Banana giant Chiquita Brands has been ordered to pay $38.3 million to 16 family members of individuals who lost their lives during Colombia's lengthy civil war at the hands of a violent right-wing paramilitary group funded by the company. This decision was made by a federal jury in Florida.
The ruling, delivered on Monday in West Palm Beach, represents the first instance where the company has been held accountable in any of the numerous similar lawsuits currently pending in U.S. courts. It is also a rare judgment that attributes responsibility to a private U.S. corporation for human rights violations in foreign nations.
EarthRights International General Counsel and one of the plaintiff's lawyers, Marco Simons, expressed, “This verdict sends a powerful message to corporations everywhere: profiting from human rights abuses will not go unpunished. These families, victimized by armed groups and corporations, asserted their power and prevailed in the judicial process.”
Chiquita, whose banana operations are headquartered in Florida, responded to the verdict by stating, “The situation in Colombia was tragic for so many. However, that does not change our belief that there is no legal basis for these claims.”
Court documents reveal that Chiquita made payments totaling about $1.7 million to the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC) between 1997 and 2004. The AUC has been held responsible for the deaths of thousands of individuals during that period.
Chiquita has maintained that its Colombia subsidiary, Banadex, only made these payments out of fear that the AUC would harm its employees and operations, as per court records.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro took to social media to question why the U.S. justice system could determine Chiquita's financing of paramilitary groups while Colombian judges have not ruled against the company. He referenced the 2016 peace deal that calls for the establishment of a tribunal to reveal judicial truths.
The verdict, following a six-week trial and two days of deliberations, stems from a case filed by EarthRights International in July 2007, which was later consolidated with several other lawsuits.
One of the attorneys in the case, Agnieszka Fryszman, expressed gratitude towards the jury for their thorough evaluation of the evidence. She stated, “Our clients risked their lives to come forward to hold Chiquita to account, putting their faith in the United States justice system. The verdict does not bring back the husbands and sons who were killed, but it sets the record straight and places accountability for funding terrorism where it belongs: at Chiquita’s doorstep.”
In 2007, Chiquita pleaded guilty to a U.S. criminal charge of engaging in transactions with a foreign terrorist organization, as the AUC had been designated such a group by the State Department in 2001. The company agreed to pay a $25 million fine and was mandated to implement a compliance and ethics program, according to the Justice Department.
