Trafigura: Is Trafigura's exemption legal? Government lawyer disagrees

Voice of America - The BBC has apologized to a commodities-trading firm, Trafigura, for saying the company caused deaths and injuries in Ivory Coast through the dumping of toxic waste.

In a statement read in a London court Thursday, the British broadcaster said it withdraws the allegation that the waste caused deaths, miscarriages or other serious or long-term injuries.

The BBC also apologized to Trafigura for claiming otherwise on its program Newsnight.

Trafigura says the BBC has agreed to pay the company $40,000 in damages, which Trafigura says will be donated to charity.

In 2006, a company hired by Trafigura dumped toxic waste in the Ivorian city of Abidjan. Tens of thousands of residents said the waste made them sick, and Ivorian officials say 15 people died.

However, Trafigura has consistently denied any wrongdoing. It says independent experts found no link between the waste and the deaths and injuries.

The BBC acknowledged the experts' conclusion in a separate statement Thursday.

Trafigura settled a class-action lawsuit from more than 30,000 Ivorians earlier this year, agreeing to pay about $1,550 per person. The settlement stated that at worst, the waste could have caused low-level flu-like symptoms.

The Dutch company previously agreed to a $198 million settlement with the Ivorian government in 2007. That agreement exempted it from any legal action in the West African country.

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Note: In September this year an independent United Nations human rights expert said evidence indicates that the dumping of toxic wastes caused over one dozen deaths and dozens of illnesses in Côte d’Ivoire in 2006. Okechukwu Ibeanu, the Special Rapporteur said, “But there seems to be strong prima facie evidence that the reported deaths and adverse health consequences are related to the dumping of the waste” from the Probo Koala. See Thursday, September 17, 2009 Pollution: Toxic wastes caused deaths, illnesses in Côte d’Ivoire

On October 8, 2008 a report by IRIN, the humanitarian news and analysis service of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, reported, "Trafigura settled a civil case with the government in February 2007 for US$214 million, which the multimillion dollar international commodities trader said prevented the government from pursuing it for liability or damages, according to the 13 February 2007 agreement.

But on 1 October 2008, on the sidelines of a criminal investigation underway in Abidjan against local port authorities—which Trafigura blames for the illegal dumping— government lawyer, Christophe Koussougro Sery, said the state can pursue Trafigura on criminal charges of poisoning Ivorians, even with the civil settlement.

Lawyer Joseph Brenham with the Paris-based non-profit human rights law firm, Sherpa Association, told IRIN the February 2007 agreement is illegal, and therefore, non-binding, “According to Cote d’Ivoire’s civil code, a civil settlement cannot prevent prosecutions or trial for criminal acts. If the state has the political will to do it, there is nothing that prevents the state from prosecuting Trafigura and its leaders.”

He added that, anyhow, a state cannot negotiate a criminal settlement on behalf of individual victims. See: Friday, October 03, 2008 Cote D'ivoire: Toxic waste criminal investigations may indict higher-ups

On Nov 21, 2009, AFP reported, "Thousands of victims of toxic waste dumped in Ivory Coast are still waiting for compensation two months after a settlement was agreed because of a dispute over who should distribute the money. Oil trading firm Trafigura agreed to pay 33 million euros (49 million dollars) after caustic soda and petroleum residues were dumped in Abidjan.

An out-of-court settlement agreed in London on September 20 awarded 750,000 CFA francs (1,150 euros, 2,200 dollars) to each of the 31,000 victims.

The money

was to be distributed by the victims' British lawyers Leigh Day and Company, but Claude Gohourou, the president of the Ivorian national coordination of toxic waste victims, told AFP he obtained a court order last month blocking payment.

Gohourou called for Leigh Day and Company to prove it was for them to hand out the compensation, and criticised the firm for allowing details of the settlement to remain confidential.

Kouame Klemet, a lawyer with the British firm in Abidjan, pointed out that Trafigura had required the settlement to remain confidential and gave assurances that it was indeed the firm's job to pay the money to the victims.

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