Labor Trafficking and Trade
Feudalism Still Practised in Pakistan
Published September 01, 2009 @ 02:50PM PT
What do 13th century France and modern-day Pakistan have in common? Feudalism -- a system where a tiny minority of people own the vast majority of the land. In medieval Europe, feudalism was one of the major reasons innovation came to a screeching halt for several hundred years and leeches were considered medicinal. In modern-day Pakistan, feudalism is keeping men, women, and children in bonded labor across the country.
Here's how bonded labor in Pakistan works. Let's say I'm part of the 10% of men (and they are almost all men) lucky enough to own 90% of land in Pakistan. I need someone to harvest the crops on my land, so I go into a village and find a poor family with children. I offer to take two of their sons to my farm, and feed and house the kids. All the kids have to do is sign a contract to work off their room and board. I'm not going to pay the kids, but I'll send the family a portion of my crops. The kids sign, I take them to my farm, and I invent a massive debt their room and board is costing me that they can never pay off. So, I get free labor for life and for only the cost of a tiny potion of my harvest. The system is not very different from that of medieval Europe.
Previous efforts to address debt bondage and slavery in Pakistan have revolved around legal intervention, humanitarian efforts, and public education. These are all great things, but the fact is that Pakistan is operating as a feudal society. And in a feudal society, there are serfs, or as we now call them, bonded laborers. But unlike 13th century France where almost all serfs were exploited in agriculture, Pakistanis are exploited in a number of industries, including brick kilns, carpet weaving, mining, glass-bangle manufacturing units, tanneries, domestic work and beggary. It's a diversified portfolio of a feudal society, but its still the dark ages.
In order to address bonded labor in Pakistan, we need a new approach which takes into account the archaic systems Pakistan has long relied on. Otherwise, Pakistan might never see its own Renaissance.
Photo credit: Little Farmer by Sparkle_lavalamp
How Our Tobacco Habit Kills Malawian Children
Published August 29, 2009 @ 09:00AM PT
Malawi's children are being slowly killed by tobacco, but not tobacco they're smoking. They're being killed by tobacco those of us in the U.S. and Europe are smoking. That's because Malawi's booming and dangerous tobacco industry is a huge exploiter of child labor, all in the name of serving a Western nicotine addiction.
In Malawi, 78,000 children, some as young as five, work 12-hour days to produce cigarettes. Some are literally paid pennies an hour for this difficult labor. Few earn what would be considered a "living wage." But for Malawian children in the tobacco industry, the lack of fair pay is the least of their worries. On a humid day (of which Malawi has several), the average child worker can be exposed to up to 54 milligrams of dissolved nicotine- the equivalent of 32 cigarettes! These kids are reaping the heath consequences of a pack-and-a-half-a-day habit without ever lighting up. One teen boy described the health problems as such,
We even carry on coughing at home. It starts as a little cough, but it goes on for a long time. Sometimes it feels like you don't have enough breath, you don't have enough oxygen. Yes, you reach a point where you cannot breathe in because of the pain in your chest. Then the blood comes and you vomit, you vomit blood. At the end, most of this dies and then you remain with a headache.
The relationship that Malawi has with tobacco is rooted, if dysfunctional and incestuous. Tobacco is Malawi's biggest export, and accounts for about 70 percent of their income from exports. Malawi is the fifth largest producer of tobacco in the world. So where does all this tobacco from Malawi go? Mostly, to the U.S. and Europe.
On the Philip Morris website, they claim that they "do not condone the unlawful employment or exploitation of children in the workplace, nor do we condone forced labor." However, they also don't list where their tobacco is sourced from or any specific regulations they require their suppliers to meet. Their Child and Forced Labor Policy is about as firm and healthy as the lungs of a lifetime smoker. And Philip Morris is just one company- tobacco companies all over the world buy Malawian tobacco.
Is it shocking that tobacco companies care as much about the health of the Malawian children who produce their products as they do about the Western children who smoke their products? Not really. Is it one more reason not to light up? Definitely.
