Tibet Could Sap Coke's Olympic Zing

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However in a statement issued by the company last week, Coke spokesperson Kerry Kerr said: "While it would be an inappropriate role for sponsors to comment on the political situation of individual nations, as the longest-standing sponsor of the Olympic movement, we firmly believe that the Olympics are a force for good. We remain committed to supporting the torch relay, which provides a unique opportunity to share the Olympic values of unity, pride, and inspiration with people all over the world."

The other sponsors say they have no plans to dial down their marketing for the Beijing Olympics in response to the outcry over Tibet. "As a private organization, Samsung is not in a position to influence politics," says Kwon Gye Hyun, vice-president and head of global sports marketing at Samsung Electronics. Bob Page, manager for Lenovo's Worldwide Olympic Games Project, agrees that Lenovo's role is not to advise governments on policy. The situation "needs to be resolved at a regional level by governments," he says. "It's not the role of an Olympic sponsor to advise any government on political policy."

Journey of Harmony?

Privately, corporate sponsors of the Olympics are starting to grow concerned (BusinessWeek.com, 2/20/08) over protests over Tibet. They're also worried about other groups such as those critical of Beijing's support for the government of Sudan and its campaign against separatists and civilians in Darfur. Risk analysts have been reaching out to Tibetan activist groups to try to gauge how much of a public relations disaster the riots in Tibet will be for their corporate clients. But the corporate sponsors must tread carefully to avoid making China lose face before the Olympics, especially if they want to continue doing business in China.

China is hoping to use the torch relay (introduced by Adolf Hitler's Nazi propaganda machine to glorify the Third Reich during the 1936 Berlin Games) to usher in what organizers call the "magnificent celebration" of the 2008 Games. China is hoping the relay, with its "Journey of Harmony" theme, will highlight "Chinese people's aspiration for a harmonious world with lasting peace and universal prosperity," Games organizers said in a statement for the opening of the torch relay.

After a six-day tour through Greece, the Olympic flame will arrive in Beijing on Mar. 31. From there, it will embark on a 21-city Asian tour including Almaty, Kazakhstan; Pyongyang, North Korea; and Hong Kong. A separate flame will be transported to Tibet to be taken to the top of Mt. Everest on a day in May when the weather permits. Nepal and China will close access to Mt. Everest on May 1-10 to prevent protests from marring the Olympic torch's ascension to the top of the mountain.

The Olympic flame will pass through Tibet again on June 19-20 as part of the 113-city relay covering all 31 Chinese provinces, special autonomous regions, and municipalities. Even though Tibet still remains closed off (BusinessWeek,com, 3/17/08) to journalists and tourists, presumably for security reasons, Chinese authorities say they have no plans to alter the torch relay route through Tibet. "We know the incidents are the last thing we want to see, but we firmly believe that the government of the Tibet Autonomous Region will be able to ensure the stability of Lhasa and Tibet, and also be able to ensure the smooth going of the torch relay in Tibet," Jiang Xiaoyu, executive vice-president of the Beijing Organizing Committee for the Games of the XXIX Olympiad (BOCOG), told reporters at a Mar. 19 press briefing, before Tibetan activist groups sent their letter to Coca-Cola.

International Campaign for Tibet's Colker says he is hoping Coca-Cola will use some of its political capital in China to persuade the International Olympic Committee and BOCOG to cancel the torch relay leg through Tibet by June. "I can promise," he says, "that at some point between now and August—especially if the torch continues through Tibet and if Coca-Cola remains a sponsor of the relay—there's no question in my mind that Coca-Cola will have a major public relations issue."

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Tschang is a reporter in BusinessWeek's Beijing bureau.

With Moon Ihlwan in Seoul