Pablo Fajardo
Monday, November 16th 2009
In a statement from the pages of Politico.com, Amazon Defense Coalition PR representative, Karen Hinton asserts that the ADC’s tactics are “above board.” Does Hinton’s definition of “above board” include repeatedly lying about a murder to gain the sympathy and support of a well-intentioned, unsuspecting public? Hinton once again misrepresents a subject we’ve covered here before: the 2004 murder of Wilson Fajardo, brother of plaintiffs’ lawyer Pablo Fajardo.
Hinton asserted her side’s tactics have been above board, adding that, though “no one knows who murdered [the lawyer’s] brother,” the killing came at a time when the lawyer “and other members of the plaintiffs’ legal team had received a number of anonymous death threats connected to the work on the case.”–Politico.com, November 16, 2009
That sounds a lot like the line Pablo Fajardo himself told an audience in Zaragoza, Spain in 2008:
Fajardo has denounced “many problems” during the lawsuit. He mentioned telephone calls, letters and threats. He even said that his brother was murdered during the process. “I cannot say that Chevron killed him, nor can I say they did not.” –EFE Newswire, September 2, 2008
It’s also the same line the Goldman Foundation embraced when it awarded Fajardo its 2008 Environmental Prize:
Fajardo’s brother was killed just months after he joined the legal team; no investigation has taken place and no one has been arrested for the homicide. — Excerpt of narrative from Goldman Environmental Prize
And it’s the line Amazon Watch has disseminated for years:
Fajardo and Yanza have received death threats in Ecuador during their work on the case, and the brother of Fajardo was murdered in 2004 in what observers think may have been a case of mistaken identity. – Amazon Watch Press Release, April 16, 2008
In reality, Wilson Fajardo’s death has been thoroughly investigated and police reports have identified the local individuals responsible. For those interested in the truth, check out a prior post on subject, as well as documents dating back to 2004 that include reports from the police, prosecutors, witnesses and the forensic analysis. You will also find Fajardo’s August 2004 letter asking authorities to investigate his brother’s tragic death, where he identifies the people involved in the crime and never once mentions any connection to Chevron or the Lago Agrio litigation.
With facts and science against them, this is just another example in a long line of lies and fabrications perpetuated by U.S. trial lawyers in an attempt to hold Chevron’s reputation hostage and ransom it back to the company in the form of a settlement.
Wednesday, October 21st 2009
The judicial system in Ecuador is not fair and is far from independent.
Since assuming office in January 2007, President Correa has consolidated his power over all of Ecuador, including its political, financial, and media institutions:
Correa consolidated political power when the Constituent Assembly, which is dominated by his political party, Alianza PAIS, drafted a new constitution, dissolved the National Congress and announced that its decisions were superior to any other ruling by the judicial system.
He threatened that “[j]udges and tribunals that process any action contrary to the decisions of the Constituent Assembly shall be dismissed from their post and subject to corresponding prosecution” and has since made clear that this threat extends to judges that rule against state interests.
Correa claims that the “Executive Branch [can] exert pressure on the Judicial Branch to get the courts to “respond to the needs of the country” and that, as President, he “is not only the leader of the Executive Branch [but] of the entire State and the State is made up of the Executive, the Legislative, and the Judicial branches.”
Correa has also cancelled foreign corporations’ contracts and seized their assets while simultaneously foreclosing their possibilities for a fair resolution of the disputes by rejecting the jurisdiction of international arbitral tribunals and refusing to comply with their orders. He has also taken steps to control the media, which Correa considers “a corrupt instrument of the oligarchy” and the main “enemy of change,” including threatening to revoke hundreds of radio and television licenses because of alleged “irregularities.”
There is evidence going back to previous administrations that the lawyers representing the Lago Agrio plaintiffs and the Government of Ecuador are working together to ensure a verdict against Chevron in the Lago Agrio lawsuit. The Correa Administration has maintained and furthered this arrangement, converting the lawsuit against Chevron from a legal matter to a political cause.
The Government of Ecuador could benefit greatly from a decision against Chevron, which would absolve it of its own remediation obligations and result in the transfer of an enormous amount of money to Ecuador (the proposed $27 billion judgment would represent half of Ecuador’s GDP). Politically, the Lago Agrio case diverts attention and responsibility for environmental conditions away from Petroecuador and allows Correa to blame all social ills in the Oriente on Chevron.
Correa has publicly prejudged Chevron’s liability in the ongoing case, even taking the unfounded and highly offensive position that Texaco Petroleum was guilty of “crimes against humanity.” Ecuador’s Attorney General confirmed that “the Correa administration’s position in this case is clear: ‘The pollution is the result of Chevron’s actions and not of Petroecuador.’”
Correa has thrown the support of the Government behind the plaintiffs, even offering them “assistance in gathering evidence” against Chevron. In April 2007, just months after assuming office, President Correa took a media tour of the Amazon accompanied by the plaintiffs’ lawyers and representatives, calling plaintiffs’ attorney Pablo Fajardo and Amazon Defense Coalition leader Luis Yanza “real heroes…who have fought for years for their people, their Amazon.” He has also repeatedly referred to Fajardo and Yanza in Ecuador’s national press as “our compañeros” (“comrades”) and his “dear friend[s].”
