Swiss bank has a very long and illustrated history of living on people’s misery. This blogger sometime back wrote about trillion dollar black money in Swiss bank. This pint size nation (could be one-tenth the size of Indian state of Rajasthan) has caused serious havoc on nations across the world in last hundred years, though it claims to have anti-money laundering regulations. Frankly Swiss banks are only one major cog in what is referred to as tax havens (billions of dollars come through Mauritius-a small island nation to India as investment!!.Try figuring that one!!!). Swiss nevertheless is an important destination for parking illegal money, and the audacity to claim civilized.
Let me give a
n example of one of the poorest continent Africa ‘Corruption is one of the most formidable challenges to good governance, development and poverty reduction’ in Africa says 2008 Transparency International Report. According to the Africa Union (AU) around $148 billion are stolen from the continent every year. The recent Forbes’ list of most corrupt nations had 9 out of the first 16 countries coming from Africa. The list is long with names like Abacha, Mobutu, Eyadema, Lansana Conte, Obiang Nguema, Omar Bongo, Mubarak and Arap Moi. I am here taking the first mentioned name Abacha and try to examine how he worked. This will be a case study for us to understand this continent and in the sense the whole world.
Sani Abacha was a dictator of one of the oil rich country in African subcontinent: Nigeria (from 1993-1998). In
this very short period he went in for massive loot of the country not only that he commited seriuos human right violations and abuses, well known case includes the hanging activist Ken Saro-Wiwa (who opposed the exploitation of Nigerian land by multinational oil companies); Abiola and Olusegun Obasanjo (who later became President) were jailed for treason, and Wole Soyinka charged in absentia with treason and so on. Abacha was listed as the world's fourth most corrupt leader in recent history by Transparency International in 2004. Post-Abacha government traced $4 billion USD in foreign assets of Abacha, his family and their representatives. $600 million was discovered after high-profile legal action was launched to seize hundreds of millions of dollars of Abacha assets held in Switzerland (in UBS). Nigeria later reached a deal with Switzerland, Luxembourg and Liechtenstein on the restitution of more than one billion dollars embezzled by the Abacha family and deposited in European banks. In 2005 Switzerland agreed to return Nigeria some $458 million siphoned into Swiss bank accounts by General Abacha. Swiss banks have so far returned $200 million of the $700 million in deposits from Nigeria. Incidentally the deal also gives the Abacha family freedom from prosecution in matters related to the looted funds. Such considerations for murderers and looters. It is amazing.
Few years earlier the Federal Banking Commission in Switzerland had condemned six banks, including Credit Suisse (it is the same bank which posted profit recently and where UBS is transferring its money), for ignoring money-laundering rules when they handled funds embezzled by the Abacha clan. But its investigation at the time did not find flaws or wrongdoing at UBS (any guesses why?!!).
It need also be noted that as an affect of G20, the Government of Switzerland (on 16th April, 2009) said that it would be willing to release the $150 million Halliburton bribe money (that is another story!!) trapped in Swiss bank accounts if Nigeria formally requests for assistance.
I also read in the Net that few weeks back Swiss Mission in Nairobi reported that it was willing to cooperate with the Kenya in unraveling the scam in which about Sh60 billion was stolen between 1997 and 2004 from public coffers through payment fictitious security contracts (Other countries where Kenya’s ill-gotten wealth is hidden include United Kingdom, US, South Africa, Namibia, Switzerland and Australia). This because of the decisions taken after G20.
The amazing story of how Swiss helped the Nazis… Swiss collusion with the Nazis in arms production (Switzerland exported almost four times more to Germany and Italy than to the Allies). is well known Swiss played a much greater role in the rise of Nazi Germany than previously recognized. War materiel produced in Switzerland for Germany, was not paid by the Germans, but by the Swiss government to Swiss businesses -a credit of more than one billion was granted to Germany in 1940s. Under the guise of neutrality, the Swiss conspired with the Germans (Swiss neutrality was a myth-it really was about licking from both camps). Even during First World War Swiss played underhand (also referred to as The Grimm-Hoffmann Affair).
Switzerland prof
ited enormously as a nation by allowing German businessmen to travel in and out of the country without interference and by helping the Nazi regime convert gold stolen from Jews and from the banks of conquered nations into convertible funds Germany acquired hard currency in Switzerland in exchange for looted gold, some of which was literally pulled from the teeth of their victims. Switzerland's border police turned fleeing Jews away and into the hands of the Gestapo. Between 30 and 40 thousand denied entry, majority of them ended at the death camps. Interestingly it was Switzerland which stamped the letter J on Jewish German passports and not Nazis (as I was going through Net to get pic of concentration camp to post in this blog…I nearly broke down).
