Offshore News Digest for Week of April 15, 2002

TAXES IN THE MEDIA

CATO REPORT ON TAX COMPETITION

Profits & Patriotism: ABC-TV joins the leftist attack on havens.

A gaggle of US Senators out to make headlines, not laws.

ONCE GREAT BRITAIN LABOURS ON

LEFTIST LAMENT: LONDON. A far left British professor states his case for class envy and socialism including, naturally, destroying all tax havens.

BRIT TAXES HIGHEST IN EUROPE: The total tax burden on UK taxpayers is higher than almost anywhere else in Europe. Nearly 30% of all earned income goes for taxes.

GUARDIAN DENOUNCES RICH U.K. FOREIGNERS: How dare wealthy non-Brits live in the UK tax free!

BIG BROTHER IS WATCHING: A summary of British anti-money laundering laws.

TRIAL BY JURY ABOLISHED: Claiming fraud cases are too complex for juries to decide, Tony Blair's Labourites abolish the right to trial by jury.

OFFSHORE RIVALRIES

The BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS challenges the CAYMAN ISLANDS for growing hedge fund hegemony.

As LUXEMBOURG and BERMUDA compete for insurance business.

SWISS FRANC IN DECLINE?

ZURICH. The head of the Swiss National Bank says the Swiss franc role as a currency safe haven henceforth may be more limited.

FRENCH RIVIERA CRIME MECCA?

PARIS. Left wing parliamentarians accuse the French Riviera of being a haven for money laundering and corruption.

FAR EAST TAX HAVENS COMPETE

HONG KONG. This Asian city-state still leads as a business and tax haven, but SINGAPORE is gaining fast.

INSIDE THE COOK ISLANDS

A Baltimore, Maryland USA bankruptcy case prompts a closer look at the famous Pacific islands that serve as a major asset protection haven. Warning: author doesn't know his facts, so he makes them up.

O.E.C.D. LATEST BLACKLIST DUE

PARIS. The busy OECD bureaucrats this week plan to issue their latest offshore haven blacklist of those who refuse to surrender their financial privacy; hold outs include Andorra, Liberia, Liechtenstein, Marshall Islands, Monaco, Nauru, Panama, Samoa and Vanuatu.

CATO ON THE I.R.S. OFFSHORE CREDIT CARD SCARE

Veronique De Rugy of the Cato Institute exposes the IRS scare campaign.

PANAMA: CROSSROADS OF THE WORLD

A multi-billion dollar chance to make profits in a leading tax haven.

And DEREK SAMBROOK says the Panama Railway is back in action and better than ever.

9/11 AFTERMATH: COMING TO AMERICA?

Here's a detailed account of the Draconian law the US Congress is about to enact in an attempt to control all who want to come to America.

IMMIGRATION NEWS, NORTH & SOUTH

CANADA may restrict the kinds of immigrants it will allow.

AUSTRALIA now allows dual citizenship for the first time.

WHY NOT CHOOSE CHILE?

World traveler DOUG CASEY tells you why you should invest, even live in CHILE.

DO-IT-YOURSELF KOOKIE KUNTRIES

We don't endorse these strange "countries" but the possibilities are rather interesting to contemplate.

U.S. TAX TREATIES NEXT TARGET?

An informative NY Times essay tells how US corporations can save millions in taxes by going offshore using bi-lateral tax treaties. It's all legal and no doubt soon will be attacked by US politicians.

BANDITS WITH BADGES

A commentary on unfair, confiscatory US civil forfeiture laws.

THE U.S. MED MAL CRISIS

What drives US doctors' assets to offshore safety; predatory medical malpractice lawsuits and huge insurance premiums.

ANTI-IRS ACTIVIST ARRESTED FOR TAX FRAUD

SANTA ANA, Calif. Anti-tax activist who boasted she never paid US income taxes arrested for allegedly promoting bogus tax shelters.

BRITISH QUEEN MUM'S ESTATE TAX FREE

Another reason for Brits to love the late Queen Mother Elizabeth; it turns out she arranged her £60 million estate to avoid high UK taxes.

CROATIAN BANKS ON THE BRINK

A spreading bank scandal shakes confidence in all Croatian banks.

U.K. FOREIGN DOMICILE TAX ISSUE DELAYED

LONDON. Labour's annual budget puts off a decision on revoking tax avoidance for resident foreigners, but the possibility is still alive.

BERMUDA TELLS U.S. POLITICIANS TO BUZZ OFF

HAMILTON. Responding to efforts to keep US companies from reincorporating here to cut taxes, Bermuda PM Jennifer Smith says no country should tell another what to do about its taxes.

And another US firm plans a Bermuda move to slash taxes.

US-NETHERLANDS ANTILLES TAX TREATY SIGNED

US will have to access financial records in the Dutch territory.

Text of treaty here.

US-BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS TRADE DISPUTE

WASHINGTON. A novel case before the US Supreme Court threatens trade relations between the US and the BVI.

PANAMA TRUTH COMMISSION REPORTS

PANAMA CITY. The Truth Commission documents 110 cases of deaths and disappearances during the 1968-89 military dictatorships.

PANAMA PROFILE: An overview of key facts, political leaders and media notes.

SWISS DEFEND BANK SECRECY, RETURN $1 BILLION

Responding to Prodi prodding, Swiss are 'surprisingly European.'

And Swiss banks return Abache's US$1 billion to Nigeria.

IRISH-CAYMANS BANK ACCOUNTS STILL AT ISSUE

DUBLIN. Irish tax collectors face major court decision on revealing names of alleged tax evaders who used Ansbacher Caymans accounts.

U.K. LABOUR CONTINUES ATTACKS ON OFFSHORE HAVENS

LONDON. Tax haven colonies and Crown dependencies are threatened.

JERSEY rejects UK government ultimatum on EU tax plans.

GUERNSEY escapes London's wrath for now.

And UK-Spanish talks on surrender of GIBRALTAR continue as 98% of The Rock's residents oppose a British sellout to Spain.

BLAIR, LABOUR REVERT TO TAX & SPEND

LONDON. Ignoring a no-new-tax promise, Blair ups taxes, spending.

RUSSIAN FLAT TAX A SUCCESS

MOSCOW. The new 13% flat income tax rate is a major success.

GLOBALISM, FREE MARKETS PRAISED

Economists says globalism, trade create jobs, profits.

PRIVATE PROPERTY IS BEDROCK

The right that makes all other liberties possible.

MORE ARRESTS IN TAX SHELTER SCHEMES

Charges include conspiracy to defraud the IRS and creating sham trusts to hide income. 7 arrested.