Why is it so unique . Because it is in beijing, headquarters of the China Investment corporation. How much do you have to invest . We have 200 billion. 200 billion . 200 billion. This is the funds president , gao xiqing. He has poured billions into investment houses on wall street, causing some concern here in the u. S. We think, based on your historical behavior, china, that youre gonna do mischief in our economy. [ticking] hey, how you doing . Oh, im doing well. How are you doing, sir . How you doing, scott . Good to see you. Is davos the most important meeting on earth . Well, the top of the alps is a long way to come for the rich and powerful, but youll run into billionaire george soros; eric schmidt, the guy who runs google; nobel prize winners; captains of industry; kings; and even a queen. Lot of the work is done just sitting in the cafeteria in the Congress Hall and just seeing people pass by and discussing things. The queen hangs out in the cafeteria . I enjoy hanging out in the cafeteria. Im gonna do it this afternoon, actually. Its fun. Welcome to 60 minutes on cnbc. Im steve kroft. In this episode, well look at the yin and yang of international investment. First, a 2008 report on an American Company in serious trouble in colombia, a country that was just beginning to emerge from the throes of civil war and narcoterrorism. Chiquita brands international, of cincinnati, ohio, made millions growing bananas there, only to emerge with its reputation splattered in blood after acknowledging that it had paid nearly 2 million in protection money to a murderous Paramilitary Group that has killed or massacred thousands of people. When we first reported this story, it became clear that that admission cost the company dearly. From the air, the plains of the uraba region are carpeted with the lush foliage of banana plantations, which have long provided a livelihood for the people of northern colombia. And for the better part of a century, its best known product has been the chiquita banana. Im chiquita banana wont you come with me . To the bank of bananas natures treasury but since the 1980s, the business of bananas has much less festive and punctuated with gunfire. First, the area was taken over by marxist guerillas called the f. A. R. C. , whose ruthlessness at killing and kidnapping was exceeded only by the private Paramilitary Army that rose up to fight them. Chiquita found itself trying to grow bananas in the middle of a war in which the colombian government and its army was of no help. These were lands where there was no law. It was impossible for the government to protect employees. Fernando aguirre, who became chiquitas ceo long after all this happened, says the company was forced to pay taxes to the guerillas when they controlled the territory in the late 80s and early 90s, and when the paramilitaries, known as the a. U. C. , moved in in 1997 they demanded the same thing. It was a dilemma about having literally a gun pointed to your head, where you have someone who says, either you pay me, or im going to kill you, or, im going to kill your employees. Did the paramilitaries state, specifically to you, that if you didnt make the payments, your people would be killed . There was a very, very strong signal that if the company would not make payments, things would happen. And since they had already killed at least 50 people, the employees of the company, it was clear to everyone there that these guys meant business. Chiquita only had a couple of options, and none of them were particularly good. It could refuse to pay the paramilitaries and run the risk that its employees could be killed or kidnapped, it could pack up and leave the country all together and abandon its most profitable enterprise, or it could stay and pay protection, and in the process, help finance the atrocities that were being committed all across the countryside. These were extortion payments. Either you pay or your people get killed. And you decided to pay. And the company decided to pay, absolutely. So youthere was no doubt in your mind that these were very bad people. Absolutely. Absolutely. No doubt. Just how bad was already becoming evident. The paramilitaries, who were funded initially by large landowners, and later by the cocaine trade, not only drove the marxist guerillas from the area, they tried to eliminate anyone who might have leftist sympathies, from labor leaders to school teachers. Sometimes entire villages were wiped out in the most grisly fashion. Gloria cuartes was the mayor of apartado, and witnessed much of it with her own eyes. [speaking spanish] i was a mayor whose job was just to gather the dead. In 1996 she went to this school to talk to the children about the violence that surrounded them, and while she was there, the paramilitaries arrived and murdered a 12yearold boy, whose only crime had been to announce their presence. They cut off his head and threw the head at us. I went into a state of panic. They were there for four hours, with their weapons, firing shots toward the ceiling. One hundred girls and boys were with me. The children did not scream. They were in shock. Did they said anything to you . No. Their language was death. Their message was that if they could do this to children, they could do it to me. As the atrocities piled up all across the country, chiquita continued to make the payments to the paramilitaries, viewing itself as a victim of the violence, not a facilitator. But all of that changed in 2001 when the u. S. Government designated the paramilitaries a terrorist organization, making any kind of Financial Assistance to the group, coerced or otherwise, a felony. Yet chiquita continued to make the payments for another two years, claiming it missed the governments announcement. It was in the newspapers. It was in the cincinnati enquirer, which is where your Company Headquarters is. It was in the