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THE SOVEREIGN SOCIETY OFFSHORE A-LETTER
Your Link to Freedom, Privacy & Prosperity in the Offshore World
Tuesday, October 21, 2003 - Vol. 5 No. 124
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In This Issue:
* COMMENT: Swiss Right Wins Big
* OFFSHORE: UK Reaffirms OT's Independence Rights; UK Tax Collectors Target UK OTs. Isle of Man Accusations. Liechtenstein Terror? Borg a Monegasque? Portugal Tax. Barbados Pressured. Panama at 100. Rarotonga. Convenient Tax Harmony. EU Fraud. Ottawa OECD Aftermath.
* WEALTH: Senate Tax Shelter Side Show; CBS 60 Minutes Joins In. US Court Breaches Lawyer-Client Confidentiality on Tax Shelters.
* PRIVACY & RIGHTS: Is America Dead? Terrorism & Tyranny. US Rep. Ron Paul Comments on "Foreign Welfare"
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COMMENT: Swiss Right Wins Big
Dear A-Letter Reader:
Switzerland's ultra-conservative People's party (SVP) has rocked the country's political system after emerging as the clear winner of Sunday's general election. Final results showed the SVP gained 11 new seats in the 200 member House of Representatives, for a total of 55. The party's popular vote share increased to 26.6%, up 4% from 1999.
The election results have special significance for the offshore financial world because the SVP campaigned strongly in favor of less taxes and against closer ties with the European Union. The EU has repeatedly tried to end to Swiss bank secrecy, a demand which the SVP rejects. EU membership was nixed by Swiss voters overwhelmingly in March 2001, even though joining the EU has been a stated goal of the current, more liberal Swiss government.
The SVP now demands a second seat in the Swiss cabinet which would end the so-called "Magic Formula", a cozy power sharing arrangement dating back to 1959 that gives three more liberal parties two seats each, but only one for the conservative SVP.
The SVP called the vote an "historic victory" and demanded an additional cabinet seat, putting forward leading SVP figure, Christoph Blocher, as its candidate. A multi-millionaire businessman from Zurich, Blocher, has been a dynamic spokesman and his combative, populist style has been compared to France's Jean-Marie le Pen and Austria's Jörg Haider.
Because Switzerland holds more than 1/3 of the world's private wealth, it has come under enormous pressure from the EU and the OECD to allow exchange of individuals' financial information with EU tax authorities. At one point the pretentious EU even threatened to impose economic sanctions against Switzerland if it did not eliminate bank secrecy.
Predictions now may be risky, but the new, more conservative Swiss government can be expected to reject EU and other demands for an end to financial privacy. Fortunately it also appears Swiss EU membership (and weaker financial privacy) are dead issues for the foreseeable future.
This bodes well for Switzerland maintaining its premiere status as the world's leading asset protection and investment haven. Sometimes democracy works, and then the people do get their say.
That's the way that it looks from here.
Bob Bauman, Editor
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COMMENT LINKS:
* Conservatives win Swiss parliamentary elections
http://www.swissinfo.org/sen/swissinfo.html?siteSect=105&sid=4355483
http://www.swissinfo.org/sen/swissinfo.html?siteSect=105&sid=4355625
* Conservative demands threaten consensus politics. LINK:
http://www.swissinfo.org/sen/swissinfo.html?siteSect=105&sid=4359148
* Swiss media predicts end of "Magic Formula." LINK:
http://www.swissinfo.org/sen/swissinfo.html?siteSect=105&sid=4356616
* SVP says keep Switzerland out of the EU. LINK:
http://www.swissinfo.org/sen/swissinfo.html?siteSect=105&sid=4215022
* Swiss people overwhelmingly support bank secrecy.
LINK:http://www.swissbankaccount.com/editorial.html
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* OFFSHORE *
U.K. WILL HELP OFFSHORE COLONIES' INDEPENDENCE
LONDON: UK officials reaffirm right to independence of overseas
territories, offer help. But which ones are courageous enough? LINK:
http://www.caribbeannetnews.com/2003/10/14/independence.htm
* British overseas territories targeted by UK Inland Revenue 'hit men.'
