MARRIOTT LAMENTATIONS 136q: "Marriott, Minor and EY corruption - hunger striker calls for accountability, human rights compliance and systemic reform

"The corporate responsibility to respect human rights means?to avoid infringing the rights of others, and addressing adverse impacts that may occur.?It applies to all companies in all situations" (from?The corporate responsibility to respect human rights?-?Prof John Ruggie)?

The 6th Marriott hunger strike continues:?As?life on the street once again beckons, a?consequence of historical?whistleblower retaliation after the?exposure of?hotel industry corruption, this may well be the final 'Marriott Lamentations'. At the same time,?without corporate intervention,?the 6th Marriott?Hunger Strike Protest will continue to an inevitable, though tragic, conclusion. Medical assistance?will be refused for as long as capacity is retained; I trust?the emergency?services will respect my wishes thereafter (cf.?MARRIOTT LAMENTATIONS 128: "What Marriott's Profit Before People Mindset Can Lead To - A Human Tragedy"?)

Hunger striking:?A hunger strike is a protest against continued injustice: it is always actioned as a last resort without any suicidal intention. Hunger strikers want to live but never at the expense of oppression and they are willing to fight for that. In this particular case, it is one man standing up to corporate power; it is corporate power largely denying his very existence. "They cannot take away our self-respect if we do not give it to them" - Mahatma Gandhi?(cf.?MARRIOTT LAMENTATIONS 134: "In this era of impunity, death by protest can equate to victory")

Whistleblower Retaliation:?As a whistleblower,?I have been victimised,?bullied and dehumanised;?retaliated against;?ignored and subjected to long periods of silence (yes, "silence?is?violence");?mocked and?defamed; made out to be mentally imbalanced and dishonourable; double-crossed and?lied to;?chased out of the country I was living and working in; rendered?destitute and homeless.?Ultimately, when it comes to this magnitude of psychological suffering and?cruelty, there is only so much a 65 year old?human being?can endure

The Media:?Due to the gross and damaging misrepresentation of?previous press reports,?media coverage has not been requested this time. Once my demise has been "achieved", I have?little doubt?that the corporations will re-establish media contact,?break their silence and?besmirch my name; denial, blame, misrepresentation and lies will all resurface?(cf.?MARRIOTT LAMENTATIONS 133: "Hotel Industry Corruption - The Life and Death of a Whistleblower")

Brief summary of the issues involved: Campaigning on both personal and collective grounds, the aim of this 14 year struggle has been to surmount the obstacles of corporate privilege and subterfuge?and?to unveil global hotel industry corruption; construction and insurance fraud; operational malfeasance; whistleblower retaliation and corporate abuse; unresolved human rights violations (conflicting with the UN's Protect, Respect, Remedy Framework for Business and Human Rights); FCPA infraction; M&A transgressions / failures; brand standards / reputation risk management, due diligence and auditing negligence; other compliance breaches; failures in corporate accountability, transparency and governance. These are serious issues for which?considerable evidence is held (cf.?MARRIOTT LAMENTATIONS 105: "Marriott (and Minor's) Magical FCPA Challenge - Part 3")

Systemic collapse:?"There are good grounds to fear we are entering a global 'age of impunity', in which the rules are for suckers and civilians pay the price" (Miliband et al) This is being enabled by institutions purportedly sanctioned?to act in the public interest, for justice and?the common good.?Over the years, I have been repeatedly let down by a reactive structure of noncommunication, indifference and inaction. For whatever reason, the entire world system?(which includes?global regulators, law makers and enforcers, the judiciary, the legal profession, anti-corruption groups and those set up to safeguard whistleblowers) has confirmed its impotence and parochiality (and, in certain?cases, a willingness to be corrupted)?in the face of multinational predators.?People require the?assurance?they will not be retaliated against, that multinationals WILL be held accountable and not allowed to evade?responsibility. Systemic collapse can be the only explanation as to why this level of corporate barbarity has been allowed to persist (cf.?MARRIOTT LAMENTATIONS 52: "For Marriott, Minor and EY, Corruption Lacks Borders")

