Bhopal

I'm halfway through a book called "Animal's People". Here's an excerpt:

I used to walk upright. That's what Ma Franci says, why should she lie? It's not like the news is a comfort to me. Is it kind to remind a blind man that he could once see? The priests who whisper magic in the ears of corpses, they're not saying, 'Cheer up, you used to be alive.' No one leans down and tenderly reassures the turd lying the in dust, 'You still resemble the kebab you once were...'


The author is Indra Sinha - former copywriter extraordinaire who found the sense to leave copywriting.

My ignorance initially led me to believe that this was merely an amazing piece of fiction. But it is far from that. While the characters in this book are all fake, it is based on the true horror that happened in Bhopal, India, and the people linked to that horror - Union Carbide.

In a nutshell, the Bhopal tragedy involves a poison gas leak from the Union Carbide plant. The leak killed thousands of Indian villagers. Known to the victims as "that night", the tragedy caused hundreds to flee from their homes in the dead of night - the strong suffered, the weak died - my description does it little justice.

What I find disturbing are the two very different accounts of the incident. Without being biased, here are some links so you can read about it for yourself and form your own opinion.

Option A: "I want to believe genius American spin doctors who have collaborated with forever-honest Indian officials and, with plenty of money, power and influence, presented these facts." If this is you, visit www.bhopal.com

Option B: "I want to hear from the people who were and are in Bhopal". If this is you, visit www.bhopal.org or www.indrasinha.com/animal.html

Happy reading.