German Capital At The Cape
(Birgit Morgenrath; Gottfried Wellmer)
Freelance journalists Brigit Morgenrath and Gottfried Wellmer report in their book German Capital at the Cape how and to what extend German companies in South Africa profited from cooperation with the Apartheid regime and how, in the process, they did not shy away from ignoring human rights as well as the UN Embargos agaist the Apartheid regime.
The suit of 91 victims (the Khulumani Support Group) in November 2002 at USA courts, against around 20 international company groups suing them for assisting in human rights offenses and support of Apartheid, was the reason for this research.
German banks and also weapon and vehicle companies were involved in business with the Cape regime. five German comapny groups were sued: DaimlerChrysler and Rheinmetall, Coomerzbank,Dresdner Bank and Deutsche Bank. they all were involved in business with the South African regime and thereby supported Apartheid despite of the international embargo.
The authors pointed to official statistics, interviews, as well as literature and press researches in South African archives. they found that in total 400m German companies and their subsidiaries were directly or indirectly involved in South African politics. They delivered engines and vehicles, electrotechnical products and electronic goods. they invested to a large extend and even bypassed the UN Weapon embargo, and the discrimnating Apartheid regime at the Cape received German bank credits; the businesses of German comapnies received in addition Hermes Credits from the German government.
the business practices of German comapnies in South Africa during Apartheid are shown in concrete examples. From the treatment of (forced) workers. who in the Homeland, received the lowest wages and had to produce cheaply and under health threatening conditions. Union guidelines were ignored and even the military was called in for assistance.
The book gives a thorough overview of the history of Apartheid in South Africa from its beginning during colonialism to its end in 1994.
Birgit Morgenrath, Gottfried Wellmer. German Capital at the Cape. Hamburg, edition Nautilus, 2003.
Resumos Relacionados
- Deutsches Kapital Am Kap
- Dance With A Poor Man''s Daughter
- The Moment Before The Gun Went Off
- We Stii Have Wounds And Scars That Will Never Get Healed
- On Germans And Jews Under The Nazi Regime
|
|