new york times. I mean, this is a big part of your business, doing business in colombia. How did you miss it . Well, again, i cant i dont know what i what happened during that time frame, frankly. What i know is all the data shows that the company, the moment it learned that these payments were illegal in the United States, thats when they decided to selfdisclose to the department of justice. By selfdisclose, he means chiquita, on the advice of its attorneys, turned itself in to the Justice Department, and one of the first things aguirre did when he became ceo was to stop the payments and sell the companys colombian subsidiary. The company pled guilty to a felony and agreed to pay a 25 million fine, but that wasnt the end of its legal problems. [ticking] chiquita faces angry victims and their lawyers. And you believe that chiquita knew that this money that they were paying was being used to go in the villages and massacre people . If they didnt, they would be the only ones in the whole country of colombia who didnt think that. When 60 minutes on cnbc continues. [ticking] hey did you know that honey nut cheerios has oats that can help lower cholesterol . And it tastes good . Sure does wow. Its the honey, it makes it taste so. Well, would you look at the time. Whats the rush . Be happy. Be healthy. Engineer rolling. Take 13. Geicos defensive driver, good student and multipolicy discounts could save you hundreds of dollus. Engineer uh geicos discounts could save you hundreds of dollars. It sounds like youre saying dollus. Dollus. Engineeif you could accentuate the r sound of dollars. Are. Are. Are. Engineer are. Arrrrrr. Arrrrr. Someone bring me an eye patch, i feel like a bloomin pirate. Geico. Fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. Honestly, i feel like i nailed that. Attorney Terry Collingsworth has filed one of five lawsuits that have been brought against Chiquita Brands international, seeking money for the families of colombians killed by the paramilitaries. He says the money chiquita paid to the guerillas for seven years may have kept its employees safe, but it also helped buy weapons and ammunition that were killing other people. This company has blood on its hands. Are you saying that chiquita was complicit in these massacres that took place down there . Absolutely. If you provide knowing substantial assistance to someone who then goes out and kills someone or terrorizes or tortures someone, youre also guilty. And you believe that chiquita knew that this money that they were paying was being used to go into the villages and massacre people . If they didnt, they would be the only ones in the whole country of colombia who didnt think that. Youre not saying that chiquita wanted these people to be killed . No. They were indifferent to it. Instead of wanting those people dead, they were willing to accept that those people would be dead in order to keep their banana operation running profitably and making all the all the money that they did in colombia. You think they should have just picked up and left . Yes. Its easy for a lawyer to give that type of advice after the fact. When you have more than 3,500 workers, their lives depend on you. When youve been making payments to save their lives, you just cant pick up and go. What did the Company Think this money was gonna be used for . Well, clearly, to save lives. The lives of your employees . Absolutely. It was also being used to kill other people. These groups were funded with hundreds of millions of dollars. They had the guns, they had the bullets, so i dont know who in their right mind would say, well, if chiquita would have stopped, these killers would have stopped. I just dont see that happening. Do you feel that the company has any responsibility to compensate the victims of the paramilitaries in colombia . The responsibility of any murders are the responsibility of the people that made the killings, of the people who pulled the trigger. The Justice Department decided not to prosecute any Corporate Officers at chiquita, which included prominent businessmen like former ceo Cyrus Freidheim jr. , who later led the suntimes media group, and board member roderick hills, a former chairman of the securities and exchange commission. The decision created a furor in colombia. The countrys prosecutor general said he would begin his own investigation, and has threatened to extradite some of chiquitas executives to stand trial in colombia. This hearing will come to order. There was also a congressional investigation, led by representative William Delahunt of massachusetts, who chaired a House Foreign Affairs subcommittee in 2008. Youve been quoted as saying that chiquita is the tip of the iceberg. Right. What do you mean by that . Well, i think that there are other American Companies that have conducted themselves the same way that chiquita has, except they havent been caught. How Many Companies . Well, there are several. You want to share that with us . No. Because . Because i want to give those companies an opportunity to come before the committee. We did find one person who was willing to name names inside this maximum security prison outside medellin. Salvatore mancuso was once the leader of the paramilitaries. Chiquita says the reason they paid the money was because your people would kill them if they didnt. Is that true . [speaking spanish] no, it is not true. They paid taxes because we were like a state in the area and because we were providing them with protection which enabled them to continue making investments and a financial profit. What would have happened if the companies had not paid . The truth is, we never thought about what would happen because they did so willingly. Did they have a choice . Yes, they had a choice. They could go to the local police or army for protection from the guerillas, but the army and police at that time were barely