And that is why you should avoid Coca Cola

Email from AID

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27^th June, 2006
NANDLAL AND MUKESH GO ON INDEFINITE HUNGER STRIKE AGAINST COCA COLA

The indefinite sit-in going on outside the Coca Cola bottling plant in Mehdiganj village, Varanasi since 23^rd March, 2006, was converted into a relay hunger strike on 23^rd June and today Nandlal, the leader of the movement, and Mukesh, the Gram Pradhan of the neighbouring Nagepur village, decided to intensify their struggle to close down the plant by going on indefinite
hunger strike. The struggle against this plant has been going on since the summer of 2003 and local villagers are fighting for their right to save their groundwater which is under threat because of the operations of the plant, drawing extraordinarily large volumes of water per day. Moreover, a recent Central Pollution Control Board report has revealed that the sludge
generated by the plant contains toxins like Cadmium, Chromium and Lead which pose an additional threat to groundwater contamination. When a senior Coca Cola official, Kalyan Ranjan, came to have a dialogue with the community on the first day of the indefinite sit-in, in response to his query as to what would it take to satisfy the local community he was
told in no uncertain terms that the people would not be satisfied in anything less than the plant shutting down. The struggle has attracted international attention and support. About 55
organization (see below) from all over the world have expressed solidarity
with the movement.
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*SUPPORT INDEFINTE FAST SINCE 27^th JUNE, 2006, BY THE LOCAL LEADERS OF THE
COMMUNITY OUTSIDE THE COCA COLA BOTTLING PLANT IN MEHDIGANJ, VARANASI, INDIA

* The Cola giants are under fire around the world for unethical corporate practices. Community groups are increasingly demanding that Coke and Pepsi stop externalizing their costs and exploiting communities.

A partial list of unethical practices by the Cola giants includes:

(1) Coca Cola involved in assassination of at least 8 union leaders and torture of other workers at company's plants in Colombia over the last five years[1]. Its saga of unjust labour practices transcends commonly held human values. The Global March against Child Labour found child workers in the production of promotional footballs for the company in Pakistan[2].

(2) Coca Cola had to pay $192 million for racial discrimination of its black workers in the USA in 2000[3].

(3) Coca Cola is a major threat to precious ground water resources which common people use for drinking and irrigation purposes. In Plachimada, Kerala, India water has dried up in a radius of 3 km from the plant site[4]. This situation threatens to displace 20,000 local habitants, while at the same time the bottling plant only gives employment to 50 local people[5]. Community groups in Mehdiganj, Sinchawar and Kaladera in India are also protesting dropping water levels owing to the companies activities.

(4) Pepsico and Coca Cola have lobbied with the Congress to cut US funds to WHO[6] after its report on the health effects of high sugar diets.

(5) In India Coca Cola and Pepsi beverages were found to have 30 times more
pesticides than the European Union standard[7]. A High Court ruling requires
these companies to mention pesticide levels on bottles[8].

(6) The sludge coming out of Coca Cola plant has been dumped in neighboring communities in Plachimada, Kerala. BBC found this sludge to contain hazardous toxins including Cadmium and Lead[9].

(7) In Africa Coca Cola did not provide relevant education and treatment on AIDS to its 100,000 employees until a public outcry in 2003[10]. Even after this it provided the relevant services only to a small number of people it considered its employees leaving out a large number of people who were associated with its operations in Africa.

(8) Coca Cola renders 5 times more people, who make locally produced drinks, jobless than it employs[11]. Dropping water levels and increasing toxicity in the water have also affected agrarian livelihoods. It is a drain on the local and rural economies.

(9) Coca Cola has been guilty of tax evasion in various countries [12]. In Mehdiganj, Varanasi Coca Cola has encroached upon village commons. In spite of the order of a former City Magistrate to demolish the portion of plant illegally built on this piece of land, no action has been taken by the administration. Coca Cola was found guilty of cheating on revenue when it
bought this plant and it was fined. It still has not paid the full amount of Rs. 35 million to the government. On 9^th December, 2005, the Company attempted to encroach upon a 100 metres road belonging to the Village Sabha in Sinhachawar, Ballia. The vigilant villagers foiled the attempt.

(10)Coca Cola influences media to stall stories unfavorable to it[13]. A number of Universities including New York University and Rutgers University have canceled their contracts with Coca Cola because they believe evidence shows that Coca Cola is involved in unethical practices.
While Cola companies reserve the right to make profits ethically, they externalize costs of production on to local and global communities which is exploitative and unethical. We oppose this. They externalize their costs through unfair wages and work conditions, through dumping of hazardous wastes on local environments and through withdrawal of millions of liters of
water ever yday, affecting health and livelihoods of local communities. There can be no recompense for losing access to water or ill health owing to exposure to toxins. These practices of the Cola companies are unjust and exploitative on a global scale. We believe that in the globalized world, communities must act globally to end such practices. We demand the Coca Cola and Pepsico stop production of their products till such time that they make products without exploitative methods and without externalizing the costs of production. Until such a time, as members of a global community, we hold these companies responsible for their actions. As consumers, we boycott their products and call upon other community groups to do so as well.

