Silent Coup: How Corporations Overthrew Democracy

Description

As European empires crumbled in the 20th century, the power structures that had dominated the world for centuries were up for renegotiation. Yet instead of a rebirth for democracy, what emerged was a silent coup – namely, the unstoppable rise of global corporate power. Exposing the origins of this epic power grab as well as its present-day consequences, Silent Coup is the result of two investigative journalist’s reports from 30 countries around the world. It provides an explosive guide to the rise of a corporate empire that now dictates how resources are allocated, how territories are governed, and how justice is defined. Cover Contents Biographies Acknowledgements Introduction: The meeting Part One Corporate justice 1 Democracy on trial An unexpected phone call Pacific Rim vs El Salvador Dreams delayed Independence day 2 Corporate courts Out of control Into the archives El No de Tokyo Follow the money 3 Secret insurance Foresti vs South Africa Marikana tombstones The whole story No angels here 4 Capitalist Magna Carta San Francisco, 1957 A celebrity banker More than just talk New rules for the world 5 The boomerang Vattenfall vs Germany Totally absurd Fed up in Hamburg Coming home to roost Part Two Corporate welfare 6 Aid-funded business An unusual festival The reality of aid Margaret and Mahathir One empire to another 7 Financing ‘development’ Investing in empire Billionaire beneficiaries Washington follows London The Queen’s diamond 8 Buying power No candles in Zanzibar A new alliance for Africa Your charity’s c-suite We’re all partners now 9 Aiding elites Corporate colonialists Helping the 1 per cent Welcome to the Shangri-La Europe’s Walmart 10 A new continent Silent partners Post-Soviet profits Avocados and plastic surgery We would have voted no Part Three Corporate utopias 11 Fences up Building control Displaced in Myanmar Frontier profits Winners and losers 12 Irish invention Bash on regardless The middle of the world Symbolic Shannon Bad jobs 13 Rights suspended Five days in Shenzhen Sweatshop city Union-free dreams Cracks in Cambodia 14 Private cities A CEO for your city Clean air for sale Private futures worldwide Carving out London too 15 Finance is king A fiscal paradise Island of inequality Mauritius mailboxes Malawi mangoes Part Four Corporate armies 16 Peace without democracy A world government Long-range plans A monstrous blueprint Dictatorship of flies 17 Profits versus peasants Nightmares in Colombia Challenging impunity More hired guns A militia in Honduras 18 Private borders Occupation Inc in Palestine Battle-tested products Privatising Fortress Europe Business behind bars 19 Private protection Follow the weapons Cattle in a camp Informal imperialism The new nanny 20 Lucrative threats Secret city Privatising Los Alamos GOCO Collateral damage Epilogue: Ugly truths Notes Index