Amy Goodman, "Holding corporations accountable for apartheid crimes," Truthdig, January 12, 2010.

[This will be interesting to follow. Does "too big to fail" really mean, "above the law"? -jlt]

A landmark class action case is under way in a New York federal court, with victims of apartheid in South Africa suing corporations that they say helped the pre-1994 regime. Among the multinational corporations are IBM, Fujitsu, Ford, GM and banking giants UBS and Barclays. The lawsuit accuses the corporations of “knowing participation in and/or aiding and abetting of the crimes of apartheid; extrajudicial killing; torture; prolonged unlawful detention; and cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment.” Attorneys are seeking up to $400 billion in damages.

Not one multinational company accepted the invitation to speak at the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.

The late anti-apartheid activist Dennis Brutus, who died just weeks ago, is a listed plaintiff. Back in 2008, he told me that “for [the corporations], apartheid was a very good system, and it was a very profitable system.” As the U.S. observes the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday, marks the first anniversary in office of the first African-American president and ponders the exposure of a racial gaffe spoken by Sen. Harry Reid, the issue of race is front and center, making this case timely and compelling.

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"New immigration prison to open at Gatwick this spring," Corporation Watch UK, January 29, 2009.

[The financial sector may be in decline, but detention centers appear to be a growth industry. Immigration detention systems are still controversial in Australia, Italy, Indonesia, Canada, Canada, and the US, and elsewhere. -jlt]

The new immigration detention centre at Gatwick airport will not be opened until the spring, Corporate Watch has learned. The official opening had been scheduled for February this year but has been delayed for undisclosed reasons. The purpose-built high-security prison, named Brook House, is based on the 'successful' design of Colnbrook detention centre at Heathrow airport. The new detention centre will be run by Global Solution Ltd (GSL), which is now owned by G4S, and will hold up to 426 male and female detainees.

The Gatwick No Border Camp. Photo: IndyMedia UK.

When opened, Brook House will be situated within the boundary fence of Gatwick airport, approximately half a mile from the other existing detention centre at Gatwick, Tinsley House, on the South Perimeter Road. The facility is being developed on behalf of the UK Border Agency (UKBA) by the Airport Property Partnership (APP), a joint venture between the British Airports Authority (BAA), which owns the airport, and Morley Fund Management, an asset management company owned by insurance group Aviva. The arm of BAA which deals with commercial property is BAA Lynton, which obtained the planning permission for the building of the detention centre on behalf of the APP, as they did with Tinsley House.

...the Independent Monitoring Boards said in their 2007 annul report that the 'reception area' in Tinsley House, a small and inhospitable cell-like room, "remains a threatening environment for children."

When opened, Brook House will be situated within the boundary fence of Gatwick airport, approximately half a mile from the other existing detention centre at Gatwick, Tinsley House, on the South Perimeter Road. The facility is being developed on behalf of the UK Border Agency (UKBA) by the Airport Property Partnership (APP), a joint venture between the British Airports Authority (BAA), which owns the airport, and Morley Fund Management, an asset management company owned by insurance group Aviva. The arm of BAA which deals with commercial property is BAA Lynton, which obtained the planning permission for the building of the detention centre on behalf of the APP, as they did with Tinsley House.

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