Waubonsee Community College

Equatorial Guinea, drowning in oil?, directed by Lluis Jene and Enric Miro

eng

videorecording

Equatorial Guinea

electronic resource

747795966

directed by Lluis Jene and Enric Miro

32

Environmental studies in video

drowning in oil?

In 1995 U.S. oil companies arrived in Equitorial Guinea in West Africa and found petroleum. Guinea has now become the third biggest oil producing nation in sub-Saharan Africa, with production at 300,000 barrels a day. Because of its location, away from the Arabian peninsula, Guinea is important to the U.S. since it helps the U.S. in its goal to diversify its sources of oil. Throughout its Spanish colonial past and until the discovery of oil, the raising of cocoa crops was the only economic activity. Sarah Wykes, Global Witness NGO says that "... although the country will have about $700 million in oil revenues per year there has been no improvement in the development of the country. It isn't benefiting the people of Guinea." Where is the money going? John Bennett, the ex-US Ambassador to Equatorial Guinea says that President Obiang, considered a dictator by many, is stealing much of the oil money (estimated at $1.5 to 2 billion over the past nine years) and depositing it offshore. Besides financial corruption, the government suppresses and even imprisons the leaders of the political opposition. The human rights violations and the lack of democracy are tolerated by the governments of the West in order to support U.S. oil interests

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