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07.20.01. O'Neill Backs Tax Havens. A-Letter.
THE SOVEREIGN SOCIETY OFFSHORE A-LETTER
Your Link to Freedom, Prosperity & Privacy in the Offshore World
Friday, July 20, 2001 - Vol. 3 No. 57
In This Issue:
* COMMENT: O'Neill Stands Firm for Offshore Havens
* OFFSHORE: Levin Charges "Tax Evasion" New Anti-OECD Task Force. Europeans Are Anti-EU. Korea Loves OECD. Pacific Havens Reprieve. LowTaxNet Bahamas Bias. Cyprus Too. Mexico Leads. Venezuela Bleeds. South Africans Flee. Montana's Blackfeet Indian 'Offshore' Bank?
* WEALTH: Swiss Net Bank. EU W/H Tax Plan. Bermuda Tax Loophole. Hungary Ends Anon Accounts. US Anti-ML Steps Up. Y Tax Cuts Are Good 4U. Land Dispute, Hungary vs. Austria.
COMMENT: O'Neill Stands Firm for Offshore Havens
by Bob Bauman, Editor
"We ought to pursue every tax cheat to the ends of the earth," US Treas. Sec. Paul O'NEILL on Wednesday told the US Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, now chaired by left-wing Sen. Carl LEVIN (D-Mich). But O'Neill added emphatically: "I do not think it is appropriate for the US or OECD to tell another sovereign nation what the structure of their tax system should be, period." A final RIP for the US role in the OECD's "harmful tax competition" campaign.
LINK: http://www.miami.com/herald/content/business/digdocs/053816.htm
The ultra liberal Levin used the stacked hearing to continue his attacks on offshore haven nations. (The major pro-haven group, the Center for Freedom & Progress, was denied the right to testify).
LINK: http://www.tax-news.com/asp/story/story.asp?storyname=4566
Levin charged that "only" 6000 US persons last year reported offshore accounts of $10,000 or more. He coupled this with his estimate of 1.1 million offshore bank accounts and international business corporations in Panama, the British Virgin Islands and other havens, concluding that "some" of these are used for tax evasion by Americans. Levin then claimed $80 billion a year in lost IRS revenues, a questionable, hardly logical result of this tortured reasoning.
LINK: http://www.nytimes.com/2001/07/19/business/19HAVE.html
Capitol Hill observers tell us that O'Neill did a reasonably good job defending the Bush pro-haven policies, but he failed to back a most important principle - that no sovereign nation should be compelled to recognize foreign law above their own law. That's the central financial privacy issue involved in the suddenly trendy "tax transparency" information exchange drive, the latest OECD anti-haven ploy.
LINK: Click Here.
In response to a trick question from Levin about whether the Bush administration supports the outrageous CLINTON bill that would give Treasury the power to cut off foreign nations from the US banking system, O'Neill seemed to waffle. One wonders if this possible retreat had prior White House approval? Our sources tell us this suddenly inconsistent stand would be a serious Treasury sell out, if true.
LINK: http://www.tax-news.com/asp/story/story.asp?storyname=4534
As an olive branch, O'Neill promised the US will negotiate tax treaties with at least half of the major offshore tax havens within a year. He says treaties will be a far better enforcement weapon against US tax evaders, rather than economic sanctions he termed "a last resort."
LINK: http://ap.tbo.com/ap/breaking/MGAUYNALBPC.html
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* OFFSHORE *
LEVIN CHARGES OFFSHORE TAX EVASION
WASHINGTON. As a demagogic prelude to his anti-haven hearing (above), Sen. Levin claimed US taxpayers fail to report their offshore financial activities in violation of US disclosure laws.
LINK: (subscribers only) Click Here.
LINK: Click Here.
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COUNTER 'TRANSPARENCY' TASK FORCE
WASHINGTON. The Prosperity Institute announces formation of a "Task Force on Information Exchange and Financial Privacy" to counter the OECD's demands for world financial information exchange.
