NGO representatives to meet with the Super Fund

27 August, 2007

NGO representatives to meet with the Super Fund Board

Representatives of eight peace and human rights organisations will meet with representatives of the Board of Guardians and officers the New Zealand Superannuation Fund on Wednesday 29 August, 2007.

“We are very pleased to have this opportunity to begin a dialogue with the Board and Management of the Super Fund,” said delegation leader Maire Leadbeater of the Indonesia Human Rights Committee. “This is an important opportunity to make representations about a number of Super Fund investments which we believe to be harmful to the wellbeing of the planet and to our regional neighbours.”

“We understand that the Super Fund has a policy of responsible share ownership so we are approaching this meeting in a hopeful frame of mind and looking forward to an open exchange of views.”

The groups who will be represented are: Aotearoa Lawyers for Peace, Foundation for Peace Studies Aotearoa/NZ, Federation of Trade Unions, Burma, Students for Justice in Palestine, Womens International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF), Peace Movement Aoteoroa, Pax Christi and the Indonesia Human Rights Committee.

Some of the investments which are of concern to the delegation are Freeport McMoran Inc. (human rights abuses, denial of indigenous rights, social and environmental destruction in West Papua), Lockheed Martin (production of cluster bombs and nuclear weapons), BAE Systems (production of nuclear weapons), Total (oil and gas operations in military run-Burma including forced labour ), Wal Mart (systematic violation of labour rights) and ExxonMobil (supporting the climate change denial lobby and human rights abuses in Aceh).

“The Super Fund is our Fund investing our taxpayer dollars in order to provide for you and me in our retirement. The investments made should not go against New Zealand’s support for peace, human rights, and environmental protection.”

ENDS