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Wednesday 31 July 2013

Release of offshore records draws worldwide response

.... and this one didn't get directed to me in time to make the previous article.... but was so good I wanted to get it out to you guys.



http://www.icij.org/blog/2013/04/release-offshore-records-draws-worldwide-response

Release of offshore records draws worldwide response

ICIJ’s investigative series on offshore secrecy – which draws from a cache of 2.5 million secret records – has ignited reactions around the globe.
Since the initial release of stories by the ICIJ and its media partners across the world, public officials have issued statements, governments have launched investigations, and politicians and journalists have been debating the implications of the records and the reporting.
Among the latest reactions and responses:  
  • Australian tax authorities said they are stepping up efforts to crack down on corporate tax dodging and taking a hard look at wealthy Australians and small companies with offshore holdings following “Offshore Leaks”The Australian Tax Office’s plan includes 680 reviews and 115 audits of individuals and small businesses suspected of using offshore hideaways help them avoid taxes.
  • India’s Finance Minister said government probes into the offshore holdings of hundreds of Indians have made significant headway. “I am reviewing the progress every fortnight and can say that not a single case will go unpursued,” Finance Minister P Chidambaram said. The government’s effort was sparked by a joint investigation by ICIJ and The Indian Express.
  • Philippine authorities said the launch of ICIJ’s Offshore Leaks Database will prompt them to review the tax records of Philippine residents whose names appear in the data. Kim Jacinto-Henares, commissioner of the country’s Bureau of Internal Revenue said she welcomes the public release of the database, saying it can aid the agency’s efforts to gather information that could lead to tax investigations and cases. “We will look into it and match (the information on Philippine residents in the database) with income tax returns,” Henares told the Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism, an ICIJ reporting partner.
     
  • Algirdas SemetaAlgirdas Semeta: wants ICIJ and partners to keep digging.EU Commissioner Algirdas Semeta says the Offshore Leaks investigation by ICIJ and its partners has transformed tax politics and amplified political will to tackle the problem of tax evasion.

    "I personally think Offshore Leaks could be identified as the most significant trigger behind these developments ... It has created visibility of the issue and it has triggered political recognition of the amplitude of the problem", he told EU Observer. He added that tax transparency overrides the principle of data privacy.
     
  • South Korean financial regulators have opened an investigation into possible illicit fund transfers by hundreds of Koreans whose names are included in ICIJ’s “Offshore Leaks” database.  “We will investigate every one of them,” a top regulator said. “When doing capital transactions, they’re required to report to the authorities prior to the trades, so now we are investigating whether they violated the law.” ICIJ’s investigative partner, the Korea Center for Investigative Journalism, revealed that it had identified at least 245 Koreans who established companies in the British Virgin Islands, Cook Islands and other offshore havens.
     
  • Canadian Senator Vern White has called for a probe into a fellow legislator’s role in her husband’s use of an offshore hideaway in the South Pacific.  The conservative Senator said he has asked the Senate's ethics officer to look into Liberal Senator Pana Merchant's role in the matter, saying there are "serious questions" to be dealt with.  The Senate ethics office said in a statement that will give Merchant a chance to respond before deciding whether to launch a formal investigation. CBC News and ICIJ revealed last month that Merchant's husband, famed class-action lawyer Tony Merchant, had shifted some CA$1.7 million (US$1.1 million) into a Cook Islands trust while he was locked in battle with Canadian tax authorities. 
  • After meeting with President Barack Obama at the White House, British Prime Minister David Cameron made a strong call to tackle what he called “the scourge of tax evasion,” one of the key topics in next month’s G8 meeting in Ireland. “We need to know who really owns a company, who profits from it, whether taxes are paid.  And we need a new mechanism to track where multinationals make their money and where they pay their taxes so we can stop those that are manipulating the system unfairly,” Cameron said.
  • British, U.S. and Australian tax authorities
    that they are pursuing tax evasion investigations based on a cache of offshore documents that link to the Cook Islands, Singapore and the Cayman Islands, among other jurisdictions. The secret records are believed to include those obtained by ICIJ 
    and that are the basis of the Offshore Leaks investigation. British tax authorities said the files “reveal extensive use of complex offshore structures to conceal assets by wealthy individuals and companies.” The three agencies plan to share the information with their counterparts from other countries in what could be the beginnings of one of the largest tax investigations in history.  

