Arab
anger triggers boycott of
Starbucks and Pepsi
By Andrew Gumbel
Independent,
11 May 2002,
An informal boycott of American goods is gaining momentum in the
Arab world, leading to a drastic drop-off in business for fast-food
outlets, Starbucks coffee shops and basic groceries from Pepsi to
Pampers.
Driven by anger at US support for Israel's military incursions
into the West Bank, the boycott is taking on dimensions unseen since
the Arab League embargo on companies trading with Israel trailed
off in the early 1990s, according to a report in yesterday's New
York Times.
The call is going out in mosques, on the street and over the internet,
and lists are circulating in many countries to suggest alternatives
to popular American brands. One list mistakenly says Domino's Pizza
is non- American, presumably due to its Italian-sounding name.
Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, a cleric with a show on the Qatari al-Jazeera
television channel, has a banner on his website reading: "Boycott
America, from Pepsi cans to Boeing." In Damascus, billboards
show scenes of devastation in the Jenin refugee camp, with the slogan
in Arabic and English: "Boycott American products: Don't be
an accomplice."
One supermarket chain in Bahrain has already replaced about 1,000
US products on its shelves. In Tripoli, in northern Lebanon, a bomb
exploded in an empty Kentucky Fried Chicken outlet on Thursday.
Nobody was hurt.
Some of the anti-American ardour has been fuelled by rumours, such
as the widely circulated but untrue tale that McDonald's is donating
a percentage of the cost of every meal to Israel. A pro-Israeli
speech by Starbucks' chief executive, Howard Schultz, led to a wave
of anger at the coffee chain, although it is so popular in Arab
capitals that custom has diminished only slightly.
However, there is only so much commercial harm even a complete
boycott could do since US exports to the Arab world account for
just 2.5 per cent of its trade revenue. Nevertheless, analysts cited
by The New York Times said sales of fast food and other consumer
items were down by 20-30 per cent.
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