Criminal charges filed against Saab for bribery in sales of warplane Jas Gripen to South Africa.

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Criminal charges were filed Thursday against Swedish defense company Saab AB for bribery, the organizations Diakonia, Swedish Peace and Arbitration Society and Swedish Fellowship of Reconciliation said in a joint statement.

The reason was the emergence of new facts involving suspected bribery in connection with the sales of Jas 39 Gripen to South Africa in 1999 as well as in the counter purchases that were a part of the agreement. The three organisations brought the charges and now demand that the previously discontinued investigation must be resumed.

"This arms deal may be the biggest corruption scandal that a Swedish corporation has ever been involved in and our nation’s chief prosecutor must leave no stone unturned in efforts to ensure the whole truth is disclosed and that those responsible are brought to justice", Anna Ek, President of the Swedish Peace and Arbitration Society, said in the statement.

New information was presented in the book “Bribery, Power and Aid - Jas and the South Africa affair” (Mutor, Makt och Bistånd - Jas och Sydafrikaffären).

Swedish politicians have supported and devoted a great deal of diplomatic and political energy to convincing South Africa to purchase Jas Gripen, the organisations pointed out. The government gave export credits through EKN (The Swedish Export Credits Guarantee Board) worth 16 billion Swedish kronor as well as multi-billion kronor loans from SEK (The Swedish Export Credit Corporation).