Powerbase - User contributions [en]

BASF

2008-03-25T12:42:33Z

Jamie Scott: BASF moved to Globalisation:BASF

#REDIRECT [[Globalisation:BASF]]

L'Oréal

2008-03-25T12:37:32Z

Jamie Scott: L'Oréal moved to Globalisation:L'Oréal

#REDIRECT [[Globalisation:L'Oréal]]

Globalisation:Citigroup

2008-03-25T12:33:32Z

Jamie Scott:

[[Globalisation:CSR Europe]]

==Profile==

Citibank was founded in 1812, and is now one of the world's leading financial services companies. The Citi Group has over 200 million customer accounts in more than 100 countries.

Other major brand names in Citi's diverse portfolio include Citi Cards, CitiFinancial, CitiMortgage, CitiInsurance, Primerica, Diners Club, Citi Private Bank, and CitiCapital. <ref>http://www.citigroup.com/citigroup/about/index.htm Citi Group], accessed 25 March 2008</ref>

== Controversies ==

=== WorldCom Scandal===

In 2004, Citigroup agreed to pay $2.6bn (£1.4bn) to settle a class action suits accusing the financial institution of participating in fraud with WorldCom, the phone company now known as MCI.

Shareholders have sued Citigroup after the collapse of WorldCom amid allegations surrounding a former telecom analyst Jack Grubman, who was found to be hyping WorldCom and other hi-tech stocks.

WorldCom filed for the biggest bankruptcy in history in July 2002 with allegations of accounting irregularities and Mr Grubman was consequently fined $15m and barred from the securities industry for issuing misleading research.

Citigroup explained that it had agreed to settle federal class action suits brought on behalf of those who had purchased WorldCom stock from April 29, 1999, to June 25, 2002.

In response, Charles Prince, Citigroup's Chief Executive, claimed the settlement was part of an ongoing effort "to put an unfortunate chapter behind us". <ref> [http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2004/may/10/usnews.worldcom Guardian Online], accessed 4 March 2008</ref>

=== Global Crossing ===

Similarly, in 2005 Citigroup paid $75m (£39.2m) to settle a class-action suit brought over its role in the collapse of telecom network Global Crossing.

Citigroup was accused of issuing exaggerated research reports and failing to highlight conflicts of interest in the three-year-old case.

=== European Bonds ===

The group was also ordered to pay almost £14m to the Financial Services Authority for its role in a controversial trade in the government bond markets in 2004.

The firm is being forced to hand over £9.9m of profits from the trade and pay a £4m fine due to its failure to control its bond business. This is the second largest financial punishment handed out by the City regulator after oil company Shell was fined £17m in 2003.

The strategy involved using the MTS electronic trading system to sell as many bonds in 18 seconds as would normally be traded in one day. A trading error then forced Citigroup to buy back some of the bonds it had sold.

The banking group escaped more action after the FSA concluded it had not deliberately tried to distort the bond market when the trades took place on August 2. However, the scandal has damaged Citigroup's reputation and it has now been excluded when European governments have considered bond issues. <ref> [http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2005/jun/29/3 Guardian Online], accessed 4 March 2008</ref>

=== Citigroup and Japan ===

Japan's market watchdog ordered Citigroup to close its private banking operations in the country. Regulators said they discovered a range of problems at Citigroup's private banking arm, from improper trading practices to insufficient anti-money laundering procedures.

Japan's Financial Services Agency ordered the group to suspend new private banking business, and gave it one year to close all accounts at the four branches. They will have their licences revoked on 30 September 2005.

Among its charges, the FSA said the bank had brokered deals on such items as artworks without properly informing customers of the risks. It also allowed transactions which "could be suspected of being associated with money laundering".

"In a management environment in which profits are given undue importance by the bank's headquarters, a law-evading sales system that disregards the laws and regulations of Japan was constructed," the FSA said. Bank managers were also guilty of "obstructing inspectors", and responses to official inquiries "differed from the truth". <ref> [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3666828.stm BBC News Online], accessed 4 March 2008</ref>

==Notes==
<references/>

Citigroup

2008-03-25T12:32:44Z

Jamie Scott: Citigroup moved to Globalisation:Citigroup

#REDIRECT [[Globalisation:Citigroup]]

Globalisation:Citigroup

2008-03-25T12:32:44Z

Jamie Scott: Citigroup moved to Globalisation:Citigroup

==Profile==

Citibank was founded in 1812, and is now one of the world's leading financial services companies. The Citi Group has over 200 million customer accounts in more than 100 countries.

Other major brand names in Citi's diverse portfolio include Citi Cards, CitiFinancial, CitiMortgage, CitiInsurance, Primerica, Diners Club, Citi Private Bank, and CitiCapital. <ref>http://www.citigroup.com/citigroup/about/index.htm Citi Group], accessed 25 March 2008</ref>

== Controversies ==

=== WorldCom Scandal===

In 2004, Citigroup agreed to pay $2.6bn (£1.4bn) to settle a class action suits accusing the financial institution of participating in fraud with WorldCom, the phone company now known as MCI.

Shareholders have sued Citigroup after the collapse of WorldCom amid allegations surrounding a former telecom analyst Jack Grubman, who was found to be hyping WorldCom and other hi-tech stocks.

WorldCom filed for the biggest bankruptcy in history in July 2002 with allegations of accounting irregularities and Mr Grubman was consequently fined $15m and barred from the securities industry for issuing misleading research.

Citigroup explained that it had agreed to settle federal class action suits brought on behalf of those who had purchased WorldCom stock from April 29, 1999, to June 25, 2002.

In response, Charles Prince, Citigroup's Chief Executive, claimed the settlement was part of an ongoing effort "to put an unfortunate chapter behind us". <ref> [http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2004/may/10/usnews.worldcom Guardian Online], accessed 4 March 2008</ref>

=== Global Crossing ===

Similarly, in 2005 Citigroup paid $75m (£39.2m) to settle a class-action suit brought over its role in the collapse of telecom network Global Crossing.

Citigroup was accused of issuing exaggerated research reports and failing to highlight conflicts of interest in the three-year-old case.

=== European Bonds ===

The group was also ordered to pay almost £14m to the Financial Services Authority for its role in a controversial trade in the government bond markets in 2004.

The firm is being forced to hand over £9.9m of profits from the trade and pay a £4m fine due to its failure to control its bond business. This is the second largest financial punishment handed out by the City regulator after oil company Shell was fined £17m in 2003.

The strategy involved using the MTS electronic trading system to sell as many bonds in 18 seconds as would normally be traded in one day. A trading error then forced Citigroup to buy back some of the bonds it had sold.

The banking group escaped more action after the FSA concluded it had not deliberately tried to distort the bond market when the trades took place on August 2. However, the scandal has damaged Citigroup's reputation and it has now been excluded when European governments have considered bond issues. <ref> [http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2005/jun/29/3 Guardian Online], accessed 4 March 2008</ref>

=== Citigroup and Japan ===

Japan's market watchdog ordered Citigroup to close its private banking operations in the country. Regulators said they discovered a range of problems at Citigroup's private banking arm, from improper trading practices to insufficient anti-money laundering procedures.

Japan's Financial Services Agency ordered the group to suspend new private banking business, and gave it one year to close all accounts at the four branches. They will have their licences revoked on 30 September 2005.

Among its charges, the FSA said the bank had brokered deals on such items as artworks without properly informing customers of the risks. It also allowed transactions which "could be suspected of being associated with money laundering".

"In a management environment in which profits are given undue importance by the bank's headquarters, a law-evading sales system that disregards the laws and regulations of Japan was constructed," the FSA said. Bank managers were also guilty of "obstructing inspectors", and responses to official inquiries "differed from the truth". <ref> [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3666828.stm BBC News Online], accessed 4 March 2008</ref>

==Notes==
<references/>

Globalisation:Citigroup

2008-03-25T12:20:28Z

Jamie Scott: /* Citigroup and Japan */

Globalisation:Citigroup

2008-03-25T12:17:05Z

Jamie Scott: /* European Bonds */

==Profile==

Citibank was founded in 1812, and is now one of the world's leading financial services companies. The Citi Group has over 200 million customer accounts in more than 100 countries.

Other major brand names in Citi's diverse portfolio include Citi Cards, CitiFinancial, CitiMortgage, CitiInsurance, Primerica, Diners Club, Citi Private Bank, and CitiCapital. <ref>http://www.citigroup.com/citigroup/about/index.htm Citi Group], accessed 25 March 2008</ref>

== Controversies ==

=== WorldCom Scandal===

In 2004, Citigroup agreed to pay $2.6bn (£1.4bn) to settle a class action suits accusing the financial institution of participating in fraud with WorldCom, the phone company now known as MCI.

Shareholders have sued Citigroup after the collapse of WorldCom amid allegations surrounding a former telecom analyst Jack Grubman, who was found to be hyping WorldCom and other hi-tech stocks.

WorldCom filed for the biggest bankruptcy in history in July 2002 with allegations of accounting irregularities and Mr Grubman was consequently fined $15m and barred from the securities industry for issuing misleading research.

Citigroup explained that it had agreed to settle federal class action suits brought on behalf of those who had purchased WorldCom stock from April 29, 1999, to June 25, 2002.

In response, Charles Prince, Citigroup's Chief Executive, claimed the settlement was part of an ongoing effort "to put an unfortunate chapter behind us". <ref> [http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2004/may/10/usnews.worldcom Guardian Online], accessed 4 March 2008</ref>

=== Global Crossing ===

Similarly, in 2005 Citigroup paid $75m (£39.2m) to settle a class-action suit brought over its role in the collapse of telecom network Global Crossing.

Citigroup was accused of issuing exaggerated research reports and failing to highlight conflicts of interest in the three-year-old case.

=== European Bonds ===

The group was also ordered to pay almost £14m to the Financial Services Authority for its role in a controversial trade in the government bond markets in 2004.

The firm is being forced to hand over £9.9m of profits from the trade and pay a £4m fine due to its failure to control its bond business. This is the second largest financial punishment handed out by the City regulator after oil company Shell was fined £17m in 2003.