A report by the Historical Commission studying Switzerland's conduct during World War II paints a blacker picture of Switzerland's links with the Nazi's than previously thought. The report by the Berg
ier commission says 76% of Nazi gold transactions went through Switzerland and the volume of trade between Swiss private banks and war-time Germany was at least three times higher than earlier estimates indicated. The report says Swiss commercial banks bought $61.2m worth of gold during the Nazi era, the current value would be more than $700m. The commission says the Swiss National Bank, SNB, acquired $389.2m, worth more than $4bn at today's prices. The SNB had previously admitted to buying 1.2bn Swiss francs worth of gold.
The Bergier commission also accuses the Nazis of stealing $146m in gold from holocaust victims, including at least $2.5m seized by the SS from inmates of Auschwitz and other death camps in eastern Europe. Nazi Germany secretly shipped a ton of gold coins to its diplomatic mission in Switzerland in the final days of World War II. Nazis loot from their victims in World War II is being held in Swiss bank accounts. In 1997 a concerted international campaign to shame Switzerland over the issue led to the country's famously secretive banking system opening some of its records to scrutiny. Despite these actions, international criticism of Switzerland is still very fierce and some states in the US, such as California, are boycotting Swiss banks until there is more progress on the issue of dormant accounts held by Holocaust victims.
There are also interesting examples of private companies who not only profited from the war but adapted well
too. Take the example of Swiss owned Maggi -a brand of Nestle (yes the one that produces nodules around the world, specifically targeting children). Maggi occupied half the German market with soups and other seasonings during the 30's. You can't say that it had financial difficulties. But it placed Nazis in executive positions to increase its market share. It changed clients. Thus Maggi prospered and now is an international player filling up racks (pulverizing local products) in shopping mall, in the process- I am sure- advocating freedom.
Post script: Interestingly in October 2008 (I read this in the Net), Nestle mistakenly aired an advert meant for Bangladeshi TV on British TV(?!!!!!). The advert made false claims that the noodles would "help to build strong muscles and bone". The British Advertising Standards Authority said that the ad did not abide by the new EU consumer protection legislation, by which advertisers have to provide proof of health claims. They have faced criticism for double standards, adhering to standards in developed countries, but then making misleading claims in developing countries, where the legislation permits it. Maggi Noodles also contains the additives E150d and E627. E627 is partly prepared from fish, and is thus not suitable for vegetarians, in spite of the claim made on the packaging. E150d is sometimes made from maize, which is usually genetically modified.
Let me give a
n example of one of the poorest continent Africa ‘Corruption is one of the most formidable challenges to good governance, development and poverty reduction’ in Africa says 2008 Transparency International Report. According to the Africa Union (AU) around $148 billion are stolen from the continent every year. The recent Forbes’ list of most corrupt nations had 9 out of the first 16 countries coming from Africa. The list is long with names like Abacha, Mobutu, Eyadema, Lansana Conte, Obiang Nguema, Omar Bongo, Mubarak and Arap Moi. I am here taking the first mentioned name Abacha and try to examine how he worked. This will be a case study for us to understand this continent and in the sense the whole world.Sani Abacha was a dictator of one of the oil rich country in African subcontinent: Nigeria (from 1993-1998). In
this very short period he went in for massive loot of the country not only that he commited seriuos human right violations and abuses, well known case includes the hanging activist Ken Saro-Wiwa (who opposed the exploitation of Nigerian land by multinational oil companies); Abiola and Olusegun Obasanjo (who later became President) were jailed for treason, and Wole Soyinka charged in absentia with treason and so on. Abacha was listed as the world's fourth most corrupt leader in recent history by Transparency International in 2004. Post-Abacha government traced $4 billion USD in foreign assets of Abacha, his family and their representatives. $600 million was discovered after high-profile legal action was launched to seize hundreds of millions of dollars of Abacha assets held in Switzerland (in UBS). Nigeria later reached a deal with Switzerland, Luxembourg and Liechtenstein on the restitution of more than one billion dollars embezzled by the Abacha family and deposited in European banks. In 2005 Switzerland agreed to return Nigeria some $458 million siphoned into Swiss bank accounts by General Abacha. Swiss banks have so far returned $200 million of the $700 million in deposits from Nigeria. Incidentally the deal also gives the Abacha family freedom from prosecution in matters related to the looted funds. Such considerations for murderers and looters. It is amazing.Few years earlier the Federal Banking Commission in Switzerland had condemned six banks, including Credit Suisse (it is the same bank which posted profit recently and where UBS is transferring its money), for ignoring money-laundering rules when they handled funds embezzled by the Abacha clan. But its investigation at the time did not find flaws or wrongdoing at UBS (any guesses why?!!).
