29 Mar 2010 09:00 Africa/Lagos
60 Year Old Nigerian Gets a New Lease of Life in India - Doctors at Fortis Hospitals Bangalore (Formerly Wockhardt Hospitals) Remove a 4 kg Liver Tumor
BANGALORE, India, March 29, 2010/PRNewswire/ -- A team of doctors led by Dr Ramcharan Thiagarajan, Consultant Surgical Gastroenterology & Hepato Pancreatic Biliary Surgery, Fortis Hospitals, Bangalore (formerly Wockhardt Hsopitals) recently performed a high risk surgery on a 60 year old Nigerian to remove a perilous tumor weighing 4 kilos surrounding his liver.
Mr. Giddy Ejeng was suffering from acute abdomen pain and had symptoms of anemia for almost about a year. While consulting with doctors in Nigeria he had got a CT scan done which revealed the giant sized liver tumor. Sensing the high risk involved, doctors at Nigeria referred the case to Fortis Hospitals Bangalore who have the expertise to perform such high risk surgeries. "The surgery performed is called "Trisegmentectomy" where major part of the liver are resected to remove the cancer, leaving behind a small portion of the normal liver. This surgery is possible because we all know the liver regenerates quite fast. Had the surgery not been performed in time, the situation could have turned fatal," explained Dr. Ramcharan Thiagarajan.
This was a case of a massive liver resection where two thirds of his liver were removed due to a gigantic tumor sitting on his liver. The size of the tumor was unusually big and was impinging on the IVC (inferior vena cava) the large vein that carries de-oxygenated blood from the lower half of the body to the right atrium of the heart. The patient presented with severe abdominal pain and fatigue for four preceding months and loss of appetite. Examination revealed a large mass 20 cm x 15 cm occupying almost the whole of the liver.
"After adequate general anesthesia, the abdomen was opened in layers with an inverted T-shaped incision, detailed inspection of the liver and other abdominal organs was performed. The liver was mobilised to facilitate resection of the mass. A careful dissection of the tumor was performed thereby minimizing collateral tissue damage and blood loss," added Dr. Ramcharan Thiagarajan.
"I believe we should never give up hope even if sometimes everything seems to come to an end. We believed Giddy will be fine and cured completely. So when our doctor in Nigeria told us to take Giddy to India we knew they surely had the expertise to handle the case. Maybe this faith and conviction helped us in going through the difficult times. Since the surgery there has been a tremendous improvement in my husband's health. I would like to thank the doctors at Fortis Hospitals for their support and warmth extended to us. They have treated my husband with utmost care," said Mrs. Giddy.
For more information please contact:
Priyam Bortamuli,
PR & Communication, Mobile: +91-9845558559
Email- priyam.bortamuli@fortishospitals.in or
care.bng@fortishospitals.in
Source: Fortis Hospitals Limited
For more information please contact: Priyam Bortamuli, PR & Communication, Mobile: +919845558559, Email- priyam.bortamuli@fortishospitals.in or care.bng@fortishospitals.in
Monday, March 29, 2010
Join 100,000 Voices To Fight Poverty, Protect Human Rights, and Demand Transparency
Demand Financial Transparency
Tell the G20 to Create Financial Transparency
Join 100,000 voices to fight poverty, protect human rights, and demand transparency.
Developing countries are currently losing US$1 trillion dollars annually - 10 times the amount they receive in foreign aid. We can change this. Tell the G20 - the world's economic leaders - to create transparency in the international financial system.
Please, sign the petition below.
G20 Transparency Petition
Everyone has the right to a standard of living adequate for the health and well-being of himself and of his family, including food, clothing, housing and medical care and necessary social services…
--Article 25 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights
Research shows that developing countries are losing $1 trillion every year due to crime, government corruption, and tax evasion. These illicit monetary outflows are roughly ten times the amount of aid money going into developing countries for poverty alleviation and economic development.
The loss of money from poor economies that would otherwise go to provide health services, infrastructure, and other critical needs exacerbates poverty and leads to the deaths of millions of people. The annual loss of hundreds of billions of dollars from the world’s poorest and most vulnerable economies constitutes one of the most pressing human rights issues of the new decade.
The key to tackling this problem is transparency in the global financial system. After these stolen or otherwise ill-gotten gains exit their country of origin they vanish into an opaque financial system comprised of tax havens and secrecy jurisdictions. The most effective deterrent to criminals, corrupt officials, and tax evaders is to create a global financial system where illicit money cannot hide.
When the world’s 20 largest economies – the G20 – meet in Toronto on June 26-27, 2010 they will have an unprecedented opportunity to institute changes to create a transparent global financial system that is open, accountable, fair and beneficial for all.
Toward that end, we call on the G20 leaders to:
• • Recognize the link between illicit outflows of capital from developing countries, absorption of those resources by tax havens and secrecy jurisdictions, and the adverse impact those flows have on poverty alleviation and economic development.
• • Call on the Financial Action Task Force to amend its recommendations 33, 34, and VIII to provide that the beneficial ownership of all companies, trusts, foundations and charities be made a matter of public record.
• • Instruct the International Accounting Standards Board to recommend that all multinational corporations report their income and taxes paid on a country by country basis.”
GFI recently launched the G20 Transparency campaign to enable people around the world to take action on the problem of illicit financial flows. To sign the G20 transparency petition, which will be presented at the G20 meetings in June, go to www.G20Transparency.com or visit www.GFIP.org.
Sunday, March 28, 2010
True Success is Imperishable!
Photo Credit: Chef Alliance.
Success is measured by how much positive difference you have made in your life and the lives of others in your family; community, society and humanity. And not by the selfish acquisition of status symbols and trophies of vain glory.
True success is imperishable!
~ Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima
Re: Bayelsa State Governor in a N100 Billion Scandal
Timpriye Sylva, the Bayelsa State governor
Timpriye Sylva, the Bayelsa State governor, is set for trouble with Nigeria’s anti-graft agency, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), as the agency prepares to slam him with a multiple-count charge of money laundering and diversion of public funds to the tune of about N100billion.
~ From Bayelsa State governor in a N100 billion scandal
March 28, 2010 01:28AM
I WANT CAPITAL PUNISHMENT FOR CORRUPTION IN NIGERIA.
THIS IS THE ONLY SOLUTION.
ONCE FOUND GUILTY, PLEASE HANG THE CRIMINAL UNTIL CONFIRMED DEAD.
Corruption has caused the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people in Nigeria for decades and these evil and wicked corrupt politicians, military officers and others are shamelessly UNREPENTANT, therefore they do not deserve mercy.
Imagine General Theophilus Yakubu Danjuma (Rtd) shamelessly boasting of his ill-gotten wealth from an ill-gotten oil block. And nobody is talking about the public robbery of Mrs. Patience Goodluck Jonathan.
In September 2006, The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) named Mrs. Patience Jonathan, wife of Goodluck Jonathan, then Bayelsa State Governor, as an accomplice in the N104million-money laundering case involving Mrs. Nancy Ebere Nwosu.
