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Citigroup Faith-Based Shareholders Call on US Government to Vote Its Shares in Favor of Derivatives Reform April 17th, 2010
Faith-based institutional investors are urging the Obama Administration to send the same message to Wall Street that it is sending to Congress on financial reform. The United States government controls 27 percent of outstanding Citigroup shares, and faith-based shareholders say the US should support their Resolution urging the company to provide more disclosure about its derivatives trading. Voting will take place Tuesday morning at the Citigroup Annual Meeting in New York. The groups, which include the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, are members of the 300-member Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR).
Rev. Seamus Finn, OMI, actively engaged in pressing financial institutions for greater transparency and accountability and an ICCR board member, said, “The U.S. government controls over a quarter of outstanding Citigroup shares today. It has an extraordinary opportunity here to send a clear message to Wall Street that more derivatives disclosure is vital. Even more to the point, the Treasury Department really has no choice other than to support our resolution since a failure to do so would directly undercut its campaign for critical financial reform.”
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Mastermind Behind Murder of Sr. Dorothy Stang Sentenced to 30 Years in Prison. April 16th, 2010
A jury in the Brazilian city of Belém has sentenced one of the two men believed to have ordered the murder of American-born nun, Sr. Dorothy Stang, SND, to 30 years in prison. The rancher, Vitalmiro Bastos de Moura, was convicted of ordering the 2005 murder of Sister Dorothy who was originally from Dayton, Ohio. She was a longtime organizer of rural settlers and the poor in their efforts to protect their land from seizures by cattle ranchers and timber merchants.
The Sisters of Notre Dame in Belem, Brazil were following this trial of Mr. Moura – his third. They sent a letter to their fellow Sisters in the US telling of the successful conviction, unprecedented in Brazil.
The letter is available here… (Download PDF)
Recent Developments at the United Nations April 14th, 2010
Daniel LeBlanc, OMI – Oblate representative at the United Nations – shares about recent meetings at the UN. His report focuses on:
- Two High Level Meetings on the Global Financial Crisis
- Summit on MDGs + 10 Review
- Extreme Poverty: An Affront to Human Rights
Read the Report (Download PDF)
World Bank Approves $3 Billion Loan for Controversial Coal Plant in South Africa April 12th, 2010
On April 8th 2010, the World Bank approved a controversial $ 3 billion loan for a coal-fired power station to ESKOM, the South Africa-based, state owned electricity utility, despite serious concerns from environmental organizations and the faith community. United States, Britain and Norway, Italy and the Netherlands abstained from voting for the coal loan due to unresolved environmental concerns and economic impacts on local communities.
More than 200 organizations across the world have endorsed a critique of the loan saying it will be a burden to poor people who will likely see their household bills increase, while international extractive corporations will continue to receive subsidized energy due to special pricing agreements with Eskom
Eskom is the world’s fourth-largest power company and Africa’s largest carbon emitter, and accounts for 40% of South Africa’s total emissions. The loan raised serious environmental concerns such as pollution and greenhouse gas emissions, and raised questions about the World Bank’s commitment to renewable energy sources.
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Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid Promises New Immigration Bill in 2010 April 12th, 2010
Congress is back to work in Washington D.C. after the Easter recess, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has promised new legislation on immigration reform in 2010. Senator Reid, facing a tough re-election campaign, appeared elated by the crowd of thousands rallying for immigration reform in downtown Las Vegas last Saturday, and said he would start work on a new immigration bill when lawmakers returned from the Easter recess. “We are going to pass comprehensive immigration reform,” Reid told the crowd. “We need to do this this year. We can’t let excuses like a Supreme Court nomination get in the way.” Reid promised the legislation would include provisions to secure the north and south borders, revisions to a guest worker program, and provisions to deal with illegal immigrants already in the country.” As momentum to introduce a senate version immigration reform overhaul continues, it is important to know where your Senator and Representative stand on Immigration Reform….
- Find out where your Senator stands on Comprehensive Immigration Reform: View your Senator’s scorecard now.
- Find out where your Representative stands on Comprehensive Immigration Reform: View your House of Representative score card now.
