[Ftffacilitationteam] BODY SHOP

[RosaenCasa en aol.com]

Dear colleagues,
 
Within the Mobilization Task Force, we have begun a discussion about a  
potential partnership between GCAP and The Body Shop.  The invitation has  come 
from The Body Shop to a member of the MTF and now the issue is going before  the 
IFT in June (details at end of message).  We are preparing a note from  the 
FTF, but in the meanwhile I wanted to send comments sent today by colleagues  on 
the MTF.  Please note the comment from our colleague in Europe who  writes in 
opposition to the collaboration:
          [  ...The  Body Shop International is wholly owned by L'Oreal which 
is well known for  its
policy on animal testing  and its undermining and shallow portrayal  of
women. This last point  needs to be seriously considered when we  are
supporting a campaign  claiming Gender Equality. ]
 
Kudos to Julien!  Also are comments from the Trade Unions and Latin  America. 
 Any other comments are welcome. 
 
Best regards,
 
Rosa 

Sent: 15 May 2007 14:05
To:  mobilizationmonth en whiteband.org
Subject: [GCAP mobilizationmonth] BODY  SHOP
Importance: High

Dear all,

To be sure that we all have got  a clear and complete understanding of what
Body Shop is before becoming  involved with another partnership I would
like you to read carefully the  following note.

As emphasised at the end of the document circulated by  Ben, The Body Shop
International is wholly owned by L'Oreal which is well  known for its
policy on animal testing and its undermining and shallow  portrayal of
women. This last point needs to be seriously considered when we  are
supporting a campaign claiming Gender Equality.

To deepen the  investigation and I will congratulate once again the
document for being so  transparent, L'Oreal is indeed linked with Nestlé,
which owns 28.8% of  L'Oreal and whose CEO, Peter Brabeck (who considers
water as being a good of  consumption and criticizes NGOs for their
"radical point of view" for  considering water as a universal good), is
also Vice Chairman of  L'Oreal.

Nestlé as you are all aware has attracted much criticism for its  baby milk
marketing policies in developing countries since the 70s;  demanded
millions of dollars in compensation from Ethiopia (Oxfam, December  2002);
made use of forced labour in the production of their chocolate in  West
Africa (Forbes, April 2004); sold thousands of tons of contaminated  animal
feed in Venezuela in 2005; opposed a Swiss ban on GMOs still in 2005,  etc,
etc...

Lastly in order to finish this email I would like us to  never forget that
GCAP is a Civil Society Campaign and should not work with  profit/business
companies which I consider would critically damage our  credibility if we
are calling for change.

Talk to you  soon.

Julien

Julien Vaissier
GCAP Europe Secretariat
10  Square Ambiorix, 1050, Brussels, Belgium
********************************************************
Dear all,

I fully support Julian's views and would like to add that  before engaging
with any company (especially multinationals like the body  shop or
L'Oreal,)we, as workers' movement, demand that the behaviour of  these
companies vis-Ã -vis their employees & trade unions be fully  investigated.

In the spirit of transparency and accountability I would  suggest that the
principle of initiating partnerships with private firms  (bodyshop or any
other) must be discussed at the IFT level. Should the IFT  accept the
principle, then guidelines will have to be democratically drawn to  clearly
define the kind of engagement we are ready to support.

Ben: I  appreciate your enthusiasm and you make a great contribution to GCAP
&  its mobilization, but here there are very serious political  implications
involved for several constituencies.  I'm sure you'll  understand.

Best

Claire Courteille
Economic and Social Policy  Department
International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC)
5, Boulevard du  Roi Albert II, 1210 Brussels,  Belgium
*************************************************************
Dear all,

I fully agree with Claire and Julien. Besides all comments  already  
done in Brazil we  have  millions of problems  because of Body Shop  
agreements with the indigenous people, using  their images and gaining  
profits without benefits to the indigenous  people. It is a big  
trouble for us.

Iara
*****************************************************************
 
GCAP and Body Shop International---(excerpts only)
Proposal 
A 1-5 year strategic partnership between GCAP and  Body Shop International to 
include a line of products in Body Shop stores in 55  countries in the North 
and South, distribution of GCAP literature in those  countries and major 
fundraising potential. 
Purpose
To strengthen the voice of civil society in the  fight against poverty and 
suffering 
To strengthen the global awareness of GCAP and of  national coalitions 
To raise money for certain GCAP national  coalitions and for the GCAP 
globally 
Partnership  proposal 
That GCAP and Body Shop International begin now  (May 2007) to explore a 
partnership likely to last from between one and five  years. Due to the lead time 
of both organisations, initial implementation will  be achieved by May 2008. 
The proposal is that Body Shop International  becomes a key strategic partner 
for GCAP. This would enable GCAP to promote  their global brand and serve to 
enhance its ability to overcome poverty and  suffering around the world. 
Initial discussions suggest a possibility for  exploring the concept of ‘white
’. 
The white band is the current global connector for  GCAP and white is the 
recognised symbol of peace and justice. GCAP believes that  poverty and 
inequality are injustices which can and must be  overcome. 
Using the colour white and the symbol of the White  Band, GCAP and the Body 
Shop will work together to produce a product or range of  products to sell in 
Body Shop stores in 55 countries. A branding and coherent  image for the 
project will be developed by Body Shop International and agreed in  a small working 
group made up of representatives of Body Shop International and  GCAP.  
Point of Sale and other promotional spaces will  also be utilised to promote 
this collaboration and awareness of GCAP and the  white band. 
Time line
This is a huge international project so we would  hope to launch in around 
one year in time for the Day of the African Child, the  Japan G8 and other 
significant global dates. 
Therefore, GCAP must be ready to agree to this  principle or otherwise by the 
end of May 2007.  




   
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