The EFCC in suit number FHC/ABJ/M/340/06 filed on August 21, 2007 at the Federal High Court, Abuja alleged that the governor’s wife was the one that instructed her agent to launder the huge sum in a First Bank of Nigeria account number 3292010060711 held in the name of Nansolyvan Public Relations Limited.
http://www.elombah.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2860:ap-goodluck-jonathan-and-the-war-against-corruption&catid=52:daniel-elombah&Itemid=73
Majority of Nigerians are corrupt from their cheating at home and school to stealing in public office and private office, that is why corruption is now their way of life.
"O generation of vipers, how can you, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks."
~ Matthew 12:34
Unqualified Judges of Star Quest: Nigerian Musical Talent Hunt Show
A band from Star Quest. Photo Credit: Star QuestUnqualified Judges of Star Quest: Nigerian Musical Talent Hunt Show
They are not professionals, they are inexperienced and most of them are not even well groomed musically.
How many of them can play musical instruments satisfactorily or defend the music in their albums?
Musical judges should be resource persons drawn from reputable music institutions, industry professionals who know their onions and music instructors with results.
~ Akapo Emmanuel in “Will real Stars be produced” on Star Quest, page 47 of the Viewpoint in Sunday Vanguard on March 28, 2010.
Nigerian Breweries Plc has been spending a lot on Star Quest to promote Nigerian music by encouraging the revival of music bands. But there is a problem. The judges on Star Quest have been making mockery of themselves while thinking they are making fun of the contestants they are judging, because from my knowledge of music since my secondary school days at the famous St.Gregory’s College in Lagos, where good bands such as the famous Ofege, New Generation and others have emerged, I can tell you that these judges have little or no proven knowledge of MUSIC in rudiments and in instruction.
It is erroneous to make Hip-hop artistes who in most cases are music illiterates (those who cannot read and write music) judges.
They are not simply qualified to judge music.
A performer from Star Quest . Photo Credit: Star QuestMost of these so called celebrated hip hop superstars in Nigeria will not even pass auditions for recording contracts in the US or Europe where music production is not faked by DJs and amateurish sound engineers who dub the sound tracks of American and European musicians and mix them for Nigerian hip hop wannabes to rap or sing over them and these voice over artistes are recorded and released on the streets and bribing radio DJs and TV video jockeys to give them constant airplay (rotation) to hype them on their stage-managed charts. They spend a lot of money to fake or make musical videos copied from American and European videos and using sexploitation to market themselves as stars, but most of them cannot even sing. What we see are Garbage In, Garbage Out (GIGO) hip hop artistes unleashing their mediocrity on us. They even pay bootleggers to pirate their own music in what they popularly call Alaba Mix in local parlance in Nigeria. Then show organizers use them to promote and market alcoholic products and other junk products targeted at the ignorant and vulnerable youths in Nigeria who are now calling themselves the Hip-hop generation. And they have no shame to boast of this sham!
Please, read Our Music Is Dying Slowly, And Still Smiling by Femi Akintunde-Johnson, and Akapo Emmanuel’s critical analysis of the judges is worth reading by the organizers and the viewers.
~ By Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Hopeful Nigerian plans mega-film festival for Lagos Mega City
Hope Obioma Opara
Hopeful Nigerian plans mega-film festival for Lagos Mega City
As millions the world over continue to shudder at the shocking news out of Plateau state, in Nigeria’s “Middle Best” region, of the gory massacre of beleaguered Berom Christians by rampaging Muslim Hausa-Fulani herdsmen, in the midst of the unease surrounding Acting President Goodluck Jonathan stepping in to resolve the dilemma of an incapacitated President Umaru Yar’Adua, and the do-or-die political game of his ruling party in the ongoing power tussle over the leadership of Africa’s most populous country, one hopeful Nigerian is not giving up on the future of his beloved country.
His first name, Hope, is suggestive of his drive, as is the smile on his chubby face, beaming out as a beacon of light, bright enough for the ship of state to sail by in the troubled waters of the turbulent times.
Hope’s journey to the world of international film festivals began in November 2008 when he braved a particularly bad spell of winter to attend the 30th edition of Festival of 3 Continents in Nantes, France.
He was excited to gain accreditation to attend the 62nd Cannes Film Festival, where he got caught in the rarefied air surrounding blazing star actress Angelina Jolie. He wrote about it for his Supple magazine which he started in August 2008, after six years’ experience as a successful printer.
From being star-struck at Cannes, France, Hope returned home clear-eyed with high motivation to launch a new film festival buoyed by the much publicized report of Nigeria as having the largest movie-making industry in Africa and the second largest in the world, after India, with an annual production of over 800 movies in video-format, popularly called Nollywood after India’s ‘Bollywood’ the first to be christened after the benchmark, America’s Hollywood.
A close associate came up with a name: Eko International Film Festival. He posted it online in August 2009. By the following month, it was duly registered by Hope. Both had never undertaken any film festival before and knew definitely that they would need help.
Soon, he found a mentor in the person of Bruno Chatelin, co-founder of filmfestivals.com, a web portal launched in 1995. Bruno was in charge of the launch of over 250 films during his tenure as Marketing Director and Managing Director for Columbia TriStar Films and Twentieth Century Fox.
Hope would brave yet another bone-chilling winter to meet up with Bruno in Paris. He got to seal a deal that makes filmfestivals.com a media partner to boost morale to help realize a world-class film festival, like Cannes. He proceeded to commission the design and hosting of the official website of Eko International Film Festival. He returned to Lagos to share the good news.
Hope returned again to Europe for the Rotterdam International Film Festival in the Netherlands, then again for the 60th Berlinale, Germany. He now felt convinced he could put together a successful world-class film festival.
But how does he hope to finance it? “We are making sacrifices to raise the funds for Eko International Film Festival, and what we need most is money to host the filmmakers and accredited journalists and enough to rent the halls we would need to screen selected films!” Hope says amidst chuckles.
Big dreams come with big, mind-blowing budgets. Hope needs over a million dollars to make his dream of a mega film festival come true.
“We have started a fund-raising drive. We’re sending out letters of proposal to sponsors. I saw film festivals with numerous sponsors in Europe. We are seeking the cooperation and support of local and international sponsors. We have attracted the interest of some Nigerian banks and we expect to close deals with some prospective sponsors shortly,” he explains, with infectious optimism pouring out of his brown shining eyes.
News of the forthcoming Eko International Film festival is circulating fast and far on the Internet. But will filmmakers and visitors from outside Nigeria troop in as expected, at the prospects on offer, given reports of the massacres of innocent Christians in the middle belt region making the headlines online and offline?
“Lagos is quite safe and I know that the federal government has the means to stop the conflicts and restore peace in the troubled Plateau state, ditto the troubled waters of the Niger delta region. Everything is going to be fine, even long before Eko International Film Festival opens on July 7,” he assures.
Hope Opara is upbeat. “Eko International Film Festival will provide exciting new business and tourism opportunities. It’s going to be great fun for filmmakers and lovers of films in Nigeria and many thousands of film aficionados sure to turn up.”
~ By Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima
A Chronology of Key Events in the Halliburton Bribery Scandal in Nigeria
FOR THE RECORD
Halliburton and Nigeria:
A Chronology of Key Events in the Unfolding Bribery Scandal
1988: Dresser Industries acquires M.W. Kellogg, ten years before Dresser merges with Halliburton.
