasing Documents Regarding
Controversial Indian Project
April 22 2004, Montreal- As ALCAN share holders convened in Montreal for the
company's annual general meeting, approximately 80 concerned community members
assembled outside to voice their concerns regarding ALCAN's 45% investment in
the controversial Utkal Alumina International Ltd. (UAIL) project to be established
in the Kashipur region of Orissa, India.
Chanting and singing to the beat of drums, the protesters called for ALCAN to
re-assess their involvement in this project which has faced fierce opposition
from local people in Orissa for the last 12 years. More importantly they called
for ALCAN to release documents to support its claims that the project is environmentally
sound, including the official Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) as well
as evidence indicating that affected villages in the area now support the project.
Independent journalist Frederic Dubois and Abhimanyu Sud, coordinator of an
umbrella group for concerned citizens in the project called "Alcan't In
India", who are both ALCAN shareholders, brought three demands to the ALCAN
management and investors inside the meeting. They reiterated the demands that
both the EIA and evidence of peoples' support be released by a specific date
as well as demanding that a Joint Commision of the relevant ALCAN officials,
independent journalists and concerned community members be established to determine
and verify the position of the local people already affected by the project.
Because of Dubois and Sud's interventions at the meeting, the two were invited
to meet with ALCAN's chief executive for Bauxite and Alumina Michael Hanleyto
further discuss their issues surrounding the UAIL project. Angad Bhalla, an
independent filmmaker who has traveled extensively in the affected areas, wasalso
present. In the course of the meeting, Hanley committed to providing Sud and
Dubois with the requested documents and committed to giving them a specific
date for their delivery by the next week.
Hanley also stated that Alcan has still not decided whether or not to further
develop this long-stalled project. After meeting with Hanley, Sud remarked "while
we are glad that Alcan has finally decided to release the documents, their stated
indecision regarding the project's future is unacceptable given that the livelihoods
of many local people remain in limbo. We are still committed to conveying at
large the documented opposition of local people to the proposed alumina project."
Alcan't in India
A Montreal-based Kashipur solidarity group.
alcantinindia@yahoo.com
(514) 398-7432
www.saanet.org/alcant