the money machine 2

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The Money Machine - 2 

---

some source material

 

Les actifs des Fondations (terrains, immeubles et autres) sont estims 1,8 milliards de FB en 1994.   La Cour des Comptes danoise (rapport du 7.05.96) donne les dtails suivants : Faelleseje 266 mio DK (1,5 milliards de FB), Estate 80,3 mio DK, Thomas Brocklebank 7 mio DK et Lovdal A/S 6,2 mio DK (environ 500 mio de FB pour ces trois derniers), soit un total de 1,9 milliards de FB. Ces avoirs ne sont que la partie dtectable de la richesse du groupe, qui, selon son ancien financier Henning Bjornlund, se chiffre en milliards de DK.   Un calcul approximatif donne un ordre de grandeur de 300 millions de FB par an, rien que pour les salaires des profs.....

Kurt Simonsen crivait en janvier 1997 dans Extrabladet que 32 mio de dollars ont t transfrs en 1996 du Danemark vers la Suisse. Simonsen donne les numros de comptes et les propritaires la Bikuben-Bank 'e0 Copenhague et de la ABN/Amro-Bank Zurich. Dans les deux cas il s'agit de compagnies du 'groupe', reprsentes notamment par Jytte Nielsen, la dirigeante la plus en vue au sein d'Humana en Europe et en Belgique. Des versements importants date fixe continueraient. Il ne faut donc pas se tromper de l'ampleur de cette entreprise ni de la destination des fonds accumuls : ce jour HPP serait propritaire de pas moins de 30 plantations en Amrique latine, dont une plantation d'eucalyptus de 104.000 ha au Brsil, achete en 1994 ... Shell (!) pour 10 mio de dollars, dont une premire tranche de 3,2 mio en liquide......

Autre exemple : les vtements collects par Humana en Belgique seraient vendus en vrac (en-dessous du prix normal) Humana Hollande, pour les trier dans son centre Bunik.    Humana Belgique rachterait du vtement de premire qualit pour ses magasins (au-dessus du prix).   Rsultat de l'opration : une facture nette en faveur de Humana Hollande et des 'cots' reprsentant jusqu' 80% des dpenses en Belgique.    Est-ce que cette transaction est enregistre dment l-bas ?    Avec ou sans TVA ?   En tous les cas : le trafic transfrontalier de factures et d'argent ne facilite pas les contrles.

Le rsultat de ces faux frais est gnralement que le compte des rsultats d'un Humana national se solde rarement par un norme boni. En outre, l'affectation d'une somme 'pour soutien aux projets de dveloppement' peut reprsenter un pourcentage artificiellement lev par rapport au rsultat rel d'exploitation, c'est dire avant dduction des 'frais'.

[Source: Belgian NGO report]

Former members have for long claimed that Tvind-leaders are living in luxury on Caribbean tax-paradise islands for the money collected by the Tvind "charity" organizations UFF and HUMANA.

[Source:  Anne Ellingsen]

In 1987 Tvinds total capital was estimated at around 31 million. [The Guardian, 1993]

Mr Cooke was puzzled when he received his first pay slip to find instead of the 120 hours he estimated he worked that month, it showed just 18 - but at a much higher pay rate of about 20 an hour. "I raised it and they just gave me some piffle-paffle. Then I found out they did it like that to satisfy the Danish government they paid the minimum wage."  Pearse Cooke, ex volunteer, quoted in the Guardian

 

The starting point for all purchases was that the plantations had to make a profit.   We were not supposed to waste Tvinds money.   No development work takes place in the plantations themselves.   Theyre pure business  [Henning Bjorlund, former Financial Director, quoted in Ekstra Bladet]

 

We had to give all our money to Tvind.    When I joined the Teachers' Group I had to sign an undertaking to covenant all my income to the group.   I have not ever seen any accounts for the money which was invested. Peterson said one day that he thought it was best if we did not see them.  (Steen Thomsen, ex Teachers Group)

 

As my title was that of teacher my wage should have therefore been the minimum for a state teacher which at the time was about 13000 Dkr, more than double my wage. The 8000dkr must have been going somewhere. Straight into Tvind's pockets!   I knew of about 10 other people working within Tvind in my position.  If they all worked under the same conditions I did then that would be a profit to Tvind of 80,000 dkr (or 8,000) per month! Not bad going that is it?

'Martin', former Friskole teacher

 

Weve got one hell of a fine accountant and lawyers who otherwise only work for the best firms in Denmark, you really have to know what you are doing if you want to catch them out.   Were simply too smart.    Unlike everybody else on the political left a phrase I have to say I find meaningless anyway weve always had a nose for money

[Henning Bjornlund, quoted in Ekstra Bladet]

 

The Teachers Group gets a lot of its ideology from Mao Tse-Tung and communist North Korea. They understand the meaning of money and often talk about combating capital with capital, i.e. one needs a lot of money to spread one's ideas.

