Lawyer for Ecuadorian victims of Chevron oil pollution calls Canadian Supreme Court decision to hear the case "a great triumph”
“Ecuadorean Rainforest Communities Continue Their Long Fight Against Chevron”, 25 Sep 2015
…For more than two decades, 30,000 poor farmers…have campaigned for environmental justice against the Chevron corporation, which they accuse of polluting vast stretches of their territory. On September 4, Canada's high court ruled unanimously that the Ecuadoreans can put the American oil giant on trial in Toronto, in an effort to seize $9.5 billion in damages from its Canadian subsidiary…Pablo Fajardo, the 42-year-old lead attorney for the 30,000 plaintiffs…called the Canadian decision "a great triumph,"…But, he cautioned: "No one here is celebrating anything. There is happiness, because we have more hope, but we are conscious that Chevron is very powerful and we have a lot more work ahead of us to win this long battle."...The Canada court decision also has broader implications worldwide. If the 30,000 Ecuadorean farmers do win in the end, they will have set an inspiring example, showing that environmental justice across borders is possible even against a colossus like Chevron…