     
  • Canada's revenue minister Gail Shea announced a $30 million commitment to fight tax evasion and target the practice of hiding money in offshore accounts, and the formation of an international tax expert "SWAT team". Asked if her department now has the list of 450 Canadian names contained within the documents obtained by ICIJ, Shea said: "We currently don’t have the list and I can assure you that we’re looking at all of our options. We’re working with our international partners to get that list."
     
  • The UK Treasury announced that following the lead of the Cayman Islands, all British overseas territories – including Bermuda, the British Virgin Islands, Anguilla, Montserrat and the Turks and Caicos Islands  have agreed to share information about individuals holding bank accounts in their jurisdictions with the UK, France, Germany, Italy and Spain. 
     
  • The South China Morning Post reported that the new information exchanges will have real implications for Hong Kong and China companies, which do significant business through the Cayman islands, the British Virgin Islands and other offshore locales.
  • European finance ministers may reach an agreement to eradicate tax havens on May 13, after a meeting in Helsinki between finance ministers from Finland, Luxembourg, Greece, Slovakia, and Lithuania as well as the European Commissioner on Taxation  to discuss measures against tax evasion.
     
  • The European Commissioner on Taxation Algirdas Šemeta  and Irish Finance Minister Michael Noonan sent a letter to all EU Finance Ministers, setting out 7 key areas for immediate action in improving the fight against tax fraud, evasion and avoidanceMember States were asked to agree on these actions at the ECOFIN in May. The letter credits the offshore leaks investigation with "sharpening the focus" on tax fraud, and says it will ask ICIJ to supply names and details of European citizens from its data. 
  • Finance ministers and central bankers at the G20 meeting in Washington said in a communiqué that automatic exchange of tax-relevant bank information should be adopted as the global standard to overcome international tax evasion. Skeptical European leaders reportedly "became more enthusiastic" after the public outcry over ICIJ's offshore leaks revelations.

  • Bayartsogt Sangajav, deputy speaker of the Mongolian Parliament, has been dismissed from his post following ICIJ's revelations about his undeclared offshore company and bank account. In a parliamentary session he was asked to explain his actions. Several MPs called for further disciplinary action, including expelling him from Parliament entirely.
     
  • Santosh Kumar Agarwal (Kedia), a member of the board of directors for the Antwerp World Diamond Centre, has resigned from the organization after his offshore dealings were revealed. “In the interest of the integrity of the Antwerp World Diamond Centre as [an] organization and the industry as a whole, Kedia has taken the initiative to withdraw from the AWDC's board of directors, awaiting the outcome of a potential investigation,” said a statement released by the company.”
     
  • French president Francois Hollande has published the personal financial details of  government ministers on the official government websitefollowing the Jerome Cahuzac and Jean-Jacques Augier offshore assets scandalsThe list of assets includes details of bank accounts, life insurance, property and other expensive items such as cars, art works and antiques. Various properties in Paris and the south of France have already been itemized by ministers, as well as designer lounge chair (Industrial Renewal Minister Arnaud Montebourg) and a David Beckham t-shirt (Culture Minister Aurelie Filippetti).
  • European Council president Herman Van Rompuy announced that tax evasion will be discussed at the next European Council in May, saying "we must seize the increased political momentum to address this crucial problem."
  • BVI government officials have announced they are opening a new business headquarters in Hong Kong, with Orlando Smith, BVI Premier and Finance Minister, confirmed to officiate the opening. Executive director of BVI International Finance Centre, Elise Donovan, said the data obtained by the ICIJ was "a small fraction" of the total number of BVI firms. She later added, "We want to reassure clients in Hong Kong and the region that this is an isolated incident. We remain committed to clients' privacy and confidentiality."
  • The Swiss and U.S. governments are investigating possible solution to the dispute over wealthy Americans using Swiss banks to hide their money. These talks come at time when Switzerland’s banking sector is under increased pressure to surrender personal information about suspected tax evaders. Swiss Finance Minister Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf said all countries should be treated equally in the drive for bank transparency. "We consider it very important that rules must apply to all and are engaging ourselves for a level playing field in multilateral forums," Widmer-Schlumpf said.
     
