Maynooth Boycott Campaign Referendum

national | rights, freedoms and repression | news report

Wednesday May 05, 2004 11:20

by David - Maynooth Boycott Cpke Campaign

Vote Yes today in the library or Arts Block

Info on the Coke Boycott Campaign

1 Coke Boycott campaign has been called by the workers union, Sinaltrainal, in conjunction with the International Labour Rights Fund and World Social forum.

2. This is part of a wider campaign to end paramilitary violence against all workers in Colombia. 3/4 of all trade unionists killed in the world are from Colombia.

3. There has been credible evidence that Panamco and Bebidas, licenced Coca-Cola bottlers, are employing the paramilitary organisation, AUC, to provide security services. This is illegal under American law and such support enables these paramilitaries to continue murdering Colombian people and poisoning the world through their drug trafficking activities. American courts refuse to investigate these claims.

4. Sinaltrainal are involved in a campaign to unite all unions in Colombia to stop Multinationals from supporting paramilitaries. After drug trafficking, Multinationals provide the second largest source of income to right wing terrorists in Colombia.

5. 8 Sinaltrainal Union leaders employed at Coca-Cola bottling plants have been killed by paramilitaries since 1989. many others have been kidnapped, assaulted and their families have also been targeted.

6. The plant manager at a Bebidas facility in Carepa publicly announced that he had ordered the paramilitary to destroy the Sinaltrainal union. Paramilitary leaders have boasted that they were being employed by Coca-Cola bottlers to destroy the Unions.

7. After Isidro Gil was murdered inside a bottling plant in 1996, the plant manager allowed the paramilitaries hold a workers assembly where they threatened the lives of Sinaltrainal members. The plant manager had already prepared forms for the workers to sign renouncing their Union membership. This shows blatant collusion

8. 2 months later, with the Sinaltrainal union decimated at Carepa, the plant manager fired all the workers and re-hired workers at 1/3rd the wages of the unionised workforce.($130 a month)

These are only a selection of the allegations against Coca-Cola. Far more evidence exists. Check out some of the following websites. www.laborrights.org www.lasc.ie www.killercoke.org www.indymedia.ie www.corpwatch.org

VOTE YES in Maynooth on WED. 5th MAY 2004!!