Welcome to worldtechnology.com
Published: 22 Jan 09 12:34 CET
Online: http://www.thelocal.de/national/20090122-16941.html
The ex-head of Germany's Deutsche Post faced court on Thursday over an international tax evasion scandal that fuelled public anger about "fat-cat" excesses in Europe's biggest economy.
Klaus Zumwinkel was the highest profile head to roll last February when his name appeared on a list bought by the German secret services from a whistleblower at a bank in the tiny Alpine principality of Liechtenstein.
The DVD for which Germany reportedly paid €4.5 million ($5.9 million) also included the names of hundreds of German business executives, sports stars and entertainers who had allegedly been dodging the taxman.
Together, they were suspected of stashing some €4 billion away from the authorities.
This prompted countries around the world to launch their own investigations as well as heavy international criticism of Liechtenstein and other tax havens for their traditions of banking secrecy.
In images beamed live on national television and printed on front pages of newspapers, Zumwinkel was shown being led out of his plush villa near Deutsche Post headquarters in the old West German capital Bonn after a police raid.
He was charged in November with tax evasion but the 65-year-old has reportedly reached a deal with prosecutors that would see him avoid prison in exchange for pleading guilty.
The scandal prompted countries including Australia, Britain, Canada, France, Italy, Greece, New Zealand, Spain, Sweden and the United States to see if their own nationals were also using Liechtenstein to cheat on their taxes.
German Finance Minister Peer Steinbrück vowed last year "to put the screws" on Liechtenstein, while Chancellor Angela Merkel threatened to isolate it from the rest of Europe if it failed to smarten up its act. Liechtenstein - dubbed "un-cooperative tax havens" by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) along with Andorra and Monaco - retaliated angrily.
The principality measuring just 160 square kilometres (62 square miles) with a population of 35,000 bordering Austria and Switzerland, issued an international arrest warrant for the mole.
Liechtenstein's Crown Prince Alois accused Germany of undermining its sovereignty and breaking the law, and the royal household suspended loans of art works from its collection to a museum in Munich, southern Germany.
The head of the Swiss Bankers' Association, meanwhile, said Germany's investigations "call to mind methods worthy of the Gestapo" - comments for which he later apologised.
The scandal has added to growing anger within Germany about "fat-cat" executives, just as Germany hits its worst post-war slump with half a million people expected by the government to lose their jobs in 2009.
The middle class has been shown to be shrinking and a study on Wednesday by one of the top economic research institutes revealed that between 2002 and 2007 the gap between rich and poor had widened.
Damaging scandals have also rocked other corporate titans including Volkswagen and Siemens where a slush-fund scandal forced the departure of Heinrich von Pierer, chief executive for 13 years and chairman for another two.
High levels of executive pay have also rankled, with the salary of Daimler chairman Dieter Zetsche jumping 68 percent in 2007 while Porsche chief Wendelin Wiedeking was reported to have taken home over €50 million.
Since the Liechtenstein affair erupted, the German tax authorities have managed to claw back €150 million after the tax cheats voluntarily came forward in the hope of avoiding prosecution.
Zumwinkel, ran Deutsche Post for 13 years and was also on the board of Deutsche Telekom, Europe's biggest telecommunications company.
he ex-head of Germany's Deutsche Post faced court on Thursday over an international tax evasion scandal that fuelled public anger about "fat-cat" excesses in Europe's biggest economy
eutsche Post top 'fat cat' faces court
No comments:
Post a Comment