[OccupyComms] Fwd: [Assemblies] London - Corporations Statement 10th March 2012

[Mark Barrett]

*The Corporations Group's following Statement reached consensus at the
London General Assembly on 10th March 2012*
**
[please forward to assemblies and occupations worldwide]

We live in a world where some people and corporations have more power and
influence than entire nations. According to Forbes 500 magazine, 64% of the
top 175 economic entities in 2011 were corporations. With its relentless
pursuit of profit at all cost, the present corporate system fits the
definition of a psychopath, driving the rapid destruction of our society
and the natural environment.

Two of the worst corporate criminals, Xstrata and Glencore, are attempting
to merge into one $90 billion commodities juggernaut. These companies have
been accused of grossly unethical and illegal activities, such as
complicity in the deaths of activists and indigenous peoples protesting
against their mines, aggravated corruption and the theft of billions of
dollars in revenue from Zambia and the Democratic Republic of Congo etc.
This “soiled wedding” must be stopped.

Occupy London Corporations Working Group is embarking on a full-scale
offensive to bring these corporations to justice and end the increasing
centralisation and capitalisation of multi-national corporate power. We
call on all protesters and occupations around the world who have
information or wish to be involved in this campaign to contact us at
corporationswg at gmail.com

Upon request we are happy to maintain confidentiality over any material
sent to us (alternative contact details can be set up once communicating
with the above email address)

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Note: the above statement was endorsed by the London General Assembly on
March 10th 2012 http://occupylsx.org/?cat=21 and is their second GA
endorsed statement. Their first statement follows:
 *Corporations Statement*

*This initial statement of Occupy London’s Corporations Working Group
reached consensus at the General Assembly by St Paul’s Cathedral on 25th
November 2011.*
 Of the world’s 100 largest economic entities in 2000, 51 were corporations
and 49 were countries. [1]

With its relentless pursuit of profit at all cost, the present corporate
system fits the definition of a psychopath, driving the rapid destruction
of our society and the natural environment. [2] This is done only to
benefit a small minority and not the needs of the 99 per cent. The way
corporations and governments are intertwined fundamentally undermines
democracy. Corporations are rarely transparent or accountable to the
people. This corporate system is broken and we call on the people to
reclaim their power and bring about a radical and immediate change.

We propose these following points as first steps towards this:

Globally, corporations deprive the public purse of hundreds of billions of
pounds each year, leaving insufficient funds to provide people with fair
living standards. *We must abolish tax havens and complex tax avoidance
schemes, and ensure corporations pay tax that accurately reflects their
real profits.*

Corporate lobbying subverts our democracy. Last year corporations spent £2
billion influencing the British government. We believe exploitative
corporate lobbying has no place in a democratic society. *Legislation to
ensure full and public transparency of all corporate lobbying activities
must be put in place. This should be overseen by a credible and independent
body, directly accountable to the people.*

The existing system of corporate sanctions allows executives and board
members to avoid individual responsibility for the consequences of their
actions and inactions. Those directly involved in the decision-making
process must be held personally liable for their role in the misdeeds of
their corporations and duly charged for all criminal behaviour.

A welcome development at Occupy London is that many people working within
these corporations have communicated support for our concerns. We encourage
anyone to come forward and offer their opinions, or any relevant
information, either openly or confidentially, to add to this discussion.

We recognise that corporate employees may feel like they do not have the
power alone to create change, but by welcoming them into talks with Occupy
London and working together, we can create a socially responsible and
sustainable economic system.

Notes
[1] Sales: Fortune, July 31, 2000. GDP: World Bank, World Development
Report 2000
[2] http://www.thecorporation.com/index.cfm?page_id=47,
http://www.commondreams.org/views04/0218-01.htm

http://occupyLSX.org/?page_id=2843

 -------------------
El texto esta en ingles, encuentras la traduccion en espanhol debajo:

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>>>>>>>>
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