The strategy involved using the MTS electronic trading system to sell as many bonds in 18 seconds as would normally be traded in one day. A trading error then forced Citigroup to buy back some of the bonds it had sold.

The banking group escaped more action after the FSA concluded it had not deliberately tried to distort the bond market when the trades took place on August 2. However, the scandal has damaged Citigroup's reputation and it has now been excluded when European governments have considered bond issues. <ref> [http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2005/jun/29/3 Guardian Online], accessed 4 March 2008</ref>

=== Citigroup and Japan ===

Japan's market watchdog has ordered US banking giant Citigroup to shut down its private banking operations there.
Regulators said they found a list of problems at Citigroup's private banking arm, from improper trading practices to lax anti-money laundering procedures.

Japan's Financial Services Agency ordered the US banking group to suspend new private banking business by the end of this month, and gave it one year's breathing space to close all accounts at the four branches. They will have their licences revoked on 30 September 2005.

Among its charges, the FSA said the bank had brokered deals on such items as artworks without properly informing customers of the risks.

It also allowed transactions which "could be suspected of being associated with money laundering".

"In a management environment in which profits are given undue importance by the bank's headquarters, a law-evading sales system that disregards the laws and regulations of Japan was constructed," the FSA said.

Bank staff and managers, it added, had "obstructed inspectors", while responses to official inquiries "differed from the truth".

<ref> [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3666828.stm BBC News Online], accessed 4 March 2008</ref>

==Notes==
<references/>

Globalisation:Citigroup

2008-03-25T12:12:38Z

Jamie Scott: /* Global Crossing */

==Profile==

Citibank was founded in 1812, and is now one of the world's leading financial services companies. The Citi Group has over 200 million customer accounts in more than 100 countries.

Other major brand names in Citi's diverse portfolio include Citi Cards, CitiFinancial, CitiMortgage, CitiInsurance, Primerica, Diners Club, Citi Private Bank, and CitiCapital. <ref>http://www.citigroup.com/citigroup/about/index.htm Citi Group], accessed 25 March 2008</ref>

== Controversies ==

=== WorldCom Scandal===

In 2004, Citigroup agreed to pay $2.6bn (£1.4bn) to settle a class action suits accusing the financial institution of participating in fraud with WorldCom, the phone company now known as MCI.

Shareholders have sued Citigroup after the collapse of WorldCom amid allegations surrounding a former telecom analyst Jack Grubman, who was found to be hyping WorldCom and other hi-tech stocks.

WorldCom filed for the biggest bankruptcy in history in July 2002 with allegations of accounting irregularities and Mr Grubman was consequently fined $15m and barred from the securities industry for issuing misleading research.

Citigroup explained that it had agreed to settle federal class action suits brought on behalf of those who had purchased WorldCom stock from April 29, 1999, to June 25, 2002.

In response, Charles Prince, Citigroup's Chief Executive, claimed the settlement was part of an ongoing effort "to put an unfortunate chapter behind us". <ref> [http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2004/may/10/usnews.worldcom Guardian Online], accessed 4 March 2008</ref>

=== Global Crossing ===

Similarly, in 2005 Citigroup paid $75m (£39.2m) to settle a class-action suit brought over its role in the collapse of telecom network Global Crossing.

Citigroup was accused of issuing exaggerated research reports and failing to highlight conflicts of interest in the three-year-old case.

=== European Bonds ===

Citigroup has been ordered to pay almost £14m to the Financial Services Authority as the penalty for a controversial trade in the government bond markets last year.

The world's largest financial firm is being forced to hand over £9.9m of profits from the trade and pay a £4m fine because of failures to control its bond business. This is the second largest financial punishment handed out by the City regulator after oil company Shell was fined £17m last year.

The American banking group escaped more draconian regulatory action after the FSA concluded it had not deliberately tried to distort the bond market when the trades took place on August 2.

However, Citigroup's reputation has suffered and it has been left out in the cold when European governments have considered bond issues.

Citigroup acknowledged the trading strategy - nicknamed Dr Evil - had harmed the business and insisted it wished it had never taken place. It involved using the MTS electronic trading system to sell as many bonds in 18 seconds as would usually be traded in an entire day. A trading error then forced Citigroup to buy back some of the bonds it had sold.

<ref> [http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2005/jun/29/3 Guardian Online], accessed 4 March 2008</ref>

=== Citigroup and Japan ===

Japan's market watchdog has ordered US banking giant Citigroup to shut down its private banking operations there.
Regulators said they found a list of problems at Citigroup's private banking arm, from improper trading practices to lax anti-money laundering procedures.

Japan's Financial Services Agency ordered the US banking group to suspend new private banking business by the end of this month, and gave it one year's breathing space to close all accounts at the four branches. They will have their licences revoked on 30 September 2005.

Among its charges, the FSA said the bank had brokered deals on such items as artworks without properly informing customers of the risks.

It also allowed transactions which "could be suspected of being associated with money laundering".

"In a management environment in which profits are given undue importance by the bank's headquarters, a law-evading sales system that disregards the laws and regulations of Japan was constructed," the FSA said.

Bank staff and managers, it added, had "obstructed inspectors", while responses to official inquiries "differed from the truth".

<ref> [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3666828.stm BBC News Online], accessed 4 March 2008</ref>

==Notes==
<references/>

Globalisation:Citigroup

2008-03-25T12:10:57Z

Jamie Scott: /* WorldCom Scandal */

==Profile==

Citibank was founded in 1812, and is now one of the world's leading financial services companies. The Citi Group has over 200 million customer accounts in more than 100 countries.

Other major brand names in Citi's diverse portfolio include Citi Cards, CitiFinancial, CitiMortgage, CitiInsurance, Primerica, Diners Club, Citi Private Bank, and CitiCapital. <ref>http://www.citigroup.com/citigroup/about/index.htm Citi Group], accessed 25 March 2008</ref>

== Controversies ==

=== WorldCom Scandal===

In 2004, Citigroup agreed to pay $2.6bn (£1.4bn) to settle a class action suits accusing the financial institution of participating in fraud with WorldCom, the phone company now known as MCI.

Shareholders have sued Citigroup after the collapse of WorldCom amid allegations surrounding a former telecom analyst Jack Grubman, who was found to be hyping WorldCom and other hi-tech stocks.

WorldCom filed for the biggest bankruptcy in history in July 2002 with allegations of accounting irregularities and Mr Grubman was consequently fined $15m and barred from the securities industry for issuing misleading research.

Citigroup explained that it had agreed to settle federal class action suits brought on behalf of those who had purchased WorldCom stock from April 29, 1999, to June 25, 2002.

In response, Charles Prince, Citigroup's Chief Executive, claimed the settlement was part of an ongoing effort "to put an unfortunate chapter behind us". <ref> [http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2004/may/10/usnews.worldcom Guardian Online], accessed 4 March 2008</ref>

=== Global Crossing ===

In 2005 Citigroup paid $75m (£39.2m) to settle a class-action suit over its role in the collapse of telecom network provider Global Crossing.

The US banking giant had been accused of issuing inflated research reports and failing to flag up conflicts of interest in the three-year-old case.

=== European Bonds ===

Citigroup has been ordered to pay almost £14m to the Financial Services Authority as the penalty for a controversial trade in the government bond markets last year.

The world's largest financial firm is being forced to hand over £9.9m of profits from the trade and pay a £4m fine because of failures to control its bond business. This is the second largest financial punishment handed out by the City regulator after oil company Shell was fined £17m last year.

The American banking group escaped more draconian regulatory action after the FSA concluded it had not deliberately tried to distort the bond market when the trades took place on August 2.

However, Citigroup's reputation has suffered and it has been left out in the cold when European governments have considered bond issues.

Citigroup acknowledged the trading strategy - nicknamed Dr Evil - had harmed the business and insisted it wished it had never taken place. It involved using the MTS electronic trading system to sell as many bonds in 18 seconds as would usually be traded in an entire day. A trading error then forced Citigroup to buy back some of the bonds it had sold.

<ref> [http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2005/jun/29/3 Guardian Online], accessed 4 March 2008</ref>

=== Citigroup and Japan ===

Japan's market watchdog has ordered US banking giant Citigroup to shut down its private banking operations there.
Regulators said they found a list of problems at Citigroup's private banking arm, from improper trading practices to lax anti-money laundering procedures.

Japan's Financial Services Agency ordered the US banking group to suspend new private banking business by the end of this month, and gave it one year's breathing space to close all accounts at the four branches. They will have their licences revoked on 30 September 2005.

Among its charges, the FSA said the bank had brokered deals on such items as artworks without properly informing customers of the risks.

It also allowed transactions which "could be suspected of being associated with money laundering".

"In a management environment in which profits are given undue importance by the bank's headquarters, a law-evading sales system that disregards the laws and regulations of Japan was constructed," the FSA said.

Bank staff and managers, it added, had "obstructed inspectors", while responses to official inquiries "differed from the truth".

<ref> [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3666828.stm BBC News Online], accessed 4 March 2008</ref>

==Notes==
<references/>

Globalisation:Citigroup

2008-03-25T12:06:10Z

Jamie Scott:

==Profile==

Citibank was founded in 1812, and is now one of the world's leading financial services companies. The Citi Group has over 200 million customer accounts in more than 100 countries.

Other major brand names in Citi's diverse portfolio include Citi Cards, CitiFinancial, CitiMortgage, CitiInsurance, Primerica, Diners Club, Citi Private Bank, and CitiCapital. <ref>http://www.citigroup.com/citigroup/about/index.htm Citi Group], accessed 25 March 2008</ref>

== Controversies ==

=== WorldCom Scandal===

In 2004, Citigroup agreed to pay $2.6bn (£1.4bn) to settle class action suits accusing it of participating in fraud with WorldCom, the phone company now known as MCI.

Shareholders sued Citigroup after the collapse of WorldCom and over allegations surrounding former Smith Barney (a subsidiary of Citigroup) telecom analyst Jack Grubman, who came under fire for hyping WorldCom and other hi-tech stocks.

