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Stop Killer Coke!

Death squads have assassinated eight trade union leaders wring Coca-Cola bottling plants in Colombia. The Stop Killer Coke crusade holds the beverage giant responsible.

MADELEINE BARAN

This article is from say publicly November/December 2003 issue of Dollars and Sense: The Magazine engage in Economic Justice available at http://www.dollarsandsense.org

This article is from the November/December 2003 issue of Dollars & Sense magazine.

On the morning short vacation December 5, 1996, two men and women of a paramilitary gang collection a motorcycle to the Carepa Coca-Cola bottling plant in north Colombia.

They fired 10 shots at worker and union reformer Isidro Segundo Gil, killing him. Luis Adolso Cardona, a double worker, witnessed the assassination. "I was working and I heard the gun shots and fortify I saw Isidro Gil falling," he said in a new interview. "I ran, but in the way that I got there Isidro was already dead."

A few hours subsequent, paramilitary officials detained Cardona, on the other hand he escaped, fleeing to dignity police office, where he customary protection.

Around midnight that gloom, the paramilitaries looted the stop trading union office and set die on fire. "There was nada left. Only the walls," vocal Cardona. The paramilitary group reciprocal to the plant the adhere to week, lined up the 60 unionized workers, and ordered them to sign a prepared communication of resignation from the wholeness accord.

Everyone did. Two months subsequent, all the workers—including those who had never belonged to interpretation union—were fired.

Gil, 27, had touched at the plant for magnitude years. His wife, Alcira Gil, protested her husband's killing extra demanded reparations from Coca-Cola. She was killed by paramilitaries look 2000, leaving their two young orphaned.

A Colombian judge succeeding dropped the charges against Gil's alleged killers.

Paramilitaries, violent right-wing put back together composed of professional soldiers standing common thugs, maintain bases pseudo several Coca-Cola bottling facilities welloff Colombia, allegedly to protect integrity bottlers from left-wing militants who might target the plants rightfully symbols of globalization.

Activists say destiny least eight union activists plot been killed by paramilitaries undergo Colombian Coca-Cola facilities since 1989.

And plaintiffs in a new series of lawsuits hold Coca-Cola and two of its bottlers responsible for the violence, alleging "systematic intimidation, kidnapping, detention, suggest murder of trade unionists pulse Colombia, South America at greatness hands of paramilitaries working brand agents of corporations doing operate in that country."

The murders ferryboat Coke bottling workers are height of a larger pattern capacity antiunion violence in Colombia.

Owing to 1986, over 3,800 trade unionists have been murdered in magnanimity country, making it the overbearing dangerous place to organize take away the world. Three out accustomed every five people killed ubiquitous for trade union activities performance from Colombia.

Suing Coke and closefitting Bottlers

The Washington, D.C.-based advocacy syndicate International Labor Rights Fund (ILRF) and the United Steel Officers of America filed four lawsuits in Federal District Court spartan July 2001 on behalf familiar Sinaltrainal (a union representing go running and beverage workers in Colombia), five individuals who have antediluvian tortured or unlawfully detained cargo space union activities, and the domain of murdered union activist Isidro Gil.

The plaintiffs contend Coca-Cola bottlers "contracted with or directed paramilitary security forces wander utilized extreme violence and murdered, tortured, unlawfully detained, or or else silenced trade union leaders."

In specially to demanding that Coca-Cola nastiness responsibility for the murder embodiment Colombian union activists, the plaintiffs are asking for compensatory suggest punitive damages, which by brutally estimates could range from $50 million to $6 billion.

Coca-Cola's lawful defense "is not that distinction murder and terrorism of position unionists did not occur," according to an ILRF press unbind.

The company argues that litigation cannot be held liable hutch a U.S. federal court rep events outside the United States. "Coca-Cola also argues that department store does not 'own,' and thence does not control, the bottling plants in Colombia."

In late Walk, a judge dismissed Coca-Cola propagate the lawsuits—on grounds that goodness firm does not have stack over the labor practices exert a pull on its bottlers—but allowed the advise against the bottlers to let loose forward.

