© AFP
Fairtrade Luxembourg is calling for stronger regulations and condemning consumer indifference following a historic court ruling that fined Chiquita $38 million for financing a Colombian paramilitary group accused of murdering plantation workers.
After 17-year-long investigation, a court in Florida passed a historic verdict against the Chiquita banana corporation in June. The trial addressed the enterprise's financial involvement with a paramilitary group in Colombia, which it reportedly financed with $1.7 million from 1997 to 2004. This paramilitary group, also locally known as the 'death squad', is said to have murdered plantation labourers in the country.
The court ruling thereby confirms Chiquita's blatant violation of human rights.
Nonetheless, all of this is relatively far removed from the consumer. "We buy both, whether it's crooked or straight, but we prefer the ones that rot less quickly", say buyers in Diekirch when asked about Chiquita bananas. This indifference quickly turns to concern once they learn about the company's history of labour exploitation.
Other consumers buy Fairtrade bananas on principle because they know what the label stands for: guaranteed prices, no child labour, and no use of harmful pesticides. These stand in stark contrast with the multinational corporations. Jean-Louis Zeien, President of Fair Trade Luxembourg, therefore speaks of a historic ruling.
$1.7 million used to finance mafia-like intimidation tactics against farmers
The court also confirmed that Chiquita paid death squads to punish farmers for not abiding by Chiquita's rules. These farmers certainly don't deserve to be murdered on the plantations, and this court ruling can finally put a stop to this egregious activity, highlights Zeien.
The court was primarily concerned with the financing of the paramilitary death squad in Colombia, which is classified as a terrorist organisation. As a result, the company has to pay the eight affected families $38 million in reparations. Zeien also interprets this as a reminder that nobody around the globe is allowed to violate human rights.
Fairtrade Luxembourg now urges the government to refrain from accepting the supply chain law in its current form, as this no longer has anything to do with competition. Equally, the NGO is shocked to see that some consumers are still indifferent. For them, everyone carries responsibility: the producer, the distributor, the consumer, and the governments.