WorldCom filed for the biggest bankruptcy in history in July 2002 amid accounting irregularities and Mr Grubman was subsequently fined $15m and barred from the securities industry for issuing misleading research.

Citigroup said it had agreed to settle federal class action suits brought on behalf of those who had purchased WorldCom stock and other securities from April 29, 1999, through June 25, 2002.

Charles Prince, Citigroup's chief executive, said the settlement was part of an effort "to put an unfortunate chapter behind us".

<ref> [http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2004/may/10/usnews.worldcom Guardian Online], accessed 4 March 2008</ref>

=== Global Crossing ===

In 2005 Citigroup paid $75m (£39.2m) to settle a class-action suit over its role in the collapse of telecom network provider Global Crossing.

The US banking giant had been accused of issuing inflated research reports and failing to flag up conflicts of interest in the three-year-old case.

=== European Bonds ===

Citigroup has been ordered to pay almost £14m to the Financial Services Authority as the penalty for a controversial trade in the government bond markets last year.

The world's largest financial firm is being forced to hand over £9.9m of profits from the trade and pay a £4m fine because of failures to control its bond business. This is the second largest financial punishment handed out by the City regulator after oil company Shell was fined £17m last year.

The American banking group escaped more draconian regulatory action after the FSA concluded it had not deliberately tried to distort the bond market when the trades took place on August 2.

However, Citigroup's reputation has suffered and it has been left out in the cold when European governments have considered bond issues.

Citigroup acknowledged the trading strategy - nicknamed Dr Evil - had harmed the business and insisted it wished it had never taken place. It involved using the MTS electronic trading system to sell as many bonds in 18 seconds as would usually be traded in an entire day. A trading error then forced Citigroup to buy back some of the bonds it had sold.

<ref> [http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2005/jun/29/3 Guardian Online], accessed 4 March 2008</ref>

=== Citigroup and Japan ===

Japan's market watchdog has ordered US banking giant Citigroup to shut down its private banking operations there.
Regulators said they found a list of problems at Citigroup's private banking arm, from improper trading practices to lax anti-money laundering procedures.

Japan's Financial Services Agency ordered the US banking group to suspend new private banking business by the end of this month, and gave it one year's breathing space to close all accounts at the four branches. They will have their licences revoked on 30 September 2005.

Among its charges, the FSA said the bank had brokered deals on such items as artworks without properly informing customers of the risks.

It also allowed transactions which "could be suspected of being associated with money laundering".

"In a management environment in which profits are given undue importance by the bank's headquarters, a law-evading sales system that disregards the laws and regulations of Japan was constructed," the FSA said.

Bank staff and managers, it added, had "obstructed inspectors", while responses to official inquiries "differed from the truth".

<ref> [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3666828.stm BBC News Online], accessed 4 March 2008</ref>

==Notes==
<references/>

Coca Cola, CSR and Human Rights

2008-03-18T12:58:05Z

Jamie Scott:

[[Coca Cola]]
==Coca Cola in Colombia==
In 2001, Lawyers for the United Steel workers union filed a lawsuit in America on behalf of the Colombian union Sinaltrainal.
: 'The suit alleges that Coca-Cola and [[Panamerican Beverages]], its principal bottler in Latin America, waged what union leaders describe as a campaign of terror, using paramilitaries to kill, torture and kidnap union leaders in Colombia'<ref>BBC News [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/1448962.stm Coke sued over death squad claims] 20th July 2001. (Accessed 26 January 2008)</ref>.

Coca Cola deny responsibility as they claim to not own or operate the plants involved. Yet Coca Cola owns 25% of bottling plant Panamerican Beverages which is Coca Cola's main bottling plant in Latin America<ref>Armbruster, S. (2003) [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/2909141.stm Coke bottler faces death suit] BBC News. 2 April 2003. (Accessed 26 January 2008)</ref>. Panamerican also deny the charges.

In 2003 it was reported that Panamerican Beverages would stand trial for allegedly hiring right-wing paramilitaries to kill and intimidate union leaders in Colombia<ref>ibid</ref>. But District Judge [[Jose E Martinez]] excluded Coca-Cola and its Colombian unit because its bottling agreement did not give it "explicit control" over labour issues in Colombia. The BBC Reports that this is 'the first time a US judge has ordered a company to stand trial for alleged human-rights violations committed overseas under the Alien Tort Claims Act'. However they add that, 'Corporations usually succeed in getting such cases dismissed before they reach trial'. Lawyers acting on behalf of the trade unionists are reported to be appealing against Coca Cola's exclusion.

Gill reports that 180 Coca-Cola employees have suffered major human rights violations over a period of fifteen years with nine of them having been murdered. Family members have also experienced threats, abductions, torture and murder<ref> Gill, L. (2004) [http://www.aaanet.org/committees/cfhr/gill.pdf LABOR AND HUMAN RIGHTS:‘The Real Thing’ in Colombia] Report to the Human Rights Committee of the American Anthropological Association by the Department of Anthropology, American University Washington. 28th November 2004. Accessed 26th January 2008</ref>.

Gill continues by explaining how 'Multinational firms profit from the reduced effectiveness of trade unions that arises from the intimidation of workers by paramilitaries. Weak unions pose less resistance to job cuts, lowered wages, reduced benefits, and “flexible” contracts that are promoted by multinational corporations'

:'Murdered unionists are not the product of indiscriminate, chaotic violence, nor are they the “collateral damage” of civilians caught between warring groups. They are the victims of a calculated and selective strategy carried out by sectors of the state, allied paramilitaries, and some employers to weaken and eliminate trade unions'<ref>ibid.</ref>.

Coca-Cola is reported<ref>ibid</ref> to be aggressive in the restructuring of its operations and centralising of productions in Columbia. 6700 workers have lost their jobs between 1992 and 2002 and 80% of the Coca-Cola work force is now composed of non-union, temporary workers. Wages for these individuals are only a quarter of those earned by their unionized counterparts. Coca-Cola has consistently pressured unionized workers to resign. In 2003 it closed 11 of its 16 bottling plants and 'forced workers to renounce their union contracts. Despite collective bargaining agreements that oblige it to find new jobs for displaced workers, the company has failed to fulfill its obligations, prompting a 12-day hunger strike by Sinaltrainal in March 2004... The Vice-Minister of Social Protection, [[Luz Estela Arango]], who is charged with ruling on the legality of the plant closures and the firings, is a former lawyer for the Coca-Cola Company'.

Coca Cola may deny the charges, however as Gill argues<ref>ibid.</ref> The Coca-Cola Company have failed to protect its workers from paramilitary intimidation, have benefited from the situation and 'in some cases, eyewitness accounts and abundant circumstantial evidence suggest that it is complicit with paramilitary terror'.

==Coca Cola in Guatemala==

Guatemalan workers have been struggling against Coca-Cola since the 1970s. In the years between 1976 and 1985, three general secretaries of the union were assassinated and members of their families, friends and legal advisers were threatened, arrested, kidnapped, shot, tortured and forced into exile. In 1980 the IUF backed an international boycott of Coca-Cola, with IUF-affiliated trade unions mounting solidarity stoppages in Europe, the Americas and New Zealand. The Greater London Council cancelled contracts for Coca-Cola in its restaurants, bars and cafeterias.

Despite victory in that earlier struggle, the violations of workers’ rights continue. Café INCASA, owner of Coca-Cola’s plants in Guatemala, is carrying out a union-busting campaign. According to the General Secretary of FESTRAS, the federation of agricultural and beverage unions, this includes the unfair dismissal of 13 Coca-Cola employees in the last four years. Workers and their family members with ties to unions have reportedly been subjected to death threats. In 2002 Coca-Cola’s bottlers PANAMCO took legal action in order to dismiss eight union representatives who took approved leave to participate in collective bargaining. Only after Coca-Cola was lobbied by the IUF to stop violating agreements on union activity were the dismissals withdrawn. <ref> [http://64.233.183.104/search?q=cache:At_iC8IIasIJ:www.waronwant.org/downloads/cocacola.pdf+coca+cola&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=10&gl=uk War on Want Website], accessed 18 March 2008</ref>

==Further examples of 'Union-Busting'==

In October 2001 Coca-Cola workers in Punjab, Pakistan were dismissed for calling a ‘strike’. The strike turned out to be a brief delay before work in the morning due to under staffing. The Labour Court ordered that the dismissed workers be reinstated, but Coca-Cola refused to comply with the ruling, only conceding finally when the IUF intervened. Efforts to unionise the bottling plants which Coca-Cola operates directly in Lahore, Faisalabad and Gujranwala have so far been unsuccessful due to strong resistance from management.

In Nicaragua, the Sole Union of Coca-Cola Company Workers (SUTEC) has complained that its workers at Coca-Cola bottlers PANAMCO have been denied the right to organise, as well as being threatened and unlawfully dismissed. The General Secretary of SUTEC, Daniel Reyes, has stated that: “We believe that the objective of this ongoing and escalating campaign is to crush the union.” The union is seeking legal redress.

Elsewhere in Latin America, Coca-Cola has refused to comply with a judicial order to reinstate 50 workers in Peru; since September 2004 Coca-Cola workers in the country have been calling strikes and protesting against the company’s actions, despite violent police repression. Coca-Cola workers in Chile have also been calling strikes on the grounds that the company is forcing them to work up to 16 hours a day and not adhering to the minimum wage. In Russia, Coca-Cola has been continually opposing union organisation, including attempts to get rid of the chief organiser of the Moscow Coca-Cola. <ref> [http://64.233.183.104/search?q=cache:At_iC8IIasIJ:www.waronwant.org/downloads/cocacola.pdf+coca+cola&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=10&gl=uk War on Want Website], accessed 18 March 2008</ref>

==Coca Cola in India==
The India Resource Centre<ref> India Resource Centre [http://www.indiaresource.org/campaigns/coke/ Campaign to hold Coca Cola accountable] Accessed 28th January 2008</ref> describe how communities throughout India are experiencing hardship as a result of the Coca Cola bottling operations in the country.

Severve Water Shortages
Communities 'living around Coca-Cola's bottling plants are experiencing severe water shortages, directly as a result of Coca-Cola's massive extraction of water from the common groundwater resource'.