September 1994: M.W. Kellogg and three other companies form a partnership known as TSKJ, incorporated in Medeira, Portugal. Each partner owns a 25 percent equal share. Kellogg's three other partners are Technip of France, Italy's Snamprogetti, and Japan Gasoline Corp. The partnership submits a bid to Nigeria LNG to build a natural gas plant in Nigeria. Nigeria LNG is owned by the Nigerian government and Royal Dutch/Shell Group. TSKJ's $2 billion bid is not immediately accepted even though it was 5 percent lower than a bid submitted by competitor, Bechtel Group, Inc.
November 1994: As TSKJ awaits Nigeria's decision on the bid, Wojciech Chodan, an executive at Kellogg and later a consultant for Kellogg Brown & Root, meets with London lawyer Jefferey Tesler, who is known for his contacts and friendly relations with the Nigerian government, including its dictator Gen. Sani Abacha. During the meeting, they discussed channeling $40 million to Gen. Abacha through Mr. Tesler's firm Tri-Star, based in Gibralter, Spain.
March 1995: TSKJ formally hires Mr. Tesler as agent; TSKJ's bid has still not been accepted by Nigeria LNG. Mr. Tesler's employment contract is signed by an M.W. Kellogg executive on behalf of the TSKJ partnership. Mr. Tesler had been working on behalf of TSKJ prior to March 1995 and the employment contract was given to Mr. Tesler as a reward for his prodding of Nigerian officials. The employment contract provided that Mr. Tesler would be paid $60 million if Nigeria awarded the construction contract to TSKJ. Mr. Tesler's Tri-Star was contracted to receive at least $160 million in five agreements signed between 1995 and 2002, and the funds were directed to bank accounts in Switzerland and Monaco.
March 20, 1995: Dan Etete replaces Nigeria's former oil minister, who has a falling out with the dicatator, Gen. Abacha. "In an interrogation of Mr. Tesler, a French magistrate described the London lawyer's transfer of $2.5 million into Swiss bank accounts held by Mr. Etete under a false name between 1996 and 1998. Mr. Tesler confirmed making the payments but told the magistrate that the money was for an investment in offshore oil exploration leases in Nigeria and that he wasn't aware the accounts belonged to Mr. Etete, according to people familiar with the interrogation." (Wall Street Journal, Sept. 29, 2004.)
June 1995: Albert Jack Stanley is promoted to president and chief operating officer of M.W. Kellogg after serving as executive vice president since 1991 and various positions since 1975.
August 1995: Dick Cheney is hired as CEO of Halliburton, three years before he directs the merger of Halliburton with Dresser Industries and M.W. Kellogg. He serves as CEO until August of 2000.
December 1995: TSKJ is finally awarded the $2 billion contract from Nigeria LNG.
July 1996: M.W. Kellogg promotes Albert Jack Stanley to chairman, president and chief executive officer; he also becomes vice president of operations for the parent, Dresser Industries.
February 1998: Halliburton and M.W. Kellogg's parent, Dresser Industries, agree to a $7.7 billion merger directed by Dick Cheney. M.W. Kellogg is merged with Halliburton's Brown & Root subsidiary to form Kellogg, Brown & Root. Albert Jack Stanley is named as chairman of the new subsidiary. The Independent (UK) reported that "Mr Stanley had been appointed to his senior role at Halliburton by Mr Cheney when he was chief executive between 1995 and 2000." (The Independent, Oct. 3, 2004.) The Wall Street Journal confirmed that Cheney "named Mr. Stanley … to a top post at the company in 1998." (Wall Street Journal, Sept. 29, 2004.) Cheney told the Middle East Economic Digest in 1999 that, "We took Jack Stanley … to head up the organization and that has helped tremendously." (Middle East Economic Digest, April 9, 1999.)
1999: The TSKJ partners, with Kellogg Brown & Root acting as the lead partner, agree to reappoint Mr. Tesler as its agent during a meeting in London. Kellogg wanted Mr. Tesler, with whom it had a long-term relationship, to attend. But the representative from the French partner, Technip, wanted a different agent and insisted that Mr. Tesler be excluded from the meeting. William Chaudan, the Kellogg representative at TSKJ, said Mr. Tesler had been selected on Kellogg's recommendation and over Technip's "strong opposition." (Financial Times, London, Sept. 16, 2004.) Halliburton officials in Houston deny that Kellogg Brown & Root demanded Mr. Tesler's participation. Three new contracts with Mr. Tesler required TSKJ to pay his firm, Tri-Star, $32.5 million for his services in Nigeria. Richard Northmore, a sales manager for M.W. Kellogg in England, signed contracts with Mr. Tesler for TSKJ. Syed Nasser, M.W. Kellogg's legal director, acted as counsel to the TSKJ consortium, approving Mr Tesler's role. Bhaskar Patel, a sales and marketing vice-president who works in Kellogg, Brown & Root's office in England, also worked with Mr. Tesler.
March 1999: Halliburton announces the Nigerian government awarded a $1.2 billion contract to TSKJ to expand the construction of the natural gas plant from two trains to three trains in order to increase the plant's capacity by 50 percent. At the time, Stanley declared the contract award exemplifies Kellogg's "project execution skills." (Halliburton press release, March 11, 1999.)
October 1999: First shipment of liquefied natural gas is shipped from Nigeria.
October 2003: French magistrate initiates investigation of suspicious payments made by TSKJ after a former executive with one of TSKJ's partners, Technip of France, said Mr. Tesler is "directly linked to corruption in Nigeria." (Financial Times, London, Sept. 16, 2004.) Halliburton admitted that TSKJ paid $132 million in "advisory fees" to Mr. Tesler and that under Tesler's contract with the company the money was not to be used for bribery. But the French investigator said the payments to Mr. Tesler "appear completely unjustified." (Wall Street Journal, Sept. 29, 2004.) The money was paid to Mr. Tesler between 1995 and 2002, more than half of which came after 1999. Under French law, Mr. Cheney could be subject to a charge of "abuse of corporate assets" even if he knew nothing about the alleged improper payments during his tenure as Halliburton's chief executive. The U.S. antibribery law applies only to executives who are aware of illicit payments to foreign officials. (Dallas Morning News, Sept. 8, 2004.) The Wall Street Journal reported that French authorities don't have jurisdiction over Halliburton in this case but are sharing information with U.S. authorities. (Wall Street Journal, Sept. 29, 2004.) "A preliminary investigation by the Police Judiciaire of France found that LNG Servicos, a company indirectly owned by the four partners in the Nigerian joint venture, made four payments totaling at least $166 million at times that roughly coincide with the award of contracts. The payments went to a Gibraltar company owned by a London attorney to a Swiss bank account that was later closed at the request of the bank." (Dallas Morning News, Jan. 25, 2004.)
December 2003: Albert Jack Stanley retires as chairman of Kellogg Brown & Root, but retains a position as consultant for Halliburton.
