Major Banks Supporting Corrupt Regimes

clipped from us.oneworld.net As G20 finance ministers meet in London to discuss how to rescue the global financial system and prevent the next disaster, a new report by anti-corruption NGO Global Witness shows how some of the world's biggest banks have been dealing with some of the world's most corrupt regimes. By doing so they have facilitated corruption and looting of natural resource revenues, denying some of the world's poorest people a chance to escape poverty. "The same lax regulation that created the credit crunch has let some of the world's biggest banks facilitate the looting of natural resource wealth from poor countries," said Gavin Hayman, Global Witness Campaigns Director. "If resources like oil, gas and minerals are to truly help lift Africa and other poor regions out of poverty, then governments must take responsibility to stop banks doing business with corrupt dictators and their families."

Barclays helped oil-rich Equatorial Guinea long after clear evidence emerged ruling family were looting state oil revenues.

Hong Kong bank helped Republic of Congo ruling family spend hundreds of thousands of dollars in oil revenues on designer shopping sprees.

Citibank facilitated the funding of two vicious civil wars in Sierra Leone and Liberia by enabling the warlord Charles Taylor, now on trial for war crimes in the Hague, to loot timber revenues.

Deutsche Bank assisted the late president Niyazov of Turkmenistan, a notorious human rights abuser, to keep billions of dollars of state gas revenues under his personal control and off the national budget.

Dozens of British, European and Chinese banks have ignored laws and used loopholes to aid criminal and atrocious acts of human rights violations, money-laundering and theft.

We speak out against crimes against the poor while the rich are aided by banks to carry out their crimes. Disgusting.