Beware of the Economic Hitmen! Mining, logging & LNG.
By CHRISTOPHER MORRALL
I’m a round the world traveller from England and just completed the Kokoda trail in a speedy 5 days during which time I had the pleasure of chatting to and staying with locals in Kokoda and Gona. Not being part of any tour group it allowed me plenty of time to speak openly and honestly about PNG and its history with the local people who let my friend and i stay in their homes. On returning to Sogeri i stumbled across your newspaper and letters section and felt duty bound to respond.
With some knowledge of the way western corporations and mining companies act and behave, I thought i might add some points of warning to your readers and leaders in PNG. One thing your leaders and government should be aware of is the objective of any western mining or oil company in PNG is for profit only, they will come smiling and shake hands with pretty photo opportunities and put on great banquets but once the dust has settled they will forget the plight of your country to thoughts of profit; they will bleed your country dry and take as much money out of the country with tax loopholes to boot.
These corporations have no interest in serving the local populace and are only interested in their bottom line profit. Whilst i have been in PNG, less than 2 weeks so far - i have been reading about the damage to local indigenous tribes through logging and mining and the proposed LNG drilling, this is only the start – and if you allow this to happen the damage and impact will be permanent and irreversible – much like other developing parts of the world now that suffered the same fate that looks likely to occur in PNG.
I include below an excerpt from a self confessed ‘Economic Hit Man’ John Perkins whose job in the 1970’s was to do exactly what companies are pretending to do in PNG and other emerging economies now... say they will help improve your infrastructure and standard of living whilst the ulterior motive is to change your millennia old subsistence lifestyle and making you reliant and subservient to western, mostly American ways, permanently! The aim will be to plunge your country into debt and reliance via institutions such as the IMF and World Bank.
When you default there will be a resource grab and you will be reliant on the western structure for evermore. You need only ask a plethora of South American countries for starters such as Ecuador, Panama and Nicaragua etc or other SE Asian countries such as Indonesia who have suffered this ill fate time and time again. History always repeats itself and it appears that PNG is lined up to be the next domino to fall in this process.
Heed the warnings of John Perkins who in his book ‘Confessions of an Economic Hitman’ explained the process of how the IMF and other US dominated institutions exerted its influence on developing economies, working at an International Consulting firm, the precurser to the modern day corporate executive from the likes of Exxon said his job “was to convince countries that are strategically important to the US. – From Indonesia to Panama – to accept enormous loans for infrastructure development and to make sure that the lucrative projects were contracted to U.S. corporations. Saddled with huge debts, these countries came under the control of the United States government, World Bank and other US dominated agencies...”
I urge the readers to encourage your Prime Minister and leaders to read this article and then read his book, it is a useful lesson from a man who has been involved with and taken part in the process that is now well and truly taking place in PNG - he has seen the corporations of the west for what they are, vultures out to subdue the weak nations to its beck and call. There are other ways to grow a country such as PNG, foreign corporations can be invited to seek out mineral deposits but the business can go to PNG run companies, much like in Vietnam where any business has to be 51% Vietnamese owned.
More profits for your country can be gained this way and the money can be kept within PNG to grow the infrastructure via PNG based companies – If its mining your country decides is necessary for growth, then do it the right way- independent of foreign meddling – PNG can seek professional outside help such as engineers and mining contractors, inviting the brightest talent to probe for the resources for the benefit of PNG in a sustainable and stable growth oriented fashion. This is wiser than simply handing over the whole process to these ‘vultures’ that have no true interest in your country, whilst they may pretend to. Any interest they have in preserving the environment is merely misinformation to fulfil their PR gambit required by all major corporations these days.
The world is looking on you, the last frontier. Please preserve your beautiful country, PNG truly is ‘the garden of Eden’ and it is your generation that need to act to preserve this. Tell your leaders the truth and let’s look forward to PNG as a bastion to the world of how a country can truly grow independently whilst maintaining its rich traditions and culture. This is possible – show the world that this can be done!
Download John Perkins - Confessions of an Economic Hitman
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| John Perkins |
With some knowledge of the way western corporations and mining companies act and behave, I thought i might add some points of warning to your readers and leaders in PNG. One thing your leaders and government should be aware of is the objective of any western mining or oil company in PNG is for profit only, they will come smiling and shake hands with pretty photo opportunities and put on great banquets but once the dust has settled they will forget the plight of your country to thoughts of profit; they will bleed your country dry and take as much money out of the country with tax loopholes to boot.
These corporations have no interest in serving the local populace and are only interested in their bottom line profit. Whilst i have been in PNG, less than 2 weeks so far - i have been reading about the damage to local indigenous tribes through logging and mining and the proposed LNG drilling, this is only the start – and if you allow this to happen the damage and impact will be permanent and irreversible – much like other developing parts of the world now that suffered the same fate that looks likely to occur in PNG.
I include below an excerpt from a self confessed ‘Economic Hit Man’ John Perkins whose job in the 1970’s was to do exactly what companies are pretending to do in PNG and other emerging economies now... say they will help improve your infrastructure and standard of living whilst the ulterior motive is to change your millennia old subsistence lifestyle and making you reliant and subservient to western, mostly American ways, permanently! The aim will be to plunge your country into debt and reliance via institutions such as the IMF and World Bank.
When you default there will be a resource grab and you will be reliant on the western structure for evermore. You need only ask a plethora of South American countries for starters such as Ecuador, Panama and Nicaragua etc or other SE Asian countries such as Indonesia who have suffered this ill fate time and time again. History always repeats itself and it appears that PNG is lined up to be the next domino to fall in this process.
Heed the warnings of John Perkins who in his book ‘Confessions of an Economic Hitman’ explained the process of how the IMF and other US dominated institutions exerted its influence on developing economies, working at an International Consulting firm, the precurser to the modern day corporate executive from the likes of Exxon said his job “was to convince countries that are strategically important to the US. – From Indonesia to Panama – to accept enormous loans for infrastructure development and to make sure that the lucrative projects were contracted to U.S. corporations. Saddled with huge debts, these countries came under the control of the United States government, World Bank and other US dominated agencies...”
I urge the readers to encourage your Prime Minister and leaders to read this article and then read his book, it is a useful lesson from a man who has been involved with and taken part in the process that is now well and truly taking place in PNG - he has seen the corporations of the west for what they are, vultures out to subdue the weak nations to its beck and call. There are other ways to grow a country such as PNG, foreign corporations can be invited to seek out mineral deposits but the business can go to PNG run companies, much like in Vietnam where any business has to be 51% Vietnamese owned.
More profits for your country can be gained this way and the money can be kept within PNG to grow the infrastructure via PNG based companies – If its mining your country decides is necessary for growth, then do it the right way- independent of foreign meddling – PNG can seek professional outside help such as engineers and mining contractors, inviting the brightest talent to probe for the resources for the benefit of PNG in a sustainable and stable growth oriented fashion. This is wiser than simply handing over the whole process to these ‘vultures’ that have no true interest in your country, whilst they may pretend to. Any interest they have in preserving the environment is merely misinformation to fulfil their PR gambit required by all major corporations these days.
The world is looking on you, the last frontier. Please preserve your beautiful country, PNG truly is ‘the garden of Eden’ and it is your generation that need to act to preserve this. Tell your leaders the truth and let’s look forward to PNG as a bastion to the world of how a country can truly grow independently whilst maintaining its rich traditions and culture. This is possible – show the world that this can be done!
Download John Perkins - Confessions of an Economic Hitman
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