Black Zimbabweans to take control of white-owned companies

[naaman fletcher]

I don't know how good this source is.

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http://www.zwnews.com/issuefull.cfm?ArticleID=22066

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By Peta Thornycroft in Harare and Sebastien Berger

White-owned companies in Zimbabwe are to be forced to hand majority control to black businessmen in a move that could lead to chaos rivalling the seizure of the country's commercial farms. The new regulations demand that all foreign and locally owned companies hand over at least 51 per cent ownership to black Zimbabweans. Thousands of firms, including the Zimbabwean operations of giants such as Barclays Bank, Standard Chartered Bank and the mining company Rio Tinto, will be affected, and they must submit their plans to comply by March 1. Owners who fail to comply could be jailed. The new law plunged the unity government into deeper crisis.


..more at link

[sharp_stick]

1. It's Zimbabwe

I'd not be surprised by anything like this. They've completely destroyed the agricultural sector, now it's time to fuck up anything else that might be functioning. I wouldn't have any business of any sort in that country.

[ck4829]

2. Black businessmen, I.E. Mugabe's relatives and allies

The same thing happened with the farms.

[Swede]

3. It's true,and it will be a disaster for them.

Here's a link to the telegraph.


The new law will come as a huge blow to the efforts of Tendai Biti, a former opposition politician who is now finance minister in the coalition government, to persuade foreign investors to pour money into the country to rebuild its shattered economy.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/africaandindianocean/zimbabwe/7198580/Black-Zimbabweans-to-take-control-of-white-owned-companies.html

[MidwestTransplant]

4. You should have seen the Freepers resposnes to this article yesterday. A lot of Obama/Mugabe

comparisons, etc.

[Sultana]

5. They should do themselves a favor overthrow Mugabe

that man makes me want to puke.

[Hannah Bell]

6. the public story on zimbabwe i believe to be bull. mugabe isn't the

longest-ruling politician in africa without powerful support behind the scenes. african pols don't get away with expropriating foreign firms unless they have counter-balancing backers.

i found it interesting that rio tinto (mining) is being taken over -- but no mention of anglo-american, reportedly the biggest econonomic force in zimbabwe.

rio tinto founded 1873 with money from the opium trade (jardine matheson) & in 1880s-1940s majority- controlled by rothschilds. Current HQ = uk & australia. RT still advised by Rothschild & JP Morgan.

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23420210-rio-tintos-chiefs-hit-paydirt-in-bhp-offer.do

Institutional Shareholders.Top Holders

Artio Global Management LLC 5.16m 0.85%
AMP Capital Investors Ltd. 4.70m 0.78%
BlackRock Global Investors 4.55m 0.75%
Australian Foundation Investment Co. Ltd. 3.10m 0.51%
BT Investment Management Ltd. (Investment Management) 2.84m 0.47%




anglo-american founded 1917: oppenheimer + morgan backing. oppenheimer (also with debeers) still on Board. current hq = uk.

Institutional Shareholders

Top Holders
BlackRock Investment Management (UK) 5.3%
Public Investment Corp. of South Africa 5%
Legal & General Investment Management Ltd. 4.8%
State Street Global Advisors Ltd. (UK) 2.5%
Norges Bank Investment Management 1.9%

[muriel_volestrangler]

7. PM rejects law; Anglo American would be included, just wasn't in the OP story

(it did say 'such as...')

Zimbabwe’s Prime Minister Rejects New Ownership Laws

Zimbabwe’s Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai rejected legislation signed into law by President Robert Mugabe that forces companies to sell more than half of their shares to black investors, saying it would “scare off” foreigners.

“The regulations would have scared off foreign investors, already jittery about Zimbabwe as an investment destination,” Tsvangirai said in a statement posted on his Web site yesterday. “Without foreign direct investment in Zimbabwe, it will be difficult to kick-start the national economy.”
...
Under the law, companies operating in the country with assets worth more than $500,000, including Anglo American Plc and Old Mutual Plc, must sell 51 percent of their local units to black investors within five years, according to a copy of the law distributed by Harare-based Veritas Trust yesterday.

The rules, due to take effect from March 1, are “of no force as they were gazetted without consultation within government,” Tsvangirai said in the statement. In Zimbabwe, laws come into effect once they have been published in the Government Gazette, a public document.

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-02-10/zimbabwe-s-prime-minister-rejects-new-ownership-laws-update2-.html

[Hannah Bell]

8. thanks for the information, then. i still don't buy that mugabe can supposedly defy the

west for years without backers.

[Lance_Boyle]

9. Tsvangirai can object all he wants - Mugabe killed his wife.

Bet he objected strenuously to that, too. He has no power.