"Fraport complains of more harassment by Philippine authorities"

Sunday, February 27, 2005

Fraport complains of more harassment
Philippines - ABS CBN News


Fraport, the German partner in the controversial Ninoy Aquino International
Airport Terminal 3 (NAIA 3) project, complained that the issuance of
warrants for the arrest of two people associated with the company is
political harassment and based on trumped up charges. 

The firm said the issuance of the arrest warrants is another attempt by the
Philippine government to distract attention from its deplorable treatment of
the substantial foreign investment in the NAIA 3. 

On the basis of a concession contract with the Philippine government, the
PIATCO consortium (of which Fraport is a partner) built the modern new
passenger terminal in Manila to replace existing decaying facilities. 

After the terminal was built, the Philippine government dictated new
economic terms that would have gutted the contract, upon which Fraport had
invested, to the benefit of favored interests. 

At the end of 2002, when the terminal was ready to go into operation, the
government publicly stated that the contracts would not be honored, and the
Philippine Supreme Court soon thereafter declared the contracts "null and
void" ab initio in a politicized decision marked by many peculiarities. 

The Philippine government has paid plenty of lip service, promising that the
IPT3 investors would be compensated for all legitimate claims. 

However, because the government did not pay any compensation, Fraport
initiated an arbitration procedure at the International Center for the
Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) at the World Bank in Washington,
D.C. 

Having invested more than $425 million in the state-of-the-art terminal,
Fraport has seen the contracts invalidated after construction and has seen
the completed building seized by armed security men but Fraport still has
not seen any compensation to which it is entitled. 

The firm said it is now 2005 and the government's empty promises of
compensation have remained. 

Fraport is determined to rely upon its rights under international law and is
vigorously pursuing its arbitration before the World Bank's ICSID; Fraport
is confident that its claims will succeed. 

The government and PIATCO has been negotiating to find a viable compromise
agreement to settle the dispute over the new airport's operations. 

However, the continued dispute and legal cases over the operations of the
airport has dragged on and the NAIA 3 remained closed. 

The Office of the Solicitor General said PIATCO lawyers are once again
resorting to propaganda to influence public opinion against the government.
This act of desperation-to proclaim victory in the print media instead of
the proper legal forums-depict a company that is obviously barren in ethics,
obtuse in reasoning, and improper in conduct. 

These propaganda in the world can dissipate the moral force and strong legal
arguments presented by the Philippine government against PIATCO and Fraport.
Instead of issuing press releases, PIATCO should focus on the graft charges
levied against its top officials."


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