Kochi: An antiwar group here has called for a boycott of products of US soft drink majors Coca-Cola and Pepsi, and multinational giant Hindustan Lever (HLL) in Kerala from April 2003 to protest against the superpower-led military action in Iraq.

The decision was taken at the state antiwar samithy's general council, which met here and chalked out an eight-point programme to ensure that products of Coca-Cola, Pepsi and HLL are boycotted from April.

All shopkeepers have been asked not to stock the products of the three companies from 1 April. Antiwar squads have been formed to visit shops to ensure that the products are not being stocked.

All cities in the state will have 'anti-war corners,' where various art forms will be used to highlight the ravages of war and its impact on human life. On 13 April, in all state districts, children's anti-war painting competition will be held. Antiwar rallies will be taken out in all panchayats and municipalities from 20 April.

The meeting was inaugurated by Communist Party of India (Marxist) state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan. Former supreme court judge V R Krishna Iyer, the samithy chairman, and Sanskrit University vice-chancellor K N Panicker were among those who participated the function.