[Dan's story]

I have heard stories about students who were isolated in villages during their "visit" to Africa without the correct vaccination or medicine with the result that they became very sick and had to flee back to Norway in order to get medical assistance   -   after that Tvind presented them with a huge bill because they had not completed their contract.

[Britta Rasmussen]

 

I also feel I have been cheated by the school and head teacher, because before I came to school, I didn't know I should fundraise 3,500 DKK/per month for 8 months, when I was in China I was told absolutely nothing about this by the Danish lady named Lotte who works in China to enroll Chinese students.

Chinese student in Denmark

it seemed to me that an all-out effort was made to keep as many children at Tvind as possible. The money the children brought in was much more important than their future.

'Martin'

They all receive a salary from the Danish State of more than lets say 200,000 Danish kroner per annum. 500 times 200,000. Thats a hundred million every year. And the individual teacher hardly spends anything himself. And we get more than 100 million every year from the state in student fees. All of it goes into the general account. Although there are some costs, of course. But the investments around the world also earn very nicely. Dammit, I dont know what theyre going to do with all that money  [Henning Bjorlund, former Financial Director, quoted in Ekstra Bladet]

 

The worst, however, is that the main part of the clothes collected from the Humana/UFF containers is sold to Tvind owned companies especially in Eastern Europe, creating hard cash for Tvind.    This is not what the happy donator is told when he or she is putting second hand things into a Humana/UFF container in Vienna, Copenhagen, Stockholm

Steen Thomsen

Some financial documents...had been left in the photocopying room.   In them it clearly stated that I and this teacher, were both "Klasse laere" or Class Teachers.  Under the Danish system this means about 600 dkr extra per month. however, both of us had absolutely no idea that we were class teachers and we were definitely not getting the money.  You can imagine how much money per year this alone can generate if you look at how many teachers Tvind has.  No one can deny that Tvind is a very clever.   In fact I feel that the media and the state are looking in one place while Tvind is making money in another.     'Martin'

 

The Danish gutter press, has made some wild accusations about Tvind that simply are not true. I know that for a fact. However they can provide great cover for other financial deviances. Everything will look perfect on paper for Tvind, look at my contracts, my wage. You will never find a mistake.    However, as I have already mentioned, it is what lies beyond the paperwork, behind the doors of Tvind that matter.   'Martin'

 

I know that money was spent on property and a building in Florida and a luxury ship. The ship was the biggest fibreglass ship in the world and is mainly used to support the luxurious life style of Mr.Petersen.

Steen Thomsen

 

 

 

From the Internet:

"Working Her Way to Africa"
Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine (04/97) Vol. 51, No. 4, P. 151; Giese, William
Working to fulfill her wish of helping children in Africa,
Catherine Cohen first had to raise $5,400 by soliciting money
from strangers. Like other volunteers participating in the
Institute for International Cooperation and Development's (ICCD) volunteer program, Cohen also had to pay $4,600 in tuition. A
recent college graduate in training to volunteer as a teacher and AIDS educator in Zimbabwe, Africa, Cohen collected an impressive average of $212 a day on the streets of Washington, D.C., Detroit and Ann Arbor, Mich. The volunteers approach people walking by
and briefly tell them about their program, offering postcards to contributors. The IICD sends 80 volunteers a year to Africa and Latin America to teach and build schools and other facilities.

 

Faelleseje (1977)

 

From 1972, 85 per cent of every teacher's net income was pooled in the "Saving Association", a kittv which was exempted from taxation by law

In 1985, Danish journalists estimated the Saving Association funds at 60 billion DKr (5.5bn). (Leiv Gunnar Lie)

The most important has undoubtedly been Faelleseje, a corporation established in 1977, whose purpose was "to own and lease property". Faelleseje borrowed money from the Saving Association - these transactions were controlled by the central Teacher Group (led by Amdi Petersen) -and used the money to buy property suitable for new schools.

As soon as a new Tvind school was established, Faelleseje would lease the property to that school's Teacher Group. This created big profits, not only because of state subsidies and the pooling of teachers' wages, but also because Faelleseje was a part of the "ideal" Tvind organisation and therefore was exempt from paying tax as a "charitable foundation". Money went back into the Saving Association by the million.

