Friday, May 13, 2005

My last day in Bratislava.

I am leaving. Done with Bratislava. Going back to London extremely early in the morning. There I will have about a week off, and then I resume my studies for just over a month. A big final project for the year awaits me there.

The VIPs in my life are hereby notified: the number I gave you for reaching me in Slovakia will be of no use to you after tonight, from tomorrow onwards, until I finally reach the shores of Iceland, you can reach me through the British number (which VIPs should already possess).

Farewell Slovakia, it has been nice. Ahoj for now, but I will see you later.. undoubtedly.

Packing,
..kH

Wednesday, May 11, 2005

Why is the Coca Cola company a company of monsters to be boycotted?
Here is material on which one can easily base that inclination. Further information can be found on the following websites:
http://www.CokeWatch.org ... http://www.colombiasolidarity.org.uk/cocacolacampaign.html

The official worldwide boycott was to last a year, running through 2003-2004. However, there is still every reason to remind the Coca Cola company that they are not rulers, that they can not get away with crime and dishonesty, and that people and places should be respected. They are fuckers, quite simply.

The International Boycott of Coca Cola started on the 22 July 2003. It was called by SINALTRAINAL (Colombian Food and Drinks Workers’ Union). It is supported by the World Social Forum, and by the CUT and the CGTD (principle trade union federations in Colombia), and numerous social organisations around the world.
Coca Cola stand accused of complicity in the assassination of 8 Sinaltrainal trade union leaders in Colombia since 1990. Many other leaders have been imprisoned, tortured, forcibly displaced and exiled. Of course, Coca Cola deny any responsibility for the murders, pointing out that 100s of union leaders are killed every year in Colombia. However, many of Sinaltrainal’s victims were killed inside Coca Cola plants while negotiating collective agreements. Coca Cola management were reported in the national press as meeting and contracting members of the AUC death squads to “sort out their labour problems”.


"The boycott is a means of sustained pressure and condemnation against the policies of the transnational company Coca Cola around the world so that the company repairs the damage caused, changes its policies and makes a commitment to respect the human rights of workers and populations. Our struggle is for peace with social justice and for the well-being of people and for this reason we embrace the struggle against the war, we contribute to the construction of a movement against capitalist globalisation, we participate in the fight against ALCA (Free Trade Area of the Americas) and we share the aspirations of the Continental Social Alliance, of the World Social Forum and all initiatives that enable peoples to achieve happiness, sovereignty and liberty."

Among the reasons, and there are many, are these:
Coca Cola should be reprimanded
For the violation of the human rights of workers and communities.
For the profits made on the back of assassinations, imprisonment, displacement, kidnapping, death threats and dismissals of trade union leaders in Colombia, Guatemala, Peru, Brazil, the United States, Venezuela, Palestine, Turkey, Iran and other parts of the world.
For the contamination of water sources with the waste from their bottling plants.
For racial discrimination against black communities and those suffering from AIDS in the United States and Africa.
For using coca to make its products and its support of the criminal policies of the United States against communities whose culture and survival depends on coca leaves, especially in Bolivia, Peru and Colombia.
(imagine the hypocrisy!)
For its unfettered use of the world’s water and the criminal theft of water sources from communities in India.
For supporting the criminal oligarchy in Venezuela which is attacking the government and its plans to bring dignity into the lives of the people of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, as well as for its historic interference in the internal affairs of peoples.


"It also seems that over the past five to seven years, Coca Cola has lost control over product safety. Coca Cola has not enforced strict controls over processing plants producing its products despite a contamination scare that caused Coke products to be banned in several European countries and a string of recent recalls."

The following fragments of a report compares a Coca-Cola/Minute Maid processing plant in Auburndale, Florida with a Pepsi/Tropicana plant in Bradenton, Florida, during the period of 1996 to 2000. It was in 1996 that Coca-Cola turned over control of juice operations, in Auburndale and Leesburg to Cutrale, a Brazilian-owned juice company:

Recalls
Since Coca-Cola outsourced its Auburndale, Florida juice production,
Coca-Cola had three separate juice recalls
Pepsi had none

Safety & Heath Violations
Coca-Cola: Since Coca-Cola outsourced its Auburndale, Florida, juice production to Cutrale, the Occupation Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited the Minute Maid plant for 15 violations, including 13 determined to be "serious." OSHA penalized the plant on 10 separate occasions for violations during 1999-2000. From 1997-1999 OSHA also leveled three citations against Minute Maid's producer.
In the Auburndale plant, there have been many serious accidents, including:
an electrical accident that killed a worker,
explosions, and
two major chemical leaks that caused plant evacuations, shutdowns, worker hospitalizations and complaints of air pollution.
Pepsi: During this same period of time, Pepsi's Tropicana plant received no penalties from OSHA and had no explosions or chemical leaks.


There are also accounts of Coca Cola enforcing their products to be sold at new restaurants or other business establishments, for instance by threatening to open a bigger and better establishment across the road, as an example, that would put the young establishment out of business. Have you ever noticed how restaurants, movie theatres, cafes and bars, only ever EITHER sell Coke or Pepsi?
And a drinks company should not have political power. Did you know that Santa Claus is dressed in red because of Coca Cola?
Besides, Coke is bad for you .. so is Fanta, and Sprite, and Dr Pepper, who needs Minute Maid, or Bacardi mixers, or Aquarius? If you want to find a list of the products made and sold by the monsters in question, go to there ... http://www2.coca-cola.com/brands/brandlist.html

Fuck Coke.
..kH

Monday, May 09, 2005

A very short entry.

My time has been swallowed whole with all these visits. Will be waving my friend Fin Boy buh-bye in the morning.
Just came back from Wien, travelled in total 12 hours on a train to spend Saturday in Krakow. Poland is lovely. Wien is breathtaking.
Travel is amazing.

I am loving it.

Boycott Coca bloody Cola people! They don´t deserve to exist, the fuckers..
..kH