Mormor to Bhopal, after six years!

Update January 1, 2016

Yes, I have been to Bhopal!!! I invited the ambassador to the wedding. She understood the importance of my visit to Bhopal, and obtained permission for me to go to Bhopal "of strict personal reasons". Three days after the wedding, they called from the embassy and told me. In December, I spent three weeks with my granddaughter, together with her husband in her new home. Many dinners and teas were spent in her uncles' and aunts' houses. I took 7/9 grandchildren to the entertainment park People's mall. 16 of us went by bus 15 hours to Agra and then back again. We went to weddings and other family events. I had lots of time to enjoy my family and all the children (nine, between 3 and 22).

Women's rights also in China and Nepal?

It is not only in India and Western countries that the fight for women's right to move freely and safely outside home has started. The stone seems to have started to roll also in China, the world's largest country.

Young men need contact with children?

12 April 2015: 15 views.

Another terrible gang rape in India. This time an old lady of my own age. A nun - was this the first time she had sex? She also was seriously injured. Which means that the men did not use only ther own penis, but also other things.

We want to connect sexuality with love, affection, tenderness, romance. We want to connect human beings with tenderness, attention, love, concern, solidarity, empathy. How come that some human beings can throw all this aside and behave like monsters?

India's daughter: The travel towards a modern society has started

55 viewers on April 12, 2015. Bad marketing! ;-)

See India's daughter here!!!

India's daughter was shown on Swedish TV2 Sunday 8 March. It is now on SVTplay until April 7.  

It will also be sent by CBC, Monday 9, 8.30 AM Indian time. (I hope I counted right.)

INDIA - such a big, multicultural, marvellous and terrible country. The country of Gandhi and civil defence. The country where people dare to go out on the streets to protest - and where they do it. The country of strong female leaders. The largest democracy of the world. A country to be proud of.

A country with old traditions and attitudes that some are ashamed of. A country with old philosophies that westerners admire. A country under transformation.

Holi is a Hindu festival, the same day as this text was written. The main thing, as far as I understand it, is to throw paint on each others.

The sterilization catastrophe in Chhattisgarh

72 readers until April 12, 2015.

Translation of a blog in Swedish. 

I was asked to say something about the catastrophe in the state of Chhattisgarh, India, where at least 13 women died after a doctor with two assistants did 83 sterilization operations in 5 hours. The operation is done by keyhole surgery and resection of the fallopian tubes. The operation itself does not take many minutes, but in Sweden, the staff’s preparations and taking care of the patient after the operation takes a quite long time.

Steriliseringskatastrofen i Chhattisgarh

117 läsare 12.4.2015

Translation to English

Jag har blivit ombedd att yttra mig om katastrofen i delstaten Chhattisgarh, Indien, där minst 13 kvinnor avlidit efter att en läkare med två assistenter utfört 83 steriliseringsoperationer på 5 timmar. Operationen utförs med titthålskirurgi då äggledarna skärs av. Själva ingreppet för operatören tar inte många minuter, men i Sverige tar både förberedelserna till och omhändertagandet efter operationen av annan personal ganska lång tid.

Facts about Ayurveda

This is an appendix to the article from 2005 "Combining complementary medicine with western medicine - can we gain something?" 

It is a very short description of Ayurveda, realising that it takes 5-7 years to get an Ayurveda diploma.

Läs på svenska: Läkemedel från världens tak Läkartidningen 39-2015.

Combining complementary medicine with western medicine - can we gain something?

This is a text from 2005, written for a conference where this study was presented. Read also the appendix "Facts about Ayurveda". Presentation with photos is found here.

ABSTRACT

At the Sambhavna Clinic in Bhopal in India, Ayurvedic medicine is used together with Allopathic (western) medicine to care for the victims of the Carbide gas catastrophe in 1984. The patients and the doctors appreciate this possibility. Use of active and expensive western medicines can be decreased. The small studies that are conducted show positive results. 

29 YEARS SINCE THE BHOPAL GAS CATASTROPHE - when Union Carbide's plant let out toxic gases over 500,000 people

99 viewers until April 12, 2015

It is now 29 years since the inhabitants of the slum in Bhopal woke up of breathlessness and cough. Eyes and respiratory tracts were aching like fire. Some did never get up from their beddings. The others fled towards the hospital - many in vain. Around 8,000 people died during the first days. Since that, maybe 10,000 or 20,000 have died in gas related diseases. It is estimated that 100,000 of the 500,000 exposed people have permanent injuries.

29 ÅR SEDAN GIFTKATASTROFEN I BHOPAL, INDIEN - när Union Carbides fabrik släppte ut giftiga gaser över 500 000 sovande människor

Det är nu 29 år sedan sluminvånarna i Bhopal vaknade av andnöd och hosta. Det sved som eld i ögon och luftvägar. En del hann inte upp ur bädden. De övriga flydde mot sjukhuset - många av dem förgäves. Ungefär 8 000 människor dog under de första dygnen. Därefter har kanske 10 000 eller 20 000 dött i gasrelaterade sjukdomar. Man bedömer att 100 000 personer av de 500 000 som exponerades för gaserna har permanenta skador.