able to protect themselves. Mancuso helped negotiate a deal with the colombian government that allowed more than 30,000 paramilitaries to give up their arms and demobilize in return for reduced prison sentences. As part of the deal, the paramilitaries must truthfully confess to all crimes, or face much harsher penalties. Was chiquita the only American Company that paid you . All companies in the banana region paid. For instance, there was dole and del monte, which i believe are u. S. Companies. Both the Dole Food Company and Fresh Del Monte produce, which is not affiliated with del monte foods, have issued statements strongly denying that they made payments to the paramilitaries. Fresh del Monte Produce says its colombian operation is limited to a sales office which purchases bananas from independent growers. Dole and del monte say they never paid you any money. Chiquita has been honest by acknowledging the reality of the conflict and the payments that it made. The others also made payments, not only interNational Companies, but also the National Companies in the region. So youre saying dole and del monte are lying . Im saying they all paid. Mancuso has been indicted in the u. S. For smuggling 17 tons of cocaine into the country. He said he was more than willing to tell u. S. Prosecutors anything they wanted to know. Has anyone come down here from the United States, from the u. S. Justice department, to talk to you about dole or to talk to you about del monte or any other companies. No one has come from the department of justice of the United States to talk to us. I am taking this opportunity to invite the department of state and the department of justice, so that they can come, and so i can tell them all that they want to know. And you would name names . Certainly, i would do so. So far, the only company thats been charged with paying money to terrorists in colombia is the one that turned itself in. Do you think if you hadnt gone to the Justice Department and disclosed the situation that anything wouldve happened to you . Well, mr. Kroft, if we hadnt gone to the Justice Department, we probably would not be here talking about this whole issue. No one would know about this. After our story first aired in 2008, Salvatore Mancuso was extradited to the u. S. To face drug charges. The civil suits against chiquita were combined into a federal Class Action Lawsuit while a similar lawsuit against dole was thrown out of court. Chiquita also had to fight a suit brought by its own stockholders, which the company settled for 4 million. [ticking] up next americans worry about a Chinese Investment fund, even as it helps prop up the u. S. Economy. China has so much money that they can spend buying u. S. Companies that the danger is that they can strip these companies. They can strip the companies of jobs, research and development, technology. When 60 minutes on cnbc returns. [ticking] right now, seven years of music is being streamed. A quarter million tweeters are tweeting. And 900 Million Dollars are changing hands online. Thats why the internet needs a new kind of server. One thats 80 smaller. Uses 89 less energy. And costs 77 less. Its called hp moonshot. And its giving the internet the room it needs to grow. This. Is going to be big. Its time to build a better enterprise. Together. And a great deal. Thanks to dad. Nope eeeeh. Oh, guys lets leave the deals to hotels. Com. Ooh that one nice. Got it oh my gosh this is so cool. Awesome perfect yep, and no angry bears. The Perfect Place is on sale now. Up to 40 off. Only at hotels. Com hey did you know that honey nut cheerios has oats that can help lower cholesterol . And it tastes good . Sure does wow. Its the honey, it makes it taste so. Well, would you look at the time. Whats the rush . Be happy. Be healthy. [ male announcer ] you wait all year for summer. This summer was definitely worth the wait. Summers best event from cadillac. Let summer try and pass you by. Lease this allnew cadillac ats for around 299 per month or purchase for 0 apr for 60 months. Come in now for the best offers of the model year. You know, from our 4,000 television commercials. Yep, there i am with flo. Hoohoo watch it [chuckles] anyhoo, 3 Million People switched to me last year, saving an average of 475. [sigh] it feels good to help people save. With great discounts like safe driver, multicar, and multipolicy. So call me today. Youll be glad you did. Cannonbox [splash ] in the wi, as wall street was losing tens of billions of dollars due to the mortgage and credit crises, it wasnt just the fed and congress that came to the rescue. It was something called Sovereign Wealth Funds, pools of money controlled by foreign governments. All together, the funds of countries like abu dhabi and kuwait spent more than 30 billion bailing out our financial system, raising some troubling questions as leslie stahl reported in 2008. Were these mostly undemocratic regimes saving wall street or invading it . One fund was of special concern. It was new, highly secretive, and the fifthlargest in the world. Welcome to the beijing headquarters of the China Investment corporation, where 180 employees are looking for companies to invest in in the west. How much do you have to invest . We have 200 billion. 200 billion . 200 billion. This is the funds president gao xiqing yes, it rhymes with kaching. He decided to pour some of those billions into investment houses on wall street. Was there any thinking in china that, given the subprime crisis in the United States, that china would come to the rescue . Some people will try to put it that way. But, you know, at least its not my thinking. Now, some people consider what youre doing a huge threat. Your real intention is to gobble us up, you know . They see you as vultures, really. I mean, ive seen that word. Or some people say locust. Locusts . The europeans call it locusts. Th