CORRUPTATION

The Corporation is an acclaimed new film, set "to do for capitalism what Jaws did for sharks" - , showing in cinemas from 29 October. Friends of the Earth Scotland is hosting a special screening on Saturday 30 October and is inviting business leaders, politicians and the public to discuss the issues raised by the film.

Featuring Michael Moore, Noam Chomsky and Naomi Klein the film looks at how the corporate institutions' global practices affect people and the environment - offering perspectives as different as those of an American CEO and a Bolivian activist.

Canadian filmmakers Mark Achbar and Jennifer Abbott have a unique way of promoting this film by using corporate marketing to empower people rather han manipulate². They have recruited activist volunteers to do the promotion. Friends of the Earth has taken on this role in Scotland, where the film is showing at cinemas in Edinburgh and Glasgow.

Commenting on the event Friends of the Earth Scotland's Chief Executive Duncan McLaren said:

"This film exposes the reality behind the corporate mask: a psychopath whose weak moral values make even obeying legislation merely optional. It also reveals how Government and society shape the space within which these corporate psychopaths operate. Corporations cannot be allowed to ride roughshod over the people they employ or the environment in which they operate. Tough legislation and tough enforcement can make corporations accountable to people for their actions - and allow the people within them to impose their morals on companies: rather than subjugating their morals to corporate values."

Winner of ten audience awards, including this year's Sundance Film Festival, Based on the book: 'The Corporation: The Pathological Pursuit of Profit and Power' by Joel Bakan this powerful new documentary charts the spectacular rise of an institution aimed at achieving specific economic goals as it also recounts victories against this invincible force.

"A surprisingly rational and coherent attack on capitalism's most important institution ... People on both sides of the globalisation debate should pay attention" The Economist

Friends of the Earth is a member of the Corporate Responsibility Coalition (CORE), which is pressing for binding rules to protect vulnerable communities and the environment from the impact of companies. CORE is supported by Amnesty International Scotland, Scotland's Centre for Human Ecology, Christian Aid Scotland and Oxfam in Scotland.

After the 1pm showing of the film at about 3.45pm the audience is invited to join us for a short discussion (with refreshments) on the issues raised by the film and the role every one of us can play in making corporations accountable. We have invited politicians, activists and representatives from big business and anyone in the audience to take part in a chaired discussion in the cinema while complementary refreshments are being served.

The public can claim FREE exclusive discount voucher by visiting FOE here:

Where: The Filmhouse, Lothian Road, Edinburgh
When: Saturday 30 October 2004 at 1pm