Bhopali - filmen om katastrofen 1984

Bhopali är en dokumentärfilm om gaskatastrofen i Bhopal, Indien 1984, och dess efterverkningar.

How to find "The Bhopal Saga" and Wikipedia references

Update June, 2018. When my "granddaughter" was going to marry, I finally was allowed a visa from the Ambassador. So I have visited Bhopal twice, in 2015 and 2017. My plans are to go back in beginning of 2019, as I am expecting a grand-grand-child.

I am not any longer active in the Bhopal case. But I have copies of The Bhopal Saga to sell. Contact me by ingrid/at/eckerman.nu or on Messenger Ingrid Eckerman (my Swedish speaking ID).

This is the most popular of my texts. 2662 views until April 12, 2015. Probably search mashines from US. The other texts about Bhopal have maximum 200 views.

It is soon nine years since my only book The Bhopal Saga - causes and consequences of the world's largest industrial disaster was launched in India, at the 20th anniversary December 3, 2004. (The publisher made it 2005, I don't know why.) The photo below is from the launch. I downloaded it from the start page of an Indian newspaper. Not until 2008 I got problems with my visa, and since 2010 I am banned from India.

Kvinnor i Indien - en bristvara

I efterdyningarna av den våldsamma gängvåldtäkten på Jyoti Singh Pandey i Delhi diskuteras kvinnans ställning i Indien livligt. Nya våldtäkter* rapporteras internationellt, på ett sätt som ej gjorts tidigare.

"Svensk läkare portförbjuden i Indien"

Detta är titeln på det pressmeddelande jag just skickat ut. Jag hoppas det når långt. Du som läser detta kan kanske hjälpa mig att nå ut?

Pressmeddelandet på svenska
The pressrelease in English

I am on India's black list! Banned!

LETTER TO THE PRIME MINISTER

This is the letter that I sent to the Prime Minister in October, 2012.
It was accompanied by two lists of names: 100 grandparents, parents and children, 75 professionals.

Jag får inte hälsa på min tbc-sjuka "dotter" i Indien

Läs också flikarna Bhopal, India och min hemsida www.eckerman.nu. 

Jag har just fått reda på att min "dotter" i Bhopal, Indien, har lungtuberkulos. Det är en allvarlig sjukdom trots att det idag finns effektiva mediciner. Hon får räkna med minst ett års behandling och en del biverkningar. Dessutom finns risk att bakterierna är multiresistenta, och då blir hon inte botad. Det känns mycket svårt att jag inte har möjlighet att hälsa på henne.

The Olympic Games and the Bhopal Catastrophe

I was contacted by several relatives and friends. "Do you know there's been a lot on Bhopal on TV? Did you read the article in the biggest daily paper?" And I knew nothing. Not looking at TV, totally uninterested in sports, summerholiday without daily paper, hardly following the news at all ...

Skriv på "Mormor till Bhopal!"

Stöd min önskan att besöka mina barnbarn i Bhopal! Jag vill fira min 71:a födelsedag med dem.
1. Skriv under uppropet på Namnlistan. Är du läkare, sjukvårdspersonal eller forskare rekommenderar jag den professionella listan.
2. Använd kommentatorsfunktionen nedan och skriv ditt namn, stad/land, och om du är mor/farförälder, förälder/vuxen, barn eller professionell. Skriv gärna en kommentar.
3. Skriv ett stödbrev på Facebook (Ingrid Eckerman).
4. Skicka ett e-brev till ingrid/at/eckerman.nu.

Jag kommer att sända alla namn tillsammans med ett brev till premiärministern, inrikesministern och ambassadören, kanske också till media.  

Ska Dow Chemical få sponsra olympiska spelen i London?

Visst känner man sig smickrad när man blir kontaktad av utländska journalister och citerad på nätet. Dessutom i en fråga om de olympiska sommarspelen i London senare i år. Tycker jag att Dow Chemical ska få vara sponsor och få sin logga utställd?   

Att leva på indisk medelinkomst

Mina läsare har kanske lagt märke till att jag skrivit förvånandsvärt lite om Indien. Det är ju ett land som det finns mycket att skriva om: världens största demokrati, världens näst största befolkning, mångkulturellt med mer än 60 språk och många religioner, vintrar med meterhöga snötäcken i norr och tropisk värme i söder, megastäder och en jättelik landsortsbefolkning, lyx och slum sida vid sida, och en lång och omväxlande historia. Indien är det mest olika land jag vet. Så nog finns det att skriva om!