Activists and socio-environmental organisations from around the world demonstrated against the impunity of transnational oil corporation Chevron (formerly Texaco) and in solidarity with the affected Amazonian peoples and communities.

It is estimated that more than 450,000 hectares of the Ecuadorian Amazon have been contaminated by crude oil and toxic waste dumped by the corporation from 1954 to 1990. In 1993, the Union of People Affected by Texaco (UDAPT), made up of six Indigenous Peoples and inhabitants of the Ecuadorian Amazon, filed a lawsuit that, after decades of struggle, secured a national ruling ordering Chevron to pay US$9.5 billion to compensate the more than 30,000 people affected.

But the transnational corporation turned to international arbitration courts and, arguing that its investments were affected, prioritised commercial law over human rights, securing a ruling in its favour that requires the Ecuadorian state to pay Chevron. UDAPT argues that this award is unconstitutional because, in 2024, through a popular vote (referendum), Ecuador decided to leave this arbitration system that puts profit over life.

For all these reasons, this year’s global anti-Chevron day focused on the message that Ecuador must not pay Chevron; rather, Chevron must compensate the affected communities.