Drink Up: Fair Trade Vodka
Published August 29, 2009 @ 09:00AM PT
So you're having a cocktail party fundraiser to help victims of human trafficking, but you don't want to serve any beverages that may be tainted by slavery. What do you do? Why, serve Fair brand vodka, the first Fair Trade certified vodka on the market.
The Fair Trade alcohol industry is still way under legal drinking age. A few options for wine and beer are available online, but most are still very hard to find in local grocery store or liquor stores (and I've looked). That's one of the reasons everyone thought Fair founder Jean- Francois Daniel was crazy when he set out to create a Fair Trade liquor. Well, that and the fact that he gave up a job that allowed him to sip cognac with Snoop Dogg and 50 Cent. But Daniel showed them it could be done and launched Fair brand vodka.
Fair vodka is made from organic quinoa grown by farmers in Ecuador. It's distilled in France. And according to at least one blind taste test in New York earlier this year, it's delicious enough to win "Best Unflavored Vodka." Fair will be available online and at selected distributors as of September 2009, so check back with their website for details. I certainly hope it will be available in the U.S., but I wouldn't be surprised if this is initially launched in a European market.
To help get you excited about your next cocktail party/human trafficking fundraiser, here are a couple of my favorite cocktail recipes that I've doctored up with a Fair Trade twist:
The Bloodless Mary
1 1/2 ounces Fair vodka
1/2 cup tomato juice
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
Worcestershire sauce to taste
Tabasco to taste
1 celery stick for garnish
1 lemon wedge for garnish
The Fairsmopolitan
1 oz Fair vodka
1 oz orange liqueur
1 dash cranberry juice
1 dash lime juice
Happy drinking!
FREE Fair Trade Chocolate (Seriously)!
Published August 27, 2009 @ 07:30AM PT
Halloween rocks! It's not too early to be thinking about your Halloween plans, in fact, I've been trying to decide what to be for weeks now. There are the mainstays of Halloween we all love: costumes, candy, ghoulish goodness. But this year, why not try something a little different with your Halloween and take yourself and/or the kids in your life reverse trick-or-treating?
Reverse trick-or-treating is exactly what it sounds like. You knock on doors and when folks answer, you yell "trick or treat". Except, instead of accepting delicious candy from the adults inside, you give them a piece of Fair Trade chocolate with a card that talks about how Fair Trade chocolate helps prevent slavery and protect the environment. And the best part is, you can get a FREE reverse trick-or-treating kit from the Fair Trade Resource Network, including Fair Trade chocolate to distribute and everything you need to go reverse trick-or-treating.
I love this idea because it's a great and easy way for parents to get their kids involved in social activism (and a way for parents to reduce the overflow of candy that comes with Halloween). It's also a smart way to educate people about the realities of the chocolate industrywith a sweeter (i.e. chocolate flavored) wrapping. Plus, it shows the recipients of the Fair Trade treats that next year there are better alternatives to the chocolate you find in the grocery store.
The deadline for groups to request their kits is October 1 and for individuals it's October 13. But this offer is only valid while the free chocolate lasts, so hurry up and order yours today!
Now if only someone would help me pick out a Halloween costume....
6 Places to Buy Fair Trade and Ethical Shoes
Published August 22, 2009 @ 09:00AM PT
I'm a bit of a girly girl, which means that I love shoes. I'm also an abolitionist, which means I love Fair Trade, sweatshop-free shoes not made by slaves. But like many of us abolitionists, I work in a professional job which prevents me from wearing hemp rope flip flops every day. Is there anywhere to buy professional-looking Fair Trade shoes?
Yes! There are lots of great online shoe stores which sell Fair Trade and more ethical shoes! Some of these also offer vegan and eco-friendly shoes, if you're trying for the triple whammy of responsible consumption. Here are some of my favs:
If You Need Shoes For a Professional/Office Type Job...
Fashion Conscience: At this UK-based retailer, not all shoes are Fair Trade, but a number are.
Moo Shoes: Not 100% Fair Trade certified, but they guarantee all their products are ethically produced. All the options are vegetarian as well.