Soil and Water Pollution
Coca-Cola are also accused of 'indiscriminately discharging its waste water into the fields around its plant and sometimes into rivers... The result has been that the groundwater has been polluted as well as the soil. Public health authorities have posted signs around wells and hand pumps advising the community that the water is unfit for human consumption'.

Toxic Waste
Coca-Cola has also in the past distributed its solid waste to farmers in India as "fertilizer". Tests conducted by the BBC found cadmium and lead in the waste, effectively making it toxic waste.

During 2006-2007, The [[Energy and Resources Institute]] (TERI) conducted an assessment of the Coca-Cola Company's water
resource management policies and practices in India. This report is known as the 'Independent Third Party Assessment of Coca-Cola Facilities in India'<ref> The Energy and Resources Institute [http://www.teriin.org/coke_files/FReport.pdf the study on independent third party assessment of Coca-Cola facilities in India] Accessed 28th January 2008</ref>. The India Resource Centre state that the report 'is a damning indictment of Coca-Cola's operations in India'<ref> India Resource Centre[http://www.indiaresource.org/news/2008/1001.html Coca-Cola Asked to Shut Plant in India] Accessed 28th January 2008</ref>. They go on to describe how the report confirms the deteriorating water levels in the village of Kala Dera, with the report calling for alternative sources of water to be found or for the closure of the bottling plant itself. The report also 'points out the heavy pollution present in the immediate vicinity of the Coca-Cola bottling plants and calls for additional studies. The report also shows that the Coca-Cola company has failed to meet its own standards regarding waste management, and that the company has hampered the TERI assessment because it has refused to share the Environmental Impact Assessments for any one of the six plants'.

Only 6 of Coca Cola's 50 Indian bottling plants were assessed and the India Resource Centre criticise the use of TERI as the "independent" assessor of Coca-Cola. This is because the two groups are reported to have worked together in the past (co-organizing Earth Day), Coca-Cola is reported to have provided funding to TERI in the past, and also because TERI named Coca-Cola as among the most responsible companies in India in 2001.

== Coca Cola in El Salvador==

Coca-Cola’s Salvadorean subsidiary has been accused by environmentalists of exhausting waterresources in the region of Soyapango over a 25-year period.The company subsequently relocatedits bottling plant to a new aquifer in Nejapa, near San Salvador.The mayor of Nejapa has accusedthe company of causing pollution with untreated water from the plant, which has led to thedeath of fauna and fish.After Coca-Cola refused to deal with the problem, the company wastaken to the Supreme Court.The case is ongoing.<ref> [http://64.233.183.104/search?q=cache:At_iC8IIasIJ:www.waronwant.org/downloads/cocacola.pdf+coca+cola&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=10&gl=uk War on Want Website], accessed 18 March 2008</ref>

==Coca Cola CSR==
Coca-Cola is a worldwide organisation which has extended its activities to help fund and become a part of different organisations around the world. One such organisation is [[Camp Coca-Cola]], which is a year round programme of leadership training and community service. It also offers a Summer Camp programme which includes a number of exciting yet testing activities. [[Camp Coca-Cola]] aims to challenge its members to see the world more openly as a place where they can make a difference. It is run by professionals who are dedicated to providing a unique and worthwhile experience to those who attend. Attendance is decided through nominations by local schools and community organisations on the basis that those who are chosen are dedicated to learning and are open to new life experiences. Coca-Cola fund this project which they feel is beneficial to the communities it serves and Camps have been specially set up all over America <ref>[http://www.campcocacola.com/parent_faq.htm] (Link Dead: 28 January 2008); seems to have move to [http://c5yf.org/c/c5/content.asp?c=159 C5 Youth Foundation] (Accessed: 28 January 2008)</ref> Organisations such as Camp Coca-Cola have been set up in an attempt by Coca-Cola to improve its overall image and to increase its ability to boost its own long term profits.

A further extension of Coca-Cola's work is '[[Coca-Cola Africa]]'. This organisation is said to be committed to the future of the African continent and to the well being of its people and communities, and furthermore to its economic development. This statement stands in stark contrast to the activities which Coca-Cola have already been accused of in India. Such atrocities which have been previously mentioned in this report contradict the philosophy of 'Coca-Cola Africa'. This particular organisation which Coca-Cola initiated was set up to educate and distribute information about the dangers of HIV and AIDS. It places particular attention on the treatment of individuals who suffer from such diseases, and furthermore harshly criticises the discrimination of these unfortunate people.<ref>[http://www.africacncl.org/HIV_AIDS/get_involved/profiles/coca_cola.asp].</ref>

One additional organisation of Coca-Cola is the [[Coca-Cola Foundation]] which is said to be the 'philanthropic arm' of the Coca-Cola Company. It focuses on education and the advancement of cultural diversity. Its main activities include the offering of scholarships, the building of schools and libraries and the donation of books. It aims to help and support people through higher education who lack both financial and personal support <ref>[http://orgs.takingitglobal.org/464]</ref>. It appears that Coca-Cola put a great deal of effort into initiating organisations and programmes to help extend the education of citizens around the world, more specifically in America and in Africa. Despite the ever growing number of these programmes which are available it is difficult for Coca-Cola to mask the shocking activities they carry out each day in the small communities in India where they operate their bottling plants. Coca-Cola may indeed help fund educational programmes in America, but this is of little consolation to the many villages in India, who are left suffering at the hands of this multinational.

==References==
<references/>

[[Category:Food and Agriculture Industry]]
[[Category:Transnational Corporations]]

Coca Cola, CSR and Human Rights

2008-03-18T12:34:00Z

Jamie Scott: /* Further examples of 'Union-Busting */

[[Coca Cola]]
==Coca Cola in Colombia==
In 2001, Lawyers for the United Steel workers union filed a lawsuit in America on behalf of the Colombian union Sinaltrainal.
: 'The suit alleges that Coca-Cola and [[Panamerican Beverages]], its principal bottler in Latin America, waged what union leaders describe as a campaign of terror, using paramilitaries to kill, torture and kidnap union leaders in Colombia'<ref>BBC News [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/1448962.stm Coke sued over death squad claims] 20th July 2001. (Accessed 26 January 2008)</ref>.

Coca Cola deny responsibility as they claim to not own or operate the plants involved. Yet Coca Cola owns 25% of bottling plant Panamerican Beverages which is Coca Cola's main bottling plant in Latin America<ref>Armbruster, S. (2003) [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/2909141.stm Coke bottler faces death suit] BBC News. 2 April 2003. (Accessed 26 January 2008)</ref>. Panamerican also deny the charges.

In 2003 it was reported that Panamerican Beverages would stand trial for allegedly hiring right-wing paramilitaries to kill and intimidate union leaders in Colombia<ref>ibid</ref>. But District Judge [[Jose E Martinez]] excluded Coca-Cola and its Colombian unit because its bottling agreement did not give it "explicit control" over labour issues in Colombia. The BBC Reports that this is 'the first time a US judge has ordered a company to stand trial for alleged human-rights violations committed overseas under the Alien Tort Claims Act'. However they add that, 'Corporations usually succeed in getting such cases dismissed before they reach trial'. Lawyers acting on behalf of the trade unionists are reported to be appealing against Coca Cola's exclusion.

Gill reports that 180 Coca-Cola employees have suffered major human rights violations over a period of fifteen years with nine of them having been murdered. Family members have also experienced threats, abductions, torture and murder<ref> Gill, L. (2004) [http://www.aaanet.org/committees/cfhr/gill.pdf LABOR AND HUMAN RIGHTS:‘The Real Thing’ in Colombia] Report to the Human Rights Committee of the American Anthropological Association by the Department of Anthropology, American University Washington. 28th November 2004. Accessed 26th January 2008</ref>.

Gill continues by explaining how 'Multinational firms profit from the reduced effectiveness of trade unions that arises from the intimidation of workers by paramilitaries. Weak unions pose less resistance to job cuts, lowered wages, reduced benefits, and “flexible” contracts that are promoted by multinational corporations'

:'Murdered unionists are not the product of indiscriminate, chaotic violence, nor are they the “collateral damage” of civilians caught between warring groups. They are the victims of a calculated and selective strategy carried out by sectors of the state, allied paramilitaries, and some employers to weaken and eliminate trade unions'<ref>ibid.</ref>.

Coca-Cola is reported<ref>ibid</ref> to be aggressive in the restructuring of its operations and centralising of productions in Columbia. 6700 workers have lost their jobs between 1992 and 2002 and 80% of the Coca-Cola work force is now composed of non-union, temporary workers. Wages for these individuals are only a quarter of those earned by their unionized counterparts. Coca-Cola has consistently pressured unionized workers to resign. In 2003 it closed 11 of its 16 bottling plants and 'forced workers to renounce their union contracts. Despite collective bargaining agreements that oblige it to find new jobs for displaced workers, the company has failed to fulfill its obligations, prompting a 12-day hunger strike by Sinaltrainal in March 2004... The Vice-Minister of Social Protection, [[Luz Estela Arango]], who is charged with ruling on the legality of the plant closures and the firings, is a former lawyer for the Coca-Cola Company'.

Coca Cola may deny the charges, however as Gill argues<ref>ibid.</ref> The Coca-Cola Company have failed to protect its workers from paramilitary intimidation, have benefited from the situation and 'in some cases, eyewitness accounts and abundant circumstantial evidence suggest that it is complicit with paramilitary terror'.

==Coca Cola in Guatemala==

Guatemalan workers have been struggling against Coca-Cola since the 1970s. In the years between 1976 and 1985, three general secretaries of the union were assassinated and members of their families, friends and legal advisers were threatened, arrested, kidnapped, shot, tortured and forced into exile. In 1980 the IUF backed an international boycott of Coca-Cola, with IUF-affiliated trade unions mounting solidarity stoppages in Europe, the Americas and New Zealand. The Greater London Council cancelled contracts for Coca-Cola in its restaurants, bars and cafeterias.

