IHC Caland on black list of Burma a

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IHC Caland on black list of Burma activist in USA

The United States have an active group of opposers of business contacts
with Burma. IHC Caland, that this week signed a deal with Burma, has been
on the black list for two months.

Our correspondent, Lucas Ligtenberg
New York, 15 July. IHC Caland, building a floating oil tank of the coast of
Burma, has for two months been on the black list of companies doing
business with Burma. The investments Responsibility Research Centre (IRRC)
and independent informationservice in Washington, has in a newsletter
publicized that IHC had an agent in Burma.
In the US there is a large group of activists concentrating against
companies doing business in Burma.  Because of this, the state of
Massachusetts for example boycotts companies doing business in Burma. Also
cities such as Berkeley in California and Madison in Wisconsin are not
doing business with any of those companies.
The boycott by Massachusettes has lead to a confrontation with the European
Commission, reports our correspondent from Brussels. The European
Commission has protested against the Massachusetts Burma law at the Court
of Justice in Massachusetts, supporting a court case against the boycott by
the American export companies united in the National Foreign Trade Council.
The European Commission thinks that the boycott is in conflict with the
American constitution. The boycott would also hamper the co-operation
between the EU and the USA when compared with other countries. From the
letter (from the EC to ther court, BCN) it appears that the Commission has
earlier, in the context of the World Trade Organisation WTO protested
against the stance of Massachusetts.
IHC Caland has daughtercompany  with the name Imodco in California. But as
long as this company is not trying to compete with other businesses in
Massachusetts or any other place that had a Burme Selectiver Purchasing
law, it will not be damaged in the US,. "It is however not just states and
cities in the USA that examine these companies, also Australia has
joined,:" says Simon Billeness of Franklin Research & Management Fund in
Boston, a fund that is also politically active. Activists in the US are
mostly targeting American companies, even though Dutch beerbrewer Heinenken
discouverd two years ago that its sales in the US could be suffering from
its presence in Burma. One of the active lobby groups was the Franklin
Research & Management Fund. It ws active against companies doing business
with Burma and in part because of this campaigning the oilcompany Amoco
withdrew from Burma. The research reports (of FRMF, BCN) can influence
shareholders and stocktraders. Also they can exert direct pressure through
the shareholder meetings. These activities result sometimes in some
shareholder meeting in small riots and chaod en often negative publicity
for the company. A proposal that will get ten percent of the shareholders
votes on a shareholder meeting is seen as very embarrassing for the
company. Companies that think they will have such a vote, choose often to
negotiate outside of the shareholder meeting.

Threer more paragraphs in the article is on Nike, Vietnam and Indonesia.
Omitted by BCN


Type Bits/KeyID    Date       User ID
pub  2048/F8534901 1997/05/17 Gijs Hillenius <gijsh@xxxxxxxxx>

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