Today: Volkswagen reckons with its past. The impeachment of Rio de Janeiro’s governor. A massive merger that will challenge antitrust authorities. And the progression of the coronavirus in the country.
Volkswagen apologizes for role during dictatorship
German automaker Volkswagen will pay BRL 36 million (USD 6.44 million) in reparations and donations to the families of victims of the Brazilian dictatorship — as well as to human rights initiatives. The payments are part of a settlement that will end three criminal investigations into the company’s role in assisting the Department of Social and Political Order (DOPS) — Brazil’s former political police — which kidnapped, tortured, and killed hundreds of people.
- In a 2017 report led by Volkswagen, historian Christopher Kopper determined that the company’s security crew spied on its staff and told DOPS of any “suspect” activity. Over 100 people were directly impacted by Volkswagen’s relationship with the military.
- In 2015, Volkswagen became the first company to negotiate paying compensation for its role during that period. And, according to Mr. Kopper, “the first time that a German company accepts responsibility for human rights violations against its own workers for events that happened after the end of National Socialism.”
Why it matters....