Despite victory in that earlier struggle, the violations of workers’ rights continue. Café INCASA, owner of Coca-Cola’s plants in Guatemala, is carrying out a union-busting campaign. According to the General Secretary of FESTRAS, the federation of agricultural and beverage unions, this includes the unfair dismissal of 13 Coca-Cola employees in the last four years. Workers and their family members with ties to unions have reportedly been subjected to death threats. In 2002 Coca-Cola’s bottlers PANAMCO took legal action in order to dismiss eight union representatives who took approved leave to participate in collective bargaining. Only after Coca-Cola was lobbied by the IUF to stop violating agreements on union activity were the dismissals withdrawn. <ref> [http://64.233.183.104/search?q=cache:At_iC8IIasIJ:www.waronwant.org/downloads/cocacola.pdf+coca+cola&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=10&gl=uk War on Want Website], accessed 18 March 2008</ref>

==Further examples of 'Union-Busting'==

In October 2001 Coca-Cola workers in Punjab, Pakistan were dismissed for calling a ‘strike’. The strike turned out to be a brief delay before work in the morning due to under staffing. The Labour Court ordered that the dismissed workers be reinstated, but Coca-Cola refused to comply with the ruling, only conceding finally when the IUF intervened. Efforts to unionise the bottling plants which Coca-Cola operates directly in Lahore, Faisalabad and Gujranwala have so far been unsuccessful due to strong resistance from management.

In Nicaragua, the Sole Union of Coca-Cola Company Workers (SUTEC) has complained that its workers at Coca-Cola bottlers PANAMCO have been denied the right to organise, as well as being threatened and unlawfully dismissed. The General Secretary of SUTEC, Daniel Reyes, has stated that: “We believe that the objective of this ongoing and escalating campaign is to crush the union.” The union is seeking legal redress.

Elsewhere in Latin America, Coca-Cola has refused to comply with a judicial order to reinstate 50 workers in Peru; since September 2004 Coca-Cola workers in the country have been calling strikes and protesting against the company’s actions, despite violent police repression. Coca-Cola workers in Chile have also been calling strikes on the grounds that the company is forcing them to work up to 16 hours a day and not adhering to the minimum wage. In Russia, Coca-Cola has been continually opposing union organisation, including attempts to get rid of the chief organiser of the Moscow Coca-Cola. <ref> [http://64.233.183.104/search?q=cache:At_iC8IIasIJ:www.waronwant.org/downloads/cocacola.pdf+coca+cola&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=10&gl=uk War on Want Website], accessed 18 March 2008</ref>

==Coca Cola in India==
The India Resource Centre<ref> India Resource Centre [http://www.indiaresource.org/campaigns/coke/ Campaign to hold Coca Cola accountable] Accessed 28th January 2008</ref> describe how communities throughout India are experiencing hardship as a result of the Coca Cola bottling operations in the country.

Severve Water Shortages
Communities 'living around Coca-Cola's bottling plants are experiencing severe water shortages, directly as a result of Coca-Cola's massive extraction of water from the common groundwater resource'.

Soil and Water Pollution
Coca-Cola are also accused of 'indiscriminately discharging its waste water into the fields around its plant and sometimes into rivers... The result has been that the groundwater has been polluted as well as the soil. Public health authorities have posted signs around wells and hand pumps advising the community that the water is unfit for human consumption'.

Toxic Waste
Coca-Cola has also in the past distributed its solid waste to farmers in India as "fertilizer". Tests conducted by the BBC found cadmium and lead in the waste, effectively making it toxic waste.

During 2006-2007, The [[Energy and Resources Institute]] (TERI) conducted an assessment of the Coca-Cola Company's water
resource management policies and practices in India. This report is known as the 'Independent Third Party Assessment of Coca-Cola Facilities in India'<ref> The Energy and Resources Institute [http://www.teriin.org/coke_files/FReport.pdf the study on independent third party assessment of Coca-Cola facilities in India] Accessed 28th January 2008</ref>. The India Resource Centre state that the report 'is a damning indictment of Coca-Cola's operations in India'<ref> India Resource Centre[http://www.indiaresource.org/news/2008/1001.html Coca-Cola Asked to Shut Plant in India] Accessed 28th January 2008</ref>. They go on to describe how the report confirms the deteriorating water levels in the village of Kala Dera, with the report calling for alternative sources of water to be found or for the closure of the bottling plant itself. The report also 'points out the heavy pollution present in the immediate vicinity of the Coca-Cola bottling plants and calls for additional studies. The report also shows that the Coca-Cola company has failed to meet its own standards regarding waste management, and that the company has hampered the TERI assessment because it has refused to share the Environmental Impact Assessments for any one of the six plants'.

Only 6 of Coca Cola's 50 Indian bottling plants were assessed and the India Resource Centre criticise the use of TERI as the "independent" assessor of Coca-Cola. This is because the two groups are reported to have worked together in the past (co-organizing Earth Day), Coca-Cola is reported to have provided funding to TERI in the past, and also because TERI named Coca-Cola as among the most responsible companies in India in 2001.

==Coca Cola CSR==
Coca-Cola is a worldwide organisation which has extended its activities to help fund and become a part of different organisations around the world. One such organisation is [[Camp Coca-Cola]], which is a year round programme of leadership training and community service. It also offers a Summer Camp programme which includes a number of exciting yet testing activities. [[Camp Coca-Cola]] aims to challenge its members to see the world more openly as a place where they can make a difference. It is run by professionals who are dedicated to providing a unique and worthwhile experience to those who attend. Attendance is decided through nominations by local schools and community organisations on the basis that those who are chosen are dedicated to learning and are open to new life experiences. Coca-Cola fund this project which they feel is beneficial to the communities it serves and Camps have been specially set up all over America <ref>[http://www.campcocacola.com/parent_faq.htm] (Link Dead: 28 January 2008); seems to have move to [http://c5yf.org/c/c5/content.asp?c=159 C5 Youth Foundation] (Accessed: 28 January 2008)</ref> Organisations such as Camp Coca-Cola have been set up in an attempt by Coca-Cola to improve its overall image and to increase its ability to boost its own long term profits.

A further extension of Coca-Cola's work is '[[Coca-Cola Africa]]'. This organisation is said to be committed to the future of the African continent and to the well being of its people and communities, and furthermore to its economic development. This statement stands in stark contrast to the activities which Coca-Cola have already been accused of in India. Such atrocities which have been previously mentioned in this report contradict the philosophy of 'Coca-Cola Africa'. This particular organisation which Coca-Cola initiated was set up to educate and distribute information about the dangers of HIV and AIDS. It places particular attention on the treatment of individuals who suffer from such diseases, and furthermore harshly criticises the discrimination of these unfortunate people.<ref>[http://www.africacncl.org/HIV_AIDS/get_involved/profiles/coca_cola.asp].</ref>

One additional organisation of Coca-Cola is the [[Coca-Cola Foundation]] which is said to be the 'philanthropic arm' of the Coca-Cola Company. It focuses on education and the advancement of cultural diversity. Its main activities include the offering of scholarships, the building of schools and libraries and the donation of books. It aims to help and support people through higher education who lack both financial and personal support <ref>[http://orgs.takingitglobal.org/464]</ref>. It appears that Coca-Cola put a great deal of effort into initiating organisations and programmes to help extend the education of citizens around the world, more specifically in America and in Africa. Despite the ever growing number of these programmes which are available it is difficult for Coca-Cola to mask the shocking activities they carry out each day in the small communities in India where they operate their bottling plants. Coca-Cola may indeed help fund educational programmes in America, but this is of little consolation to the many villages in India, who are left suffering at the hands of this multinational.

==References==
<references/>

[[Category:Food and Agriculture Industry]]
[[Category:Transnational Corporations]]

Coca Cola, CSR and Human Rights

2008-03-18T12:32:22Z

Jamie Scott: /* Coca Cola in Guatemala */

[[Coca Cola]]
==Coca Cola in Colombia==
In 2001, Lawyers for the United Steel workers union filed a lawsuit in America on behalf of the Colombian union Sinaltrainal.
: 'The suit alleges that Coca-Cola and [[Panamerican Beverages]], its principal bottler in Latin America, waged what union leaders describe as a campaign of terror, using paramilitaries to kill, torture and kidnap union leaders in Colombia'<ref>BBC News [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/1448962.stm Coke sued over death squad claims] 20th July 2001. (Accessed 26 January 2008)</ref>.

Coca Cola deny responsibility as they claim to not own or operate the plants involved. Yet Coca Cola owns 25% of bottling plant Panamerican Beverages which is Coca Cola's main bottling plant in Latin America<ref>Armbruster, S. (2003) [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/2909141.stm Coke bottler faces death suit] BBC News. 2 April 2003. (Accessed 26 January 2008)</ref>. Panamerican also deny the charges.

In 2003 it was reported that Panamerican Beverages would stand trial for allegedly hiring right-wing paramilitaries to kill and intimidate union leaders in Colombia<ref>ibid</ref>. But District Judge [[Jose E Martinez]] excluded Coca-Cola and its Colombian unit because its bottling agreement did not give it "explicit control" over labour issues in Colombia. The BBC Reports that this is 'the first time a US judge has ordered a company to stand trial for alleged human-rights violations committed overseas under the Alien Tort Claims Act'. However they add that, 'Corporations usually succeed in getting such cases dismissed before they reach trial'. Lawyers acting on behalf of the trade unionists are reported to be appealing against Coca Cola's exclusion.

Gill reports that 180 Coca-Cola employees have suffered major human rights violations over a period of fifteen years with nine of them having been murdered. Family members have also experienced threats, abductions, torture and murder<ref> Gill, L. (2004) [http://www.aaanet.org/committees/cfhr/gill.pdf LABOR AND HUMAN RIGHTS:‘The Real Thing’ in Colombia] Report to the Human Rights Committee of the American Anthropological Association by the Department of Anthropology, American University Washington. 28th November 2004. Accessed 26th January 2008</ref>.

