I've been reading with interest of late, the unfolding story of bribery and corruption involving the Australian mining company 'Rio Tinto' and it's activities in China.
Four Rio Tinto staff were arrested on July 5 by the Chinese authorities who claim that:
According to Wikipedia: The Rio Tinto Group is a diversified, multinational mining and resources group with headquarters in London, England and Melbourne, Australia. The company was founded in 1873, when a multinational consortium of investors purchased a mine complex on the Rio Tinto river, in Huelva, Spain from the Spanish government.
According to Rio Tinto's (Australia Website) "What we do" page:
- Rio Tinto Coal Australia develops and manages world-class open cut and underground coal operations to supply world markets with high quality coking and thermal coal.
Nowhere do I read that they are involved in Bribery and corruption. But "So what?" you ask. Naturally they are not going to write on their website that they are involved in Bribery and Corruption. Just because they don't say that they are involved in Bribery doesn't mean that they are not.
Well I am sure that Rio Tinto has it's supporters on one side saying that they are not involved in Bribery. This is to be expected. And of course there are those opposed to not just this but all large international companies, who are ready to believe that Rio Tinto was involved in Bribery.
But throughout all the stories I have read so far about the issue, one extremely simple point has been overlooked. I say 'simple' because it seems to me to have been such a simple thing to have pondered. I don't mean to imply that it is a simple issue. Not by a long shot. What I mean to say is that while everyone has been writing about and talking about this international company being involved in Bribery, no one has bothered to ask a very simple and obvious question:
"What is the Chinese Government going to do about these 16 key Chinese Mining personnel who have been taking these bribes to sell out China's economic interest?"
China has for the last few years spent a lot of time and energy searching out and punishing corrupt officials; and lest you dear reader be unaware of it, people in top 'government affiliated' positions are always members of the Communist Party.
So it seems that once again the Chinese Government is cracking down hard on Party members who put their own financial gain ahead of China's National Interests.
Whatever may be in store for the Rio Tinto executives who 'allegedly' offered bribes, one can be sure that it won't begin to compare to the fate of those Chinese executives who 'allegedly' were willing to sell out China's economic interests.
It will be interesting to see what their future will be.
R.P.BenDedek
Email: rpbendedek@hotmail.com
R.P.BenDedek is the pseudonym of the Author of 'The King's Calendar: The Secret of Qumran' (http://www.kingscalendar.com/), and is a guest columnist at Magic City Morning Star News. An Australian, he currently teaches Conversational English in China.
Stories from China at Magic City
"The King's Calendar" is a chronological study of the historical books of the Bible (Kings and Chronicles), Josephus, Seder Olam Rabbah, and the (Essene) Damascus Document of The Dead Sea Scrolls.
