Read the following article and answer the questions.

Required

(a) Identify the stakeholders in this situation.

(b) Determine the ethical issues (if any) involved.

(c) Comment on the ethics of bribing officials in a country where you are conducting business given that such actions are part of the country’s normal business practice, but they are unacceptable in your own country.

(d) In other articles discussing these activities, reference has been made to a Global Witness report. Provide a dossier on Global Witness (see www.globalwitness.org/).

(e) Locate the charter of BHP’s Risk and Audit Committee. Summarise the role of this committee.

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BHP Billiton hit with $US25m fine over corruption allegations BHP Billiton has been fined by US regulators over hospitality provided to government officials including ones from shady foreign governments during the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. The world's biggest miner has made no admissions but has agreed to pay $US25 million ($30 million) to settle charges that it violated anti-bribery and corruption laws. The settlement deal resolves charges by the US Securities and Exchange Commission that BHP vio- lated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act when it invited officials who were 'directly involved with, or in a position to influence' its business and regulatory affairs. BHP neither admitted nor denied wrongdoing and said the US Department of Justice ended a related criminal probe without taking action. According to the SEC, BHP invited 176 government officials to attend the Olympics at company expense, including 98 who worked for state-owned enterprises that were customers or suppliers, under a 'global hospitality' program tied to its sponsorship of the games. The 60 officials who finally agreed to attend were mainly from Africa and Asia and enjoyed packages worth up to $US16,000 that included luxury hotels, event tickets and sightseeing tours. In an example cited by the SEC, BHP invited a provincial governor from the Democratic Republic of the Congo who was thought to be 'key' to a copper exploration deal BHP was pursuing. The official accepted but later cancelled. However, the SEC says BHP did not properly monitor the invitation pro- cess or train employees to ensure that the program would remain untainted by bribery.