Take off that 'slave labor' T-shirt!

Steve Trent, Executive Director at EJF says "The international community must
follow the actions of the private sector - and in particular major European and US
retailers - to apply forceful diplomatic and trade pressure to ensure that cotton
production in Uzbekistan is no longer characterized by the use of statesponsored,
forced child and adult labour and devastating environmental impacts, to benefit a small, corrupt, ruling elite".

Facts from the report:
􀀀 Children as young as 10 years old can be dispatched to the cotton fields for two months
each year, missing out on their education and jeopardizing their future prospects.
􀀀 Uzbekistan is the world's 3rd largest cotton exporter and earns around US$1 billion
annually from the sale of its cotton to clothing factories primarily in Asia, which in turn
export garments to the west; and to cotton traders, many of which are based in Europe.
􀀀 Reports in November 2009 estimated one million children working in the last harvest.
Cotton picking is arduous labour, with each child ascribed a daily cotton quota of several
kilos that they must fulfil.
􀀀 Children may be compelled to stay in barrack-like accommodation during the harvest.
Living conditions are often squalid. In those places where food is provided to children, it is
inadequate, often lacking in basic nutrition and children can often only access water
from irrigation pipes, which carries health risks.
􀀀 Children can be left in poor physical condition following the harvest; illnesses including hepatitis, injuries and
even deaths are all reported. The harvest begins in the late summer, when temperatures in the fields remain
high and can continue until the onset of the Uzbek winter. Children are not provided with any protective
clothing whilst they work.
􀀀 Children receive little or no reimbursement for their labour, perhaps a few US cents per kilo of cotton picked.
However, payments are deducted to cover their travel to the fields and the food they are provided with
during the cotton picking season, which can leave them in debt.