THE BILDERBERG GROUP or Bilderberg conference is a select group of around 120-130 individuals who meet every year in an invitation-only conference. The members of this group are the crème-de-la-crème of world politics, business and media. While this group meets annually at high-profile and exclusive venues, generally in Europe, once in every four years, the scene shifts to the United States or Canada. The Bilderberg Group began in the year 1954 as a small network of the high and mighty in Europe and North America who met to discuss the state of the relations between Europe and the US and promote trans-Atlantic cooperation.
Origin of the name Bilderberg:
The Bilderberg Group takes its name from the Hotel de Bilderberg in the Netherlands where the group first met from May 29 to May 31, 1954. Organisational matters are handled by a steering committee of two people from each of the participating nations. Joseph Retinger, a Polish political advisor, émigré and founder of the European Movement took the lead in proposing an international conference to promote trans-Atlantic Cooperation. Retinger is, however, alleged to have been working for the Freemasons, the Vatican, the Mexican government and British intelligence at various times in his life. He was also the Chairman of the European Movement, which campaigned for closer European integration.
Some of the other leading personalities who supported Retinger included Prince Bernhard of the Netherlands, the then Belgian Prime Minister Paul Van Zeeland, and the head of Unilever at that time, Paul Rijkens. The first meeting was a success, which led the organizers to propose an annual conference. A permanent Steering Committee was then set up. When Retinger passed away, Dutch economist Ernst van der Beugel took over as the permanent secretary in 1960. Prince Bernhard served as the meeting’s chairman until 1976, when his name surfaced in the Lockheed scandal. Though there was no meeting that year, the meetings resumed in 1977 under Alec Douglas-Home, the former British Prime Minister. Invites for this conference are sent only to select people from Europe and North America. While the location of their meetings is not secret, the public and press are strictly off-limits.
Important people associated with Bilderberg:
The Bilderberg Group includes the Who’s Who from the higher echelons of international banking, media, governments, royal families and businessmen from Europe and North America. Some of the important personalities who have attended Bilderberg Group meetings include Donald Rumsfeld, the former US defense secretary, Paul Wolfowitz, former U.S. deputy defense secretary and former World Bank head, Bill Clinton, Tony Blair, Leon Brittan, former vice-president of the European Commission, John Deutch, former US deputy secretary of defence, Javier Solana Madariaga, former NATO secretary-general, American billionaire David Rockefeller, the former US secretary of state, Henry Kissinger and many others.
Criticisms:
What has added to the aura of secrecy surrounding the Bilderberg Group is that the proceedings of the meetings are kept secret. There have been allegations that the members of the Bilderberg Group are making decisions that influence people across the world, without any accountability. Another grouse has been that many of those invited are from the world of business, which shows that it is money that does the talking at these conferences. It has also been alleged that Bilderbergers even decide when wars should start and when they should end. Since many of the Bilderbergers head central banks, it has been alleged that they manipulate discount rates, gold prices etc.
Among the positive things it has been associated with include the prompting of the establishment of the European Community. It has also helped to bring Europe closer to North America, especially the United States, which has been very beneficial in those matters where European governments have been at loggerheads with the Americans, like the war in Iraq, the Kosovo issue and many others. Since Bilderbergers know each other personally, this has helped to cement official-level ties between their respective governments. Irrespective of the controversy shrouding the Bilderberg Group, the fact remains that this high-profile group is here to stay and will definitely stay in the news.
The latest meeting of the Bilderberg Group was held in June 2007 at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Şişli, Istanbul, Turkey, shrouded in secrecy as usual.
Additional Reading:
1. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/3773019.stm
2. http://www.prisonplanet.com/archive_bilderberg.html
3.http://www.meta-religion.com/Secret_societies/Groups/The_Bilderberg_Group/bi
lderberg_group.htm
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