Both Faelleseje and Estate, another Tvind-funded company, started buying property in the West Indies and the USA. A third company, Thomas Brocklebank, went into shipping.

a l986 Danish law drastically lowered the ceiling for tax-free donations. It introduced a rate of 15 per cent of one's personal income as a maximum tax-deductible gift.   "Lex Tvind", as the law is colloquially termed, severely restricted the flow of state subsidy into the Teacher Group kitty. 

[source: Leiv gunnar lie]

The lawyer of the Tvind empire in all these trades is Kirsten Fuglsbjerg, co-founder of the most important "money-tank" "Faelleseje" in 1977 and one of Amdi's regular and alternating mistresses, over many lucrative years

[source:  Ekstra Bladet 1996]

"It would be far to optimistic to believe that we would get the money back. We can withhold the state subsidy that is due up to the New Year, but then the schools will be bankrupt. They own nothing. Theyve paid everything to Faelleseje," says Anne-Marie Meldgaard.

In 1995 Tvind received 103 million kroner. Demands for 14 million have already been sent to the seven Tvind schools which have been investigated, and more demands are on the way.

"I have asked them whether Faelleseje will show solidarity now that the subsidies stop? The leaders say no.

"I have then asked them whether they can have the rent paid to Faelleseje reduced, once they no longer get a subsidy. They say no.

"I have finally asked them whether Faelleseje will allow individual schools to go bankrupt. The answer to this was affirmative," says Anne-Marie Meldgaard

"Only when Tvind was reported to the police in Holstebro did we suddenly gain access to the accounts from Estate and Faelleseje, which we could not get hold of before," says Anne-Marie Meldgaard.

"At first sight, you only notice minor points about individual schools, it is only when get an overview that it becomes evident that the state funding were channeled into Faelleseje. For instance, the teachers who worked on Tvinds development projects were supported through development funds. But the teachers turned down their salaries. Instead the money went to Faelleseje," says Anne-Marie Meldgaard

[Ekstra Bladet]

I

n Denmark the government pays a large proportion of the salaries for the 600 or so Tvind teachers. Most of them hand over the money to a "general fund".

During the early 1980s Tvind established two charitable foundations, Common Ownership Fund and Estate. Between 1983 and 1987 around 7 million was transferred from the general fund to the foundations to buy properties for the Tvind schools, as well as plantations In St. Vincent, St. Lucia, Grand Cayman and Belize.

Through a third foundation, Thomas Brocklebank, Tvind also acquired B&B Shipping. Its address - P0 Box 103, Bodden Town, Grand Cayman - was the same as those given for at least two other Tvind firms. In 1987 Tvinds total capital was estimated at around 31 million.

[The Guardian

 

some source material

 

Les actifs des Fondations (terrains, immeubles et autres) sont estims 1,8 milliards de FB en 1994.   La Cour des Comptes danoise (rapport du 7.05.96) donne les dtails suivants : Faelleseje 266 mio DK (1,5 milliards de FB), Estate 80,3 mio DK, Thomas Brocklebank 7 mio DK et Lovdal A/S 6,2 mio DK (environ 500 mio de FB pour ces trois derniers), soit un total de 1,9 milliards de FB. Ces avoirs ne sont que la partie dtectable de la richesse du groupe, qui, selon son ancien financier Henning Bjornlund, se chiffre en milliards de DK.   Un calcul approximatif donne un ordre de grandeur de 300 millions de FB par an, rien que pour les salaires des profs.....

Kurt Simonsen crivait en janvier 1997 dans Extrabladet que 32 mio de dollars ont t transfrs en 1996 du Danemark vers la Suisse. Simonsen donne les numros de comptes et les propritaires la Bikuben-Bank 'e0 Copenhague et de la ABN/Amro-Bank Zurich. Dans les deux cas il s'agit de compagnies du 'groupe', reprsentes notamment par Jytte Nielsen, la dirigeante la plus en vue au sein d'Humana en Europe et en Belgique. Des versements importants date fixe continueraient. Il ne faut donc pas se tromper de l'ampleur de cette entreprise ni de la destination des fonds accumuls : ce jour HPP serait propritaire de pas moins de 30 plantations en Amrique latine, dont une plantation d'eucalyptus de 104.000 ha au Brsil, achete en 1994 ... Shell (!) pour 10 mio de dollars, dont une premire tranche de 3,2 mio en liquide......

Autre exemple : les vtements collects par Humana en Belgique seraient vendus en vrac (en-dessous du prix normal) Humana Hollande, pour les trier dans son centre Bunik.    Humana Belgique rachterait du vtement de premire qualit pour ses magasins (au-dessus du prix).   Rsultat de l'opration : une facture nette en faveur de Humana Hollande et des 'cots' reprsentant jusqu' 80% des dpenses en Belgique.    Est-ce que cette transaction est enregistre dment l-bas ?    Avec ou sans TVA ?   En tous les cas : le trafic transfrontalier de factures et d'argent ne facilite pas les contrles.

