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Take action on CHILD SLAVERY in Uzbekistan's cotton industry

State-sponsored forced labour, particularly of children, underpins the cotton industry in Uzbekistan. Each year, schools are closed down for the duration of the cotton harvest and children, some as young as ten years old, are forced to pick cotton by hand for little or no pay. Children who refuse to work or fail to meet their targets are punished by beatings and can be threatened with expulsion from school. Human rights groups estimate that up to 200,000 children are involved each year. 

Despite assurances from the Uzbekistan government that forced child labour was outlawed in 2008, Anti-Slavery International and the Environmental Justice Foundation have obtained new evidence of children being forced to pick cotton during Uzbekistan’s 2009 cotton harvest, which ended in December 2009.

Uzbekistan is the third biggest exporter of cotton in the world, and with the help of forced child labour generates over US$1 billion annually.

Please click here to read the full briefing about this campaign action.

Please act now!
 

1. Write to retailers

Around half of all cotton in Uzbekistan is picked by forced child labour and the single biggest destination for Uzbek cotton is the European market. Anti-Slavery International is calling upon companies to ban the use of Uzbek cotton within their products until forced child labour has been eradicated from the production process in Uzbekistan.

Which retailers should I write to?
Some retailers such as Wal-Mart (Asda), Tesco, GAP and Marks & Spencer, amongst others, have already taken action to ban Uzbek cotton from their products. However, many retailers have yet to make this commitment. Therefore we encourage you to write to the Chief Executive of any of your favourite retail chains asking them to do so.

In particular, recent investigations have linked clothes made by high-street chains Zara & H&M to cotton from Uzbekistan. Bangladeshi suppliers for both companies have admitted that 45-50 per cent of their raw cotton is imported from Uzbekistan. Read the full news story here to find out more.

Zara (UK) Ltd
48 Warwick Street
W1B 5NL - London
Tel. 020 78514300
Email here

H & M Hennes Ltd.
2nd Floor
Holden House
57 Rathbone Place
London W1T 1HE
Tel: +44 020 7323 2211
Email here
 

Please click here to view the responses we have received from retailers so far to help inform your letters.
 
See the sample letter below which you can personalise and add to. You can find the address of the company's headquarters on their website or on your receipts.

Thank you for your help.

sample letter

Subject: Take action on forced child labour in Uzbekistan's cotton industry

Dear Chief Executive,

I am writing to you because I am concerned about state-sponsored forced child labour in Uzbekistan's cotton industry.

Schools are closed down for the duration of the cotton harvest and children, some as young as ten years old, are sent to the fields to pick cotton by hand for little or no pay. Students who fail to meet their targets or refuse to work are beaten or can face expulsion from school. Human rights groups estimate that up to 200,000 children are involved each year.

I regularly shop at your stores and I would like to know where the cotton in your products originates from. I would like assurances that you will not use Uzbek cotton until such time as forced labour is eradicated from the production process.

Finally, I urge you to label your cotton clothing with the country of origin of the cotton and not just the country of manufacture, so that I can be sure that I am not buying clothes which have been produced with forced child labour.

Thank you for your consideration. I look forward to your reply.

Yours faithfully,
(your name)

2. Write to your MEP

The European Commission is continuing to allow Uzbekistan to benefit from preferential import duties for its cotton exports to the EU. We are calling on the European Commission to reconsider its trading position with Uzbekistan until forced child labour has ended in the cotton industry.

If you live in an European Union country, please write to your MEP. Each EU country is divided into regions that are represented by a number of MEPs. You can contact any or all of the MEPs for your region.

See the sample letter below which you can personalise and add to. You can find out who your MEPs are and how to contact them at http://www.europarl.eu.int or you can write to your MEPs directly through the website: http://www.writetothem.com

 

sample letter

Subject: Forced child labour in Uzbekistan's cotton industry

Dear ____________ MEP

I am writing to you because I am concerned about state-sponsored forced child labour in Uzbekistan's cotton industry.

Schools are closed down for the duration of the cotton harvest and children, some as young as ten years old, are forced to pick cotton by hand for little or no pay. Students who fail to meet their targets or refuse to work are beaten or can face expulsion from school. Human rights groups estimate that up to 200,000 children are involved each year.

Despite assurances from the Uzbekistan government that forced child labour was outlawed in 2008, further evidence has been obtained of forced child labour being used during Uzbekistan’s 2009 cotton harvest, organised by Government agencies and public employees.

The single biggest destination for Uzbek cotton is the European market. I would like to know why the European Commission is continuing to allow Uzbekistan to benefit from preferential import duties for its cotton exports to the EU.

I ask that steps will be taken to remove these benefits and ensure independent monitoring of the cotton harvest. I would also like to know what other action the European Commission will take to ensure forced child labour is eradicated from Uzbek cotton production.

Yours sincerely
(your name)
 

Thank you for your help. Please forward copies of any replies that you receive to g.wolfes@antislavery.org