IT’S the secret society that includes the world’s most powerful
people, and could shape the future of the globe — and you’ve never heard of it.
But this is not the G7, it’s the highly exclusive Bilderberg
meeting, an altogether more discreet affair starting Thursday.
Held in an Austrian luxury hotel cordoned off by armed police
and with military choppers overhead, this four-day pow-wow brings together
around 140 movers and shakers from politics, high finance, business and
academia.
They include several prime ministers, a host of bankers,
technology gurus, former US secretary of state Henry Kissinger, the head of
NATO and top executives like Eric Schmidt of Google and Ryanair boss Michael
O’Leary.
Critics deplore the fact that unlike last weekend’s Group of
Seven meeting in nearby Bavaria, no press are allowed, giving rise to
accusations of secrecy and suspicions of dishonest goings-on.
But organisers say that since the gathering in Telfs-Buchen — last
year it was in Denmark — is away from prying eyes it allows those attending to
talk freely about the hot-button issues of the day.
The event, founded in 1954 and aimed at “fostering dialogue
between Europe and North America”, is held according to the so-called Chatham
House Rule, according to the Bilderberg website.
This means that “participants are free to use the information
received, but neither the identity nor the affiliation of the speaker(s) nor of
any other participant may be revealed”.
“Thanks to the private nature of the conference, the
participants are not bound by the conventions of their office or by pre-agreed
positions. As such, they can take time to listen, reflect and gather insights,”
it says.
And anybody expecting a closing press conference or statement
will be disappointed: “There is no detailed agenda, no resolutions are
proposed, no votes are taken, and no policy statements are issued,” the website
says.
ROYAL BLESSING
Those present include British finance minister George Osborne,
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte, senior figures from the media and even royalty
in the form of Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands.
Other attendees include former CIA head David Petraeus, fellow
top soldier John Allen, now US presidential envoy to the coalition against
Islamic State militants, economist Martin Feldstein and eurogroup head Jeroen
Dijsselbloem.
According to the official agenda, the topics include artificial
intelligence, cybersecurity, chemical weapons, Greece, Iran, the Middle East,
NATO, Russia, the United Kingdom and something called “threats”.
Absent though, unlike at the G7, or in December’s crunch UN
talks in Paris aimed at securing a global agreement on global warming, is the
burning issue of climate change.
Nor is there any specific mention of world hunger or inequality.
The large majority of attendees are male.
Security around the venue in western Austria is ultra-tight,
with police stopping anyone not invited getting anywhere near the venue — on
pain of a 500-euro ($A725) fine.
Some 2,100 extra police will be on duty over the coming days,
with protesters planning to stage a demonstration on Saturday, and the only
road leading to the hotel is blocked.
And for good measure, the Kronen-Zeitung tabloid cited the
military as saying a “special low-altitude radar is in position and Kiowa
helicopters armed with machine guns are carrying out patrols”.
CONSPIRACY THEORIES
Because of the secretive nature of the meeting and the high
status of attendees, Bilderberg has been the subject of just about every
conspiracy theory under the sun.
Prominent conspiracy theorist David Icke believes it is secretly run by lizard people,
while others believe the leaders are attempting to install a one-world
government.
Former (UK) Labour politician Denis Healey, who helped found the
group, told The Mirror last year: “To say we are 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.”
News.com
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