June 2004: Halliburton fires Albert Jack Stanley after investigators say he received $5 million in "improper" payments from Mr. Tesler. It also fires William Chaudan, the Kellogg representative at TSKJ. Halliburton spokesperson, Wendy Hall, said that during the years he ran KBR, Mr. Stanley reported to David Lesar, Halliburton's president and chief operating officer at the time and CEO today. Mr. Lesar reported to Mr. Cheney when Cheney was chief executive. (Dallas Morning News, Sept. 8, 2004.) (Important Note: Lesar is an accountant and former Arthur Andersen partner, meaning he may have been in a position to know about the purpose of payments to Tesler when they occurred.) According to the Dallas Morning News, "Mr. Cheney ran Halliburton when one of four suspicious payments occurred." (Dallas Morning News, Sept. 8, 2004.)
June 2004: It is reported that Tesler put $1 million into an account held by William Chaudan, the Kellogg representative at TSKJ. "The company has since learned that even larger sums may have gone into the accounts of Mr. Stanley and Mr. Chaudan." (Dallas Morning News, Sept. 3, 2004.) Chaudan retired from M.W. Kellogg Co. in 1998, but had continued as a consultant. (Dallas Morning News, June 19, 2004.)
August 2004: Nigeria's parliament votes unanimously to summon Halliburton CEO, David Lesar, to answer questions over its bribery investigation. It issues a report recommending that Halliburton and TSKJ be disqualified from bidding on future government projects. It denounces what it calls Halliburton's "hide-and-seek games" to avoid questions from government investigators.
September 2004: TSKJ severs all ties to Mr. Tesler and his firm, Tri-Star.
September 2004: The Wall Street Journal reports on newly disclosed evidence by Halliburton, including notes written by M.W. Kellogg employees during the mid-1990s in which they discussed bribing Nigerian officials. The Financial Times of London said the evidence "raises questions over what Mr Cheney knew - or should have known - about one of the largest contracts awarded to a Halliburton subsidiary." (Financial Times, Sept. 16, 2004.) The written notes were discovered by Halliburton's lawyer, James Doty, a lead partner in the Houston law firm Baker Botts. The "Baker" in Baker Botts is Bush family lawyer James Baker, the same lawyer credited with winning Florida for Bush Jr. over Gore. Baker also served as President George H. Bush's Secretary of State. Doty was general counsel to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) under the senior President Bush. He was SEC general counsel when the SEC investigated Bush Jr. for insider trading. Doty recused himself from the case, which was eventually closed without action. Bush Jr. was never interviewed. Although Bush's lawyers gave the "smoking gun" in that case to the SEC the day after it closed the investigation, Doty refused to reopen the case. (Washington Post, Nov. 1, 2002.)
September 2004: Nigeria's President Olusegun Obasanjo officially bans Halliburton from bidding on future government contracts because it violated safety regulations for nuclear material. The president accuses the company of negligently causing the disappearance of two highly sensitive radioactive devices used to take measurements in oil wells. The ban is apparently not related to the ongoing bribery investigations.
October 2004: Revelations about Halliburton's central role in the bribery investigation forces United Kingdom's Export Credit Guarantee Department (ECGD) to consider withdrawing its support of a 133 million (British pounds) loan made last year to Kellogg. ECGD said it originally supported the loan on the basis that Halliburton was merely a "subcontractor to the [TSKJ] consortium and financial arrangements were not their responsibility," but it was maintaining a "watching brief" on the French investigation. (The Independent, Oct. 3, 2004).
October 22, 2004: Investigators with Nigeria's parliament complain that Halliburton is not being cooperative in their investigation of the alleged bribery. The investigators say Mr. Tesler paid bribes on behalf of TSKJ to Nigerian government officials. The bribes were paid in installments: $60 million in 1995, $37.5 million in 1999, $51 million in 2001 and $23 million in 2002.
June 20, 2005: The French newspaper LeFigaro reports that a U.S. Justice Department official held "lengthy" meetings with French authorities in Paris on the issue of TSKJ bribes. It said an unnamed U.S. source asserted that the bribery scandal is "probably the most significant file of corruption" known in Washington today.
Sept. 22, 2006: A former Halliburton employee says he has evidence proving the company has embarked on a campaign to cover-up all wrongdoing, including attempts to mislead federal investigators.
Sources:
Solomon Hughes and Jason Nisse, "How Cheney's Firm Routed $132m to Nigeria via Tottenham Lawyer," The Independent (UK), Oct. 3, 2004.
Russell Gold and Charles Fleming, "Out of Africa: In Halliburton Nigeria Probe, A Search for Bribes to a Dictator," Wall Street Journal, Sept. 29, 2004, p.A1.
Michael Peel, "Nigeria gas consortium 'evasive', says probe chief," Financial Times (London), Aug. 23 2004.
Michael Peel, "Halliburton angers Nigerian MPs in 'bribes' hearing," Financial Times (London), Oct. 22, 2004.
"Halliburton 'backed' bribes probe agent," Financial Times (London), Sept. 16, 2004.
Middle East Economic Digest, April 9, 1999, p. 7.
Peter Behr, "Bush Sold Stock After Lawyers' Warning; SEC Closed Probe Before Receiving Letter From Harken's Outside Attorneys," Washington Post, Nov. 1, 2002.
Nigeria House of Representatives Petition Committee, Interim Report: The Halliburton/TSKJ/LNG Investigation, Summary of Facts, Sept. 2004.
Richard Whittle and Jim Landers, "Cheney's years at Halliburton under scrutiny," Dallas Morning News, Sept. 8, 2004.
Jim Landers and Richard Whittle, "Details emerge in bribery probe; Cheney isn't focus of French inquiry of Nigerian gas project," Dallas Morning News, Jan. 25, 2004.
Jim Landers and Richard Whittle, "Bribery case findings detailed; Halliburton says incidents predate ownership of firm," Dallas Morning News, Sept. 3, 2004.
Richard Whittle and Jim Landers, "Halliburton fires two consultants; Company says 'improper personal benefits' received in Nigerian gas deal," Dallas Morning News, June 19, 2004.
"Bush family lawyer James Doty hired to conduct internal probe of Halliburton involvement in Nigeria payments," Corporate Crime Reporter, February 16, 2004.
Ahamefula Ogbu, "$180m LNG Scam: Witnesses Stall Investigation," ThisDayOnline.com, Oct. 21, 2004.
Halliburton
A Chronology of Key Events in the Unfolding Bribery Scandal
September 1994: M.W. Kellogg and three other companies form a partnership known as TSKJ, incorporated in Medeira, Portugal. Each partner owns a 25 percent equal share. Kellogg's three other partners are Technip of France, Italy's Snamprogetti, and Japan Gasoline Corp. The partnership submits a bid to Nigeria LNG to build a natural gas plant in Nigeria. Nigeria LNG is owned by the Nigerian government and Royal Dutch/Shell Group. TSKJ's $2 billion bid is not immediately accepted even though it was 5 percent lower than a bid submitted by competitor, Bechtel Group, Inc.
November 1994: As TSKJ awaits Nigeria's decision on the bid, Wojciech Chodan, an executive at Kellogg and later a consultant for Kellogg Brown & Root, meets with London lawyer Jefferey Tesler, who is known for his contacts and friendly relations with the Nigerian government, including its dictator Gen. Sani Abacha. During the meeting, they discussed channeling $40 million to Gen. Abacha through Mr. Tesler's firm Tri-Star, based in Gibralter, Spain.
