Go "Roger" Yourselves, CAFCA RETARDs

Every year, the Christchurch based Campaign Against the Foreign Control of Aotearoa issues their “Roger” award for the “worst transnational corporation operating in NZ”.

This years nominees are:
Telecom
Westpac
BNZ
Toll (took over Tranz Rail in 2004)
Comalco
Guardian Healthcare (private aged care rest homes and hospitals)
Mercke Sharp and Dohme
British American Tobacco

“In reaching their decision a team of eminent judges will assess the negative impact of the finalists in each or all of the following categories:

Economic Dominance – monopoly, profiteering, tax dodging, cultural imperialism.
People – unemployment, impact on tangata whenua, impact on women, impact on children, abuse of workers/conditions, health and safety of workers and the public, cultural imperialism.
Environment – environmental damage, abuse of animals.
Political interference – cultural imperialism, running an ideological crusade.”

Judges for the 2005 Roger Award are

John Minto: Former Halt All Racist Tours leader, socialist and leading light in Global Peace and Justice Auckland.

Laila Harre: Veteran of the 1987 coffee picking brigade to Nicaragua, former Alliance Party Cabinet Minister and current president of the Socialist Party of Aotearoa dominated, National Distribution Union

Maire Leadbeater: Sister of Keith Locke, ’nuff said.

Mary-Ellen O’Connor: Lecturer, unionist and Alliance Party activist.

CAFCA is descended from the old Christchurch branch of the Progressive Youth Movement. Its secretary is the amiable old “Maoist”, Murray Horton, once the leader of the local PYM.

CAFCA draws members and supporters from the Socialist Workers Organisation, Socialist Party of Aotearoa, Alliance Party, Labour Party, Organisation for Marxist Unity and wide variety of protest groups.

However its guiding principle is the old Stalinist/Maoist dictum “socialism in one country”. This means that socialism should be built locally with as little foreign influence or investment as possible. Albania under Enver Hoxha was good example of CAFCA’s philosophy in practice.

CAFCA’s self imposed mission is to make “foreign investment in NZ as difficult as possible”.

I’d like to nominate CAFCA for the 2005 RETARD Award: Reds Endeavouring To Arrest Real Development. Any seconders?