“Verdens ondeste firma” i 2011 er nu fundet ved en afstemning på internettet. Det blev den brasilianske minegigant, Vale, på grund af sin opførsel i Amazonas – et hestehoved foran en britisk bank.
Bag de såkaldte Public Eye-priser (hvoraf det ondeste firma er en af dem) står den schweiziske organisation The Berne Declaration og Greenpeace.
Priserne gives til virksomheder, der ikke lever op til de to organisationers ønsker om økonomisk og miljømæssig bæredygtighed, fremgår det af non-profit nyhedsbrevet “Common Dreams” fredag.
Årsagen til, at netop mineselskabet Vale løb med den ‘værste’ af priserne ved årets uddeling, er et planlagt byggeri af en dæmning i Amazonas.
For at kunne bygge dæmningen i regnskoven har Vale således tvangsflyttet tre indianerstammer og 40.000 mennesker – uden kompensation – ligesom 700 kvadratkilometer regnskov vil blive lagt under vand.
Det er ottende gang, at prisen som verdens ondeste virksomhed uddeles, og blot få stemmer adskilte Vale på førstepladsen og banken Barclays, som anklages for at skrue priserne på mad urealistisk i vejret for verdens fattigste ved at spekulere i fødeprisernes udvikling.
Både Vale og Barclays tilbageviser kritikken og anfører, at de intet ulovligt har foretaget sig.
Uddelingen af priserne foregik i Davos i Schweiz samtidig med World Economic Forum.
DAVOS, 27th January, 2012: ‘Public Eye’ highlight destructive practices of world’s least friendly corporations
Brazilian mining giant Vale and UK-based Barclays bank were given the dubious honor of being the top vote-getters in this year’s survey asking participants to name the world’s most destructive international corporations.
“Værste eksempler på uansvarlighed”
Joseph E. Stiglitz, Professor, Columbia University, said during the ‘Public Eye Awards’ ceremony “that with these nominations some of the worst examples of corporate irresponsibility in the last year have been identified.”
The purpose of the awards, according to the The Public Eye website, are to highlight “the particularly flagrant human rights abuses and environmental harm by corporations.”
The deregulation of world markets has greatly expanded the range of transnational corporations. This change has come about at such a rapid pace that national laws have long lost their ability to impose an orderly framework.
The voluntary restraint or social/environmental commitment pledged by companies is often not worth the glossy paper it is printed on.
Patents that price life-saving drugs out of reach of poor populations, natural resources exploited without regard for the local environment, or workers exploited ruthlessly in a race to the bottom, you name it – there is nothing that the global players assembled in Davos will not do to improve their bottom line.
It is more important than ever to remind corporations of their social and environmental responsibility. We want a legal framework that will hold them accountable for their practices.
Derfor Vale
The People’s Award, based on a popular vote, was awarded to Vale mining. According to background:
“Vale has a long corporate history characterized by inhumane working conditions, human rights violations and environmental destruction.
Currently, Vale is a significant partner in the NESA consortium that is building the highly-controversial Belo Monte Dam in the heart of the Amazon. The 17 billion US dollar project is characterized by authoritarian planning and blatant disregard for human rights and environmental legislation.
Affected indigenous peoples have not been consulted in the planning process. Clearly, Vale is participating in the dam project in order to ensure a cheap energy supply for its existing and planned mining operations in the Amazon”.
Derfor Barclays
Barclays, which won the jury prize chosen by members of Greenpeace and the Berne Declaration, was singled out for its role in profiting from commodity trading and “effectively betting on hunger by speculating on food prices.”
“The investment banking section of the UK-based giant, Barclays, has been the fastest growing food speculator in Europe – and arguably, worldwide.
In the second half of 2010 alone, 44 million people were driven into extreme poverty due to rising food prices. Women, children and elderly people in the global south are often the hardest hit when families struggle to afford food.
New European regulations could end the scandal of food speculation, but the UK government and its close allies in the financial sector, such as Barclays, are threatening to block effective rules”.
The other winners:
Læs videre på
https://www.commondreams.org/headline/2012/01/27-7