March 1995: TSKJ formally hires Mr. Tesler as agent; TSKJ's bid has still not been accepted by Nigeria LNG. Mr. Tesler's employment contract is signed by an M.W. Kellogg executive on behalf of the TSKJ partnership. Mr. Tesler had been working on behalf of TSKJ prior to March 1995 and the employment contract was given to Mr. Tesler as a reward for his prodding of Nigerian officials. The employment contract provided that Mr. Tesler would be paid $60 million if Nigeria awarded the construction contract to TSKJ. Mr. Tesler's Tri-Star was contracted to receive at least $160 million in five agreements signed between 1995 and 2002, and the funds were directed to bank accounts in Switzerland and Monaco.
March 20, 1995: Dan Etete replaces Nigeria's former oil minister, who has a falling out with the dicatator, Gen. Abacha. "In an interrogation of Mr. Tesler, a French magistrate described the London lawyer's transfer of $2.5 million into Swiss bank accounts held by Mr. Etete under a false name between 1996 and 1998. Mr. Tesler confirmed making the payments but told the magistrate that the money was for an investment in offshore oil exploration leases in Nigeria and that he wasn't aware the accounts belonged to Mr. Etete, according to people familiar with the interrogation." (Wall Street Journal, Sept. 29, 2004.)
June 1995: Albert Jack Stanley is promoted to president and chief operating officer of M.W. Kellogg after serving as executive vice president since 1991 and various positions since 1975.
August 1995: Dick Cheney is hired as CEO of Halliburton, three years before he directs the merger of Halliburton with Dresser Industries and M.W. Kellogg. He serves as CEO until August of 2000.
December 1995: TSKJ is finally awarded the $2 billion contract from Nigeria LNG.
July 1996: M.W. Kellogg promotes Albert Jack Stanley to chairman, president and chief executive officer; he also becomes vice president of operations for the parent, Dresser Industries.
February 1998: Halliburton and M.W. Kellogg's parent, Dresser Industries, agree to a $7.7 billion merger directed by Dick Cheney. M.W. Kellogg is merged with Halliburton's Brown & Root subsidiary to form Kellogg, Brown & Root. Albert Jack Stanley is named as chairman of the new subsidiary. The Independent (UK) reported that "Mr Stanley had been appointed to his senior role at Halliburton by Mr Cheney when he was chief executive between 1995 and 2000." (The Independent, Oct. 3, 2004.) The Wall Street Journal confirmed that Cheney "named Mr. Stanley … to a top post at the company in 1998." (Wall Street Journal, Sept. 29, 2004.) Cheney told the Middle East Economic Digest in 1999 that, "We took Jack Stanley … to head up the organization and that has helped tremendously." (Middle East Economic Digest, April 9, 1999.)
1999: The TSKJ partners, with Kellogg Brown & Root acting as the lead partner, agree to reappoint Mr. Tesler as its agent during a meeting in London. Kellogg wanted Mr. Tesler, with whom it had a long-term relationship, to attend. But the representative from the French partner, Technip, wanted a different agent and insisted that Mr. Tesler be excluded from the meeting. William Chaudan, the Kellogg representative at TSKJ, said Mr. Tesler had been selected on Kellogg's recommendation and over Technip's "strong opposition." (Financial Times, London, Sept. 16, 2004.) Halliburton officials in Houston deny that Kellogg Brown & Root demanded Mr. Tesler's participation. Three new contracts with Mr. Tesler required TSKJ to pay his firm, Tri-Star, $32.5 million for his services in Nigeria. Richard Northmore, a sales manager for M.W. Kellogg in England, signed contracts with Mr. Tesler for TSKJ. Syed Nasser, M.W. Kellogg's legal director, acted as counsel to the TSKJ consortium, approving Mr Tesler's role. Bhaskar Patel, a sales and marketing vice-president who works in Kellogg, Brown & Root's office in England, also worked with Mr. Tesler.
March 1999: Halliburton announces the Nigerian government awarded a $1.2 billion contract to TSKJ to expand the construction of the natural gas plant from two trains to three trains in order to increase the plant's capacity by 50 percent. At the time, Stanley declared the contract award exemplifies Kellogg's "project execution skills." (Halliburton press release, March 11, 1999.)
October 1999: First shipment of liquefied natural gas is shipped from Nigeria.
October 2003: French magistrate initiates investigation of suspicious payments made by TSKJ after a former executive with one of TSKJ's partners, Technip of France, said Mr. Tesler is "directly linked to corruption in Nigeria." (Financial Times, London, Sept. 16, 2004.) Halliburton admitted that TSKJ paid $132 million in "advisory fees" to Mr. Tesler and that under Tesler's contract with the company the money was not to be used for bribery. But the French investigator said the payments to Mr. Tesler "appear completely unjustified." (Wall Street Journal, Sept. 29, 2004.) The money was paid to Mr. Tesler between 1995 and 2002, more than half of which came after 1999. Under French law, Mr. Cheney could be subject to a charge of "abuse of corporate assets" even if he knew nothing about the alleged improper payments during his tenure as Halliburton's chief executive. The U.S. antibribery law applies only to executives who are aware of illicit payments to foreign officials. (Dallas Morning News, Sept. 8, 2004.) The Wall Street Journal reported that French authorities don't have jurisdiction over Halliburton in this case but are sharing information with U.S. authorities. (Wall Street Journal, Sept. 29, 2004.) "A preliminary investigation by the Police Judiciaire of France found that LNG Servicos, a company indirectly owned by the four partners in the Nigerian joint venture, made four payments totaling at least $166 million at times that roughly coincide with the award of contracts. The payments went to a Gibraltar company owned by a London attorney to a Swiss bank account that was later closed at the request of the bank." (Dallas Morning News, Jan. 25, 2004.)
December 2003: Albert Jack Stanley retires as chairman of Kellogg Brown & Root, but retains a position as consultant for Halliburton.
June 2004: Halliburton fires Albert Jack Stanley after investigators say he received $5 million in "improper" payments from Mr. Tesler. It also fires William Chaudan, the Kellogg representative at TSKJ. Halliburton spokesperson, Wendy Hall, said that during the years he ran KBR, Mr. Stanley reported to David Lesar, Halliburton's president and chief operating officer at the time and CEO today. Mr. Lesar reported to Mr. Cheney when Cheney was chief executive. (Dallas Morning News, Sept. 8, 2004.) (Important Note: Lesar is an accountant and former Arthur Andersen partner, meaning he may have been in a position to know about the purpose of payments to Tesler when they occurred.) According to the Dallas Morning News, "Mr. Cheney ran Halliburton when one of four suspicious payments occurred." (Dallas Morning News, Sept. 8, 2004.)
June 2004: It is reported that Tesler put $1 million into an account held by William Chaudan, the Kellogg representative at TSKJ. "The company has since learned that even larger sums may have gone into the accounts of Mr. Stanley and Mr. Chaudan." (Dallas Morning News, Sept. 3, 2004.) Chaudan retired from M.W. Kellogg Co. in 1998, but had continued as a consultant. (Dallas Morning News, June 19, 2004.)