  • German Chancellor Angela Merkel urged UK's PM David Cameron to crack down on tax havens during talks in Berlin, following a public outcry in Germany over the "offshore leaks." Sources "close to Cameron" claim he was actually the first to raise the issue, spelling out how his government was cracking down on tax avoidance in places such as Jersey and Guernsey.
     
  • Igor ShuvalovRussian Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov.Russian Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov is moving his offshore assets back to Russia after ICIJ's revelations that Shuvalov's wife Olga Shuvalova was either a shareholder or owner of several secretive offshore entities. The Shuvalovs had a declared income of $12.7 million in 2011, most of which was earned by Olga.
     
  • Spanish political party Unión Progreso y Democracia submitted written questions to the Spanish Congress today in the wake of French president François Hollande's announcement that French banks had to declare their tax haven subsidiaries. The questions read: Is the government going to present in the European institutions any initiative to eradicate the tax havens within the Member States? and Is the government going to force banks to disclose the subsidiaries they have in tax havens and what are their activities?
  • Francois Hollande: called for tax havens to be "eradicated."Francois Hollande: called for tax havens to be "eradicated."French president François Hollande called for "eradication" of the world's tax havens and told French banks they must declare all of their subsidiaries. He also announced the creation of a special prosecutor to pursue cases of corruption and tax fraud. French government ministers have been ordered to declare their assets publicly within days.
     
  • Luxembourg's Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker announced his country plans to lift bank secrecy rules for European Union citizens who have savings based in the country, ending decades of bank secrecy in Luxembourg. "We are following a global movement," Juncker told parliament in a state-of-the-nation address. The new transparency regime would begin in January 2015. Austria is now the only EU country not sharing data about bank depositors. In a recent interview, Austrian Vice Chancellor and Finance Minister Spindelegger Fekter said: “How much money someone has in the bank is a matter between the bank and the customer and is no one else’s business."
  • Algirdas Semeta, European Union Tax Commissioner stated in a recent interview that it is time to move “quicker and harder” against tax evasion. He said the “growing willingness to act” increases the likelihood of a more coordinated EU stance against tax havens.
  • Europe’s five biggest economic powers — Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Spain — announced they would begin regularly exchanging banking and tax information as a way of identifying tax dodgers and other financial wrongdoers. 
  • Meanwhile, the British Virgin Islands (BVI) authorities are not fans of the ICIJ investigation. The BVI premier and Finance Minister Orlando Smith told the South China Morning Post that "BVI authorities are actively investigating how this private information has been illicitly obtained and used to attack the BVI financial services industry, which operates compliantly within international guidelines and the law."
     
  • Athens’ district attorney Panayota Fakou has started a preliminary probe to find out if Greeks who own offshore companies unearthed by the ICIJ investigation have evaded taxes or laundered money. According to the Greek newspaper Ta Nea, prosecutors will send information requests to British Virgin Islands’ financial authorities asking them to turn over records of 107 entities connected to Greek citizens.
  • An investigation by Finnish State Televisionand ICIJ exposing the offshore connections of state-owned postal company Itella has been received with surprise by the Finnish Finance Minister, Jutta Urpilainen. The minister said that “state owned companies should be an example for other companies. That is why it is especially unacceptable that Itella owns a company in a tax haven.” Urpilainen said the Finnish government should adopt clear rules on the use of offshore jurisdictions by state-owned corporations and called tax havens “one of the biggest threats to the Finnish welfare state.”
  • The Mongolian Deputy Speaker, Bayartsogt Sangajav, admitted to an "ethics failure" over his undeclared million-dollar Swiss bank account. He told a press conference: “It is true that there is 1,658 Euros or 2.9 million MNT in a Swiss bank account. I opened the account to trade in international stocks with three other acquaintances in 2008. My failure of responsibility is that I did not include the company in my declaration of income. I have admitted my ethic failure and I am ready to take responsibility."
     
  • Philippine government officials said they will investigate evidence that Maria Imelda Marcos Manotoc, a provincial governor and daughter of the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, was the beneficiary of a secret BVI offshore trust.
     
  • George Mavraganis, the Deputy Finance Minister of Greece announced that the Greek government is moving to address offshore-driven tax dodging. Greek members of parliament asked Mavraganis what he planned to do about the 103 offshore companies that ICIJ found hadn’t been registered with Greece’s tax authorities.
     
