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Bilderberg Meeting

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Bilderberg Group
Formation29 May 1954; 70 years ago (1954-05-29)
Membership~150 invitees, smaller core group
Chairman of the Steering Committee
Henri de Castries
Websitewww.bilderbergmeetings.org[1]

The Bilderberg Group, Bilderberg conference, or Bilderberg Club is an annual private conference of approximately 120 to 140 invited guests from North America and Europe, most of whom are people of influence.[2][3] About one-third are from government and politics, and two-thirds from finance, industry, labour, education and communications.[2]

Origin

The original conference was held at the Hotel de Bilderberg in Oosterbeek, Netherlands, from 29 to 31 May 1954. It was initiated by several people, including Polish politician-in-exile Józef Retinger, concerned about the growth of anti-Americanism in Western Europe, who proposed an international conference at which leaders from European countries and the United States would be brought together with the aim of promoting Atlanticism – better understanding between the cultures of the United States and Western Europe to foster cooperation on political, economic, and defense issues.[4] Retinger approached Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands who agreed to promote the idea, together with former Belgian Prime Minister Paul Van Zeeland, and the head of Unilever at that time, Dutchman Paul Rijkens. Bernhard in turn contacted Walter Bedell Smith, then head of the CIA, who asked Eisenhower adviser Charles Douglas Jackson to deal with the suggestion.[5] The guest list was to be drawn up by inviting two attendees from each nation, one of each to represent conservative and liberal points of view.[4] Fifty delegates from 11 countries in Western Europe attended the first conference, along with 11 Americans.[6]

The success of the meeting led the organizers to arrange an annual conference. A permanent steering committee was established, with Retinger appointed as permanent secretary. As well as organizing the conference, the steering committee also maintained a register of attendee names and contact details, with the aim of creating an informal network of individuals who could call upon one another in a private capacity.[7] Conferences were held in France, Germany, and Denmark over the following three years. In 1957 the first U.S. conference was held on St. Simons Island, Georgia, with $30,000 from the Ford Foundation. The foundation supplied further funding for the 1959 and 1963 conferences.[5]

Organizational structure

Prince Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld in 1942

Meetings are organized by a steering committee with two members from each of approximately 18 nations.[8] Official posts, in addition to a chairman, include an Honorary Secretary General.[9] There is no such category in the group's rules as a "member of the group". The only category that exists is "member of the Steering Committee".[10] In addition to the committee, there also exists a separate advisory group, though membership overlaps.[11]

Dutch economist Ernst van der Beugel became permanent secretary in 1960, upon Retinger's death. Prince Bernhard continued to serve as the meeting's chairman until 1976, the year of his involvement in the Lockheed affair. The position of Honorary American Secretary General has been held successively by Joseph E. Johnson of the Carnegie Endowment, William Bundy of Princeton, Theodore L. Eliot, Jr., former U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan, and Casimir A. Yost of Georgetown's Institute for the Study of Diplomacy.[12]

A 2008 press release from the 'American Friends of Bilderberg' stated that "Bilderberg's only activity is its annual Conference. At the meetings, no resolutions are proposed, no votes taken, and no policy statements issued" and noted that the names of attendees were available to the press.[13] The Bilderberg group's unofficial headquarters is the University of Leiden in the Netherlands.[14]

According to the 'American Friends of Bilderberg', the 2008 agenda dealt "mainly with a nuclear free world, cyber terrorism, Africa, Russia, finance, protectionism, US-EU relations, Afghanistan and Pakistan, Islam and Iran".[13]

Chairmen of the Steering Committee

Participants

Main article: List of Bilderberg participants
Chairman of the Federal Reserve Ben Bernanke leaving the 2008 Bilderberg Conference.

Historically, attendee lists have been weighted towards bankers, politicians, and directors of large businesses.[17]

Heads of state, including King Juan Carlos I of Spain and Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, have attended meetings.[9][18] Prominent politicians from North America and Europe are past attendees. In past years, board members from many large publicly traded corporations have attended, including IBM, Xerox, Royal Dutch Shell, Nokia and Daimler.[9]

The 2009 meeting participants in Greece included: Greek prime minister Kostas Karamanlis; Finnish prime minister Matti Vanhanen;[19] Swedish foreign minister Carl Bildt; U.S. Deputy Secretary of State James Steinberg; U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Timothy Geithner; World Bank president Robert Zoellick; President of the European Commission José Manuel Barroso; Queen Sofia of Spain; and Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands.[20]

In 2009 the group hosted a dinner meeting at Castle of the Valley of the Duchess in Brussels on 12 November to promote the candidacy of Herman Van Rompuy for President of the European Council.[21]

In 2013, a source involved in the planning for the group's meeting that year in Watford, UK, was reported to have admitted that people whose names are not publicly issued may sometimes turn up “just for the day”.[22]

