Coca-Cola to Face Worldwide Demonstrations

Coca-Cola today faces worldwide demonstrations by HIV/AIDS activists campaigning for greater access for its employees in Africa to life-prolonging treatments. Under the banner of "Treat- Your-Workers," a coalition of HIV/AIDS activist groups is coordinating a day of action to press Coca-Cola into devoting more resources to combating HIV/AIDS in Africa.

Africa has some of the highest HIV/AIDS infection rates in the world. In South Africa, Coca-Cola's largest market on the continent, it is estimated that as much as 25 percent of the economically active population is HIV-positive.

The multinationals De Beers, Anglo American and DaimlerChrysler have won the praise of South African former President Nelson Mandela for offering HIV/AIDS treatments to their employees. Coca-Cola, which is in partnership with UNAIDS, argues that it is also at the forefront of the corporate campaign to halt the epidemic, but it acknowledges that its bottlers' responses need to be accelerated. A spokesperson said antiretroviral drugs were available to employees' families throughout Africa. The Coca-Cola Foundation pays half the costs of HIV/AIDS drug treatments for workers, leaving the bottling company and the employee to pay the rest. Coca-Cola also supports HIV/AIDS care and prevention campaigns. But activists complain that the extended health benefits are not available to bottlers' entire workforces.

"It's very unfortunate that the companies stepping forward and trying to do something are the ones coming under attack. Some other groups, like the South Africa-based Treatment Action Campaign, have a better way of engaging with us," said Robert Lindsay, London-based president of Coca-Cola Africa Foundation. Coca-Cola has about 1,200 employees in Africa. Its 40 bottlers employ about 60,000 people.

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