  • George Sourlas from Greece’s Ministry of Justice said the revenue loss caused by offshore was huge. “By the actions of offshore companies in Greece, the revenue loss to the Greek government is in the order of 40% or more of the debt of our country,” Sourlas said. “The offshore companies cast a shadow at this time of great crisis, when some get rich and many get poor.”
     
  • In France, President Francois Hollande denied knowledge of the offshore accounts held by his 2012 campaign manager, Jean-Jacques Augier, asserting that it’s up to the tax administration to monitor Augier’s private activities. Reports about Augier’s offshore dealings by Le Monde, the BBC and other ICIJ partners came in the wake of news about tax fraud charges against Hollande’s ex-budget Minister, Jerome Cahuzac.
     
  • The office of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev asserted there was nothing unusual about the information in the leak – which showed that his two daughters were shareholders of three offshore companies. The statement said the President’s daughters “are grown up and have the right to do business.”  A spokesperson for Azersun – a holding company controlled by Hasan Gozal, a corporate mogul who was listed as the director of the daughters’ companies – said the report was biased and based on inaccurate information. “I regret that authority of Press Council doesn't go beyond Azerbaijan and there is no such institution worldwide to fight racketeer journalists,” the spokesman said.
     
  • Ex-Colombian President Álvaro Uribe Vélez publicly defended his sons’ involvement in offshore business. Uribe stated that his sons Tomás and Jerónimo are entrepreneurs and “have participated in business dealings since they were children” and “they are not tax evaders.”
     
  • In the UK, David Cameron is facing renewed pressure to take action over Britain’s entanglements within the offshore world. Lord Oakeshott, a senior Liberal Democrat said that the secrecy haven of the British Virgin Islands “stains the face of Britain.” Oakeshott and others are questioning whether Cameron will raise the issue in June of at the G8 summit of wealth nations. "How can David Cameron keep a straight face calling for the G8 to make big business pay tax when we let the BVI use British law and British protection to suck in billions in dirty money?" Oakeshott asked.
  • German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble stated on public radio that he was “pleased” with the ICIJ reports. He went on to say, “I think that such things as have been made known will increase the pressure internationally, and we will be able to increase the cooperation with those who have been more reticent,” a sentiment reflected in Germany’s previous lobbying to stamp out tax avoidance.
  • Canadian Federal Revenue Minister Gail Shea called the released of offshore banking information as “good news” for Canadians and bad news for tax evaders. Ms. Shea urged ICIJ or anyone else with information on tax cheats to come forward.
     
  • Pascal Saint-Amans, director of the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development, said: "Secrecy is no longer acceptable. We need to get rid of it. If the rules make it possible, then we'll change the rules.”

July 31 Update: "Nothing is happening".... *snort* buhahhahahah!!! Oh, and more info about Iraq

As I mentioned yesterday in the Charts article, the most awesome research team in the world have dragged some brilliant pieces of information and links into the spot light.  I haven't been able to even remotely get the info/links put together in any semblance of organization, but a few of these pieces just absolutely needed to be put out here now.

Edited about 3 minutes after publishing to say:  I'm sorry or all the formatting mess- I have no idea what the hell is wrong with my blogger account, but it's seriously having mental issues for the past 3 days.  I'll try to get it sorted out.   
D


 First off, for all those that love to chant "Nothing is Happening" while sticking their fingers in their ears and singing "lalalalalallalalalala I can't hear you!!!"- for you guys, I love you, but I know that nothing that anyone shows you will make you see and hear the truth of what's happening around you.  But seriously?........ you fingers have GOT to be getting tired by now!!

