The Scorched Earth of Darfur

Bloodhound's comment on letter by Ian and Lukas Lundin: oil was not good for development in Sudan

14th April 2012.

In an open letter published on the 18th March 2012 in the Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter, Lundin directors Ian and Lukas Lundin defend their policy of investing in countries at war, with the claim that oil is good for development and therefore helps local people. A report by the European Coalition on Oil in Sudan (ECOS) in 2010 demonstrates that this was very far from the reality in Sudan where some 160,000 people were driven off their land when Lundin explored for oil there. Furthermore, research by Bloodhound and published in the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet shows that much of the massive increase in foreign exchange earnings by the government of Sudan was used on the civil war.

Read the article in Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet.

Bloodhound complains to Swedish TV over misrepresentation of Hind helicopter gunship outside Lundin's oilbase in Sudan

7th July 2011.

Following the screening on Swedish TV during July 2011 of a documentary on South Sudan titled 'Världens Nyaste Land', Bloodhound has written a formal complaint to the Swedish Broadcasting Authority over the serious misrepresentation of facts. An attack helicopter gunship parked outside Lundin's headquarters at Rubkona was made out to belong to a militia group, thereby deflecting the responsibility of the Government of Sudan for the deployment of attack helicopters to clear the oilfields of their local inhabitants. Satellite images analysed by Prins Engineering on behalf of ECOS demonstrate that 160,000 people were driven off their land in Lundin's Block 5a concession alone. Many more were undoubtedly displaced from the neighbouring Arakis and later Talisman concessions.

See the letter here

The Campaign against Lundin

Last update: 19th April 2012.

Many people in Sweden are working hard to expose the truth about the nature and scale of Lundin’s involvement in the atrocities that have been perpetrated on the civilian population living in Lundin’s oil concessions in Ethiopia and South Sudan.

This campaign has also focussed on the role of Swedish foreign minister Carl Bildt – a former board member of Lundin Petroleum – in failing to do enough to secure the release of Swedish journalists Johan Persson and Martin Schibbye, who were imprisoned following their attempt to investigate Lundin in Ethiopia.

All of these efforts have received a huge amount of media attention in Sweden, together with the publication of investigative books and the release of documentary films.

As these are mostly in Swedish, they can be difficult to locate for non-Swedish speakers, and are therefore summarised here with relevant links.

Read more...