Coca-Cola to Probe Seven-Year-Old Cambodian Land Grab Case ( - TopicsExpress



          

Coca-Cola to Probe Seven-Year-Old Cambodian Land Grab Case ( copied from Rfa ) Declaring that it has zero tolerance towards land grabbing, Coca-Cola has agreed to investigate a long running case in Cambodia where villagers are seeking court action against a company accused of seizing their land to make way for plantations linked to the supply of sugar to the soft drinks manufacturer. The Coca-Cola company believes that land grabbing is unacceptable, the Atlanta, Georgia-based giant said in a landmark statement in which it agreed to review the status of its sugar suppliers to ensure that it does not buy from plantations that illegally evicted local residents. Our company does not typically purchase ingredients directly from farms, nor are we owners of sugar farms or plantations, but as a major buyer of sugar, we acknowledge our responsibility to take action and to use our influence to help protect the land rights of local communities, Coca-Cola said late Thursday. The move came a month after global human rights group Oxfam and its supporters kicked off a campaign calling on Coca-Cola, PepsiCo and Associated British Foods, three of the largest players in the sugar industry, to “commit” to zero tolerance for land grabs. In the campaign, Oxfam cited, among others, a seven-year-old land grab case in Cambodia. Some 200 families in Sre Ambel district in the Koh Khong province have been fighting for land from which they were evicted in 2006 to make way for a sugar plantation supplying Tate & Lyle Sugars, which sells sugar to franchises that manufacture and bottle products for Coca-Cola and PepsiCo. The plantation is controlled by companies which are 70-percent owned by Thai sugar giant Khon Kaen Sugar Co Ltd (KSL). In April 2013, the families filed a case against Tate & Lyle Sugars in the UK High Court and through the grievance mechanism of Bonsucro, an industry initiative that aims to reduce the negative impacts of sugar production. Fair resolution Coca-Cola said it would engage with its all its suppliers and growers to pursue fair resolution of any disputes in their supply chains. In the Cambodian case, Coca-Cola has committed to engage with Tate & Lyle Sugars and to “take action and use our influence on the final outcome of the dispute. This is the kind of engagement we are looking for to ensure communities in the specific land conflicts in Cambodia ... are treated fairly, Oxfam said. Oxfam is not asking Coca-Cola to break contracts with the implicated suppliers but instead to use their immense power to be part of resolving land disputes across their supply chains. The Cambodian government said it welcomed Coca-Colas investigations into the case. “This is the company’s right, Cambodian cabinet spokesman Phay Siphan said. When they conduct the investigation, they will find out whether the dispute has been resolved or [whether the] complaint is only raised by those who are opposing the government, he said.... $$ this fb page is sponsored by Pay only US$49.90 monthly and get to talk unlimited to more than 40 countries. Try out a courtesy for 1 hour right now. Landlines and cell phones telexfree/ad/saysuccess %%
Posted on: Mon, 11 Nov 2013 13:53:18 +0000

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