For the first time, a company in the United States has been convicted of having committed gross human rights violations outside the country. One of the world’s largest banana producers, Chiquita Brands International, was found guilty in June of having financed the paramilitary group AUC (Autodefensas Unidas de Colombia), or the United Self-Defense Forces. The banana giant Chiquita will probably appeal the verdict, which holds the company responsible for the murder of eight people in Colombia. The company has been ordered to pay restitution to the bereaved. Photo: Danilo Gomez / AFP And so the company is also responsible for eight murders that AUC committed, according to the verdict from a federal court in Florida, USA. Chiquita must pay the families of the eight killed a total of NOK 367 million in compensation. – We believe Chiquita played an important role in the rise of paramilitary groups in regions with banana production in Colombia, says aid lawyer Marco Simons of the human rights organization EarthRights on the phone from the US. Lawyer Marco Simons of EarthRights international has assisted survivors for 17 years in the historic case against the banana producer Chiquita. Image type Photo: Private The payments took place between 1997 and 2004. AUC was considered a terrorist organization by the United States. – They played an important role by helping and financing these groups, says Simons, who has assisted the family of one of the eight killed for 17 years. news has contacted Chiquita Brands International without receiving any response. It is expected that the company will appeal the verdict in the coming months. Chiquita is one of the world’s largest banana producers with headquarters in the United States. The verdict was handed down in a civil court in Florida because companies cannot be punished for crimes in Colombia. Photo: John Fitzhugh / Ap Very violent The right-wing paramilitary group AUC was known for brutal murders, torture and massacres. They are said to have received support from the Colombian army to fight against the same enemy: left-wing guerrillas. But the AUC also allegedly went after union leaders, village leaders and ordinary people, then stole their properties. AUC soldiers train in the jungles of Colombia in 2002. The right-wing paramilitary group was fighting the left-wing guerrilla group FARC, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia. The FARC signed a peace agreement with the state in 2016, but many guerrillas refused to lay down their arms. Photo: Julian LINEROS-CROMOS / AFP The bodies were left in public places. Thousands of families were internally displaced. The group also engaged in drug crime. – The evidence presented in the trial not only shows that Chiquita financed AUC. There is also evidence that Chiquita’s port areas in Colombia were, on at least two occasions, used to smuggle arms for the paramilitaries. And that Chiquita’s cargo ship was used to smuggle drugs, says aid lawyer Simons. – Witnesses told of a close collaboration between Chiquita’s security personnel and the paramilitaries, he says further. Soldiers from the paramilitary group AUC, here with the Catholic Our Lady of Guadalupe in the background. The AUC was notorious for violent killings, torture and massacres. Photo: LUIS BENAVIDES / Ap – This is simply just the beginning of the possible lawsuits that Chiquita is facing, says the lawyer, who is assisting around 400 survivors who have sued Chiquita. America’s largest banana importer, Chiquita Brands International, has been accused for years of financing Colombian death squads that killed thousands of people. Photo: Amy Sancetta / AP Confirmed million dollar transfers Chiquita pulled out of Colombia after the relationship with AUC became known in 2004, and has since bought bananas from the country through other exporters, says Marcos. The AUC was also disbanded after a peace agreement with the authorities. The soldiers surrendered their weapons in exchange for amnesty, although several continued in other criminal groups later. More than 2,000 AUC soldiers handed in their weapons after a peace agreement was signed with the Colombian authorities in December 2005. Photo: LUIS BENAVIDES / Ap In 2007, the fruit giant confirmed that it had paid around NOK 18 million to the AUC. The admission came in connection with the company agreeing to a fine of 25 million dollars, for having broken US law through financial links with a terrorist-defined group. Chiquitas claimed they paid the militia so that it would not attack the company’s operations and employees. – Our client was extremely satisfied with this verdict. Other survivors have said they are glad Chiquita’s role is finally being recognized and that they are finally being held accountable. But there is still a long way to go, says Simons. He does not want to tell what his clients have experienced because it could make everyday life difficult for the families in Colombia. The former head of the paramilitary AUC, Salvatore Mancuso (third from left) was extradited from the United States to Colombia in February this year. He had served 16 years in prison in the United States and promised this year to tell Colombian police about the relationships he had with politicians and businessmen in Colombia. Photo: Colombian Interpol / AFP Killed as pressure for sales Chiquita is one of the world’s largest banana producers with headquarters in the USA. When the verdict was handed down on 10 June, several survivors were present. – I feel joy. We have waited so long and suddenly we have won. I had almost given up hope, but God helped us, the widow of one of the victims told CNN. Her husband was killed by the AUC in 2003, which forced the family to sell their banana farm at below market price. 4,500 more victims Marco Simons of EarthRights International hopes the case and the verdict will lead to new cases and new sentences. He and his theme have over 4,500 complaints to choose from. – This is a ground-breaking judgment that can have major repercussions because it shows that companies that directly or indirectly violate human rights in other countries can be punished for it, says Ida Thomassen, deputy leader of Framtiden i våre hands. Ida Thomassen from Framtiden in our hands believes that the Chiquita judgment should be a strong warning to companies that are established in areas with a high risk of human rights violations. Photo: Knut Neerland – It should have been a matter of course, but unfortunately it is not. She believes the verdict should be a strong warning to companies that operate in conflict areas with a high risk of human rights violations. – The verdict also shows that it is possible for poor families to stand up to even the biggest and most powerful companies, if they get access to legal aid, she says. Chiquita is sold in Norway Framtiden i Våre Hender believes that Norwegian food chains, which buy in Chiquita bananas, must ally with chains in Scandinavia and send a joint protest to Chiquita against their plans to appeal the case. – According to the Transparency Act, Norwegian companies have a duty to prevent human rights violations in their supply chain and to ensure or cooperate with recovery and compensation for the victims, says Ida Thomassen. The AUC was considered a terrorist group by the United States. Nevertheless, the American company Chiquita paid millions to the paramilitary group between 1997 and 2004. Here, an AUC soldier hands in his weapon in 2004. Photo: Luis Benavides / Ap news has been in contact with the large Norwegian grocery chains. BAMA, which imports the fruit sold in Norgesgruppen’s stores such as Kiwi, MENY and Spar, and Reitan Retail’s store Rema 1000, state that they only buy bananas through Dole. The grocery player Coop buys bananas from the companies Fyffes and Del Monte. Bunnpris, on the other hand, sells Chiquita bananas in its stores, which it buys through its supplier Norfresh Trading AS. – We take the work with ethical trade and human rights very seriously, writes Monica Eik-Nes, category manager for fruit and vegetables at Bunnpris to news. – When it comes to fruit and vegetables, for the past 15 years we have traded goods via Norfresh Trading AS, and during this period they have not registered any breach of ethical guidelines at this banana producer, she writes further. A worker on one of Chiquita’s banana plantations in Apartado in the province of Antioquia in Colombia. Photo: Danilo Gomez / AFP Bunnpris, or IK Lykke Drift AS, is covered by the Transparency Act, and requires suppliers to report on their social responsibility, says Eik-Nes. – In light of the judgment from Florida, we are going together with our supplier, Norfresh Trading AS, through which measures the banana producer has implemented since this period. – Norfresh Trading AS is also covered by the Transparency Act and it is important that our suppliers and sub-suppliers operate in accordance with standards for human rights and ethical trade. Published 11.08.2024, at 13.45 Updated 11.08.2024, at 13.57
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Banana giant Chiquita sentenced for financing paramilitary group in Colombia – news Urix – Foreign news and documentaries
