NGO declares Coca-Cola’s visit compromised by police
Auditors from the Coca-Cola Company visited Oddar Meanchey province on Friday to investigate allegations of land grabbing against sugar plantations that supply the global drinks giant, but called off a community meeting because of a heavy police presence, an NGO said Sunday. Chun Bora of the Children’s Development Association said he met with the visiting Coca-Cola representatives at his NGO’s offices in Samraong City on Friday to brief them about the allegations of land-grabbing hundreds of local families have leveled against three plantations owned by one of Coca-Cola’s main sugar supplies, Thailands Mitr Phol. Coca-Cola declared “zero tolerance” for land grabbing by its sugar suppliers in November and announced the launch of a worldwide audit of those supplies. … But when the visitors tried to meet privately with affected villagers in Konkriel commune, they were accompanied by about 30 uninvited local police and ultimately called off a community meeting, Mr. Bora said. “The company representatives told us they planned to meet the affected villagers to ask them about the facts, but they canceled and returned to Phnom Penh on Saturday because authorities and police traveled behind them,” he said. … NGOs say plantations’ employees have told them that CPP Senator Ly Yong Phat also has a stake in the plantations, though representatives for the senator deny it. …
Aun Pheap
http://www.cambodiadaily.com/news/ngo-declares-coca-colas-visit-compromised-by-police-53395/