Here is a little update on the 

http://briankellysblog.blogspot.com/2013/07/courtesy-notice-success-story-32194.html

Courtesy Notice Success Story -- $32,194 Loan Waived by Key Bank

http://briankellysblog.blogspot.com/2013/07/courtesy-notice-success-story-9969221.html

Updated w/Documets: Courtesy Notice Success Story -- $99,692.21 Forgiven by Chase Bank 

This is from one of the facebook groups and was sent to me on skype:

BIG NEWS!!!! From XXXXX CVAC 101
So, as a success story I would like to report that as of today after sending to the Vice President of the alleged Chase Bank ( who just happen to send me a letter in May with his name and signature on it to sell my home in foreclosure) was a Determination of Funding Letter, 1 Courtesy Notice and 2 invoices totaling 9,000 pieces of 99.9 silver, I received today a letter from the alleged Chase Bank that the lien on my mortgage has been released and discharges the original contract, whereas I am now responsible for the property tax and insurances, and can do what I dam well please with what I want to do with it.
This was a wonderful and fun exercise in which in my heart was the right thing to do to show others that what was being done to all of us was wrong. I needed to take a stand here in Detroit as I watched neighborhoods and communities being torn apart and become inhumane as people were being forced out of their homes, their furnishing thrown in the street and in dumpsters, causing some beautiful homes to be victims of vandalization, with property values dropping like flies, and mortgage payments going through the roof with LIBOR the ARM’s deal The home’s stood empty and all the love was torn from the structures.
What could I do?
With the tools that were given to us by the OPPT crew II used them all, Courtesy Notices, The Determination of Funding letter, the invoices, the court templates etc, I edited them and used them sending all the love and light I could to float above and through each word, with good intent to bring awareness to every person whose eyes read it, and whose heart it may touch.
I am now going to open a Dream Weavers Center to help and show as many people who have eyes to see and ears to hear where their value is, as we are the value and always have been, but it was never taught but was hidden so very well.
Many of the people of family and friends who thought I had lost my mind, want to now join in to see what is going on with formerly OPPT now I/UV to Opt out of the old slavery system and it is done. I say come one come all we are in for another ride but this time there will be more of us. We are Eternal Essence Embodied absent limits !!!!! (*)

Many more stories can be read at  http://i-uv.com/ and Brian is always updating his blog with new stories of success as well.

This was one of my fav bits on news this morning- I giggled for almost an hour.  Yep, tell me that "nothing is happening" when members of the Saudi Royal Family are stepping down and openly talking about the corruption and  the "suffering under the Al Saud regime"..... yea.... nothing to look at here.

Prince Khalid Bin Farhan Al-Saud has announced his defection from Al Saud royal family through a statement, calling on other princes to break their silence and reveal the truth for sake of God. - See more at: http://en.alalam.ir/news/1499049#sthash.ayedo7KW.fpyjnUdo.dpuf

 

In other interesting news, JP Morgan just can't seem to stay out of the hot seat for longer than 48 hours:

JPMorgan Looks to Pay to Settle U.S. Inquiries

JPMorgan Chase is pulling out its checkbook to help mend frayed relationships with the government.
But its new and conciliatory approach — a departure for the bank and its leader, Jamie Dimon, who generally has taken a hard line with the authorities — is yielding mixed results. Government officials, stung by the bank’s past displays of hubris, may drive up the price of settlements or resist the overtures altogether.
The hefty payouts started on Tuesday when JPMorgan struck a $410 million settlement with the nation’s top energy regulator, which had accused the bank of devising “manipulative schemes” to transform “money-losing power plants into powerful profit centers.” The agreement was a record fine for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, whose most recent settlement with a big bank totaled only $1.6 million.

JPMorgan is bracing for an even larger penalty stemming from shoddy mortgage securities it sold to the government.
http://dealbook.nytimes.com/2013/07/30/jpmorgan-to-pay-410-million-in-power-market-manipulation-case/?_r=1

But not to be outdone, The Bank of England is in hotter water when documents came showing that they were selling the Nazi's stolen gold for them!!! 

Documents reveal Bank of England sold stolen gold for Nazis

Archived material details how gold bars plundered from Czechoslovakia were sold on behalf of Germany's central bank in 1939

 http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/documents-reveal-bank-of-england-sold-stolen-gold-for-nazis-8738805.html

 

And then there is this mess from Barclays......   Lovin' that CNN is outing MI5... I mean, "Barclays", teeheehee!

Barclays reveals £12.8 billion balance sheet hole

 (Financial Times) -- Barclays has revealed a £12.8 billion ($19.6 billion) hole in its balance sheet as it announced a £5.8 billion rights issue, buttressed by a plan to shrink its balance sheet and issue £2 billion of contingent convertible debt.