Correa has called on Ecuador’s Prosecutor General to initiate criminal prosecution against the Chevron attorneys who signed the settlement and release agreements on behalf of Texaco Petroleum. Two previous Prosecutor Generals serving the Correa Administration, called for the criminal charges to be dismissed on three separate occasions. However, the next appointee, Washington Pesántez, then issued baseless indictments despite three earlier opinions that charges be dropped, without pointing to any new evidence, and notwithstanding his earlier opinion, as a District Prosecutor, that found no evidence to support the criminal charges and affirmed the recommendation to dismiss the criminal complaint.
Recently, Correa’s legal advisor, Alex Mera, and Correa’s sister, Pierina, were implicated in a $3 million bribery scheme aimed at guaranteeing remediation contracts that would result from a verdict against Chevron by one of the scheme’s organizers, Patricio García, who stated that he was a political operative for the ruling Alianza PAIS party. García also stated during one of the videotaped meetings that executive-branch lawyers would be sent to Lago Agrio to help Judge Núñez (who was also implicated in the scheme) draft his opinion.
Correa confirmed his alliance with the plaintiffs again after the bribery scheme was revealed, stating unequivocally “[o]f course I want our indigenous companions to win.” And as further proof of the Government’s control over the judicial process, despite repeated claims that the Government has no role in the litigation, Prosecutor General Washington Pesántez announced that he asked Judge Núñez to excuse himself from continuing in the process in order to “ensure that the ruling will not be delayed any longer” and so as not to allow Chevron “to avoid paying the compensation we believe is more than fair because it caused a lot of damage in our country.” Pesántez then confirmed the estimate that “90% [of any judgment against Chevron] would be delivered to the State for remediation and bio-remediation activities.”
Tuesday, September 29th 2009
Time and again, Pablo Fajardo has used his brother’s death for PR purposes in attempt to cast suspicion on Chevron and ostensibly further the goals of the lawsuit. In various speeches, public engagements and news stories, Fajardo has implied that Texaco (Chevron) was responsible for his brother’s 2004 murder. Below are two instances of statements made by Pablo Fajardo that pertain to his brother’s death.
- “In my case, in 2004 when we were starting the case, one of my brothers was killed. I cannot say Texaco is to be blamed for this, and neither can I say the opposite. This was never investigated. There have been a lot of things, a lot of pressure and persecution.” – Pablo Fajardo, Ecuador TV, April 22, 2008.
- Fajardo affirmed that “in these 15 years we have received a lot of pressure, starting with threatening phone calls, and campaigns to damage the professional reputation of experts defending the FEDAM’S cause. Undoubtedly the most dramatic experience of these clashes is the death of Pablo Fajardo’s brother eight days prior to the beginning of the oral proceedings in this case. “I cannot prove Texaco was behind this, but the truth is my brother was killed,” said Fajardo. – Europa Press (Zaragoza), September 3, 2008
In reality, Wilson Fajardo’s death has been thoroughly investigated and police reports have identified the local individuals responsible. In fact, prior to his first public claims of Texaco’s (Chevron) purported involvement, Fajardo filed a statement with the District Prosecutor at the time of his brother’s murder that makes no mention of Texaco or Chevron. In an official statement he alleges that three local men who had a history with his brother were responsible for the murder.
Further, an El Commercio editorial implies that Fajardo’s death was the result of comments made about the FARC and drug trafficking while working as a reporter with Radio Ecuador.
Whatever the case may be, official police reports, investigations and news reports lack any suggestion that Texaco (Chevron) was involved. Fajardo himself admitted that Chevron had no role in these events. Nonetheless, Fajardo continues to make misleading public statements about his brother’s murder and Chevron’s involvement.
Complaint – Murder of Wilson Fajardo
Police Report – Wilson Fajardo murder
Wednesday, May 27th 2009
FICTION:
“The existence of an environmental damage and the presence of toxic elements such as chromium, benzene, benzopyrene, and innumerous health threatening elements have been systematically proven.” - Pablo Fajardo, Radio Tropicana: 1/31/08
FACT:
While plaintiffs’ attorneys continually claim that carcinogens are present, the facts are very different. Mr. Cabrera didn’t analyze a single soil sample for benzene and he did not analyze any soil sample for any potentially carcinogenic heavy metals, including hexavalent chromium. He did analyze 178 soil samples for polyaromatic hydrocarbons including benzo[a]pyrene. No benzo[a]pyrene was detected in 171 of those samples (96%), and the 7 samples where it was found were from Petroecuador sites, not pits remediated by Texaco Petroleum. Mr. Cabrera collected a total of nine water samples either directly from water in open pits or from boreholes within pits and no benzo[a]pyrene was detected in any of these samples.
The actions of the plaintiffs speak louder than words. While continuing to lie about finding benzene in media statements, the reality is that the plaintiffs stopped testing for this compound in 2005 after test results continually returned zero traces of benzene.
