Italy: Goodbye to arms

It is a new method: a bank decides its arms trade policy with the help of four civil society organisations involved in human rights issues. The bank that has chosen this path is Ubi Bank, Italy?s fourth largest banking institution, a group formed by the fusion of several North Italian credit giving institutions.. The main objective was to align the practices of the different banks within the group along the same set of objective criteria, to avoid their different histories from making them operate in different ways.

The guidelines were approved on the 25th September and were publicly announced the following week.

The associations that were called upon by Uni Bank were positive about the outcome. ?Ubi Bank?s decision is important as it is an answer to the continued demands for transparency and ethical responsibility that have, since 2000 been advocated by the pressure campaign ?armed banks?? said Giorgio Beretta, who coordinated the campaign that was promoted by the magazines Missione Oggi, Mosaico di Pace, and Nigrizia and who works for the Italian pro-disarmament network. Ubi Bank?s number one, Emilio Zanetti, is also very happy about the work that has been achieved.

Vita Europe: What is new about these guide lines?
Zanetti: First of all the way in which we interact with associations. Secondly, the choice of establishing objective indicators: other banks tend to choose more general criteria, and usually the final decision is left to the general manager. But this method introduces a degree of subjectivity that we wanted to eliminate.

Vita Europe: You chose to establish rigid criteria?
Zanetti: It was a step we had to take. No transactions with countries in conflict, nor with those that violate human rights or that sacrifice budgets meant for health and education to military expenditure. We also watch out for evidence of corruption. All this has been codified and follows a set regime.

Vita Europe: But the U.S is in war as well?
Zanetti: You?re right. But we also follow other political criteria, such as the relations established with the Italian government.

Vita Europe: What is your overall assessment of your collaboration with the non profit sector?
Zanetti: Extremely positive. They gave us clear and plausible indicators to follow. They also demonstrated to have a realistic approach to establishing criteria that were both effective and manageable.

The criteria that the Ubi Bank Group has chosen are:

• The lists of the countries in conflict that are included in the Sipri Yearbook of Armaments and International Security;
• Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch reports on the violation of human rights;
• The UNDP human development index.