November 19, 2004
-
WTF?!?
InternationalMore old news. This one is from an October 16th guardian article which reports that Iraq is paying war reparations to commercial corporations.
Ok, so the country is broke, their leader and military have been captured/defeated/dispersed, American tax payers are covering reconstruction fees, but they’re being asked to pay reparation like:
- Halliburton ($18m)
- Bechtel ($7m)
- Mobil ($2.3m)
- Shell ($1.6m)
- Nestlé ($2.6m)
- Pepsi ($3.8m)
- Philip Morris ($1.3m)
- Sheraton ($11m)
- Kentucky Fried Chicken ($321,000)
- Toys R Us ($189,449)
There are some reparations that do make sense, like those to Kuwaitis who were injured or lost loved ones during the first gulf war, but these damages to the corporations were because businesses “lost profits” or experienced a “decline in business” because of the invasion/occupation of Kuwait.
Oh, they’ve been paying various countries lots of reparations as well. Check the article.
Yep. The Iraqi people, oppressed by their own rulers and external sanctions are now being asked to pay Philip Morris $1.3 million dollars for loss of profits in the first gulf war.
How is this right?