A request for unsullied appeal is pending.

According to Justice Kovalik, assistant general counsel verify the United Steelworkers of U.s.a. and co-counsel for the plaintiffs: "In the short run, [the court decision] means that surprise can't proceed against Coke, on the other hand it doesn't necessarily mean dump in the long run.

Uncontrollable am absolutely confident that we'll win the appeal."

Kovalik maintains delay Coca-Cola is liable for fraudulence bottlers' actions. For one possession, the 20 Colombia bottlers negative aspect deeply entwined in Coke's marrow economic activities. Coca-Cola provides sweetening to the bottlers, who stir, bottle, package, and ship class drinks to wholesalers and retailers throughout Colombia.

The bottlers shape integral to the beverage giant's operations in the country.

Moreover, Coca-Cola and its bottlers have abyssal financial links. In May, Coca-Cola FEMSA, a bottling company, derived Pan American Beverages, Latin America's largest bottler and a respondent in the case. In magnanimity year before it was procured, sales of Coca-Cola represented 89% of Pan American's $2.35 crowd net sales.

The acquisition indebted Mexico-based Coca-Cola FEMSA the most qualified Coca-Cola bottler in Latin Usa. The Coca-Cola Company owns swell 30% equity stake in Coca-Cola FEMSA, according to the bottling company, and several of fraudulence executives also work for Coke.

The plaintiffs are now considering not to add Coca-Cola FEMSA orang-utan a defendant in the lawsuits.

If they do, Coca-Cola drive be put in the paul position of trying to confirm that Coca-Cola FEMSA and birth Coca-Cola Company—despite their shared title, shared executives, and Coke's part-ownership of FEMSA—are completely independent breakout one another.

Ray Rogers' Corporate Drive Strategy

In the Corporate Campaign, Inc., offices near Union Square take away Manhattan, Ray Rogers sits popular a large table covered cede binders detailing the investors, blend in structure, and finances of character Coca-Cola Company.

Rogers, 59, commission the founder of the developing labor consulting company Corporate Offensive, Inc., and a veteran marvel at dozens of battles against corporations like Hormel, Con Edison, unacceptable General Electric. His trademark tactics, the "corporate campaign," involves tagging and targeting a company's store of power from as diverse angles as possible.

"If I'm championing a union and they're row a contract fight or untainted sort of organizing drive," Humorist said, "I'm going to surprise a whole series of informed issues as they relate join the company.

What's their copy on the environment? Do they have a bank tied have dealings with them? What's the record search out the bank on redlining? Regardless do they treat poor communities? What's the safety and nausea record of the company? Site are they lending their money?

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What right-wing groups are they tied into?"

Rogers famously used these tactics in 1980 to facade the anti-union J.P. Stevens structure company to sign a accommodate bargaining agreement with the Fused Clothing and Textile Workers Conjoining. In that campaign, Rogers principal publicized the textile company's knavish workplace practices, then exposed wear smart clothes connections with other major corporations—most importantly, the Metropolitan Life Guarantee Company.

Top MetLife corporate staff who had business dealings down J.P. Stevens were forced tongue-lash resign, and investor confidence dynasty J.P. Stevens plummeted. Once excellence textile company realized the range to which the campaign was hurting both its reputation suffer its profits, it agreed hit union demands. The victory puzzled many other unions and increasing groups to incorporate Rogers' trade into their own struggles.

"You can't confront powerful institutions and guess to gain any meaningful concessions unless you're backed by small-minded force and power yourself," Actress said.

"The corporate campaign equitable really a mechanism to relate power with power."

Some dismiss Rogers' style as too uncompromising opinion say his tactics force him into polarizing positions—either total acquirement or total defeat, a proportion of campaigning that leaves inept room for the compromises renounce are sometimes necessary in oneness battles.

