Boeing ICCR Statement May07

Statement to Introduce the Shareholder Proposal Regarding Foreign Military Sales

Contact: Susan Jordan, SSND, Coordinator , Midwest Coalition for Responsible Investment; Phone: 314-638-5453; e-mail: SuMaJor@aol.com

Good morning. I am Sister Susan Jordan and I represent the religious community institutional investors asking Boeing to provide a comprehensive report on its foreign military sales -- government to government and direct commercial sales -- of weapons-related products and services, including offset agreements.

Foreign military sales in fiscal year 2006 nearly doubled those of the previous year, and were the second highest total since 1993. Arsenal-building as a result of weapons sales is one of the greatest obstacles to human progress and the common future of all peoples. The resulting violence does not resolve problems, but fosters a vicious cycle of arms buildup, conflict, poverty, suffering, terrorism, unbridled retaliation, violations of human rights and international humanitarian law, and ecosystem destruction. Foreign sales of weapons generate instability and violence in various regions of our world where US soldiers often face US manufactured weapons. The costs to families and communities afflicted by this violence are immeasurable, and civilians are the principal victims of unchecked weapons flows.

Financial gain and competition are the dominant values governing arms exports in today’s global marketplace. The prevalence of offsets, which send jobs and production overseas, undercuts the argument that arms sales significantly benefit the US economy – and so we are asking that the report include Boeing’s offset agreements.
While Boeing’s assertion is that it does what the government says, Boeing and other weapons companies influence government policy by lobbying, using the ever-revolving door of people from the military or the Department of Defense or the Pentagon, going to one of the weapons companies, and sometimes back again. This is a serious situation which supports the mindset of more weapons, more sales, more sophisticated weapons, more sales, and a situation by which our company and others are promoting certain weapons and weapons systems.

The faith groups of many people at Boeing and in this room have made statements about the arms trade. For example, there are statements calling it a scandal, calling for an end of or at least a reduction of the arms trade, promoting a Code of Conduct, asking those responsible for production and sales to seriously consider the consequences of their decisions.

“Faith communities evaluate companies, not only by what they produce and their impact on the environment, but also by how companies contribute to sustainable community and protect or undermine the dignity of the human person. We believe these companies carry responsibility for the human and moral consequences of their economic decisions.” *

We believe that Boeing needs to seriously consider and evaluate all aspects of its foreign sales, and disclose the specifics of the information our resolution requests. And I ask shareholders to support our proposal.

*“Principles for Global Corporate Responsibility: Bench Marks for Measuring Business Performance” a document by the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR)** coming from faith communities in the United States, Britain, Ireland, and Canada, and developed in consultation with others faith groups around the world.

**All of us who are asking the company to provide the report about foreign sales are affiliated with the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility in New York City. ICCR includes 275 Protestant, Roman Catholic, and Jewish institutional investors -- denominations, religious communities, pension funds, healthcare corporations and dioceses.