> >Colombia Peace Presence Update > > February 13th, 2006 > > > >U.S. and European Universities Boycott Coca-Cola > >Three more university contracts with Coca-Cola have fizzled in the last >two months thanks to student activists who are committed to ending the >alleged abuses by the multinational in relation to the murders of union >leaders in Colombia and natural resource depletion in India. > >"Every time we have another campus removing Coca-Cola from campus or >[when] another one gets involved in the campaign, that just increases the >pressure on the company to clean up its act," said Ray Rogers, an American >activist and president of Corporate Campaign Inc., the company that >created the lobby group Killer Coke. > >On January 1, the University of Michigan (U-M) stopped selling Coke >products on its campus after refusing to renew the university's >contract - worth about $1.4 million - with the global beverage company. > >U-M had requested that Coca-Cola undergo an independent third-party >investigation into the issues surrounding fair labor practices and safe >working environments in Colombia and sustainable environmental practices >in India. (for more info on the U-M boycott go to: >http://www.dailycollegian.com/vnews/display.v/ART/2006/01/31/43dea04264b57) > >On December 9, New York University (NYU) also pulled Coke's products from >its vending machines. According to an NYU statement, the decision to >remove the products was based on a resolution passed by NYU Senate, which >set a deadline of December 8 for the Coca-Cola Company to agree to a >third-party investigation. NYU did not have a contract with Coke, but did >sell their products on campus. (for more information on the NYU boycott go >to: http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/06_04/b3968078.htm) > >A few days earlier, the York University Students' Union (YUSU) in England >passed a resolution in favor of boycotting Coke products. The resolution >notes that the Coca-Cola Company and its affiliates "are responsible for, >by action or omission, the destruction of the union movement. This >destruction has resulted in the assassination of nine workers, the exile >of two, the forced displacement of 48, death threats against 67, and >imprisonment by false accusation for 15 workers who were singled out by >Coca-Cola managers as terrorists and criminals, all of which has >stigmatized and demonized union activities." > >Rogers said Killer Coke encourages universities and colleges not to allow >Coca-Cola to use their campuses as a marketplace for its sales and advertising. > >"No campus that prides itself as having a center of ethics and morality >should be lending its name, logo and credibility," Rogers said. "When >consumers think of Coca-Cola, they should think of a company that has >brought great despair to many people and communities around the world." >Rogers added that 21 institutions worldwide have boycotted Coca-Cola: 13 >in the United States and eight elsewhere. > >Compiled from articles on IndyMedia, El Tiempo, and Associated Press. >
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