Gill continues by explaining how 'Multinational firms profit from the reduced effectiveness of trade unions that arises from the intimidation of workers by paramilitaries. Weak unions pose less resistance to job cuts, lowered wages, reduced benefits, and “flexible” contracts that are promoted by multinational corporations'

:'Murdered unionists are not the product of indiscriminate, chaotic violence, nor are they the “collateral damage” of civilians caught between warring groups. They are the victims of a calculated and selective strategy carried out by sectors of the state, allied paramilitaries, and some employers to weaken and eliminate trade unions'<ref>ibid.</ref>.

Coca-Cola is reported<ref>ibid</ref> to be aggressive in the restructuring of its operations and centralising of productions in Columbia. 6700 workers have lost their jobs between 1992 and 2002 and 80% of the Coca-Cola work force is now composed of non-union, temporary workers. Wages for these individuals are only a quarter of those earned by their unionized counterparts. Coca-Cola has consistently pressured unionized workers to resign. In 2003 it closed 11 of its 16 bottling plants and 'forced workers to renounce their union contracts. Despite collective bargaining agreements that oblige it to find new jobs for displaced workers, the company has failed to fulfill its obligations, prompting a 12-day hunger strike by Sinaltrainal in March 2004... The Vice-Minister of Social Protection, [[Luz Estela Arango]], who is charged with ruling on the legality of the plant closures and the firings, is a former lawyer for the Coca-Cola Company'.

Coca Cola may deny the charges, however as Gill argues<ref>ibid.</ref> The Coca-Cola Company have failed to protect its workers from paramilitary intimidation, have benefited from the situation and 'in some cases, eyewitness accounts and abundant circumstantial evidence suggest that it is complicit with paramilitary terror'.

==Coca Cola in Guatemala==

Guatemalan workers have been struggling against Coca-Cola since the 1970s. In the years between 1976 and 1985, three general secretaries of the union were assassinated and members of their families, friends and legal advisers were threatened, arrested, kidnapped, shot, tortured and forced into exile. In 1980 the IUF backed an international boycott of Coca-Cola, with IUF-affiliated trade unions mounting solidarity stoppages in Europe, the Americas and New Zealand. The Greater London Council cancelled contracts for Coca-Cola in its restaurants, bars and cafeterias.

Despite victory in that earlier struggle, the violations of workers’ rights continue. Café INCASA, owner of Coca-Cola’s plants in Guatemala, is carrying out a union-busting campaign. According to the General Secretary of FESTRAS, the federation of agricultural and beverage unions, this includes the unfair dismissal of 13 Coca-Cola employees in the last four years. Workers and their family members with ties to unions have reportedly been subjected to death threats. In 2002 Coca-Cola’s bottlers PANAMCO took legal action in order to dismiss eight union representatives who took approved leave to participate in collective bargaining. Only after Coca-Cola was lobbied by the IUF to stop violating agreements on union activity were the dismissals withdrawn. <ref> [http://64.233.183.104/search?q=cache:At_iC8IIasIJ:www.waronwant.org/downloads/cocacola.pdf+coca+cola&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=10&gl=uk War on Want Website], accessed 18 March 2008</ref>

==Further examples of 'Union-Busting==

In October 2001 Coca-Cola workers in Punjab, Pakistan were dismissed for calling a‘strike’.The strike turned out to be a briefdelay before work in the morning due tounderstaffing.The Labour Court ordered that the dismissed workers be reinstated, butCoca-Cola refused to comply with the ruling,only conceding finally when the IUFintervened. Efforts to unionise the bottlingplants which Coca-Cola operates directly inLahore, Faisalabad and Gujranwala have so farbeen unsuccessful due to strong resistance from management.

In Nicaragua, the Sole Union of Coca-ColaCompany Workers (SUTEC) has complainedthat its workers at Coca-Cola bottlersPANAMCO have been denied the right toorganise, as well as being threatened andunlawfully dismissed.18The General Secretaryof SUTEC, Daniel Reyes, has stated that:“Webelieve that the objective of this ongoing and escalating campaign is to crush the union.” The union is seeking legal redress.

Elsewhere in Latin America, Coca-Cola has refused to comply with a judicial order toreinstate 50 workers in Peru; since September2004 Coca-Cola workers in the country havebeen calling strikes and protesting against thecompany’s actions, despite violent police repression. Coca-Cola workers in Chile have also been calling strikes on the grounds thatthe company is forcing them to work up to 16hours a day and not adhering to the minimum wage. In Russia, Coca-Cola has been continually opposing union organisation, including attempts to get rid of the chief organiser of the Moscow Coca-Cola. <ref> [http://64.233.183.104/search?q=cache:At_iC8IIasIJ:www.waronwant.org/downloads/cocacola.pdf+coca+cola&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=10&gl=uk War on Want Website], accessed 18 March 2008</ref>

==Coca Cola in India==
The India Resource Centre<ref> India Resource Centre [http://www.indiaresource.org/campaigns/coke/ Campaign to hold Coca Cola accountable] Accessed 28th January 2008</ref> describe how communities throughout India are experiencing hardship as a result of the Coca Cola bottling operations in the country.

Severve Water Shortages
Communities 'living around Coca-Cola's bottling plants are experiencing severe water shortages, directly as a result of Coca-Cola's massive extraction of water from the common groundwater resource'.

Soil and Water Pollution
Coca-Cola are also accused of 'indiscriminately discharging its waste water into the fields around its plant and sometimes into rivers... The result has been that the groundwater has been polluted as well as the soil. Public health authorities have posted signs around wells and hand pumps advising the community that the water is unfit for human consumption'.

Toxic Waste
Coca-Cola has also in the past distributed its solid waste to farmers in India as "fertilizer". Tests conducted by the BBC found cadmium and lead in the waste, effectively making it toxic waste.

During 2006-2007, The [[Energy and Resources Institute]] (TERI) conducted an assessment of the Coca-Cola Company's water
resource management policies and practices in India. This report is known as the 'Independent Third Party Assessment of Coca-Cola Facilities in India'<ref> The Energy and Resources Institute [http://www.teriin.org/coke_files/FReport.pdf the study on independent third party assessment of Coca-Cola facilities in India] Accessed 28th January 2008</ref>. The India Resource Centre state that the report 'is a damning indictment of Coca-Cola's operations in India'<ref> India Resource Centre[http://www.indiaresource.org/news/2008/1001.html Coca-Cola Asked to Shut Plant in India] Accessed 28th January 2008</ref>. They go on to describe how the report confirms the deteriorating water levels in the village of Kala Dera, with the report calling for alternative sources of water to be found or for the closure of the bottling plant itself. The report also 'points out the heavy pollution present in the immediate vicinity of the Coca-Cola bottling plants and calls for additional studies. The report also shows that the Coca-Cola company has failed to meet its own standards regarding waste management, and that the company has hampered the TERI assessment because it has refused to share the Environmental Impact Assessments for any one of the six plants'.

Only 6 of Coca Cola's 50 Indian bottling plants were assessed and the India Resource Centre criticise the use of TERI as the "independent" assessor of Coca-Cola. This is because the two groups are reported to have worked together in the past (co-organizing Earth Day), Coca-Cola is reported to have provided funding to TERI in the past, and also because TERI named Coca-Cola as among the most responsible companies in India in 2001.

==Coca Cola CSR==
Coca-Cola is a worldwide organisation which has extended its activities to help fund and become a part of different organisations around the world. One such organisation is [[Camp Coca-Cola]], which is a year round programme of leadership training and community service. It also offers a Summer Camp programme which includes a number of exciting yet testing activities. [[Camp Coca-Cola]] aims to challenge its members to see the world more openly as a place where they can make a difference. It is run by professionals who are dedicated to providing a unique and worthwhile experience to those who attend. Attendance is decided through nominations by local schools and community organisations on the basis that those who are chosen are dedicated to learning and are open to new life experiences. Coca-Cola fund this project which they feel is beneficial to the communities it serves and Camps have been specially set up all over America <ref>[http://www.campcocacola.com/parent_faq.htm] (Link Dead: 28 January 2008); seems to have move to [http://c5yf.org/c/c5/content.asp?c=159 C5 Youth Foundation] (Accessed: 28 January 2008)</ref> Organisations such as Camp Coca-Cola have been set up in an attempt by Coca-Cola to improve its overall image and to increase its ability to boost its own long term profits.

A further extension of Coca-Cola's work is '[[Coca-Cola Africa]]'. This organisation is said to be committed to the future of the African continent and to the well being of its people and communities, and furthermore to its economic development. This statement stands in stark contrast to the activities which Coca-Cola have already been accused of in India. Such atrocities which have been previously mentioned in this report contradict the philosophy of 'Coca-Cola Africa'. This particular organisation which Coca-Cola initiated was set up to educate and distribute information about the dangers of HIV and AIDS. It places particular attention on the treatment of individuals who suffer from such diseases, and furthermore harshly criticises the discrimination of these unfortunate people.<ref>[http://www.africacncl.org/HIV_AIDS/get_involved/profiles/coca_cola.asp].</ref>

One additional organisation of Coca-Cola is the [[Coca-Cola Foundation]] which is said to be the 'philanthropic arm' of the Coca-Cola Company. It focuses on education and the advancement of cultural diversity. Its main activities include the offering of scholarships, the building of schools and libraries and the donation of books. It aims to help and support people through higher education who lack both financial and personal support <ref>[http://orgs.takingitglobal.org/464]</ref>. It appears that Coca-Cola put a great deal of effort into initiating organisations and programmes to help extend the education of citizens around the world, more specifically in America and in Africa. Despite the ever growing number of these programmes which are available it is difficult for Coca-Cola to mask the shocking activities they carry out each day in the small communities in India where they operate their bottling plants. Coca-Cola may indeed help fund educational programmes in America, but this is of little consolation to the many villages in India, who are left suffering at the hands of this multinational.

==References==
<references/>

[[Category:Food and Agriculture Industry]]
[[Category:Transnational Corporations]]

Coca Cola, CSR and Human Rights

2008-03-18T12:31:17Z

Jamie Scott:

[[Coca Cola]]
==Coca Cola in Colombia==
In 2001, Lawyers for the United Steel workers union filed a lawsuit in America on behalf of the Colombian union Sinaltrainal.
: 'The suit alleges that Coca-Cola and [[Panamerican Beverages]], its principal bottler in Latin America, waged what union leaders describe as a campaign of terror, using paramilitaries to kill, torture and kidnap union leaders in Colombia'<ref>BBC News [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/1448962.stm Coke sued over death squad claims] 20th July 2001. (Accessed 26 January 2008)</ref>.