Le rsultat de ces faux frais est gnralement que le compte des rsultats d'un Humana national se solde rarement par un norme boni. En outre, l'affectation d'une somme 'pour soutien aux projets de dveloppement' peut reprsenter un pourcentage artificiellement lev par rapport au rsultat rel d'exploitation, c'est dire avant dduction des 'frais'.

[Source: Belgian NGO report]

Former members have for long claimed that Tvind-leaders are living in luxury on Caribbean tax-paradise islands for the money collected by the Tvind "charity" organizations UFF and HUMANA.

[Source:  Anne Ellingsen]

In 1987 Tvinds total capital was estimated at around 31 million. [The Guardian, 1993]

Mr Cooke was puzzled when he received his first pay slip to find instead of the 120 hours he estimated he worked that month, it showed just 18 - but at a much higher pay rate of about 20 an hour. "I raised it and they just gave me some piffle-paffle. Then I found out they did it like that to satisfy the Danish government they paid the minimum wage."  Pearse Cooke, ex volunteer, quoted in the Guardian

 

The starting point for all purchases was that the plantations had to make a profit.   We were not supposed to waste Tvinds money.   No development work takes place in the plantations themselves.   Theyre pure business  [Henning Bjorlund, former Financial Director, quoted in Ekstra Bladet]

 

We had to give all our money to Tvind.    When I joined the Teachers' Group I had to sign an undertaking to covenant all my income to the group.   I have not ever seen any accounts for the money which was invested. Peterson said one day that he thought it was best if we did not see them.  (Steen Thomsen, ex Teachers Group)

 

As my title was that of teacher my wage should have therefore been the minimum for a state teacher which at the time was about 13000 Dkr, more than double my wage. The 8000dkr must have been going somewhere. Straight into Tvind's pockets!   I knew of about 10 other people working within Tvind in my position.  If they all worked under the same conditions I did then that would be a profit to Tvind of 80,000 dkr (or 8,000) per month! Not bad going that is it?

'Martin', former Friskole teacher

 

Weve got one hell of a fine accountant and lawyers who otherwise only work for the best firms in Denmark, you really have to know what you are doing if you want to catch them out.   Were simply too smart.    Unlike everybody else on the political left a phrase I have to say I find meaningless anyway weve always had a nose for money

[Henning Bjornlund, quoted in Ekstra Bladet]

 

The Teachers Group gets a lot of its ideology from Mao Tse-Tung and communist North Korea. They understand the meaning of money and often talk about combating capital with capital, i.e. one needs a lot of money to spread one's ideas.

[Dan's story]

I have heard stories about students who were isolated in villages during their "visit" to Africa without the correct vaccination or medicine with the result that they became very sick and had to flee back to Norway in order to get medical assistance   -   after that Tvind presented them with a huge bill because they had not completed their contract.

[Britta Rasmussen]

 

I also feel I have been cheated by the school and head teacher, because before I came to school, I didn't know I should fundraise 3,500 DKK/per month for 8 months, when I was in China I was told absolutely nothing about this by the Danish lady named Lotte who works in China to enroll Chinese students.

Chinese student in Denmark

it seemed to me that an all-out effort was made to keep as many children at Tvind as possible. The money the children brought in was much more important than their future.

'Martin'

They all receive a salary from the Danish State of more than lets say 200,000 Danish kroner per annum. 500 times 200,000. Thats a hundred million every year. And the individual teacher hardly spends anything himself. And we get more than 100 million every year from the state in student fees. All of it goes into the general account. Although there are some costs, of course. But the investments around the world also earn very nicely. Dammit, I dont know what theyre going to do with all that money  [Henning Bjorlund, former Financial Director, quoted in Ekstra Bladet]

 

The worst, however, is that the main part of the clothes collected from the Humana/UFF containers is sold to Tvind owned companies especially in Eastern Europe, creating hard cash for Tvind.    This is not what the happy donator is told when he or she is putting second hand things into a Humana/UFF container in Vienna, Copenhagen, Stockholm

Steen Thomsen

 

The Danish gutter press, has made some wild accusations about Tvind that simply are not true. I know that for a fact. However they can provide great cover for other financial deviances. Everything will look perfect on paper for Tvind, look at my contracts, my wage. You will never find a mistake.    However, as I have already mentioned, it is what lies beyond the paperwork, behind the doors of Tvind that matter.   'Martin'

 

I know that money was spent on property and a building in Florida and a luxury ship. The ship was the biggest fibreglass ship in the world and is mainly used to support the luxurious life style of Mr.Petersen.

