http://www.commondreams.org/headlines02/0816-02.htm
Published on Friday,
August 16, 2002 in the Times of London
Oil Lobby Dismisses Earth Summit
by Anthony Browne
CONSERVATIVE lobbyists
in the US funded by Esso have urged
President Bush to derail the Earth summit in Johannesburg
because it is "anti-freedom, anti-people, anti-globalization
and anti-Western".
The lobbyists, funded
by the oil company that was also a
big donor to the President’s election campaign, urged
Mr Bush to make sure that global warming was kept off
the agenda at the summit, which starts later this month.
In a letter leaked
to Friends
of Earth in the US, the
lobbyists tell Mr Bush: "We applaud your decision not
to attend in person . . . the summit will provide a global
media stage for many of the most irresponsible and destructive
elements in critical economic and environmental issues.
Your presence would only help publicize various anti-freedom,
anti-people, anti-globalization and anti-Western agendas,"
it said.
Among others, the letter
was signed by representatives of the
Competitive Enterprise Institute, the Committee for a
Constructive Tomorrow, the American Enterprise Institute,
and the National Center for Policy Analysis, all of which
received funding from ExxonMobil, Esso’s parent company.
The letter, dated August 2, adds: "The least important global
environmental issue is potential global warming and we hope
that your negotiators can keep it off the table and out of
the spotlight."
The World Summit on
Sustainable Development will be
attended by 100 world leaders. However, the US Government
has already made clear that it will not sign any
internationally binding agreements.
Copyright 2002 Times
Newspapers Ltd
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