March 6th, 2000
From: Amazon Watch, Project Underground, and Rainforest Action Network

Enviros Question Gore's Commitment in a N.Y. Times Ad

Expose V.P.'s "Deep Ties" to Occidental Petroleum

Gore Urged to Act in Defense of the U'wa People of Colombia

Escalating a campaign questioning Vice President Al Gores environmental
commitment, environmental organizations today placed a full-page ad in the
west coast edition of the New York Times. The ad, whose headline reads "Who
is Al Gore? Environmental Champion or Petroleum Politician? The Uwa people
need to know" substantiates Gores connections to Occidental Petroleum and
argues that the Vice President has a specific responsibility to act on
behalf of the Uwa people.

The U'wa, a remote Colombian tribe, are engaged in a tense standoff with
Los-Angeles based Occidental Petroleum (Oxy) over the drilling of the
Gibraltar 1 oil well. The Uwa, a deeply spiritual people who believe that
oil is the "blood of Mother Earth", have repeatedly stated that they "are
willing to die" to keep oil drilling off of their ancestral lands. More
than 2,500 local farmers, union members, and students have joined thousands
of U'wa and other indigenous peoples in non-violent blockades and protests
near the well site to stop Oxy's project. The heavy military presence
around the oil project has already led to violence against peaceful
indigenous peoples. In the last month, many have been injured and at least
three have died. The situation remains very tense.

Gore has enjoyed the corporate sponsorship of Oxy throughout his political
career. He controls up to $500,000 in Oxy stocks and has received $20,000 a
year for almost 30 years from mining rights to his land that Oxy never
mined. Gores father made a great deal of his wealth while working for Oxy
and its ex-chairman, Armand Hammer. Gore Sr. sat on the Board of Oxy for
twenty-eight years. Since Gore was elected Vice President, Oxy Chairman Ray
Irani has given more than $400,000 to the Democratic Party. Furthermore,
Gore's "reinventing government" initiative resulted in the sale of the Elk
Hills Naval Petroleum Reserve to Occidental in 1998. The unprecedented
closed bidding process was the largest privatization of federal property in
U.S. history, one that tripled Occidentals U.S. oil reserves overnight.

Environmental and human rights leaders have been attempting to direct the
Vice President's attention to this issue for years. In March 1998, the
Amazon Coalition wrote the Vice President on this issue requesting his
assistance. There was no reply. A month later a full-page ad in the New
York Times generated hundreds of letters to Gore. Gore also met briefly
with the spokesman for the U'wa people, Berito Kuwaru'wa, after the Indian
chief received the 1998 Goldman Environmental Prize. Despite repeated
attempts, Gore has consistently ducked the issue by attempting to both deny
his connections to Oxy and claim political impotence.

In January, grassroots environmental activists from around the country
began targeting Gore at his campaign appearances. Eight were arrested at a
sit-in at Gore's campaign headquarters over the U'wa issue in Manchester,
New Hampshire. The Democratic debate at the Apollo Theatre was briefly
interrupted by protesters, and in Olympia Washington, U'wa supporters
reportedly drowned out Gore supporters. Just Saturday, activists in Boston
disrupted yet another campaign rally. In all, organizers estimate that at
least twenty-five campaign appearances over the last 6 weeks have been
marred by protests around the U'wa issue. Activists continue to demand that
Gore take action that results in an immediate suspension of Oxy's project,
and a significant reduction of tension on the ground.

"Neither we, nor the U'wa, are going to go away", said Steve Kretzmann of
Amazon Watch. "As a professed champion of the environment, Gore has a
general moral obligation to take action in defense of the U'wa and their
homeland. More importantly, as someone with deep ties and access to
Occidental, Gore clearly has a specific duty to take action in this case.
We won't accept the excuse that he's powerless to stop this situation. As
Vice President of the United States, he has the power to make a difference".

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Distribuido por: Distributed by:
'AMAZON ALLIANCE' FOR INDIGENOUS AND
TRADITIONAL PEOPLES OF THE AMAZON BASIN
1367 Connecticut Ave. NW, Suite 400
Washington, DC 20036-1860
tel (202)785-3334
fax (202)785-3335
amazoncoal@igc.org
http://www.amazoncoalition.org

Disclaimer: All copyrights belong to original publisher.
The Amazon Alliance has not verified the accuracy of the forwarded message.
Forwarding this message does not necessarily connote agreement with the
positions stated there-in.

Todos los derechos de autor pertenecen al autor originario.
La Alianza Amazonica no ha verificado la veracidad de este
mensaje. Enviar este mensaje no necesariamente significa que
la Alianza Amazonica este de acuerdo con el contenido.

La Alianza Amazónica para los Pueblos Indígenas y Tradicionales de la
Cuenca Amazónica es una iniciativa nacida de la alianza entre los pueblos
indígenas y tradicionales de la Amazonía y grupos e individuos que
comparten sus preocupaciones por el futuro de la Amazonía y sus pueblos.
Las ochenta organizaciones del norte y del sur activas en la Alianza
Amazónica creen que el futuro de la Amazonía depende de sus pueblos y el
estado de su medio ambiente.

The Amazon Alliance for Indigenous and Traditional Peoples of the Amazon
Basin is an initiative born out of the partnership between indigenous and
traditional peoples of the Amazon and groups and individuals who share
their concerns for the future of the Amazon and its peoples. The eighty
non-governmental organizations from the North and South active in the
Alliance believe that the future of the Amazon depends on its peoples and
the state of their environment.
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