Tom's Shoes: For every pair of shoes you buy, they'll donate one pair to a kid in need. How cool is that?
If You Need Cool, Fun, Anytime Shoes.....
Autonomie Project: Awesome Chuck-style sneakers that are totally Fair Trade.
Sole Rebels: You can buy them online, but you can also get them from retailers like Urban Outfitters.
New Balance: One of the most ethical big brands of sneakers you can buy, though not Fair Trade certified. If you want name brand sneaks, pick these.
Are there any that I missed?
Stop Crucifixes and Bible Covers Made By Slaves
Published August 21, 2009 @ 08:22AM PT
In 2007, a case of crucifixes purchased by St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York was traced back to a factory in China where girls as young as 15 were forced to work up to 19-hour days, seven days a week. Today, Christian items from bible covers to t-shirts are being made in factorys which abuse and traffic workers. And some Christians are standing up and refusing to stand for slavery.
The Just Holy Hardware Campaignhas launched this week as part of a movement to end slavery, especially slavery of children, in the production of religious items. The initiative, based in Australia, aims to provide religious organizations with paraphernalia made under fair labor conditions, with a "no-slavery" guarantee. Sr. Pauline Coll, a representative on the national executive of Australian Catholic Religious Against Trafficking in Humans (ACRATH), has been particularly outspoken on the issue, saying the massive U.S.-based Association for Christian Retail,
"was found to lack basic codes of conduct and a factory-monitoring program. There was little to reassure American Christians that the religious products they buy to celebrate their faith were not made under inhumane conditions."
In Australia, a team of NGOs have drafted a Christian Good Standard, which they hope organizations will adhere to when purchasing Christian items. Organizations in Australia are currently adopting it.
The U.S. is a huge market for Christian goods, and if the Association for Christian Retail (a very large organization) agreed to adopt a set of standards similar to the one adopted in Australia, it would make a huge impact on the lives of the slaves who are right now suffering in silence while making religious artifacts. Please, ask the Association for Christian Retail to adopt a set of anti-slavery standards for the production of Christian goods.
Christian or not, slavery is wrong. And slave-made items are tainted by this injustice, whether they are shoes or crucifixes. We need all people, regardless of faith to come together and take action so that we can end slavery in the production of religious artifacts.
How Natural Disasters Make Children Slaves
Published August 20, 2009 @ 07:22AM PT
Natural disasters can destroy homes, raze farmlands, and devastate families. They can wipe out whole communities in moments and cause damage that costs millions of dollars to repair. But can natural disasters turn children into slaves? According to a recent report from ECPAT International, they sure can.
ECPAT International found increases in trafficking of children after severe droughts in Swaziland in 2007 and flooding in India in 2008. In Swaziland, an increased number of children were pulled out of school; their families traded their bodies for food and water. In India, children were sent to work as bricklayers and seamstresses to make up for destroyed business. Other girls left vulnerable by the floods were sold as brides into forced marriages.
But natural disasters aren't the only tragedies that push children into slavery; man-made conflicts can be just as devastating. Children in the Congo, Guinea, and other West African nations living in refugee camps are trading sex for basic supplies and food. In some cases, the adults who exploit them include camp leaders, teachers, and humanitarian aid workers.
So how do natural disasters and conflicts turn children into slaves? For the most part, these children were already vulnerable to human trafficking before the disaster struck. They were living at some level of poverty with little education and few resources. The disaster pushes children and their families over the edge into destitution and desperation. Sometimes the disaster causes a family to send a child away to work, a risk that ends in slavery. Sometimes the family must marry off daughters they cannot feed. Sometimes criminal businessmen will traffic children to regain profits lost to a natural disaster. The possibilities are as endless as the supply of children whose lives the disaster has destroyed.
Human trafficking is deeply connected to and propelled by hurricanes, floods, fires, tsunamis, and other natural disasters. And it's also deeply connected to civil wars and other armed conflicts. So the next time you hear about a natural disaster, remember that once the emergency aid organizations leave, the nightmare isn't over. And for some children, the nightmare is just beginning.
Image from ens-newswire.com