Recent meetings

Main article: List of Bilderberg meetings

Criticism

According to chairman Étienne Davignon, a major attraction of Bilderberg group meetings is that they provide an opportunity for participants to speak and debate candidly and to find out what major figures really think, without the risk of off-the-cuff comments becoming fodder for controversy in the media.[31] However, partly because of its working methods to ensure strict privacy, the Bilderberg group is accused of conspiracies.[31][32] This outlook has been popular on both extremes of the political spectrum, even if they disagree on what the group wants to do. Some on the left accuse the Bilderberg group of conspiring to impose capitalist domination,[33] while some on the right have accused the group of conspiring to impose a world government and planned economy.[34]

In 2001, Denis Healey, a Bilderberg group founder and, for 30 years, a steering committee member, said: "To say we were striving for a one-world government is exaggerated, but not wholly unfair. Those of us in Bilderberg felt we couldn't go on forever fighting one another for nothing and killing people and rendering millions homeless. So we felt that a single community throughout the world would be a good thing."[35] In 2005 Davignon discussed these accusations with the BBC: "It is unavoidable and it doesn't matter. There will always be people who believe in conspiracies but things happen in a much more incoherent fashion... When people say this is a secret government of the world I say that if we were a secret government of the world we should be bloody ashamed of ourselves."[32]

In a 1994 report Right Woos Left, published by the Political Research Associates, investigative journalist Chip Berlet argued that right-wing populist conspiracy theories about the Bilderberg group date back as early as 1964 and can be found in Schlafly's self-published book A Choice, Not an Echo,[36] which promoted a conspiracy theory in which the Republican Party was secretly controlled by elitist intellectuals dominated by members of the Bilderberger group, whose internationalist policies would pave the way for world communism.[37] Paradoxically, in August 2010 former Cuban president Fidel Castro wrote a controversial article for the Cuban Communist Party newspaper Granma in which he cited Daniel Estulin’s 2006 book The Secrets of the Bilderberg Club,[38] which, as quoted by Castro, describes "sinister cliques and the Bilderberg lobbyists" manipulating the public "to install a world government that knows no borders and is not accountable to anyone but its own self."[33]

Proponents of Bilderberg conspiracy theories in the United States include individuals and groups such as the John Birch Society,[34][39] political activist Phyllis Schlafly,[39] writer Jim Tucker,[40] political activist Lyndon LaRouche,[41] radio host Alex Jones,[2] and politician Jesse Ventura, who made the Bilderberg group a topic of a 2009 episode of his TruTV series Conspiracy Theory with Jesse Ventura.[42] Non-American proponents include Russian-Canadian writer Daniel Estulin.[43]

