Nominations Open

The Roger Award For The Worst Transnational Corporation Operating In Aotearoa/New Zealand In 2007

Nominations are now open for this most prestigious and keenly contested annual Award (won by Progressive Enterprises in 2006; the previous winners are: Westpac/BNZ, Telecom, Juken Nissho, Carter Holt Harvey, TransAlta Monsanto and TranzRail - 3 times). Nominations close on October 31.

The criteria for judging are by assessing the transnational (a corporation which is 25% or more foreign-owned) that has the most negative impact in each or all of the following categories:

Economic Dominance - Monopoly, profiteering, tax dodging, cultural imperialism

People - Unemployment, impact on tangata whenua, impact on women, impact on children, abuse of workers/conditions, health and safety of workers and the public, cultural imperialism

Environment - Environmental damage, abuse of animals

Political interference - Cultural imperialism, running an ideological crusade

A new feature this year is the Accomplice Award. Nominations are also invited for an organisation (not an individual) which has been the worst Accomplice in 2007 in aiding and abetting transnational corporations in New Zealand to behave as described in the criteria. The Accomplice's award is in addition to the Worst Transnational Corporation award and will not necessarily be awarded every year.

The judges for 2007 are: Laila Harre, from Auckland, National Secretary of the National Distribution Union and former Cabinet Minister; Anton Oliver, from Otago, All Black and environmentalist; Geoff Bertram, from Wellington, a Victoria University economist; Brian Turner, from Christchurch, President-Elect of the Methodist Church and social justice activist; Paul Corliss, from Christchurch, a life member of the Rail and Maritime Transport Union; and Cee Payne-Harker, from Dunedin, Industrial Services Manager for the NZ Nurses' Organisation and health issues activist. They will be given a shortlist of finalists. The winner(s) will be announced in early 2008 at an event in Christchurch.

The Roger Award is organised by the Christchurch-based groups, Campaign Against Foreign Control of Aotearoa (CAFCA) and GATT Watchdog. Full details of the Roger Award (including the detailed Judges' Reports from previous years) can be found at www.cafca.org.nz , follow the Roger Award Links from the Views, Analyses and Research page.

May the worst man win!

ENDS

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