 Seriously?!  Can anyone even remotely translate that sentence into something that is understandable (let alone LEGAL).  I loved this part though- are you ready for this?

"Alongside the capital measures, the bank announced £2 billion of fresh mis-selling provisions, £1.35 billion to cover PPI and £650 million to cover interest rate swaps.

Barclays also announced second-quarter profits of £3.6bn on an adjusted pre-tax basis, down 17 per cent. Statutory pre-tax profit doubled to £1.7 billion, the bank said."

http://edition.cnn.com/2013/07/30/business/barclays-balance-sheet-rights-issue/index.html?hpt=hp_t3 

Now, THIS one is funny as all hell!!!  Considering the fact that PayPal have yet to manage to return my multiple emails or reset my password for me, let alone fix the issue I have with even being able to access my account!!..... I have a hard time taking them seriously on this one!!!  (I'm sure the Galactics are roaring laughing as well!)

PayPal says outer space is its next frontier

 http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-205_162-57591387/paypal-says-outer-space-is-its-next-frontier/

 

This one is for all my fellow Canucks:

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/injured-soldier-lawsuit-dismissed-ottawa-tells-b-c-080010732.html

Vets angry as federal lawyers argue Ottawa has no social obligation to soldiers

"At least one veterans group promises to campaign against the Harper Conservatives because of a stand taken by federal lawyers, who argue the country holds no extraordinary social obligation to ex-soldiers."

.... As a former Canadian Armed Forces Medic and a Harper Hater..... that one nearly made my head blew off.

And for those looking for more information about Iraq and the massive sell off of all the country's assets, I've put together a couple of very telling articles.


http://therealnews.com/t2/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=31&Itemid=74&jumival=7418

"JUHASZ: Yeah, there's been a long, very public fight, first started by the Bush administration, on behest of the oil companies that basically operated both within and without of the administration to utilize the invasion of Iraq as a way to open up Iraq to Western oil companies, which haven't been able to operate in Iraq since the 1970s nationalizations. And there were two methods that were pursued to do that. One was to get the Iraqis to pass a new national law, the Iraq oil law, that would lock in guaranteed market access, under incredibly lucrative terms to foreign companies, to foreign companies--basically, transition Iraq from a nationalized oil system to an all but privatized system. The fight over that law has been very public, and there has been great opposition to it by Iraqi parliamentarians, oil workers unions, civil society groups, people all around the world. And that battle is ongoing. At this very moment, the Iraqi Parliament is still debating trying to get law through, and still has been unable to do so. While that public process has gone on, a much quieter process has proceeded, which is a contracting process, a series of rounds opening up, contract by contract, new oil fields in Iraq to foreign companies. And this process has taken place using contract terms that are essentially the same as what is in the law, but in--contract by contract."
Unfortunately the US "Advisors" (controllers) made sure that directly written into the Constitution was a grandfather clause to insure that NO contracts signed during the occupation of Iraq (ie: selling off all Iraq's assets, commodities and mineral rights) could be over turned by any future Iraqi government!!  Nice, eh?

Western oil firms remain as US exits Iraq

The end of the US military occupation does not mean Iraqis have full control of their oil.
http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2011/12/2011122813134071641.html
"Dr Abdulhay Yahya Zalloum, an international oil consultant and economist who has spent nearly 50 years in the oil business in the US, Europe, Asia and the Middle East, agrees that western oil companies have "obtained concessions in Iraq's major [oil] fields", despite "there being a lack of transparency and clarity of vision regarding the legal issues".
Dr Zalloum added that he believes western oil companies have successfully acquired the lions' share of Iraq's oil, "but they gave a little piece of the cake for China and some of the other countries and companies to keep them silent"."
...note that he doesn't mention any Iraqi companies nor the Iraqi government

 I HIGHLY recommend reading the below article in it's entirety if you really want to understand just how fucked Iraq is and what the US has done to insure that they have complete control of the entire country.

