Two members of the Dutch Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) submitted questions in Parliament on June 11th about the alleged complicity of the Swedish oil company Lundin in human rights abuses in Sudan and the relationship between the Dutch Government and Lundin's activities in The Netherlands. At the time the company was active in Sudan, it was registered at the Chamber of Commerce in The Netherlands. The parliamentary questions follow the release the report 'Unpaid Debt' by the European Coalition on Oil in Sudan, an NGO coalition coordinated by IKV Pax Christi.
In 1997 a consortium led by Lundin Oil contracts to extract oil in Block 5A, an area that until escaped the civil war. The report shows that there is a direct link between Lundin Oil's operations and the escalation of war in the region. As a result of the war, 12 000 people were killed and moreover 160 000 people displaced. The report concludes that Lundin Oil may be found complicit in violating international law by avoiding to act, or by indirectly supporting war crimes and crimes against humanity. It also believes that the oil company should compensate the civilian population affected by war.
ECOS is calling on the Swedish, Austrian and Malaysian governments to investigate whether, as a matter of international law, the companies ‘were complicit in the commission of war crimes and crimes against humanity by others during the period 1997-2003.’ Furhtermore, ECOS is calling for the oil companies to recompense survivors of the violence. A material right to compensation for past injustices that occurred as a result of oil exploitation is created in both Sudan’s Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) and the country’s Interim National Constitution, but no adequate compensation has been received to date.
For more information visit the ECOS website.