Steen Thomsen

 

 

 

From the Internet:

"Working Her Way to Africa"
Kiplinger's Personal Finance Magazine (04/97) Vol. 51, No. 4, P. 151; Giese, William
Working to fulfill her wish of helping children in Africa,
Catherine Cohen first had to raise $5,400 by soliciting money
from strangers. Like other volunteers participating in the
Institute for International Cooperation and Development's (ICCD) volunteer program, Cohen also had to pay $4,600 in tuition. A
recent college graduate in training to volunteer as a teacher and AIDS educator in Zimbabwe, Africa, Cohen collected an impressive average of $212 a day on the streets of Washington, D.C., Detroit and Ann Arbor, Mich. The volunteers approach people walking by
and briefly tell them about their program, offering postcards to contributors. The IICD sends 80 volunteers a year to Africa and Latin America to teach and build schools and other facilities.

 

 

From 1972, 85 per cent of every teacher's net income was pooled in the "Saving Association", a kittv which was exempted from taxation by law

In 1985, Danish journalists estimated the Saving Association funds at 60 billion DKr (5.5bn). (Leiv Gunnar Lie)

The most important has undoubtedly been Faelleseje, a corporation established in 1977, whose purpose was "to own and lease property". Faelleseje borrowed money from the Saving Association - these transactions were controlled by the central Teacher Group (led by Amdi Petersen) -and used the money to buy property suitable for new schools.

As soon as a new Tvind school was established, Faelleseje would lease the property to that school's Teacher Group. This created big profits, not only because of state subsidies and the pooling of teachers' wages, but also because Faelleseje was a part of the "ideal" Tvind organisation and therefore was exempt from paying tax as a "charitable foundation". Money went back into the Saving Association by the million.

Both Faelleseje and Estate, another Tvind-funded company, started buying property in the West Indies and the USA. A third company, Thomas Brocklebank, went into shipping.

a l986 Danish law drastically lowered the ceiling for tax-free donations. It introduced a rate of 15 per cent of one's personal income as a maximum tax-deductible gift.   "Lex Tvind", as the law is colloquially termed, severely restricted the flow of state subsidy into the Teacher Group kitty. 

[source: Leiv gunnar lie]

The lawyer of the Tvind empire in all these trades is Kirsten Fuglsbjerg, co-founder of the most important "money-tank" "Faelleseje" in 1977 and one of Amdi's regular and alternating mistresses, over many lucrative years

[source:  Ekstra Bladet 1996]

"It would be far to optimistic to believe that we would get the money back. We can withhold the state subsidy that is due up to the New Year, but then the schools will be bankrupt. They own nothing. Theyve paid everything to Faelleseje," says Anne-Marie Meldgaard.

In 1995 Tvind received 103 million kroner. Demands for 14 million have already been sent to the seven Tvind schools which have been investigated, and more demands are on the way.

"I have asked them whether Faelleseje will show solidarity now that the subsidies stop? The leaders say no.

"I have then asked them whether they can have the rent paid to Faelleseje reduced, once they no longer get a subsidy. They say no.

"I have finally asked them whether Faelleseje will allow individual schools to go bankrupt. The answer to this was affirmative," says Anne-Marie Meldgaard

"Only when Tvind was reported to the police in Holstebro did we suddenly gain access to the accounts from Estate and Faelleseje, which we could not get hold of before," says Anne-Marie Meldgaard.

"At first sight, you only notice minor points about individual schools, it is only when get an overview that it becomes evident that the state funding were channeled into Faelleseje. For instance, the teachers who worked on Tvinds development projects were supported through development funds. But the teachers turned down their salaries. Instead the money went to Faelleseje," says Anne-Marie Meldgaard

[Ekstra Bladet]

I

n Denmark the government pays a large proportion of the salaries for the 600 or so Tvind teachers. Most of them hand over the money to a "general fund".

During the early 1980s Tvind established two charitable foundations, Common Ownership Fund and Estate. Between 1983 and 1987 around 7 million was transferred from the general fund to the foundations to buy properties for the Tvind schools, as well as plantations In St. Vincent, St. Lucia, Grand Cayman and Belize.

Through a third foundation, Thomas Brocklebank, Tvind also acquired B&B Shipping. Its address - P0 Box 103, Bodden Town, Grand Cayman - was the same as those given for at least two other Tvind firms. In 1987 Tvinds total capital was estimated at around 31 million.

[The Guardian

 

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