It need also be noted that as an affect of G20, the Government of Switzerland (on 16th April, 2009) said that it would be willing to release the $150 million Halliburton bribe money (that is another story!!) trapped in Swiss bank accounts if Nigeria formally requests for assistance.
I also read in the Net that few weeks back Swiss Mission in Nairobi reported that it was willing to cooperate with the Kenya in unraveling the scam in which about Sh60 billion was stolen between 1997 and 2004 from public coffers through payment fictitious security contracts (Other countries where Kenya’s ill-gotten wealth is hidden include United Kingdom, US, South Africa, Namibia, Switzerland and Australia). This because of the decisions taken after G20.
The amazing story of how Swiss helped the Nazis… Swiss collusion with the Nazis in arms production (Switzerland exported almost four times more to Germany and Italy than to the Allies). is well known Swiss played a much greater role in the rise of Nazi Germany than previously recognized. War materiel produced in Switzerland for Germany, was not paid by the Germans, but by the Swiss government to Swiss businesses -a credit of more than one billion was granted to Germany in 1940s. Under the guise of neutrality, the Swiss conspired with the Germans (Swiss neutrality was a myth-it really was about licking from both camps). Even during First World War Swiss played underhand (also referred to as The Grimm-Hoffmann Affair).
Switzerland prof
ited enormously as a nation by allowing German businessmen to travel in and out of the country without interference and by helping the Nazi regime convert gold stolen from Jews and from the banks of conquered nations into convertible funds Germany acquired hard currency in Switzerland in exchange for looted gold, some of which was literally pulled from the teeth of their victims. Switzerland's border police turned fleeing Jews away and into the hands of the Gestapo. Between 30 and 40 thousand denied entry, majority of them ended at the death camps. Interestingly it was Switzerland which stamped the letter J on Jewish German passports and not Nazis (as I was going through Net to get pic of concentration camp to post in this blog…I nearly broke down).A report by the Historical Commission studying Switzerland's conduct during World War II paints a blacker picture of Switzerland's links with the Nazi's than previously thought. The report by the Berg
ier commission says 76% of Nazi gold transactions went through Switzerland and the volume of trade between Swiss private banks and war-time Germany was at least three times higher than earlier estimates indicated. The report says Swiss commercial banks bought $61.2m worth of gold during the Nazi era, the current value would be more than $700m. The commission says the Swiss National Bank, SNB, acquired $389.2m, worth more than $4bn at today's prices. The SNB had previously admitted to buying 1.2bn Swiss francs worth of gold.The Bergier commission also accuses the Nazis of stealing $146m in gold from holocaust victims, including at least $2.5m seized by the SS from inmates of Auschwitz and other death camps in eastern Europe. Nazi Germany secretly shipped a ton of gold coins to its diplomatic mission in Switzerland in the final days of World War II. Nazis loot from their victims in World War II is being held in Swiss bank accounts. In 1997 a concerted international campaign to shame Switzerland over the issue led to the country's famously secretive banking system opening some of its records to scrutiny. Despite these actions, international criticism of Switzerland is still very fierce and some states in the US, such as California, are boycotting Swiss banks until there is more progress on the issue of dormant accounts held by Holocaust victims.
There are also interesting examples of private companies who not only profited from the war but adapted well
too. Take the example of Swiss owned Maggi -a brand of Nestle (yes the one that produces nodules around the world, specifically targeting children). Maggi occupied half the German market with soups and other seasonings during the 30's. You can't say that it had financial difficulties. But it placed Nazis in executive positions to increase its market share. It changed clients. Thus Maggi prospered and now is an international player filling up racks (pulverizing local products) in shopping mall, in the process- I am sure- advocating freedom.Post script: Interestingly in October 2008 (I read this in the Net), Nestle mistakenly aired an advert meant for Bangladeshi TV on British TV(?!!!!!). The advert made false claims that the noodles would "help to build strong muscles and bone". The British Advertising Standards Authority said that the ad did not abide by the new EU consumer protection legislation, by which advertisers have to provide proof of health claims. They have faced criticism for double standards, adhering to standards in developed countries, but then making misleading claims in developing countries, where the legislation permits it. Maggi Noodles also contains the additives E150d and E627. E627 is partly prepared from fish, and is thus not suitable for vegetarians, in spite of the claim made on the packaging. E150d is sometimes made from maize, which is usually genetically modified.
