INTO sells out for free bottle of coke

Wednesday April 14, 2004 12:54

by INTO DELEGATE

There were angry scenes at today's INTO conference when delegates attacked the union's endorsement of a 'killer coke' stand in the conference foyer at the main entrance to the conference.

Handwritten posters protesting Killer coke were distributed around the conference. A petition was circulated among the delegates and a number of speakers denounced the stand to loud applause.

One delegate, John McAnulty of East Down INTO, halted the business of conference under standing orders to demand the removal of the stand.

He condemned what he claimed was a deliberate policy of support for coke - one third of INTO Northern delegates had voted for a boycott, The union had been contacted by Columbian trade unionists and were well aware of the boycott call. They were also aware of the debate in the trade union movement and that even unions opposed to the boycott stopped well short of actually supporting or promoting coke.

The union leaders have promised a statement later

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Comments (11 of 11)

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Mon Aug 02, 2004 17:53

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unlisted

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Mon Aug 02, 2004 17:52

TUI Vote to Boycott Coke

by mecca cola

Sun Apr 18, 2004 19:14

Good on Them

INTO Wants Coke For Kids: It will not Not Inform It's Members About GATS.

by Peter Sutherlands Nemesis

Thu Apr 15, 2004 17:04

I do not find it surprising that the INTO Leadership allowed a global for-profit anti-democratic entity like Coca Cola to distribute free products at their annual conference.

The main four reasons I am not surprised are:

1.
The GATS (General Agreement on Trade in Services) of the WTO (World Trade Organisation) is an international [progressive liberalisation] trade law which has the privatisation of all secondary and third level education systems as one of its main objectives. See: http://www.gatswatch.org/educationoutofgats/ . Coca Cola are one of many global corporations spending a lot of money promoting the GATS.

2.
Most members and leaders of the INTO have no idea the GATS exists. Of those few who do they are either professionally negligent in failing to demand a debate on the implications of GATS, or are complicit with the GATS in their silence in that they want the privatisation of education and want reduced working conditions and pensions for education workers.

3.
The only teachers union people that do know about GATS and realise it means the Law Of The Market coming to education and reject this, are the ASTI (Association of Secondary Teachers, Ireland). This is the reason the Irish corporate media gives ASTI such a terrible hard time. See for example:
http://www.ireland.com/newspaper/front/2002/0403/844285391HM1ASTI.html

People like Pat Cahill and the membership of the ASTI know that Benchmarking is not just about Benchmarking, it is about removing pensions and about the sectioning and sub-sectioning and compartmentalising of each tiny part of a teachers job so that piece by piece the private sector can be brought in to take over the system. This will only be (a) practically possible when the EU Commission includes education in its submission to GATS as a result of being legally allowed to do so under the proposed EU Draft Constitution in its current form, and (b) politically possible in Ireland when the government is able to say 'There's nothing we can do legally to stop it (as a result of GATS and the EU)’.

The GATS and the inability and reticence of the media (and Teachers Unions) to link GATS and education and government policy is the reason why the former president of the ASTI, Bernadette O'Sullivan, ran for the Seanad. See bottom right of page: http://www.ireland.com/newspaper/front/2002/0121/ Because she was a high profile character that had the altruism and bravery to link GATS and Benchmarking and Privatisation, she was personally hounded, vilified in the media with rude and spurious insults and bullshit spread in media about her. That’s what happens people who raise their heads above the parapet and speak the truth. The only paper that would carry her voice was the Business Post, see:
http://archives.tcm.ie/businesspost/2002/04/07/story317461.asp

4. The GATS is also all about removing the ability of governments, parents, teachers, school boards, NGOs etc to be able to for example (i) ban junk food in schools, or (ii) ban adverts for junk food in schools. GATS is also about removing the right of governments to refuse corporations like Coca Cola the contract to print school books - this is already happening in the USA where maths books add two bottles of coke to three bottles of coke and what do we get … [not health apples and oranges anyway].

So in conclusion it would appear
(a) the Irish corporate media is refusing to link the WTO GATS with benchmarking and privatisation with its hatred of ASTI,
(b) that the INTO will be more than happy to see Coca Cola win the contract to write and publish the secondary school books in Ireland,

At least the INTO have firmly nailed their colours to the mast now:
DOWN with high quality free education for all.
UP with schools for them that can afford it
UP with private-profit from schools.

Can't wait for the pamphlet

by (L)SD watch

Thu Apr 15, 2004 11:24

Seeing as how John's lot write a denouncitory pamphlet on all important events, I am really looking forward to this one.
Should be interesting to see what leftists he blames on his stopping of conference not being successful.

Shorley shome mishtake

by Des Derwin

Thu Apr 15, 2004 02:17

Coca Cola promotions at trade union conferences?

That'll finally take the teeth out of the movement.

in cokus parentis

by guy bague

Thu Apr 15, 2004 01:27

guybague at eircom dot net

n.a

Teacher's doing coke? Shame. How else can we distinguish them from the students...

no problem with them being there

by pc

Wed Apr 14, 2004 21:28

if it been advertised beforehand
they could give out info but they shoudln't give out product

freebies for everyone

by second hand

Wed Apr 14, 2004 16:26

My second hand understanding of the event was that Coke had a stall inside the union conference and handed out free products and propaganda (or publicity as they would see it) to delegates. They were there with the permit of the INTO executive.

Confusing

by Starstruck - UCD Left

Wed Apr 14, 2004 16:22

An update on that or even a clarification as to the nature of what happened would indeed be welcome..

more details

by conor (wsm personal capacity)

Wed Apr 14, 2004 15:49

Sounds very interesting but you don't say exactly what happened

- in what way were they supporting coke - freebies for the delegates ?

Maybe I'm just out of touch

Conor

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INTO sells out for free bottle of coke

Comments (11 of 11)