Douglas Daft, the chairman and CEO of the Coca-Cola Company, spoke to a large audience at the International Business School (IBS) Thursday. Daft was the keynote speaker for a Rosenberg Institute symposium entitled "Winning Back the World: America's New Challenges in the Global Economy."IBS Dean Peter Petri opened the afternoon with a story about his first exposure to Coca-Cola, relating the soft drink to the ideals of capitalism commonly associated with the United States.

"Is there an association between freedom, opportunity and U.S. economic power?" Petri asked following his anecdote. Daft's speech and the following symposium were designed to contemplate the possibility of major corporations engaging the world without accruing resentment.

In introducing Daft, Petri detailed the presence and actions of the Coca-Cola Company.

"This is a company that is easily the most recognized brand in the world," Petri said. He added that the beverage giant operates in over 200 countries, particularly lauding its involvement in Africa. "In Africa, Coke is the largest employer, one of the biggest industries and philanthropists," Petri said.

A native of Australia, Daft was raised outside of Sydney and joined Coca-Cola in 1969. After serving as president of the Pacific, Middle and Far East and Africa groups and as the company's chief operating officer, Daft became chairman and CEO of the company in 2000.

Attempting to begin his speech with a bit of levity, Daft recalled his experience as a math teacher in Sydney, equating high school students with the Wall Street executives with whom he currently works.

Citing a guide on public speaking offered by the humor newspaper the Onion, Daft said he would not "make any unverified allegations that Saddam Hussein had uranium," eliciting some brief laughter from the audience.

"I am proud to stand on a campus that bears the name of Justice Louis Brandeis," Daft said, calling the University's namesake "the so-called people's attorney, intellectual architect of the state of Israel and courageous Supreme Court Justice." Daft then quoted Brandeis, saying "responsibility is the great developer."

In addressing corporate governance around the world, Daft called on business leaders to survey human rights conditions in areas where major corporations conduct operations. He simultaneously tried to dispel the association that many critics form between business efficiency and corporate indifference. Daft said powerful companies - Coca-Cola included - must affect change over time by taking active roles in local communities by offering solutions that deal with issues such as fair wages and child labor.

Many people at the symposium espoused their beliefs over labor rights. In the days leading up to Daft's appearance, several students plastered the campus with the literature of "Killer Coke," a project of Corporate Campaign, a labor advocacy group based in New York. A group of student activists affixed bumper stickers featuring a graphically altered Coca-Cola can surrounded by a pool of blood to vending machines and distributed pamphlets in dormitories. On Thursday, the same group of students gave flyers to people walking into the Sachar International Center before the symposium.

The "Killer Coke" seeks to connect the murders of organized labor leaders at Coca-Cola bottling plants in Columbia with the parent corporation. The murders - carried out by paramilitary guerrillas - were allegedly performed at the behest of the plant manager. Corporate Campaign's director, Ray Rogers, joined the student activists on Thursday.

"Some of the students here wanted to get involved in the campaign," Rogers said. "The phraseology 'Winning Back the World' seems very militaristic and imperialistic."

Joshua Russell '06, one of the organizers of the student campaign, concurred. "'Challenges in the [Global] Economy' is a phrase that's been used so often," Russell said. "I think the basis is so fascinating. A really ruthless corporation like Coke is fascinating."

However, Rogers and his fellow activists became dismayed when it appeared as though IBS officials requested that people not bring the "Killer Coke" flyers into the building.

Kim Meston '05, who would later engage Daft in the questioning following the address, said she was put off by the removal of protest literature.

"I was upset they just grabbed the flyer out of my hand," Meston said. "That's really wrong."

During his speech, Daft addressed the situation in Columbia. He commented on the long history of civil wars in that nation and mentioned his corporation has taken initiatives to create a safer environment for its employees, including protections for labor unions.

"The people of Columbia have been tormented by violence for too many years. This is a personal issue for every member of the Coke family, including me," Daft said.

He went on to speak contentiously about a lawsuit that Rogers' organization, along with the Columbian labor union SINALTRAINAL, United Steelworkers of America and other workers' groups filed in 2001.

"The charges filed in Miami are false. We are supported by two other labor organizations and the Columbian government," Daft said. "We have an obligation to hold up basic human rights."

Daft reiterated this last point while taking questions from the audience. He said he and other chief executives of major corporations must use their global reach to improve poorer parts of the world.

"It's not just dollars, it's how the community is affected," he said. "We've built in Tibet schoolhouses. Employees there have health care, access to education. More CEOs are talking about it."

Rogers said over the weekend he was not impressed by Daft's speech, calling many points of Daft's speech "outright lies." Yesterday, Rogers elaborated on his reaction.

"He lied about the situation in Columbia," Rogers said. "Coke does not provide security to union leaders. The only protection comes from the government, not Coke. Pressure comes from international labor."

The activists of the "Killer Coke" campaign rallied around the memory of Isidro Gil, a SINALTRAINAL member killed in 1996. Rogers detailed Gil's death and the 2001 lawsuit, calling Daft "either ill-informed or an outright liar" for Daft's defense of Coca-Cola's operations in Columbia.

"The real thing is that Doug Daft lies about Columbia," Rogers said.