Coke suffers defeat at INTO conerence
international |
worker & community struggles and protests |
news report 
Tuesday March 29, 2005 14:16
by Lasc - Lasc
The delegates to the INTO conference in Galway delivered a stinging defeat to the US multinational. Last year controversy broke out at the INTO due to the sponsorship they were receiving from Coke, evident through the huge stand they had there.
This year despite attempts to have motions rueld out of order at the Northern regional conference in Derry, a motion was put forward calling on the union to break off relations with Coke. The motion was overwhelmingly passed. So much so that the union leaders who had opposed the motion didn't even ask for a count.
Though the motion doesn't mention support for the boycott it was motivated by concerns over the allegations against coke in Colombia.
Last year one delegate asked whether the honour of the Irish trade union movement was to be forfeited for a free can of coke. This year a majority of delegates decided to tell their leadership no.
Comments (2 of 2)
Jump To Comment: 1 2This is yet another defeat for Coke, as the campaign continues to spread internationally. It shows that despite all their propaganda and denial of wrong doing people are seeing through their corporate spin and are willing to take action.
The campaign is also growing with a mass movement in India calling for Coke to shutdown their bottling plants that are poisoning the land and destroying communities and livelihoods. For more information about cokes crimes in India checkout the india resource centre website.
Good to see INTO break the link with Coke - I hope the wider Trade union movement is finally waking up to this issue and that many more will now support the Colombian coke workers in their quest for protection and workers rights rather than listening to the spin of some who for reasons I really can't fathom have opposed this campaign with astounding vitriol.
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