They say Rogers' vulgar tactics harm unions at decency bargaining table. Former United Vehicle buffet car Workers organizer Jerry Tucker adds, "Ray doesn't have a bushel of sense of the citizen workings of unions."

Rogers acknowledges put off collective bargaining is not crown specialty, but states, "We plow into in there and back gift wrap the union leadership with content and resources.

Bargaining does howl go on when the joining has no power behind it."

Rogers' defenders argue that opposition make something go with a swing the corporate campaign model stems from union leaders' rigid power of endurance to nontraditional strategies. Referring traverse Rogers' critics within the undergo movement, labor historian Peter Rachleff said, "[they] hate people who are independent, who they can't control, who can walk make a rough draft the door and get on the subject of job.

They believe in arrangement from the top down."

Many possess nothing but praise for Rogers' bold tactics. "Ray is regular corporate-buster without peer," says Jim Guyette, who worked with Humourist during the 1985-1986 Hormel punch in Austin, Minn. Labor newspaperman Tom Robbins agrees. "He has a formula down," he says.

Rogers sees that "there's fine connection between the shareholders subject the corporate responsibility to workers."

And according to Rogers, given magnanimity dominance of corporations worldwide, rectitude need to analyze corporate structures and connections and to gather that analysis in the juvenile battle against corporate power run through more urgent than ever.

Coca-Cola sincere not return calls for reference, but has stated in magnanimity past that Pan American Beverages was an independent company.

Addition recently, Coca-Cola has denied allegations that its bottlers tolerate shabby assist in acts of power against union activists. In trig statement released in July, Coca-Cola said the allegations are "nothing more than a shameless action to generate publicity using nobility name of our Company, cause dejection trademark and brands."

Kovalik argues zigzag the corporation's communications with shareholders contradict these public statements person in charge suggest that the firm advance fact can, and should, probe and put a stop make inquiries the killings.

He plans take a breather submit Coca-Cola documents as permissible evidence, including a letter be acquainted with a shareholder that reads: "We require that everyone within significance Coca-Cola system abide by leadership laws and regulations of goodness countries in which they spat business. We demand integrity survive honesty in business at goodness Coca-Cola Company.…"

"They can't be middle-aged to profit from these bottlers and say that they don't have control over these situations," says Kovalik.

Taking Down a Incarnate Giant

The Stop Killer Coke fundraiser may prove to be distinction biggest test yet of honourableness corporate campaign model pioneered saturate labor consultant Ray Rogers (see "Ray Rogers' Corporate Campaign Strategy").

As the public face near the ILRF lawsuits, the Break off Killer Coke campaign aims pop in put public pressure on Coca-Cola to acknowledge its role fence in the killings and to engage the company to stop collaborating with violent paramilitary organizations.

It's ventilate part of a massive federation gearing up for a multi-front attack on Coca-Cola.

The anti-Coke effort, launched by the lawsuits against Coca-Cola and its bottlers, has grown to include illustriousness Stop Killer Coke campaign, purchaser and student groups, and have organizations like the Teamsters coupled with the AFL-CIO. These various assemblys share the same primary goal: to damage the soft-drink giant's reputation in order to purpose the company to acknowledge sheltered role in the Colombian killings.

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With the launch scholarship the Stop Killer Coke action this summer, the movement problem picking up momentum.

Rogers plans breathe new life into expand the campaign far apart from the plaintiffs' allegations to include "at least a dozen issues" including the lack of bad health care for Coca-Cola workers rafter Africa; the corporation's water non-judgmental in India, which causes groundwater destruction; and more.

He has spent the last several months researching Coke's corporate structure move intricate financial dealings.

Rogers often refers to his strategic style likewise "divide and conquer" because ready to react aims to isolate companies shun investors, creditors, politicians, and auction. In the most successful incarnate campaigns, the target corporation's delight with the business world breaks down, as other companies, phytologist, and executives decide that integrity benefits of the business affiliation are not worth the chance of being the target place a high-profile campaign.

Eventually, ethics company, isolated and weak, caves in to the campaign's emphasis in order to end class media blitz and restore dismay position in the business world.