August 2004: Nigeria's parliament votes unanimously to summon Halliburton CEO, David Lesar, to answer questions over its bribery investigation. It issues a report recommending that Halliburton and TSKJ be disqualified from bidding on future government projects. It denounces what it calls Halliburton's "hide-and-seek games" to avoid questions from government investigators.
September 2004: TSKJ severs all ties to Mr. Tesler and his firm, Tri-Star.
September 2004: The Wall Street Journal reports on newly disclosed evidence by Halliburton, including notes written by M.W. Kellogg employees during the mid-1990s in which they discussed bribing Nigerian officials. The Financial Times of London said the evidence "raises questions over what Mr Cheney knew - or should have known - about one of the largest contracts awarded to a Halliburton subsidiary." (Financial Times, Sept. 16, 2004.) The written notes were discovered by Halliburton's lawyer, James Doty, a lead partner in the Houston law firm Baker Botts. The "Baker" in Baker Botts is Bush family lawyer James Baker, the same lawyer credited with winning Florida for Bush Jr. over Gore. Baker also served as President George H. Bush's Secretary of State. Doty was general counsel to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) under the senior President Bush. He was SEC general counsel when the SEC investigated Bush Jr. for insider trading. Doty recused himself from the case, which was eventually closed without action. Bush Jr. was never interviewed. Although Bush's lawyers gave the "smoking gun" in that case to the SEC the day after it closed the investigation, Doty refused to reopen the case. (Washington Post, Nov. 1, 2002.)
September 2004: Nigeria's President Olusegun Obasanjo officially bans Halliburton from bidding on future government contracts because it violated safety regulations for nuclear material. The president accuses the company of negligently causing the disappearance of two highly sensitive radioactive devices used to take measurements in oil wells. The ban is apparently not related to the ongoing bribery investigations.
October 2004: Revelations about Halliburton's central role in the bribery investigation forces United Kingdom's Export Credit Guarantee Department (ECGD) to consider withdrawing its support of a 133 million (British pounds) loan made last year to Kellogg. ECGD said it originally supported the loan on the basis that Halliburton was merely a "subcontractor to the [TSKJ] consortium and financial arrangements were not their responsibility," but it was maintaining a "watching brief" on the French investigation. (The Independent, Oct. 3, 2004).
October 22, 2004: Investigators with Nigeria's parliament complain that Halliburton is not being cooperative in their investigation of the alleged bribery. The investigators say Mr. Tesler paid bribes on behalf of TSKJ to Nigerian government officials. The bribes were paid in installments: $60 million in 1995, $37.5 million in 1999, $51 million in 2001 and $23 million in 2002.
June 20, 2005: The French newspaper LeFigaro reports that a U.S. Justice Department official held "lengthy" meetings with French authorities in Paris on the issue of TSKJ bribes. It said an unnamed U.S. source asserted that the bribery scandal is "probably the most significant file of corruption" known in Washington today.
Sept. 22, 2006: A former Halliburton employee says he has evidence proving the company has embarked on a campaign to cover-up all wrongdoing, including attempts to mislead federal investigators.
Sources:
Solomon Hughes and Jason Nisse, "How Cheney's Firm Routed $132m to Nigeria via Tottenham Lawyer," The Independent (UK), Oct. 3, 2004.
Russell Gold and Charles Fleming, "Out of Africa: In Halliburton Nigeria Probe, A Search for Bribes to a Dictator," Wall Street Journal, Sept. 29, 2004, p.A1.
Michael Peel, "Nigeria gas consortium 'evasive', says probe chief," Financial Times (London), Aug. 23 2004.
Michael Peel, "Halliburton angers Nigerian MPs in 'bribes' hearing," Financial Times (London), Oct. 22, 2004.
"Halliburton 'backed' bribes probe agent," Financial Times (London), Sept. 16, 2004.
Middle East Economic Digest, April 9, 1999, p. 7.
Peter Behr, "Bush Sold Stock After Lawyers' Warning; SEC Closed Probe Before Receiving Letter From Harken's Outside Attorneys," Washington Post, Nov. 1, 2002.
Nigeria House of Representatives Petition Committee, Interim Report: The Halliburton/TSKJ/LNG Investigation, Summary of Facts, Sept. 2004.
Richard Whittle and Jim Landers, "Cheney's years at Halliburton under scrutiny," Dallas Morning News, Sept. 8, 2004.
Jim Landers and Richard Whittle, "Details emerge in bribery probe; Cheney isn't focus of French inquiry of Nigerian gas project," Dallas Morning News, Jan. 25, 2004.
Jim Landers and Richard Whittle, "Bribery case findings detailed; Halliburton says incidents predate ownership of firm," Dallas Morning News, Sept. 3, 2004.
Richard Whittle and Jim Landers, "Halliburton fires two consultants; Company says 'improper personal benefits' received in Nigerian gas deal," Dallas Morning News, June 19, 2004.
"Bush family lawyer James Doty hired to conduct internal probe of Halliburton involvement in Nigeria payments," Corporate Crime Reporter, February 16, 2004.
Ahamefula Ogbu, "$180m LNG Scam: Witnesses Stall Investigation," ThisDayOnline.com, Oct. 21, 2004.
Halliburton
Friday, March 26, 2010
$854 Billion Removed From Africa by Illicit Financial Flows from 1970 to 2008
26 Mar 2010 15:08 Africa/Lagos
$854 Billion Removed From Africa by Illicit Financial Flows from 1970 to 2008
Hundreds of billions that could have been used for poverty alleviation and economic development lost, finds new report from Global Financial Integrity
WASHINGTON, March 26 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Africa lost $854 billion in illicit financial outflows from 1970 through 2008, according to a new report to be released today from Global Financial Integrity (GFI). Illicit Financial Flows from Africa: Hidden Resource for Development debuts new estimates for volume and patterns of illicit financial outflows from Africa, building upon GFI's ground-breaking 2009 report, Illicit Financial Flows from Developing Countries: 2002-2006, which estimated that developing countries were losing as much as $1 trillion every year in illicit outflows. The new Africa illicit flows report is expected to feature prominently at the 3rd Annual Conference of African finance ministers in Malawi, which is currently underway.
"The amount of money that has been drained out of Africa--hundreds of billions decade after decade--is far in excess of the official development assistance going into African countries," said GFI director Raymond Baker. "Staunching this devastating outflow of much-needed capital is essential to achieving economic development and poverty alleviation goals in these countries."
Examining data for a 39-year range from 1970 to 2008, key report findings include:
-- Total illicit financial outflows from Africa, conservatively
estimated, were approximately $854 billion;
-- Total illicit outflows from Africa may be as high as $1.8 trillion;
-- Sub-Saharan African countries experienced the bulk of illicit
financial outflows with the West and Central African region posting
the largest outflow numbers;
-- The top five countries with the highest outflow measured were: Nigeria
($89.5 billion) Egypt ($70.5 billion), Algeria ($25.7 billion),
Morocco ($25 billion), and South Africa ($24.9 billion);
-- Illicit financial outflows from the entire region outpaced official
development assistance going into the region at a ratio of at least 2
to 1;
-- Illicit financial outflows from Africa grew at an average rate of 11.9
percent per year.
