Boycott Coca-Cola!

The Coca-Cola Boycott Page

Page Index

Why Boycott Coca-Cola?
How to Boycott
List of Coca-Cola Products
Letter to Coca-Cola
FNM Press Releases on Coca-Cola Boycott: Boycott Coca-Cola (Feb. 09, 1997); Boycott Coke (List of Coke Products) (Feb. 17, 1997)
Contact Coca-Cola

Why Boycott Coca-Cola?

* Coca-Cola's is the world's most powerful trademark. In Nigeria, the company, through its Nigerian owned franchise holder, the Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC) co-sponsors events organized by the brutal General Abacha led military dictatorship. By so-doing, its red and white advertising presence is used by the military as a propaganda tool to show that even the best known company/product on earth endorses military rule. Obviously, Coca-Cola has benefited from the illegal and illegitimate regime, while the duly elected Representatives of the Nigerian people, including the individual widely believed to have won the 1993 Presidential election (which the military illegally decided to annul), Chief Moshood K.O. Abiola continue to languish under the worst conditions in Abacha's jails.

* Nigeria has been and is Coca-Cola's largest market in Africa. Coca-Cola's market share in Nigeria has risen from 11% in 1993, when the General Abacha led Nigerian military usurped power, to over 20% today. It is therefore easy to see that Coca-Cola has benefited immensely, and is still benefiting immensely from a regime that denies the majority of its own people freedom

* Coca-Cola in its "Ultimate Commitment" statement stated inter alia that its abundant resources must be "intelligently allocated". Obviously it is not living up to this commitment, for how else can it explain that the allocation of its resources to a State ruled by self-imposed criminals is "intelligent"?

*Even though Coca-Cola claims to be apolitical, it isn't for the following reasons:

In order to invest and operate in Nigeria, Coca-Cola must deal with the illegal military regime. This is a political issue.
When Coca-Cola deals with the illegal military regime, it helps give legitimacy to that regime. This is a political issue.
When Coca-Cola invests money in Nigeria it provides resources to the illegal Nigerian military regime to buy more weapons to use in their efforts to subjugate Nigerian citizens. This is a political issue.
When Coca-Cola sells a drink which has no nutritional value to a people who lack sufficient vitamins, at about the cost of an average day's wages. This is a political issue.
When Coca-Cola does not speak out against human rights abuses committed by the people they are dealing with, they give silent approval to such abuses. This is a political issue.

How to Boycott

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Don't buy products of the Coca-Cola Company
Conact the Coca-Cola Company and let them know how you feel. Their phone numbers are provided below.
Contact the Shareholders and employees of Coca-Cola and let them know these things.
Encourage investors to press for withdrawal.
Write on Nigeria and the involvement of the Coca-Cola company there, in city, community and/or student newspapers and magazines.
Encourage your city, school and State to join others in selective purchasing/divestment campaigns

List of Coca-Cola Products

(Return to Index) Here is an extensive list of Coca-Cola products (if there are any other products you know which we did not mention here, please let us know):

Bacardi Brand Tropical Fruit Mixers
Bright and Early Breakfast beverages
Caffeine Free Coca-Cola
Caffeine Free Coca-Cola Classic
Caffeine Free Diet Coke
Caffeine Free TAB
Cherry Coke
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola Classic
Coca-Cola Nestle Refreshments (CCNR) Teas and Coffees
Diet Cherry Coke
Diet Coke (a.k.a.) Coke Light
Diet Sprite
Fanta
Five-Alive
Fresca
Fruitopia
Georgia Brand Coffee
Hi-C
Mello Yello
Minute Maid
Mr. PiBB
OK Soda
PowerAde
Schweppes (in Nigeria)
Sprite
Surge
TAB

Letter to Coca-Cola

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Here is a sample letter you can send to some of the principal officers of the Coca-Cola Company. The letter reflects the official position and demands of the Free Nigeria Movement. For the purpose of this boycott, the Strategic Officers you should target are:

Roberto C. Goizueta, the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Coca-Cola Company.
M. Douglas Ivester, the President and Chief Operating Officer and a Director of the Company.
John Hunter, the Vice President of the Company and the Principal Operating Officer/International.
Carl Ware, Senior Vice President of the Company and President of the Africa Group of the International Business Sector.
Donald F. McHenry, the only member of the Coca-Cola Company Board of Directors who is of African Heritage. He is also the Chairman of the Public Issues Review Committee of the Board of Directors of the Company.

Enter Your Address Here

Officer Name
Officer Position
1 Coca-Cola Plz.
Atlanta, Georgia 30301
United States

Date

Dear (Fill in Name):

As a member of the Free Nigeria Movement, and as a member of the human race, I am writing this letter to you in order to enunciate the conditions which your corporation, Coca-Cola Company, MUST meet before I can end my boycott of your products.

