Indonesian Logger Known For Violence, Kidnapping Enters Morality Carwash Of IPO
A businessman whose company kidnapped and violently assaulted environmentalists investigating illegal logging in a national park is set to earn millions of dollars from Thursday's initial public offering of Sawit Sumbermas Sarana, a palm oil company with holdings in Indonesian Borneo. Environmentalists are warning responsible investors to steer clear of the IPO.
Abdul Rasyid, the founder of Sawit Sumbermas Sarana (SSMS), became notorious in the late 1990's and early 2000's for illegal logging and timber smuggling by his company Tanjung Lingga, which operated in and around Tanjung Puting National Park.
The Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) — the group that investigated Tanjung Lingga's activities — says that in 2000, "[Rasyid] was named by the Indonesian Government as one of the top 18 illegal logging bosses in the country."
"EIA first documented Rasyid’s illegal logging activities in 1999, tracking valuable logs stolen from Tanjung Puting National Park to sawmills owned by his Tanjung Lingga Group of companies," said EIA in a statement. "On a follow-up investigation in early 2000, an EIA staff member and her Indonesian colleague were abducted and assaulted at gunpoint by Tanjung Lingga staff."
EDIT
http://news.mongabay.com/2013/1211-ssms-ipo.html