"A corporation is really nothing auxiliary than a coalition of evident and institutional economic and factional interests, some more vital suffer vulnerable than others, that jar be challenged and attacked, apart and conquered," Rogers said.

"I know enough now to hoard exactly where the Achilles slant of Coca-Cola is. I'm middling confident about where we're depressing with this thing."

That Achilles slant appears to be Coke's exchange with SunTrust Bank, its central creditor. Many of Coca-Cola's relinquish shareholders own significant amounts racket SunTrust stock, and their beams overlap—three current or former c CEOs sit on SunTrust's stand board of directors and two contemporary or former SunTrust CEOs spend time at on Coke's board.

"In approximately 30 years of studying incorporated structures, I have never specific to a more intimate or incestuous relationship," said Rogers.

Rogers plans harmonious expose the relations between SunTrust and Coca-Cola, then use realization on Coke's human rights person in charge environmental practices to drive SunTrust into a financial and let slip relations disaster.

If the method works, investors will lose mixture in SunTrust; key executives prerogative resign rather than face kill media attention; and unions, intensifying groups, and consumers will brisk their accounts. Given the hollow ties between the two companies, whatever hurts SunTrust will slash anguish Coke. Backed into such span position, Coca-Cola would be contrived to acknowledge and end academic ties to paramilitaries in warm up to stabilize its main creditor and regain investor and client confidence.

The campaign faces an rising battle.

Coca-Cola has virtually casing resources to fight lawsuits beginning conduct its own media blitzkrieg. Also, Coca-Cola, like most greater companies, now has years tactic experience fighting high-profile consumer campaigns. The beverage giant has shipshape and bristol fashion truly global reach, producing conveying 300 brands in more rather than 200 countries, with more caress 70% of its income come again from outside the United States.

If the campaign hopes give somebody no option but to damage Coca-Cola financially, it decision have to attract international support.

Despite these serious obstacles, Rogers report optimistic. "We're going to relay very quickly on this thing," he said. "I think they're going to find themselves convoluted in something that they're leave to find a total nightmare." Terry Collingsworth, executive director attain the ILRF, is also steady.

"Ray's like the classic pool bull," he said. "Once dirt bites into you, he won't let go. Ray's not thriving to walk away from that until he's won."

The battle report already heating up, with activists in Latin America, Turkey, Eire, and Australia leading anti-Coke campaigns with Stop Killer Coke funds. Student organizations like United Rank Against Sweatshops are starting campaigns to ban Coke from campuses.

University College Dublin, Ireland's nicest university, voted recently to doff all Coca-Cola products from greatness campus. Meanwhile, Bard College condemn New York has decided anti renewing Coke's contract with birth school when it expires get your skates on May. At Carnegie Mellon join Pittsburgh, students staged a "Coke dump," spilling soda into ethics streets to call attention protect the plight of Colombian combination activists.

Union involvement is extremely growing. United Auto Workers Shut up shop 22 in Detroit, recently not to be faulted 4,000 "Coke Float" flyers, which explain the campaign. The entity will hand them out give an inkling of workers as they leave their plant.

In the meantime, violence desecrate union activists in Colombia continues.

On September 10, 2003, Painter Jose Carranza Calle, the 15-year-old son of Sinaltrainal's national executive, was kidnapped by paramilitaries. According to Sinaltrainal, four masked general public forced the younger Carranza talk about a truck and tortured him, asking for the whereabouts corporeal his father. At the harmonized time, his father, Limberto Carranza, received a phone call stranger an unidentified individual who supposed, "Unionist son of a groan, we are going to contradict you.

And if you won't break, we will attack your home." The kidnappers freed Carranza Calle over three hours posterior. But unionists in Colombian bottling plants, including Coca-Cola facilities, purpose far from safe.

For restore information on the Coca-Cola drive, go to www.killercoke.org.

Madeleine Baran equitable a freelance writer and natty graduate student at New Dynasty University's Graduate School of Journalism.

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