Protests against US oil giant Chevron were held in multiple locations on Friday and Saturday as part of “Anti-Chevron Day,” in the lead-up to the company’s annual shareholder meeting scheduled for Wednesday.
At the El Segundo oil refinery in California, organisers estimated that 80 people participated in a Saturday demonstration against Chevron’s business in both Myanmar and the Amazon rainforest in South America, and its role in contributing to climate change.
Protest organiser Jack Eidt from SoCal 350 Climate Action told Myanmar Now that Chevron should work in concert with the US government to pressure Myanmar’s junta to restore democracy.
“We are concerned by [Chevron’s] environmentally corrupt business practices. The case in Myanmar fits with their business model – the pursuit of profits no matter the cost to people and planet. They will condone and fund a military coup just to keep their profits flowing. We want Chevron to stop funding the coup,” Jack Eidt said.
In the San Francisco Bay Area, protesters gathered outside the Chevron Richmond Refinery on Friday.
In a statement, Nyunt Than, a member of the Burmese American Democratic Alliance, demanded US sanctions be imposed against Myanma Oil and Gas Enterprise (MOGE).
“More than 800 people have been killed since the military coup in Myanmar on February 1st. Chevron is funding slaughter in Myanmar and to stop it, President Biden must sanction MOGE to make such payment illegal,” he said.
MOGE, a state-owned enterprise under the Ministry of Electricity and Energy, came under direct military control as a result of the February 1 coup.
Other Anti-Chevron protests were held in Australia and the Philippines.
Civil society groups are also pressuring Chevron through an online petition to CEO Michael Wirth, demanding that the company “stop bankrolling the Myanmar military.” It has received more than 15,000 signatures.
Chevron, headquartered in California, is one of the world’s biggest oil companies with a market capitalisation of more than US$200 billion.
In Myanmar, Chevron owns 28.3 percent of the offshore Yadana gas field, operated by Total. The company is also an investor in the Yadana pipeline.
Chevron subsidiary Unocal was sued by Karen villagers in US courts in 1996 for human rights violations linked to the Yadana pipeline, including killings, forced relocation, forced labour and rape. They received compensation in an out of court settlement.
