必和必拓涉奥运行贿被罚2500万美元

BHP Billiton has paid $25m to settle charges fromthe US Securities and Exchange Commission afterthe miner offered packages worth thousands ofdollars to foreign government officials to attend the2008 Beijing Olympics.

必和必拓(BHP Billiton)已经支付2500万美元罚款，用以了结来自美国证券交易委员会(SEC)的相关指控。此前，该矿业公司为一些外国政府官员每人提供了价值数千美元的礼包，用于参加2008年北京奥运会。

The Anglo-Australian miner did not have enoughinternal controls over a hospitality programme thatinvited 176 government officials and employees of state-owned companies to the summergames, the SEC said on Wednesday. BHP was a sponsor of the 2008 event.

SEC周三表示，对一项邀请176名政府官员和国企高管参加北京奥运会的招待计划，这家英澳矿业公司未能实施充分的内部控制。必和必拓是2008年北京奥运会赞助商之一。

Some invitations were given to officials who were connected to negotiations or regulatory issuesinvolving BHP, the SEC said.

SEC称，一些受邀官员涉及必和必拓的谈判或监管问题的关联。

Sponsored guests were mainly from countries in Africa and Asia, and enjoyed three and four-day hospitality packages with event tickets, hotels and sightseeing excursions worth between$12,000 and $16,000.

受赞助的客人主要来自非洲和亚洲国家，他们享受了三至四天的招待服务，包括赛事门票、酒店住宿和观光游览在内，每人花费1.2万至1.6万美元不等。

“BHP Billiton footed the bill for foreign government officials to attend the Olympics while theywere in a position to help the company with its business or regulatory endeavours, saidAndrew Ceresney, director of the enforcement division at the SEC, which said BHP had violatedprovisions of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

SEC执法部主任安德鲁•塞雷斯尼(Andrew Ceresney)说：“必和必拓为外国政府官员参加奥运会买单，而这些人有能力帮助该公司发展业务或通过监管审批。SEC称，必和必拓违反了美国《反海外腐败法》(ForeignCorrupt Practices Act)的规定。

The miner “recognised that inviting government officials to the Olympics created a heightenedrisk of violating anti-corruption laws, yet the company failed to implement sufficient internalcontrols to address that heightened risk, Mr Ceresney said.

必和必拓“意识到邀请政府官员参加奥运会增加了违反反腐败法的风险，而公司未能实施充分的内部控制以消除这一加剧的风险，塞雷斯尼说。

In one instance detailed by the SEC, BHP began to negotiate with the mining minister inBurundi over a nickel exploration permit in late 2007 and early 2008, having already issued aninvitation to attend the Olympics. Burundi’s mining minister and his wife subsequently went toBeijing as BHP guests for four days, the SEC said.

SEC详述的一起实例显示，必和必拓在2007年末至2008年初开始与布隆迪矿业部长就一项镍矿勘探许可证进行谈判之前，就已经向其发出了参加奥运会的邀请。SEC称，布隆迪矿业部长与妻子随后作为必和必拓的客人在北京游玩了四天。

BHP required managers to complete a hospitality application form for anyone they wanted toinvite but the SEC said the miner did not give its staff training on how to complete forms orevaluate bribery risks.

必和必拓要求经理为他们打算邀请的每一个人都填写一份招待申请表，但SEC表示，该公司未给员工进行如何填写表单或评估贿赂风险的培训。

“A number of the hospitality applications were inaccurate or incomplete and BHP Billitonextended Olympic invitations to government officials connected to pending contractnegotiations or regulatory dealings, the SEC said.

“许多招待申请都不准确或者不完整，必和必拓向那些涉及正在进行的合同谈判或交易审批的政府官员发出了奥运会邀请，SEC称。

Altogether 60 government officials went to the games as BHP guests, the SEC said.

SEC称，共有60名政府官员以必和必拓客人的身份参加了北京奥运会。

BHP first acknowledged the US probe into its sponsorship programme for the 2008 Olympics —where it supplied the metal used to make the medals awarded to athletes — in 2009.

2009年，必和必拓首次承认了美国对其2008年奥运会赞助计划的调查，该公司提供了制作运动员奖牌的金属原料。

On Wednesday, the miner said the SEC order made “no findings of corrupt intent or briberyand said it had now created an independent compliance department to approve anyhospitality.

必和必拓周三表示，SEC的指控“没有发现腐败意图或贿赂行为，并称其现在已经建立了独立的合规部来审核所有招待事项。

“While BHP Billiton made efforts at the time to address the risks related to invitinggovernment officials to the Olympics, the controls it relied upon were insufficient to satisfy thecivil books and records and internal accounting controls requirements of the US statute, BHPsaid.

“尽管必和必拓当时也在努力消除邀请政府官员参加奥运会的相关风险，但所依赖的控制手段不符合美国法律对民事档案和内部会计控制的要求，必和必拓表示。

Andrew Mackenzie, chief executive, said the company “has learnt from this experience and isbetter and stronger as a result.

必和必拓行政总裁安德鲁•麦肯齐(Andrew Mackenzie)表示，该公司“已从此事中汲取教训，如今变得更好、更强大了。

BHP said the US Department of Justice had concluded its own investigations and would takeaction. The miner said it continued to co-operate with an Australian federal police investigationannounced in 2013.

必和必拓称，美国司法部(Department of Justice)已经完成了自己的调查，并将采取行动。该公司表示将继续配合澳大利亚联邦警察2013年宣布的一项调查。