See also

References

  1. ^ Gowen, Annie (2 June 2012). "Is Bilderberg a conference on world affairs or a powerful global cabal? Depends on who you ask". The Washington Post.
  2. ^ a b c "Bilderberg mystery: Why do people believe in cabals?". BBC News. 7 June 2011. Archived from the original on 10 June 2011. Retrieved 14 June 2011. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  3. ^ "Japan–U.S. Relations—Past, Present and Future". The Daily Yomiuri. Tokyo. 8 December 1991. Rockefeller: The idea (of creating the Trilateral Commission) was incorporated in a speech that I made in the spring of 1972 for the benefit of some industrial forums that the Chase held in different cities around Europe,... Then Zbig (Zbig Brzezinski) and I both attended a meeting of the Bilderberg Group ... and was shot down in flames. There was very little enthusiasm for the idea. I think they felt that they had a very congenial group, and they didn't want to have it interfered with by another element that would—I don't know what they thought, but in any case, they were not in favor. Cite error: The named reference "Yomiuri1991" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  4. ^ a b Hatch, Alden (1962). "The Hôtel de Bilderberg". H.R.H. Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands: An authorized biography. London: Harrap. OCLC 2359663. The idea was to get two people from each country who would give the conservative and liberal slant
  5. ^ a b Aubourg, Valerie (2003). "Organizing Atlanticism: the Bilderberg Group and the Atlantic Institute 1952–63". Intelligence & National Security. 18 (2): 92–105. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  6. ^ a b c Rockefeller, David (2002). Memoirs. New York: Random House. p. 412. ISBN 9780679405887.
  7. ^ Hatch, Alden (1962). "The Hôtel de Bilderberg". H.R.H. Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands: An authorized biography. London: Harrap. OCLC 2359663. anybody who has ever been to a Bilderberg Conference should be able to feel that he can, in a private capacity, call on any former member he has met
  8. ^ a b "Inside the secretive Bilderberg Group". BBC News. 29 September 2005. Archived from the original on 25 July 2008. Retrieved 5 August 2008. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  9. ^ a b c "Bilderberg Meeting of 1997 Assembles" (Press release). PR Newswire. 13 June 1997. Archived from the original on 30 April 2011.
  10. ^ "Parliamentary questions: Answer given by Mr Prodi on behalf of the Commission". European Parliament. 15 May 2003.
  11. ^ Entry for Conrad Black, The International Who's Who. Europa Publications. 2000.
  12. ^ "Bilderberg: List of Invitees" (PDF). United States Department of Defense. 31 January 1996. Retrieved 6 June 2009.
  13. ^ a b c "Bilderberg Announces 2008 Conference". businesswire.com. BusinessWire. 2008. Retrieved 7 June 2008.
  14. ^ Marcus Klöckner (17 May 2009). "Bilderberg meetings remain a mystery". Stars and Stripes.
  15. ^ a b "Twenty-fifth Bilderberg meeting held in St joseph MO". Facts on File World News Digest. 14 May 1977.
  16. ^ Who's Who. 1999.
  17. ^ Moorehead, Caroline (18 April 1977). "An exclusive club, perhaps without power, but certainly with influence: The Bilderberg group". The Times. London.
  18. ^ Oliver, Mark (4 June 2004). "The Bilderberg group". The Guardian. London.
  19. ^ "Prime Minister Vanhanen and Minister of Finance Katainen to attend Bilderberg Conference" (Press release). Finnish Government. 13 May 2009.
  20. ^ "Bilderberg Group Meets In Athens Amid Tight Security". WikiLeaks. Agence France-Presse. 15 May 2009.
  21. ^ Waterfield, Bruno (16 November 2009). "EU Presidency candidate Herman Van Rompuy calls for new taxes". The Daily Telegraph. London. during a secret dinner to promote his candidacy hosted by the elite Bilderberg Group.
  22. ^ Bilderberg Group? No conspiracy, just the most influential group in the world Daily Telegraph, UK. Published 6 June 2013. Retrieved 6 June 2013.
  23. ^ "The Bilderberg Group: Fiendish plots are a-hatching in Watford". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 31 May 2013.
  24. ^ Skelton, Charlie (2 June 2010). "Bilderberg 2010: Plutocracy with palm trees". The Guardian. London. Archived from the original on 5 June 2010. Retrieved 2 June 2010. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  25. ^ "The most powerful elite will meet in Athens". GRReporter. 23 March 2009. the club will organize its meeting in Athens between 14 and 16 May
  26. ^ "Charlie Skelton's Bilderberg files". The Guardian. London. 15 May 2009. Archived from the original on 18 May 2009. Retrieved 15 May 2009. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  27. ^ "Balkenende to Meet Bush in Washington". nisnews.nl. NIS News Bulletin. 2008. Archived from the original on 9 June 2008. Retrieved 25 May 2008. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  28. ^ What was discussed at Bilderberg?, Turkish Daily News, 5 June 2007. Retrieved 18 August 2007.
  29. ^ Panetta, Alexander (2006). "Secretive Bilderbergers meet". Toronto Star. Toronto Star Newspapers Limited. Retrieved 12 June 2006.
  30. ^ "Asia Times Online :: Asian News, Business and Economy". Archived from the original on 4 August 2007. Retrieved 22 August 2007. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  31. ^ a b "A special report on global leaders". The Economist. 22 January 2011. pp. 12–14.
  32. ^ a b Bill Hayton (29 September 2005). "Inside the secretive Bilderberg Group". BBC News. Archived from the original on 8 February 2011. Retrieved 19 March 2011. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  33. ^ a b Weissert, Will (10 August 2010). "Fidel Castro fascinated by Bilderberg Club conspiracy theory". Christian Science Monitor. Boston, MA. Retrieved 16 October 2010.
  34. ^ a b Wallechinsky, David; Wallace, Irving (1975). The People's Almanac. Doubleday. ISBN 0-385-04060-1.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)[1]
  35. ^ Ronson, Jon (10 March 2001). "Who pulls the strings? (part 3)". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 14 May 2009.
  36. ^ Phyllis Schlafly, A Choice Not An Echo: The Inside Story of How American Presidents Are Chosen (Pere Marquette Press, 1964) ISBN 0-686-11486-8
  37. ^ Chip Berlet (1994). "The New Right & The Secular Humanism Conspiracy Theory".
  38. ^ Daniel Estulin, Los secretos del club Bilderberg (Ediciones del Bronce, 2006).
  39. ^ a b Berlet, Chip (2000). "John Birch Society". Retrieved 6 October 2010. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  40. ^ Iain Hollingshead (4 June 2010). "The Bilderberg Group: fact and fantasy". Retrieved 20 June 2011. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  41. ^ King, Dennis (1979). "NCLC'S Private Intelligence Agency". Our Town. Manhattan: Our Town. Retrieved 14 May 2009.
  42. ^ "List of Season 1 episodes for Conspiracy Theory with Jesse Ventura". truTV. 30 December 2009. Retrieved 11 January 2011.
  43. ^ Bruce Ramsey (30 July 2009). "That Bilderberg Book". The Seattle Times. Retrieved 23 January 2011.

Further reading

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