"This report breaks new ground in the fight to end global poverty with analyses and measurements of illicit financial outflows never before undertaken," said Mr. Baker. "As long as these countries are losing massive amounts of money to illicit financial outflows, economic development and prosperity will remain elusive."
"The drivers of illicit financial outflows vary from country to country but overall transparency in the global financial system would curtail all forms of outflows by making it harder for money to disappear once it exits the country," commented Mr. Baker. "When the G20 meets in Canada this June, the problem of illicit financial flows must be at the top of the agenda."
GFI recently launched the G20 Transparency campaign to enable people around the world to take action on the problem of illicit financial flows. To sign the G20 transparency petition, which will be presented at the G20 meetings in June, go to www.G20Transparency.com or visit www.GFIP.org.
Source: Global Financial Integrity
CONTACT: Monique Danziger of Global Financial Integrity,
+1-202-293-0740, mdanziger@gfip.org
Web Site: http://www.gfip.org/
$854 Billion Removed From Africa by Illicit Financial Flows from 1970 to 2008
Hundreds of billions that could have been used for poverty alleviation and economic development lost, finds new report from Global Financial Integrity
WASHINGTON, March 26 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Africa lost $854 billion in illicit financial outflows from 1970 through 2008, according to a new report to be released today from Global Financial Integrity (GFI). Illicit Financial Flows from Africa: Hidden Resource for Development debuts new estimates for volume and patterns of illicit financial outflows from Africa, building upon GFI's ground-breaking 2009 report, Illicit Financial Flows from Developing Countries: 2002-2006, which estimated that developing countries were losing as much as $1 trillion every year in illicit outflows. The new Africa illicit flows report is expected to feature prominently at the 3rd Annual Conference of African finance ministers in Malawi, which is currently underway.
"The amount of money that has been drained out of Africa--hundreds of billions decade after decade--is far in excess of the official development assistance going into African countries," said GFI director Raymond Baker. "Staunching this devastating outflow of much-needed capital is essential to achieving economic development and poverty alleviation goals in these countries."
Examining data for a 39-year range from 1970 to 2008, key report findings include:
-- Total illicit financial outflows from Africa, conservatively
estimated, were approximately $854 billion;
-- Total illicit outflows from Africa may be as high as $1.8 trillion;
-- Sub-Saharan African countries experienced the bulk of illicit
financial outflows with the West and Central African region posting
the largest outflow numbers;
-- The top five countries with the highest outflow measured were: Nigeria
($89.5 billion) Egypt ($70.5 billion), Algeria ($25.7 billion),
Morocco ($25 billion), and South Africa ($24.9 billion);
-- Illicit financial outflows from the entire region outpaced official
development assistance going into the region at a ratio of at least 2
to 1;
-- Illicit financial outflows from Africa grew at an average rate of 11.9
percent per year.
"This report breaks new ground in the fight to end global poverty with analyses and measurements of illicit financial outflows never before undertaken," said Mr. Baker. "As long as these countries are losing massive amounts of money to illicit financial outflows, economic development and prosperity will remain elusive."
"The drivers of illicit financial outflows vary from country to country but overall transparency in the global financial system would curtail all forms of outflows by making it harder for money to disappear once it exits the country," commented Mr. Baker. "When the G20 meets in Canada this June, the problem of illicit financial flows must be at the top of the agenda."
GFI recently launched the G20 Transparency campaign to enable people around the world to take action on the problem of illicit financial flows. To sign the G20 transparency petition, which will be presented at the G20 meetings in June, go to www.G20Transparency.com or visit www.GFIP.org.
Source: Global Financial Integrity
CONTACT: Monique Danziger of Global Financial Integrity,
+1-202-293-0740, mdanziger@gfip.org
Web Site: http://www.gfip.org/
Fidel Castro Commends President Barack Obama on Historic Health Care Reform
Comrade Fidel Castro
The legendary revolutionary Fidel Castro of communist Cuba on Thursday commended President Barack Obama for his historic Health Care Reform law and called it a miracle. But he also seemed to have responded to the Wednesday statement of President Barack Obama on the reluctance of the communist government to accept democratic reforms and "for an end to the repression, for the immediate, unconditional release of all political prisoners in Cuba, and for respect for the basic rights of the Cuban people."
Castro called Obama "a fanatic believer in capitalist imperialism."
"We consider health reform to have been an important battle and a success of his (Obama's) government," Castro was quoted from an essay published in the communist state media.
"It is really incredible that 234 years after the Declaration of Independence ... the government of that country has approved medical attention for the majority of its citizens, something that Cuba was able to do half a century ago," Castro added.
See The Washington Post for the details.
Africa Opens another Chapter in Fight Against Human Trafficking
25 Mar 2010 19:44 Africa/Lagos
Africa opens another chapter in fight against human trafficking
ADDIS ABABA, March 25, 2010/African Press Organization (APO)/ -- Africa has launched a new two-pronged campaign to operationalise its four-year old continental instrument to address the challenges of trafficking in persons, particularly women and children through regional workshops and the launching of the African Union's Initiative against Trafficking (AU.COMMIT) in the Regional Economic Communities (REC”s). The latest initiative, a joint programme of the African Union, ECOWAS, the International Organisation on Migration (IOM) and the UN Office for Drugs and Crime (UNODC), would develop a road map for implementing the Ouagadougou Action Plan agreed by the African Union in 2006.
“The workshop is of critical importance to countries of Africa and to the Regional Economic Communities (REC's) considering that it is the second in a series of planned launches of the COMMIT campaign that has the critical goal of aligning the Ouagadougou Action Plan with those of the various REC's,” ECOWAS President Ambassador Victor Gbeho said in a message to the workshop and launching for West Africa on Wednesday, 24th March 2010 at the ECOWAS Commission in Abuja, Nigeria.
The Ouagadougou Action Plan prioritizes a host of activities for implementation, reflecting the dimensions of the scourge in the areas of prevention, creating awareness, victim protection and assistance, instituting an appropriate legal regime, policy development, law enforcement, cooperation and coordination.
“Exploitation lies at the centre of the concept of trafficking in persons,” Ambassador Gheho said in a message read by Commissioner Adrienne Diop to the 60 participants at the three-day workshop, blaming “certain social and economic realities” for this burgeoning criminal enterprise, particularly the “widespread poverty, unemployment, conflicts, political oppression and insecurity.”
The AU's Commissioner for Social Affairs, Bience Gawanas said the enactment of instruments such as the Trafficking in Persons Protocol and the Ouagadougou Action Plan have served to galvanise member states, resulting in a virtual doubling of the number of states that have enacted anti-trafficking legislation between 2003 and 2008.
These instruments, she further said, have contributed to securing more convictions of traffickers and the rescue of an increasing number of victims and blamed the uncoordinated and slow criminal justice response system as well as the vulnerable economic environment and volatile political situations for the increasing number of trafficked persons. (the complete speech of Commissioner Gawanas is available on the AU website: www.africa-union.org)
In her speech, the UN Special Reporter on Trafficking in Persons, Joy Ezeilo warned that the current global economic crunch could ‘exacerbate the desperation and the quest for human security, survival and development that fuels the trafficking in persons.'