 
Looting By Another Name

The Corporate Takeover of Iraq’s Economy

http://www.counterpunch.org/2006/05/10/the-corporate-takeover-of-iraq-s-economy/

"To further embed a U.S. corporate economy in Iraq, the Iraq Constitution contained provisions that approve the Bremer Orders. The new Iraqi Constitution specifically repealed the Transitional Administrative Law, but did no such thing for Bremer’s Orders and therefore they continue to be the law of the land. Thus, U.S. corporations continue their hold on the reconstruction of Iraq, and U.S. contractors continue to have full immunity from prosecution in Iraq. Beyond that, several articles of the Constitution re-enforce the Bremer Orders, e.g. Article 25 requires "modern economic principles that insure the full investment of its resources, diversification of its sources and the encouragement and development of the private sector; Article 26 "guarantees the encouragement of investment in various sectors," Article 27 allows for the privatization of state property. Juhasz points out that modern economic principles means corporate globalization and the market principles of the Bremer Orders, and private investment means foreign investment.  ...

The method being used for U.S. control of Iraq’s oil is Production Sharing Agreements. PSA’s favor private companies at the expense of exporting governments as the entire exploration, drilling and infrastructure-building process are turned over to private companies in contracts that last twenty-five to forty years. These contracts lock in the laws at the time the contract is signed. Thus contracts signed now would have the Bremer Orders as their law no matter what a future Iraqi government did......

Interim Prime Minister Allawi submitted guidelines for Iraq’s new petroleum law in September 2004. The guidelines put "an end to the centrally planned and state-dominated Iraq economy" and urged the "Iraqi government to disengage from running the oil sector." Further, he recommended privatization stating the industry "should be exclusively based in the private sector, that domestic wholesale and retail marketing of petroleum products should be gradually transferred to the private sector, and that major refinery expansions or grassroots refineries should be built by the local and foreign private sectors." Finally, Allawi called for all undeveloped oil and gas fields to be turned over to private international oil companies. This, at a time when only seventeen of Iraq’s eighty known oil fields have been developed. Article 109 of the Iraq Constitution re-enforces this goal stating that the federal government only administers existing oil and gas fields. The plans for a new Iraq petroleum law were made public at a press conference in Washington, DC by Adel Abdul Mahdi, formerly the Finance Minister, and now a Deputy President of Iraq.  









Tuesday 30 July 2013

A Chart is Worth a Million Words

With huge thanx to the research team.... who are having an absolute blast asking "What do I know?" and then clicking on a link and discovering all sorts of fun stuff!!!  I dont' even know if it's possible to formulate an article around all that they have dug up and discovered and dragged out from under the carpet.  I might just have to post an article that is entirely made up of links and say "Have fun with this!!".


A picture may be worth a thousand words.... but a chart is worth a million!!!

This first set of charts is from here: http://fairwhistleblower.ca/content/revolving-door-between-us-government-big-business





Now, this next one is a doozy!!!  just for the fun of it I'll put the picture of the chart here, but you'll have to click on the link, which will take you to the original so that you can zooooooom in!!

http://stopsyjonizmowi.files.wordpress.com/2012/03/bilderberg.jpg

http://blog.exposebadbanks.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/Bilderberg-Group-Image.png


 http://www2.ucsc.edu/whorulesamerica/power/images/corporate_community/Citigroup_corp_L1.gif

http://www2.ucsc.edu/whorulesamerica/power/images/corporate_community/Citigroup_corp_L1.gif


Yea.... this is another one where you really might need to go to the original link to truly see the astoundingness of this chart: http://www.flickr.com/photos/zoharma/97214235/sizes/o/in/photostream/




Here is the link to the pdf that this HSBC chart was taken from : http://www.federalreserve.gov/SECRS/2013/May/20130521/R-1438/R-1438_043013_111118_572960408658_1.pdf


Now... the interesting thing with HSBC is that this chart only shows the "HSBC" named companies for the most part.  BUT.... if you take it another level down and take a look at the banks listen here then you can see all the banks that these banks control. 

For example:

If you go and investigate HSBC Trinkaus- which is in Germany, then you can start to see the spiders web very easily found on wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HSBC_Trinkaus
Right at the bottom of the page:

Brands:


Well isn't that interesting?  Did you know that Midland Bank in the USA was/is HSBC?  Follow the yellow brick road and you'll find some interesting things.  Just click on the SABB links and follow that around for a bit..... some interesting banking history in there.

I have a bit more to share later... for now I'm chilling out with my kids and trying to stay cool.  Have an awesome day my friends!