Human rights activists in Bangkok are cheering a landmark decision by a Los Angeles judge to have US energy giant Unocal Corp face a lawsuit for profiting from a gas pipeline in Burma at the expense of harsh rights violations.

The broader implications from the judge's decision is equally significant, they add, since it sets a new benchmark for US companies and other multinationals  it is a moral boost," says Debbie Stothard of the Bangkok-based ALTSEAN, a regional human rights body focused on rights violations in Burma. "But this is just a foot in the door."

"This decision will expose the human rights violations in Burma to a broader audience," adds Alec Bamford of the Thai arm of global human rights lobby Amnesty International (AI).

"It is a landmark decision. Now the plaintiffs will be able to face Unocal and claim their due," asserts Tyler Giannine, a director at Earth Rights International, a non-governmental organisation (NGO) that has taken a lead role to present the case for the Burmese victims, most of whom are villagers.

Giannine is confident that this legal battle will go ahead as scheduled in California in September. "There is nothing between us and the trial date, and we have sufficient evidence."

Stothard expects the case to resemble a 'David versus Goliath' tussle, given the lengths Unocal has gone to prevent a court appearance. "They (Unocal) have spent so much before the trial to stop it, maybe millions of dollars."

Quest for justice

Since the lawsuit against Unocal was filed in 1996, rights activists in Bangkok have had to endure setbacks in this quest for justice. It ranged from the issue of extra-territoriality  they cannot always get away."

It is relevant to Southeast Asian governments, too, he asserts, since they encourage companies from their respective countries to set up business ventures in Burma.

"The Thai government is one," he adds. "It cannot ignore human rights violations for the sake of investments in Burma."