Coca Cola deny responsibility as they claim to not own or operate the plants involved. Yet Coca Cola owns 25% of bottling plant Panamerican Beverages which is Coca Cola's main bottling plant in Latin America<ref>Armbruster, S. (2003) [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/2909141.stm Coke bottler faces death suit] BBC News. 2 April 2003. (Accessed 26 January 2008)</ref>. Panamerican also deny the charges.

In 2003 it was reported that Panamerican Beverages would stand trial for allegedly hiring right-wing paramilitaries to kill and intimidate union leaders in Colombia<ref>ibid</ref>. But District Judge [[Jose E Martinez]] excluded Coca-Cola and its Colombian unit because its bottling agreement did not give it "explicit control" over labour issues in Colombia. The BBC Reports that this is 'the first time a US judge has ordered a company to stand trial for alleged human-rights violations committed overseas under the Alien Tort Claims Act'. However they add that, 'Corporations usually succeed in getting such cases dismissed before they reach trial'. Lawyers acting on behalf of the trade unionists are reported to be appealing against Coca Cola's exclusion.

Gill reports that 180 Coca-Cola employees have suffered major human rights violations over a period of fifteen years with nine of them having been murdered. Family members have also experienced threats, abductions, torture and murder<ref> Gill, L. (2004) [http://www.aaanet.org/committees/cfhr/gill.pdf LABOR AND HUMAN RIGHTS:‘The Real Thing’ in Colombia] Report to the Human Rights Committee of the American Anthropological Association by the Department of Anthropology, American University Washington. 28th November 2004. Accessed 26th January 2008</ref>.

Gill continues by explaining how 'Multinational firms profit from the reduced effectiveness of trade unions that arises from the intimidation of workers by paramilitaries. Weak unions pose less resistance to job cuts, lowered wages, reduced benefits, and “flexible” contracts that are promoted by multinational corporations'

:'Murdered unionists are not the product of indiscriminate, chaotic violence, nor are they the “collateral damage” of civilians caught between warring groups. They are the victims of a calculated and selective strategy carried out by sectors of the state, allied paramilitaries, and some employers to weaken and eliminate trade unions'<ref>ibid.</ref>.

Coca-Cola is reported<ref>ibid</ref> to be aggressive in the restructuring of its operations and centralising of productions in Columbia. 6700 workers have lost their jobs between 1992 and 2002 and 80% of the Coca-Cola work force is now composed of non-union, temporary workers. Wages for these individuals are only a quarter of those earned by their unionized counterparts. Coca-Cola has consistently pressured unionized workers to resign. In 2003 it closed 11 of its 16 bottling plants and 'forced workers to renounce their union contracts. Despite collective bargaining agreements that oblige it to find new jobs for displaced workers, the company has failed to fulfill its obligations, prompting a 12-day hunger strike by Sinaltrainal in March 2004... The Vice-Minister of Social Protection, [[Luz Estela Arango]], who is charged with ruling on the legality of the plant closures and the firings, is a former lawyer for the Coca-Cola Company'.

Coca Cola may deny the charges, however as Gill argues<ref>ibid.</ref> The Coca-Cola Company have failed to protect its workers from paramilitary intimidation, have benefited from the situation and 'in some cases, eyewitness accounts and abundant circumstantial evidence suggest that it is complicit with paramilitary terror'.

==Coca Cola in Guatemala==

Guatemalan workers have been struggling against Coca-Cola since the 1970s. In the yearsbetween 1976 and 1985, three general secretaries of the union were assassinated and membersof their families, friends and legal advisers were threatened, arrested, kidnapped, shot, torturedand forced into exile. In 1980 the IUF backed an international boycott of Coca-Cola, with IUF-affiliated trade unions mounting solidarity stoppages in Europe, the Americas and New Zealand.The Greater London Council cancelled contracts for Coca-Cola in its restaurants, bars and cafeterias.

Despite victory in that earlier struggle, the violations of workers’ rights continue. Café INCASA,owner of Coca-Cola’s plants in Guatemala, is carrying out a union-busting campaign.According tothe General Secretary of FESTRAS, the federation of agricultural and beverage unions, thisincludes the unfair dismissal of 13 Coca-Cola employees in the last four years.Workers and their family members with ties to unions have reportedly been subjected to death threats. In 2002 Coca-Cola’s bottlers PANAMCO took legal action in order to dismiss eight unionrepresentatives who took approved leave to participate in collective bargaining. Only after Coca-Cola was lobbied by the IUF to stop violating agreements on union activity were the dismissals withdrawn. <ref> [http://64.233.183.104/search?q=cache:At_iC8IIasIJ:www.waronwant.org/downloads/cocacola.pdf+coca+cola&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=10&gl=uk War on Want Website], accessed 18 March 2008</ref>

==Further examples of 'Union-Busting==

In October 2001 Coca-Cola workers in Punjab, Pakistan were dismissed for calling a‘strike’.The strike turned out to be a briefdelay before work in the morning due tounderstaffing.The Labour Court ordered that the dismissed workers be reinstated, butCoca-Cola refused to comply with the ruling,only conceding finally when the IUFintervened. Efforts to unionise the bottlingplants which Coca-Cola operates directly inLahore, Faisalabad and Gujranwala have so farbeen unsuccessful due to strong resistance from management.

In Nicaragua, the Sole Union of Coca-ColaCompany Workers (SUTEC) has complainedthat its workers at Coca-Cola bottlersPANAMCO have been denied the right toorganise, as well as being threatened andunlawfully dismissed.18The General Secretaryof SUTEC, Daniel Reyes, has stated that:“Webelieve that the objective of this ongoing and escalating campaign is to crush the union.” The union is seeking legal redress.

Elsewhere in Latin America, Coca-Cola has refused to comply with a judicial order toreinstate 50 workers in Peru; since September2004 Coca-Cola workers in the country havebeen calling strikes and protesting against thecompany’s actions, despite violent police repression. Coca-Cola workers in Chile have also been calling strikes on the grounds thatthe company is forcing them to work up to 16hours a day and not adhering to the minimum wage. In Russia, Coca-Cola has been continually opposing union organisation, including attempts to get rid of the chief organiser of the Moscow Coca-Cola. <ref> [http://64.233.183.104/search?q=cache:At_iC8IIasIJ:www.waronwant.org/downloads/cocacola.pdf+coca+cola&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=10&gl=uk War on Want Website], accessed 18 March 2008</ref>

==Coca Cola in India==
The India Resource Centre<ref> India Resource Centre [http://www.indiaresource.org/campaigns/coke/ Campaign to hold Coca Cola accountable] Accessed 28th January 2008</ref> describe how communities throughout India are experiencing hardship as a result of the Coca Cola bottling operations in the country.

Severve Water Shortages
Communities 'living around Coca-Cola's bottling plants are experiencing severe water shortages, directly as a result of Coca-Cola's massive extraction of water from the common groundwater resource'.

Soil and Water Pollution
Coca-Cola are also accused of 'indiscriminately discharging its waste water into the fields around its plant and sometimes into rivers... The result has been that the groundwater has been polluted as well as the soil. Public health authorities have posted signs around wells and hand pumps advising the community that the water is unfit for human consumption'.

Toxic Waste
Coca-Cola has also in the past distributed its solid waste to farmers in India as "fertilizer". Tests conducted by the BBC found cadmium and lead in the waste, effectively making it toxic waste.

During 2006-2007, The [[Energy and Resources Institute]] (TERI) conducted an assessment of the Coca-Cola Company's water
resource management policies and practices in India. This report is known as the 'Independent Third Party Assessment of Coca-Cola Facilities in India'<ref> The Energy and Resources Institute [http://www.teriin.org/coke_files/FReport.pdf the study on independent third party assessment of Coca-Cola facilities in India] Accessed 28th January 2008</ref>. The India Resource Centre state that the report 'is a damning indictment of Coca-Cola's operations in India'<ref> India Resource Centre[http://www.indiaresource.org/news/2008/1001.html Coca-Cola Asked to Shut Plant in India] Accessed 28th January 2008</ref>. They go on to describe how the report confirms the deteriorating water levels in the village of Kala Dera, with the report calling for alternative sources of water to be found or for the closure of the bottling plant itself. The report also 'points out the heavy pollution present in the immediate vicinity of the Coca-Cola bottling plants and calls for additional studies. The report also shows that the Coca-Cola company has failed to meet its own standards regarding waste management, and that the company has hampered the TERI assessment because it has refused to share the Environmental Impact Assessments for any one of the six plants'.

Only 6 of Coca Cola's 50 Indian bottling plants were assessed and the India Resource Centre criticise the use of TERI as the "independent" assessor of Coca-Cola. This is because the two groups are reported to have worked together in the past (co-organizing Earth Day), Coca-Cola is reported to have provided funding to TERI in the past, and also because TERI named Coca-Cola as among the most responsible companies in India in 2001.

==Coca Cola CSR==
Coca-Cola is a worldwide organisation which has extended its activities to help fund and become a part of different organisations around the world. One such organisation is [[Camp Coca-Cola]], which is a year round programme of leadership training and community service. It also offers a Summer Camp programme which includes a number of exciting yet testing activities. [[Camp Coca-Cola]] aims to challenge its members to see the world more openly as a place where they can make a difference. It is run by professionals who are dedicated to providing a unique and worthwhile experience to those who attend. Attendance is decided through nominations by local schools and community organisations on the basis that those who are chosen are dedicated to learning and are open to new life experiences. Coca-Cola fund this project which they feel is beneficial to the communities it serves and Camps have been specially set up all over America <ref>[http://www.campcocacola.com/parent_faq.htm] (Link Dead: 28 January 2008); seems to have move to [http://c5yf.org/c/c5/content.asp?c=159 C5 Youth Foundation] (Accessed: 28 January 2008)</ref> Organisations such as Camp Coca-Cola have been set up in an attempt by Coca-Cola to improve its overall image and to increase its ability to boost its own long term profits.

