This is the very first post I have ever started here on AR.

It probably belongs elsewhere (political forum - Walter's ...God forbid)

But for those of you who may have shares in this giant insurance company read on - and hopefully - siek 'im - which is how we sic a dog onto a thief here in Africa.

Apologies I just cut and pasted it - computer challenged!

Zim Outrage as top SA firm admits funding state run newspapers
http://www.swradioafrica.com

By Alex Bell
11 November 2009

Yet another corporation is coming under fire for its direct involvement with
the Robert Mugabe regime, after South African insurance giant Old Mutual
admitted it is a major shareholder in Zimpapers.

Old Mutual this week confirmed its business interest in the publishing group
which produces, among others, the state's mouthpiece Herald newspaper. South
African refugee rights group, People Against Suffering, Suppression,
Oppression and Poverty (PASSOP) explained that Old Mutual is the second
largest shareholder in Zimpapers, essentially using insurance policy holders'
money to prop up Mugabe's vehicles of propaganda and hate speech.

PASSOP's Braam Hanekom, a Zimbabwean born activist, told SW Radio Africa on
Wednesday that Old Mutual was essentially 'arming' the state media, arguing
"this is politically equivalent to putting bullets into the guns that kill
opposition voices in Zimbabwe." Hanekom has demanded that Old Mutual
publicly withdraw its stake in Zimpapers, saying the group's refusal to do
so will point towards a business relationship based purely on corruption.

"Old Mutual is not making money out of selling newspapers in Zimbabwe, not
so much that they can't, on moral grounds, withdraw their stake," Hanekom
said. "There's no other reason to protect its stake unless there is
corruption."

PASSOP started an online petition on Tuesday night, which calls for Old
Mutual to withdraw its Zimpapers investment and publicly apologise. The
petition is set to be delivered to Old Mutual management within the next
seven days. Hanekom warned on Wednesday that the group will start protest
campaigns against Old Mutual if their calls and the petition are ignored.

"Companies cannot continue to plead ignorance about their business
relationships, when they know these relationships are not morally
supported," Hanekom said.

The controversy is reminiscent of the Nestlé saga that erupted last month,
after it emerged that the food giant was buying milk from a dairy farm,
seized during the land 'reform' programme and owned by Grace Mugabe. Scores
of people and organisations called for a boycott of Nestlé products, if the
company did not stop buying milk from the Mugabe's Gushungo Dairy Estate.
The company eventually severed its commercial ties with the Mugabes, amid
intense pressure from concerned individuals and rights groups. Critics had
lashed out at the food group over its disregard for basic corporate
responsibility, saying multinational support of the Mugabes would ensure
their continued corrupt practices.


Old Mutual's defence of Zimbabwe Herald investment
http://www.therichmarksentinel.com

Michael Trapido
Wednesday, November 11, 2009

" Old Mutual says its investments are dictated by profit and not political
considerations.

The insurance giant was reacting to a call to shed its investment in the
Zimbabwean company that prints the Mugabe government's propaganda
mouthpiece, the Herald newspaper.

"Our investments are made for the benefit of our policyholders, meant to
meet needs and expectations in terms of return and not contingent upon
political consideration," OM Zimbabwe group chief executive Luke Ngwerume
said in a statement on Wednesday."(sapa)

Anyone who has been living in Southern Africa for more than an hour would be
aware of the atrocities that have been committed by the Zanu-PF and
President Robert Mugabe in Zimbabwe in order to cling to power.

One of the most important cogs in the machinery that they employ in order to
achieve this is the Mugabe mouthpiece the Herald.

It ensures that only the information and disinformation he wants circulated
goes out to the people through the major newspaper of that country.

Moreover the government censor, to a large degree, anyone who dares to take
up an anti-government position.

This is not rocket science and everyone knows it.

Accordingly Old Mutual are acutely aware that this particular investment of
theirs is occasioning untold hardship on the people of that country.

Personally I was shocked to hear that one of our major corporates was
involved with a Mugabe propaganda machine.

It is totally unacceptable.

What is worse is that they try to justify the indefensible by saying that
they have a duty to their shareholders to ensure that they retain profitable
assets and anyway it's an investment dictated by money not politics.

What a load of crap.

There are many corporate monsters that have tried singing the exact same
song before and their conduct was equally disgusting. Let's look at one
example.

Zyklon-B was a commercial rodenticide and pesticide in common use before
World War II.2 The active lethal ingredient in the product is hydrogen
cyanide, which is deadly to warm-blooded animals in very low concentrations,
and to insects in considerably higher concentrations.

DEGESCH (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Schädlingsbekämpfung mbH / German Vermin
Controlling Company), a subsidiary of IG Farben 4, licensed two German
companies for the manufacture and distribution of Zyklon-B: Tesch und
Stabenow (Testa) and Heerdt-Lingler (Heli).

Zyklon-B was also manufactured in one of its forms in the United States by
the American Cyanamid Company 5 under license from the patent holders, I.G.
Farben.

Hydrogen cyanide has historically been employed for the destruction of
rodents and insect pests.

When however the Nazis were looking for an effective method of gassing the
Jews and other undesirables in their concentration camps they chose Zyklon-B
as the most suitable for that purpose.

As a result huge orders went out to the suppliers who naturally also
considered themselves indebted to their shareholders and only interested in
profits and not politics.

Or that's their version and they're sticking to it.

If the comparison makes anyone uncomfortable it's meant to.

In Zimbabwe we have 5 million people on the brink of starvation, political
murder, millions in exiles and on and on.

The part that the Herald has played in promoting Mugabe and the Zanu-PF can
never be underestimated. Despite millions starving, other millions leaving
the country and their countrymen's terrible suffering they simply keep
pumping out the "good word".

Old Mutual is an insurance company which weighs up risk very carefully
before spending their money. In order to do this they need information in
depth.

Accordingly if they invested heavily in the Herald they know far more about
the horrendous goings on in Zimbabwe than almost
anyone else.

Yet they say they are not concerned about politics merely profits.

I hope they've heard of Dormicum or falling asleep every night must be a bitch.

You think that's bad, try doing a Google search on Barclays Bank and Robert Mugabe!

To make matters worse, Barclays are anti hunting and a complete bunch of bastards.

If it hadn't been for Saeed's kind support the bastards would have tucked me up good and proper!....... and I'll never forget I owe him a huge debt of gratitude for that!