LINK: http://www.tax-news.com/asp/story/story.asp?storyname=4497
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EUROPEAN UNION UNPOPULAR
More than half of the citizens of Europe do not support or approve of the EU and its activities.
LINKS: Click Here and Here.
A politician thinks one reason is "Eurobabble".
LINK: Click Here.
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KOREA SELLS OUT TO O.E.C.D.
SEOUL. Just when most nations are abandoning OECD demands for "harmful tax competition" changes, Korea goes along.
LINKS: http://www.tax-news.com/asp/story/story.asp?storyname=4510
http://www.korealink.co.kr/times/200107/t2001071717043740110.htm
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PACIFIC HAVENS DEADLINE
WELLINGTON, New Zealand. Six Pacific tax havens supposedly have been given 4 months to reform their financial systems.
LINK: Click Here.
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BIASED BAHAMAS REPORT
We usually recommend LowTaxNet, but that web site has just published a highly questionable "special report" that is actually a paid advertisement for the same Bahamas government that seriously has impaired the islands role as a tax haven.
LINK: http://www.lowtax.net/lowtax/html/jbaspec.html
And a LowTaxNet report on CYPRUS is also far rosier that deserved, as that island nation raises taxes and kowtows to the EU and OECD.
LINK: Click Here.
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MEXICO HELPS CARIBBEAN
Mexican Pres. Vicente FOX offers to help and lead Caribbean neighbors in a mutual free trade and aid bloc.
LINK: Click Here.
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VENEZUELA MESS GROWS
CARACAS. Leftist Hugh Chavez is rapidly running the nation's faltering economy into the ground.
LINK: Click Here.
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SOUTH AFRICAN BANK BRAIN DRAIN
JOHANNESBURG. A bank survey confirms an employee brain drain caused by violent crime, affirmative action and better jobs offshore.
LINK: Click Here.
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OFFSHORE AMERICAN INDIAN BANK?
BROWNING, MONTANA, USA. "Offshore" banking has come to the Blackfeet Indian Reservation, or so they claim.
LINK (slow loading): Click Here.
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* WEALTH *
SWISS NET BANK WORKS FAST
Twenty minutes and $200 will get you your own private Swiss bank account.
LINK: http://www.swissnetbank.com
LINK: http://www.guardian.co.uk/Archive/Article/0,4273,4221443,00.html
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E.U. CONSIDERS INTEREST WITHHOLDING TAX
Member states may exchange information paid to non-resident savings accounts holders including interest of every kind.
LINK: http://www.tax-news.com/asp/story/story.asp?storyname=4553
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U.S. TREASURY NEUTRAL ON BERMUDA TAX LOOPHOLE
Legislative efforts to end the offshore tax advantage of US corporations using BERMUDA as base don't have BUSH support.
LINK: http://www.tax-news.com/asp/story/story.asp?storyname=4556
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HUNGARY ENDS ANONYMOUS ACCOUNTS
BUDAPEST. Under OECD pressure, Hungary will abolish all remaining anonymous bank accounts after 2002.
LINK: http://globalarchive.ft.com/globalarchive/article.html?id=010718008583
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U.S. BACKS MONEY LAUNDERING FIGHT
WASHINGTON. The Bush administration will aggressively crack down on money laundering but wants a better return on the funds spent to combat the problem, Treas. Sec. O'Neill says.
LINK: Click Here.
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TAX CUTS ARE GOOD
History proves the lasting value of tax cuts. Three US rate cuts of the postwar period each stimulated growth and tax receipts.
LINK: Click Here.
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HUNGARY FOR LAND
BUDAPEST. Zimbabwe and South Africa are not alone in disputes over land ownership. Now AUSTRIA and HUNGARY are fighting.
LINK: Click Here.
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THE SOVEREIGN SOCIETY Ltd., 5 Catherine St., Waterford, Ireland. TEL: 353-51 844 068 FAX: 353-51 304 561. Copyright (C) 2001. All domestic & international rights reserved.
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