Monsanto is paying US$1.5 million to settle a case in the US after bribes in Indonesia were disguised as consulting
fees(1). One of the main bribes, of US$50,000, was to a ‘senior official’ in the Ministry of the Environment in 2002’. The bribe was intended to stop the company having to undertake an environmental impact assessment before growing GM crops.
As part of the settlement, Monsanto must ‘adopt internal compliance measures, and cooperate with continuing criminal and civil
investigations’(2) in the United States.
The former Indonesian minister for the environment recently admitted to being lobbied by
Monsanto(3), although he told the Indonesian Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) that this was normal lobbying and lawful. Proceedings have begun in Indonesia into bribery after the US case came to light. According to the Jakarta Post, ‘As minister he supposedly knew of the alleged bribery of a senior ministry official by Monsanto that occurred in
2002(4).’ The bribes paid to several officials totalled US$700,000, and went to some 140 officials or family
members(5).
Monsanto claims the issues were not picked up as the political situation in Indonesia meant proper auditing visits were not carried out, and that it reported the bribes itself. Bribing foreign officials is an offence under US
law(6).
As if this was not enough, Monsanto has also been accused by the Center for Food Safety of bullying farmers and abusing US patent laws over litigation for use of its GM
seeds(7). (SF)
1. Monitoring Corporate Agribusiness From a Public Interest Perspective, The Agribusiness Examiner, Issue 388, 11 January 2005, http://www.ea1.com/CARP/
2. Ibid.
3. Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta, January 2005.
4. Ibid.
5. Monsanto Fined Over Bribes in Indonesia, PANUPS Pesticide Action Network Updates Service, 11 January 2005.
6. Ibid
7. Monsanto Assault on US Farmers Detailed in New Report, Center for Food Safety (Washington DC), Press release, 13 January 2005, www.center
forfoodsafety.org/press_release1.13.05.cfm
The 84-page report, ‘Monsanto vs US farmers’, is available at www.centerforfoodsafety.org/Monsantovsusfarmersreport.cfm
[This article first appeared in Pesticides News No. 67, March 2005, page 19]