Day 284 - 22 Oct 96 - Page 10


     
     1        for it says 'Stop using McDonald's, Wimpey, et cetera';
     2        i.e., all those things in the 'everything must go' box.  It
     3        means start looking for alternatives to multi-national
     4        corporations.  I think that is the general message.
     5
     6        Obviously I need to do this for every issue in the case,
     7        but I am doing it now in a very brief form just to flag up
     8        that, in our belief, it to be a coherent, responsible,
     9        balanced and encouraging, positive leaflet, clearly the one
    10        aim of which is to try to encourage people to create a
    11        better world and live healthier, happier lives, and for
    12        that very reason McDonald's does not like it because they
    13        are on the other side.
    14
    15        And I think that the message is, when you are looking at
    16        the two sides of the equation, which side is McDonald's on
    17        in this fact sheet.  It is clearly on the side of
    18        corporations, profits, and exploitation of people, animals
    19        and the environment.  And yet, and I think this is
    20        important in terms of the evidence in this case, McDonald's
    21        are claiming to have, especially since the late 1980s, a
    22        whole range of policies claiming concern about the
    23        environment and animals, although that is a more recent
    24        one, and different issues such as the so-called rainforest
    25        policy they formulated, we would say, in 1989, 1988, 1989.
    26
    27        So we would say such claimed policies, which we would argue
    28        the evidence has said are more for marketing, more as a
    29        marketing tool, than any kind of effective changes in their
    30        business practices - sorry, I lost my train of thought
    31        there - such policies are in many ways quite obviously a
    32        response to the concerns raised by the organisations that
    33        we have heard, and the views that we have heard were in
    34        existence before this leaflet was even written.
    35
    36        So the context, the historical context of this leaflet,
    37        which may be another context, is that it is not a leaflet
    38        that created any new, or put down any new points about
    39        McDonald's Corporation.  It brought together already
    40        preexisting information, views and opinions as far as we
    41        can see, not being involved with the production of this
    42        fact sheet.
    43
    44   MR. JUSTICE BELL:   Yes.  Where do you say it should take me in
    45        relation to the rainforests?
    46
    47   MR. MORRIS:  I am doing a general overview now so I do not have
    48        to do that with each issue.  Maybe it is not helpful.
    49
    50   MR JUSTICE BELL:  I thought you made this point yesterday.  If 
    51        you did not think you made it well enough, then tell me 
    52        again, but you made the point and I understand the point 
    53        you are making so far as policy is concerned, that if it is
    54        made just for PR reasons rather than because of a genuine
    55        motive not to harm the rainforest, then that is a factor to
    56        bear in mind when I am looking to see whether McDonald's
    57        are responsible one way or another for destroying the
    58        rainforests.  But that is your point on policy, is it not?
    59
    60   MR. MORRIS:   Yes, that is partly it.  It is partly that even if

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