By Kim Se-jeong
Reckitt Benckiser (RB) in the United Kingdom, the parent company of Oxy Reckitt Benckiser, accused of causing the deaths of more than 100 Koreans through a toxic humidifier disinfectant, issued an apology to the victims and their families Monday (local time).
“Oxy RB and RB express our sincere apologies to all the victims of the humidifier sterilizer tragedy in Korea and state absolutely our determination to do the right thing for the victims and their families,” it said in a statement posted on the company’s website.
The statement was posted on the same day that its Korean unit director, Ataur Rashid Safdar, apologized to the victims in a televised news conference.
The headquarters in London said that it “accepted full responsibility for the role that this product played in these health issues, including the deaths in Korea” and will provide “full resolution to these cases.”
Previously, the victims and bereaved families called for RB headquarters to take responsibility directly, demanding RB CEO, Rakesh Kapoor, fly to Korea to apologize.
Despite the apology, families of victims pledged to carry on with a campaign against the company, including a boycott.
Kim Deok-jong, the father of a child victim, and Choi Ye-yong, director of the Asian Citizen’s Center for Environment and Health, left for the U.K. Wednesday to protest against RB.
The company will have a shareholders’ meeting in Slough, Thursday.
“We are going to tell them (shareholders) what the company has done,” the two said in a press briefing at Incheon International Airport.
The Korean prosecution raided the office of professors of Seoul National (SNU) and Hoseo universities who allegedly falsified test results to help Oxy’s claim that its product was not toxic.
The prosecution detained the SNU professor on suspicions of accepting a bribe from Oxy in exchange for falsifying the results.
Oxy used the results to make its case in court that the chemical — PHMG — it used in its product was not harmful.
Prosecutors also said they obtained testimony from Oxy officials that Shin Hyun-woo, former Oxy head in Korea, was involved in the company’s advertisements about the disinfectant, which included the statement: “This product carries no health risks and is safe when used around children.”
The company did not conduct safety studies on the effects of inhaling the chemical used in the product.
The nation’s worst biocide scandal has killed at least 146 people, among whom 103 used the Oxy brand.
While it was first brought to light in 2011, it took prosecutors until January this year to start an investigation.
Under pressure, Oxy, Lotte and Home plus, disinfectant manufacturers, apologized to surviving victims and family members of the deceased, with an offer of compensation.
The victims refused to accept the apologies and compensation, saying they came too late, and that they don’t look sincere.
They began a boycott of Oxy products, which has spread quickly across the country.