Endorsements:
National Alliance of People's Movements, Lok Samiti, Sajha Sanskriti Manch,
Gaon Bachao Sangharsh Samiti, Mehdiganj, Campaign to Stop Killer Coke (US),
Asha Parivar, Narmada Bachao Andolan, Socialist Front, Sajhi Duniya,
Samajwadi Jan Parishad, Loktantrik Samajwadi Party, Mahila Swarojgar Samiti,
Mahila Chetna Samiti, Prerna Kala Manch, Vision, Path, Grasses, Vidya
Ashram, PVCHR, PUCL, Gandhian Institute of Studies, Guria, Bhagat Singh
Youth Brigade, Prayas Prashikshan Samiti, Aasra, Jeevandan Samiti, Sarva
Sewa Sangh, Gramya, SARC, Chatra Asmita Bachao Manch, People for Animals,
Mitra, Shikhar Prashikshan Sewa Sansthan, Asmita, Achrumata Machuara
Sangathan (Tikamgarh), INSAF, Plachimada Solidarity Committee, Lok Raj
Sangathan, South Asia Parternership (Pakistan), Pakistan Social Forum,
Iniciativas de Economia Alternativa y Solidaria (Spain), EKTA (Committee for
Communal Amity), Mumbai, South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People,
Community Development Library (Bangladesh), Association for Advocacy and
Legal Initiatives, Sahayog, Corporate Accountability International (US),
Polaris Institute (Canada), Minnesota Metro Women's International League for
Peace and Freedom - Corporations vs. Democracy Committee (US), Ideas to
Mobilize People Against Corporate Tyranny (US), Avalon High School Amnesty
Chapter, Minnesota (US), Anti War Committee (US), Coalition for an
Egalitarian and Pluralistic India (US), South Asia Forum (US), World Council
of Arya Samaj, Minnesota Alliance of Peacemakers (US)
Contact:
Nandlal, Lok Samiti, Mehdiganj, Raja Talab, Varanasi, PIN 221311, India,
Ph: 542-2632433, Mobile: 9415300520, 9839017693, e-mail: napm_up@yahoo.com
Sandeep, Asha Parivar, A-893, Indira Nagar, Lucknow-226016, India, Ph: 522-2347365, Mobile: 9839073355, 9415022772, e-mail: ashaashram@yahoo.com
Carola Reintjes, IDEAS, Iniciativas de Economia Alternativa y Solidaria,
Avda. Amargacena, P.9-N.7-14013 Cordoba-Espana (Spain), Ph: 34 957429233,
www.ideas.coop, creintjes@ideas.coop Sanat Mohanty, 3104, 40^th Ave., South,
Minneapolis, MN 55406, USA, Ph: 612 623 3802, sanat.mohanty@gmail.com, mohantysanat@yahoo.com References [1]
"Colombia Coke Bottler Faces Death Suit", Stefan Armbruster, BBC News,
04.04.03 [2] Global March against Child Labour, "Report on Child Labour in
Football Production in Pakistan", May 2002 [3] Les Echos FRA 17/11/2000; May
1 2000, San Francisco Bay Guardian,
http://www.commondreams.org/views/050100-108.htm;
http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/national/2000/11/17/11540.htm
[4] CorpWatch India, Nityanand Jayaraman, 28/05-02,
http://www.corpwatchindia.org/issues/PID.jsp?articleid=1603
[5] Denise Commane and Eric Toussaint, www.cadtm.org <http://www.cadtm.org/>
, 11th March, 2004 [6] The Guardian, April 21, 2003,
http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,3604,940287,00.html
[7] Report of the /Joint Committee on Pesticide Residues in and Safety
Standards for Soft Drinks, Fruit Juices and other Beverages/ of Indian
Parliament, January 27, 2004, the /Center for Science and Environment/,
India and /Pesticide Action Network//PAN (http://www.pesticideinfo.org
<http://www.pesticideinfo.org/>), including extremely dangerous pesticides
such as DDT and Lindane [8] http://www.rediff.com/money/2004/dec/06cola.htm
[9] http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3096893.stm
[10] http://www.treat-your-workers.org/
<http://www.treat-your-workers.org/> ,
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines02/1017-02.htm
<http://www.commondreams.org/headlines02/1017-02.htm> ,
http://edition.cnn.com/BUSINESS/programs/yourbusiness/stories2001/coke.aids/
[11] The plant in Mehdiganj, India produces 250,000 litres of Coca Cola in a
day and employs about 500 people. Assuming one person could produce and sell
100 litres of a local drink per day, 2,500 will be employed.
[12] http://www.indiaresource.org/news/2004/1016.html,
http://www.indiaresource.org/news/2005/1071.html,
http://www.thesouthasian.org/archives/000383.html
[13] Bobby Ramakant (bobby@hdnet.org) was requested by South Africa
Broadcasting Corporation not to mention Coca-Cola by name when he was being
interviewed about human rights violations of protestors outside Coca Cola
plant in Varanasi, India in November, 2004.