First, FNM is a global grassroots based mass movement working for the full and total restoration of freedom to Nigeria and its people. The FNM is a non-violent movement inspired by, and modeled after the anti-apartheid movement in South Africa, and the Free Burma Coalition (FBC). Currently, there are FNM members on all five continents working on the Coca-Cola Boycott, a campaign of the FNM.

The Movement enjoys strong support and participation from members of NGOs working for freedom, democracy, human rights, responsible investment, and an end to environmental degradation worldwide.

Whereas our Boycott Coca-Cola campaign is most visible on college campuses, citizens' groups worldwide are also involved in our campaign to terminate Coca-Cola's operation in Nigeria.

Does Coca-Cola have something to hide?

Sir, you must be aware that a number of corporations attempted to distance themselves from South Africa's policy on apartheid, and Burma's brutal military dictatorship by selling their shares in ventures in both countries; however, these companies were still barred from municipal and university contracts because their names were still used to sell products in South Africa and Burma (PepsiCo's recent Burmese dilemma is an example). The same is true for Coca-Cola with regard to Nigeria, even though the Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC) is not owned directly by Coca-Cola, the fact that it bottles and sells Coca-Cola products in Nigeria shows that Coca-Cola is present in the country. Coca-Cola billboards have been pointed to for legitimacy on the world stage by the brutal dictatorship of General Sanni Abacha. Your sponsorship of numerous cultural, sporting and business events in Nigeria indicates very clearly that Coca-Cola does not operate in a vacuum when it comes to business with Nigeria.

FNM's call to end corporate support of Nigeria's current military dictatorship is in accordance with the wishes of the legitimate leaders of Nigeria's democratic movement. As you know, 1993 was to be the year the Nigerian military was to hand over to a popularly elected civilian administration, going as far as conducting elections all the way to the Presidential level in June 1993. However, the illegal and illegitimate military regime in Nigeria, headed by General Sanni Abacha, under whose rules you do business in the country has so far blatantly refused to honor the popular mandate evidenced in the election results. On the contrary, the military regime has rewarded the Nigerian people, by imprisoning the presumed winner of the Presidential election, Chief Moshood K. O. Abiola, under solitary confinement, and without trial since 1994. Furthermore, the regime has shown its appreciation of the people's clamor for a restoration of the democratic structures it disbanded by jailing, assassinating and executing their leaders.

Owing to the intransigent and extremely repressive nature of the military regime of General Sanni Abacha (and Coca-Cola's complicity in all this), the international media have shown increasing sympathy toward FNM's call for economic sanctions against the military regime, and corporate withdrawal from Nigeria. Justifiably, due to what can best be described as the assault of the Nigerian military (and its civilian collaborators) on fellow Nigerian people, Nigeria has come to be portrayed as "Nazi Germany of the 1990s". We should all be keenly aware of what truly grassroots protests during the anti-apartheid movement led to: eventual forced corporate withdrawal and damaged corporate image.

Let it be known that members of the Movement worldwide are dedicated to getting Coca-Cola, along with other multinationals that do business in Nigeria, out of the country.

In light of the growing strength and popularity of the Coca-Cola Boycott campaign, it would be extremely unwise for Coca-Cola; even from a purely economic perspective ; to continue its Nigerian operation.

We will, however, call off the on-going Coca-Cola Boycott worldwide immediately, if, and only if, Coca-Cola complies with the following two demands:

Coca-Cola terminates immediately all of its business transactions in Nigeria.
To be specific, Coca-Cola Company:
1. Divests itself of all its equity in the Nigerian Bottling Company (NBC) to an entity in which Coca-Cola does not have any equity interest;
2. Ends its licensing agreement, and any other agreements or contracts, with the Nigerian Bottling Company;
3. Ensures that the Coca-Cola Co. has no future distribution agreements with entities in Nigeria (until the democratic structures and mandates granted by the Nigerian people, but usurped by General Sanni Abacha are restored); and
4. Cancels all contracts under which Coca-Cola's copyrighted & trademarked names would be used in Nigeria (including "Coca-Cola" and any names of and generated by Coca-Cola subsidiaries).
Upon withdrawal, Coca-Cola Company issues a public statement that in effect says "under current conditions, it is NOT possible to do business in Nigeria without directly supporting the Military dictatorship and its pervasive violation of human rights, including the detention, imprisonment and execution without trial, and on trumped up charges, of those who dare speak against it."

Indeed corporate presence in Nigeria at this juncture is NOT defensible either on moral or economic grounds. It is, therefore, my sincere hope that Coca-Cola would follow the moral high ground by immediately withdrawing from Nigeria.

However, if Coca-Cola just takes half measures, FNM will continue the Boycott.

Thank you.

Sincerely,

Your name here

Please send a copy of the response you get to the FNM address so that we can be kept abreast of developments. The FNM address is at the bottom of the page.