Corporate accountability, integrity and silence:?Despite their stated regulatory commitments,?despite frequent email and postal updates, despite the UN Framework for business and human rights, despite the potential death of an abused whistleblower,?the three corporations - Marriott International, Minor International and EY - remain silent, aloof and unwilling to act humanely (cf.?MARRIOTT LAMENTATIONS 131: "Whatever Happened to the UN's 'Protect, Respect and Remedy Framework' for Business and Human Rights?")

"Marriott?International is committed to... holding ourselves?accountable?in order to be a force for good"?(marriott.com)

"Minor Hotels?and its affiliates conduct business with uncompromising ethical standards... [and does] not engage in any form of corrupt practice, including but not limited to extortion, fraud or bribery" (minorhotels.com)

"Integrity [is] more than a matter of legal necessity. It [is] a moral imperative...?(ey.com)

Conclusion:?The problems I have faced personally are the collective problems of mankind.?The ruthless and rapacious global corporatocracy in which we all?exist is?too well-established and out of control to obviate. Successfully propagandised and?subservient to a class of corporate and political oppressors,?the citizens of the world have become?the?powerless victims of an enormous scam; for the minority?who stand to benefit,?the grand conspiracy is going oh so well. Civilisation is in a very dangerous place indeed but don't expect that reality to alter the corporate mindset or prompt a cessation of?the corporate offensive.?50 years ago, Krishnamurti rightly perceived?that "if you have no relationship with [the planet and] the living things on this earth, you may lose whatever relationship you have with humanity". Sadly,?the corporate agenda has led us to?where we are now

God bless

John Shepherd (Marriott, Minor and EY victim)

Appendix:

Key moments from?"The Corporation: The Pathological Pursuit of Profit and Power"?by Joel Bakan:?

"The corporation, a dangerous mix of power and unaccountability, is an artificial person made in the image of a?psychopath;?purely self-interested, incapable of concern for others, amoral and without conscience - in a word, inhuman"

"By design, the corporate form generally protects the human beings who own and run corporations from legal liability... Punishing the corporation often has little impact... Like the psychopathic person it resembles, the corporation feels no moral obligation to obey the law... executives, when deciding whether to comply with or break a law, make cost effective decisions"

"The benevolent rhetoric and deeds of socially responsible corporations create attractive corporate images... They do not change the corporation's fundamental institutional nature: its unblinking commitment to its own self interest...?All the bad things that happen to people and the environment are categorized as externalities - literally, other peoples' problems...?There is one instance when corporate and social responsibility can be tolerated, according to Friedman - when it is insincere"

"Whether through lobbying,?political donations [et al], corporations seek to influence the democratic process...?[whilst] the?practices of the regulatory system fall short of the democratic ideals that inform it. 'Regulatory capture' is endemic; corporations regularly breach regulatory laws;?the standards established by regulatory laws often are reactive rather than preventive, too weak to stop corporations from causing serious harm to people and the environment... The regulatory system often fails because of lax regulation and ineffective enforcement. Until that changes, we shall continue to suffer unnecessary harm to people, communities and the environment. That is the price we all pay for the procivity of corporations to profit by harming others"

"The evidence of corporation domination is everywhere - the sheer size of corporations, the transnational scope of their operations, and their control of society and influence over governments... [Naom Chomsky describes a corporation as] an unaccountable tyranny which internally is as close to totalitarian as any institution that humans have created. Corporate rule is not inviolable [and] must be challenged in order to revive the values and practices it contradicts: democracy, social justice, equality, and compassion..."

[This article was re-published on Day 64 of the 6th Marriott Hunger Strike, incorporating Minor International and EY. It has been distributed to entities including US and UK regulators, US and UK politicians, the UN and corporate executives]