A further extension of Coca-Cola's work is '[[Coca-Cola Africa]]'. This organisation is said to be committed to the future of the African continent and to the well being of its people and communities, and furthermore to its economic development. This statement stands in stark contrast to the activities which Coca-Cola have already been accused of in India. Such atrocities which have been previously mentioned in this report contradict the philosophy of 'Coca-Cola Africa'. This particular organisation which Coca-Cola initiated was set up to educate and distribute information about the dangers of HIV and AIDS. It places particular attention on the treatment of individuals who suffer from such diseases, and furthermore harshly criticises the discrimination of these unfortunate people.<ref>[http://www.africacncl.org/HIV_AIDS/get_involved/profiles/coca_cola.asp].</ref>

One additional organisation of Coca-Cola is the [[Coca-Cola Foundation]] which is said to be the 'philanthropic arm' of the Coca-Cola Company. It focuses on education and the advancement of cultural diversity. Its main activities include the offering of scholarships, the building of schools and libraries and the donation of books. It aims to help and support people through higher education who lack both financial and personal support <ref>[http://orgs.takingitglobal.org/464]</ref>. It appears that Coca-Cola put a great deal of effort into initiating organisations and programmes to help extend the education of citizens around the world, more specifically in America and in Africa. Despite the ever growing number of these programmes which are available it is difficult for Coca-Cola to mask the shocking activities they carry out each day in the small communities in India where they operate their bottling plants. Coca-Cola may indeed help fund educational programmes in America, but this is of little consolation to the many villages in India, who are left suffering at the hands of this multinational.

==References==
<references/>

[[Category:Food and Agriculture Industry]]
[[Category:Transnational Corporations]]

Telecom Italia

2008-03-11T12:29:10Z

Jamie Scott: /* Illegal Wire-Tapping Scandal */

== History ==

Telecom Italia is Italy's largest phone company, holding almost 70% of the market, and is the leading mobile operator in Brazil as well as Italy.

== Controversy ==

=== Illegal Wire-Tapping Scandal ===

Telecom Italia, one of the major electronic communications providers in Italy is in the middle of a huge scandal regarding the illegal wiretapping and surveillance of the telephone networks.

Italy's justice minister has started an investigation into whether government officials were involved in the alleged wire-tapping scandal at Telecom Italia.
The news comes a day after police said they had arrested 20 people as part of an investigation into the case. Among those arrested by police include a former chief of security at Telecom Italia, Giuliano Tavaroli, as well as the head of a private investigation agency in Florence.

Prosecutors say that evidence of illegal wiretapping stretches back to 1997, with magistrates, celebrities and football referees also being targeted.

They claim to have discovered "tens of thousands" of names on seized computers and documents, but have released no more details.

Italy's leading newspaper, the Corriere della Sera, has described the wire tapping scandal as "the most powerful private spy organisation ever discovered in Italy".

<ref> [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/5367754.stm BBC News Online], accessed 11 March 2008</ref>

=== Political Tensions ===

An adviser to Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi has resigned over a political row centred on Italy's main phone company Telecom Italia.

Angelo Rovati's departure comes after Telecom Italia said on Friday that it was to split its fixed-line and TIM mobile units into two separate firms.

Mr Prodi, who opposes the move, said last week that he had no prior knowledge of the firm's decision. Yet a leaked note by Mr Rovati appeared to show Mr Prodi did know of the plan.

Mr Rovati's departure from the government comes after Telecom Italia's controlling shareholder, Marco Tronchetti, stepped down as chairman of the firm on Friday after clashing with Mr Prodi over its future.

Mr Tronchetti backs the split plan.

<ref> [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/5355184.stm BBC News Online], accessed 11 March 2008</ref>

==Notes==
<references/>

Telecom Italia

2008-03-11T12:24:38Z

Jamie Scott: /* History */

Telecom Italia

2008-03-11T12:22:48Z

Jamie Scott: /* Illegal Wire-Tapping Scandal */

== History ==

== Controversy ==

=== Illegal Wire-Tapping Scandal ===

Telecom Italia, one of the major electronic communications providers in Italy is in the middle of a huge scandal regarding the illegal wiretapping and surveillance of the telephone networks.

Italy's justice minister has started an investigation into whether government officials were involved in the alleged wire-tapping scandal at Telecom Italia.
The news comes a day after police said they had arrested 20 people as part of an investigation into the case. Among those arrested by police include a former chief of security at Telecom Italia, Giuliano Tavaroli, as well as the head of a private investigation agency in Florence.

Prosecutors say that evidence of illegal wiretapping stretches back to 1997, with magistrates, celebrities and football referees also being targeted.

They claim to have discovered "tens of thousands" of names on seized computers and documents, but have released no more details.

Italy's leading newspaper, the Corriere della Sera, has described the wire tapping scandal as "the most powerful private spy organisation ever discovered in Italy".

<ref> [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/5367754.stm BBC News Online], accessed 11 March 2008</ref>

==Notes==
<references/>

Telecom Italia

2008-03-11T12:21:32Z

Jamie Scott:

== History ==

== Controversy ==

=== Illegal Wire-Tapping Scandal ===

Telecom Italia, one of the major electronic communications providers in Italy is in the middle of a huge scandal regarding the illegal wiretapping and surveillance of the telephone networks.

Italy's justice minister has started an investigation into whether government officials were involved in the alleged wire-tapping scandal at Telecom Italia.
The news comes a day after police said they had arrested 20 people as part of an investigation into the case. Among those arrested by police include a former chief of security at Telecom Italia, Giuliano Tavaroli, as well as the head of a private investigation agency in Florence.

Prosecutors say that evidence of illegal wiretapping stretches back to 1997, with magistrates, celebrities and football referees also being targeted.

They claim to have discovered "tens of thousands" of names on seized computers and documents, but have released no more details.

Politicians from both sides of Italy's political divide have demanded quick answers.

<ref> [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/5367754.stm BBC News Online], accessed 11 March 2008</ref>

==Notes==
<references/>

Globalisation:Citigroup

2008-03-04T12:55:14Z

Jamie Scott:

== Controversies ==

=== WorldCom Scandal===

In 2004, Citigroup agreed to pay $2.6bn (£1.4bn) to settle class action suits accusing it of participating in fraud with WorldCom, the phone company now known as MCI.

Shareholders sued Citigroup after the collapse of WorldCom and over allegations surrounding former Smith Barney (a subsidiary of Citigroup) telecom analyst Jack Grubman, who came under fire for hyping WorldCom and other hi-tech stocks.

WorldCom filed for the biggest bankruptcy in history in July 2002 amid accounting irregularities and Mr Grubman was subsequently fined $15m and barred from the securities industry for issuing misleading research.

Citigroup said it had agreed to settle federal class action suits brought on behalf of those who had purchased WorldCom stock and other securities from April 29, 1999, through June 25, 2002.

Charles Prince, Citigroup's chief executive, said the settlement was part of an effort "to put an unfortunate chapter behind us".

<ref> [http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2004/may/10/usnews.worldcom Guardian Online], accessed 4 March 2008</ref>

=== Global Crossing ===

In 2005 Citigroup paid $75m (£39.2m) to settle a class-action suit over its role in the collapse of telecom network provider Global Crossing.

The US banking giant had been accused of issuing inflated research reports and failing to flag up conflicts of interest in the three-year-old case.

=== European Bonds ===

Citigroup has been ordered to pay almost £14m to the Financial Services Authority as the penalty for a controversial trade in the government bond markets last year.

The world's largest financial firm is being forced to hand over £9.9m of profits from the trade and pay a £4m fine because of failures to control its bond business. This is the second largest financial punishment handed out by the City regulator after oil company Shell was fined £17m last year.

The American banking group escaped more draconian regulatory action after the FSA concluded it had not deliberately tried to distort the bond market when the trades took place on August 2.

However, Citigroup's reputation has suffered and it has been left out in the cold when European governments have considered bond issues.

Citigroup acknowledged the trading strategy - nicknamed Dr Evil - had harmed the business and insisted it wished it had never taken place. It involved using the MTS electronic trading system to sell as many bonds in 18 seconds as would usually be traded in an entire day. A trading error then forced Citigroup to buy back some of the bonds it had sold.

<ref> [http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2005/jun/29/3 Guardian Online], accessed 4 March 2008</ref>

=== Citigroup and Japan ===

Japan's market watchdog has ordered US banking giant Citigroup to shut down its private banking operations there.
Regulators said they found a list of problems at Citigroup's private banking arm, from improper trading practices to lax anti-money laundering procedures.

Japan's Financial Services Agency ordered the US banking group to suspend new private banking business by the end of this month, and gave it one year's breathing space to close all accounts at the four branches. They will have their licences revoked on 30 September 2005.

Among its charges, the FSA said the bank had brokered deals on such items as artworks without properly informing customers of the risks.

It also allowed transactions which "could be suspected of being associated with money laundering".

"In a management environment in which profits are given undue importance by the bank's headquarters, a law-evading sales system that disregards the laws and regulations of Japan was constructed," the FSA said.

Bank staff and managers, it added, had "obstructed inspectors", while responses to official inquiries "differed from the truth".

<ref> [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3666828.stm BBC News Online], accessed 4 March 2008</ref>

==Notes==
<references/>

Globalisation:Citigroup

2008-03-04T12:50:43Z

Jamie Scott:

Globalisation:Citigroup

2008-03-04T12:50:20Z

Jamie Scott:

Globalisation:Citigroup

2008-03-04T12:44:30Z

Jamie Scott:

User talk:Laurenhosey

2008-02-05T12:16:26Z

Jamie Scott:

hello--[[User:Jamie Scott|Jamie Scott]] 12:16, 5 February 2008 (UTC)

User talk:Laurenhosey

2008-02-05T12:15:23Z

Jamie Scott:

hello

User talk:Claire-hastings

2008-02-05T12:12:28Z

Jamie Scott:

User:Jamie Scott

2008-02-05T12:11:19Z

Jamie Scott:

Jamie Scott, studying Geography Honours.