“Trafficking for exploitation is more likely to escalate particularly during this global economic crisis and increasing poverty caused by massive unemployment and the employer's tendency to use cheap labour in order to cut costs and maximize profits,” she told the participants.
In order to address this aspect, the UN official called for training for labour inspectors to enable them to appreciate the interface between migration and trafficking and to enhance the mechanism for the identification of trafficked persons in exploitative and mixed migration situations.
While taking measures to address the root causes, she said “innovative approaches” were needed to combat the huge problem of human trafficking through the synergy of international, regional and national strategies that will address all the dimensions of the scourge.
Furthermore, she urged AU Member States to urgently adopt national work plans, establish an agency or institution specifically with responsibility of coordinating action on human trafficking, and appoint a national reporter to oversee the progress and fast track data collection and ensure proper coordination of anti trafficking efforts. In order to address the cross border dimensions of the challenge and secure the welfare of the victims, she stressed the need to partner with other regions and regional institutions such as the League of Arab States and countries in the Middle East to protect and promote the well-being of trafficking victims.
In opening the workshop, Nigeria's solicitor general said the country had demonstrated its commitment to domesticate relevant international instruments against trafficking in persons by enacting a local legislation that was signed into law in 2003, making the country one of the few in the world with specific national legislations against the activities of human traffickers.
Specifically, he said the establishment of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Traffic in Persons and other Related Matters in August 2003 represents a “strong demonstration of the government's resolve to protect vulnerable citizens, especially women and children to secure the future of our youths.”
In January 2007, the African Union through its Executive Council Decision endorsed the Ouagadougou Action Plan to Combat Trafficking in Human Beings, Especially Women and Children. The decision called upon the Chairperson of the AU Commission in collaboration with IOM and other partners to advocate for the implementation of the Action Plan.
Moreover, it urged the Commission and the IOM to assist Member States with the development and implementation of sound migration policies aimed at addressing this scourge. Under the Ouagadougou plan, the Chairperson of the African Union Commission is required to file periodic reports on the status of implementation of the plan. In addition, it called on the international community to continue providing assistance towards the attainment of the objectives contained in the Ouagadougou Action Plan.
Source: African Union Commission (AUC)
Africa opens another chapter in fight against human trafficking
ADDIS ABABA, March 25, 2010/African Press Organization (APO)/ -- Africa has launched a new two-pronged campaign to operationalise its four-year old continental instrument to address the challenges of trafficking in persons, particularly women and children through regional workshops and the launching of the African Union's Initiative against Trafficking (AU.COMMIT) in the Regional Economic Communities (REC”s). The latest initiative, a joint programme of the African Union, ECOWAS, the International Organisation on Migration (IOM) and the UN Office for Drugs and Crime (UNODC), would develop a road map for implementing the Ouagadougou Action Plan agreed by the African Union in 2006.
“The workshop is of critical importance to countries of Africa and to the Regional Economic Communities (REC's) considering that it is the second in a series of planned launches of the COMMIT campaign that has the critical goal of aligning the Ouagadougou Action Plan with those of the various REC's,” ECOWAS President Ambassador Victor Gbeho said in a message to the workshop and launching for West Africa on Wednesday, 24th March 2010 at the ECOWAS Commission in Abuja, Nigeria.
The Ouagadougou Action Plan prioritizes a host of activities for implementation, reflecting the dimensions of the scourge in the areas of prevention, creating awareness, victim protection and assistance, instituting an appropriate legal regime, policy development, law enforcement, cooperation and coordination.
“Exploitation lies at the centre of the concept of trafficking in persons,” Ambassador Gheho said in a message read by Commissioner Adrienne Diop to the 60 participants at the three-day workshop, blaming “certain social and economic realities” for this burgeoning criminal enterprise, particularly the “widespread poverty, unemployment, conflicts, political oppression and insecurity.”
The AU's Commissioner for Social Affairs, Bience Gawanas said the enactment of instruments such as the Trafficking in Persons Protocol and the Ouagadougou Action Plan have served to galvanise member states, resulting in a virtual doubling of the number of states that have enacted anti-trafficking legislation between 2003 and 2008.
These instruments, she further said, have contributed to securing more convictions of traffickers and the rescue of an increasing number of victims and blamed the uncoordinated and slow criminal justice response system as well as the vulnerable economic environment and volatile political situations for the increasing number of trafficked persons. (the complete speech of Commissioner Gawanas is available on the AU website: www.africa-union.org)
In her speech, the UN Special Reporter on Trafficking in Persons, Joy Ezeilo warned that the current global economic crunch could ‘exacerbate the desperation and the quest for human security, survival and development that fuels the trafficking in persons.'
“Trafficking for exploitation is more likely to escalate particularly during this global economic crisis and increasing poverty caused by massive unemployment and the employer's tendency to use cheap labour in order to cut costs and maximize profits,” she told the participants.
In order to address this aspect, the UN official called for training for labour inspectors to enable them to appreciate the interface between migration and trafficking and to enhance the mechanism for the identification of trafficked persons in exploitative and mixed migration situations.
While taking measures to address the root causes, she said “innovative approaches” were needed to combat the huge problem of human trafficking through the synergy of international, regional and national strategies that will address all the dimensions of the scourge.
Furthermore, she urged AU Member States to urgently adopt national work plans, establish an agency or institution specifically with responsibility of coordinating action on human trafficking, and appoint a national reporter to oversee the progress and fast track data collection and ensure proper coordination of anti trafficking efforts. In order to address the cross border dimensions of the challenge and secure the welfare of the victims, she stressed the need to partner with other regions and regional institutions such as the League of Arab States and countries in the Middle East to protect and promote the well-being of trafficking victims.
In opening the workshop, Nigeria's solicitor general said the country had demonstrated its commitment to domesticate relevant international instruments against trafficking in persons by enacting a local legislation that was signed into law in 2003, making the country one of the few in the world with specific national legislations against the activities of human traffickers.
Specifically, he said the establishment of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Traffic in Persons and other Related Matters in August 2003 represents a “strong demonstration of the government's resolve to protect vulnerable citizens, especially women and children to secure the future of our youths.”
In January 2007, the African Union through its Executive Council Decision endorsed the Ouagadougou Action Plan to Combat Trafficking in Human Beings, Especially Women and Children. The decision called upon the Chairperson of the AU Commission in collaboration with IOM and other partners to advocate for the implementation of the Action Plan.
Moreover, it urged the Commission and the IOM to assist Member States with the development and implementation of sound migration policies aimed at addressing this scourge. Under the Ouagadougou plan, the Chairperson of the African Union Commission is required to file periodic reports on the status of implementation of the plan. In addition, it called on the international community to continue providing assistance towards the attainment of the objectives contained in the Ouagadougou Action Plan.
Source: African Union Commission (AUC)
| Releases displayed in Africa/Lagos time | |
| 25 Mar 2010 | |
| 19:44 | Africa opens another chapter in fight against human trafficking |
| 17:50 | EODT Appoints New Vice President of Security Services  |
| 13:30 | New Data Demonstrate SMARTube Technology May Provide Basis for Creation of an Index to Estimate the Rate of Spread of HIV in High-Risk Populations |
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