LINK:http://www.caribbeannetnews.com/2003/10/14/tax.htm
* UK tax haven colony: Turks & Caicos: No Hurry, Be Happy. LINK:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A42040-2003Oct17.html
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ISLE OF MAN; BAD NEWS
* $26 million in terror funds allegedly sent to Isle of Man. LINK:
http://www.heraldtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20031018/APN/310180726
* 4 billion euros of evaded Irish taxes allegedly stashed in IoM. LINK:
http://www.businessworld.ie/livenews.htm?a=781359;s=rollingnews.htm
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TERROR FUNDS ALLEGED IN LIECHTENSTEIN
VADUZ: Terror funds trail allegedly leads to Principality.
LINK:http://www.forward.com/issues/2003/03.10.17/news4.terror.html
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BORG CLAIMS HE STILL LIVES IN MONACO
STOCKHOLM: Swedish tax authorities claim he owes back taxes. LINK:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/cms.dll/html/uncomp/articleshow?msid=235450
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PORTUGAL HITS EXPAT HOMES WITH BIG TAX
LISBON: Property owned by offshore corps get 5% tax in 2004. LINK:
http://www.businessworld.ie/livenews.htm?a=781356;s=rollingnews.htm
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BARBADOS-U.S. TAX TREATY RENEGOTIATION
BRIDGETOWN: Under pressure from the US IRS to curb reincorpation
of US companies offshore to save taxes; Barbados. LINKS:
http://www.barbadosadvocate.com/NewViewNewsleft.cfm?Record=15274
http://www.tax-news.com/asp/story/story.asp?storyname=13738
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PANAMA CELEBRATES ITS CENTENNIAL
Independence from Colombia in 1903, 100 years ago in November. LINK:
http://www.trustservices.net/Letter from Panama - Current Issue.htm
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COOK ISLANDS IN THE NEWS
Tax haven weakens financial privacy laws; visit Rarotonga? LINK:
http://www.oregonlive.com/travel/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/exclude/1066564771300910.xml
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BROWN ALL FOR TAX HARMONY, EXCEPT.....
UK Chancellor wants to kill UK offshore tax havens, but he doesn't
want EU "tax harmonization" when it comes to Britain and the City.
LINK:http://www.tax-news.com/asp/story/story.asp?storyname=13728
* More fraud among the moralistic European Union bureaucrats. LINKS:
http://news.ft.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=FT.com/StoryFT/FullStory&c=StoryFT&cid=1066565187008
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O.E.C.D. AFTERMATH FROM OTTAWA
* OECD on tax harmonization; do as we say; not as we do. LINK:
http://news.ft.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=FT.com/StoryFT/FullStory&c=StoryFT&cid=1066565205800
* Level playing field not yet achieved, OECD meeting concludes.
LINK:http://www.tax-news.com/asp/story/story.asp?storyname=13714
* Europe supposedly hinders OECD tax haven clean-up. LINK:
http://www.nationalpost.com/financialpost/story.html?id=865BC56D-5F58-46E5-904D-A6D78054E1F9
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* WEALTH *
U.S. SENATE TAX CHEAT SIDESHOW
WASHINGTON: Crackdown on tax cheats fails Senate panel says. LINK:
http://www.theledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20031020/ZNYT01/310200387/1001/BUSINESS
* Offshore tax shelter tale gets U.S airing on CBS 60 Minutes.
LINK:http://www.indystar.com/print/articles/9/084251-1569-031.html
* KPMG wins partial victory over IRS in tax shelter investigation.
LINK:http://www.tax-news.com/asp/story/story.asp?storyname=13739
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COURT SAYS I.R.S. CAN FORCE LAW FIRM INFORMATION
Chicago law firm must hand over information about clients
who have invested in 13 tax minimization schemes since 1996.
LINK:http://www.tax-news.com/asp/story/story.asp?storyname=13715
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* PRIVACY & RIGHTS *
IS THE AMERICA WE HAVE KNOWN DYING?
One man's opinion abut where the USA finds itself. LINK:
http://www.hawaiireporter.com/story.aspx?e221c864-22a2-41f2-9151-b5180ea8ad34
* "Terrorism and Tyranny" - a must read book about post 9/11 America.
LINK:http://www.fee.org/vnews.php?nid=5564
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U.S REP. RON PAUL ON AID TO IRAQ
US$87 billion for foreign welfare?
LINK:http://www.lewrockwell.com/paul/paul137.html
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THE SOVEREIGN SOCIETY OFFSHORE A-LETTER. *
Bob Bauman, Editor * Daniel Aponte, Jr. Research Asst.
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