This is an update to our story on forced child labour in Uzbekistan, in our September/October issue. But, before I go into the details here goes a video from the Environmental Justice Foundation. Watch the video, read the text and please consider sharing this post with as many people as possible.

Now, following our investigation into the use of Uzbek cotton by European retailers, Anti-Slavery International and Environmental Justice Foundation have come out with a statement calling on H&M and Zara to boycott Uzbek cotton from their products.

Call for H&M and Zara to stop using Uzbek cotton

Anti-Slavery International and the Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF) are demanding that high-street giants H&M and Zara stop selling clothes made with cotton from Uzbekistan, a country where around half of all cotton is picked by forced child labour, following an investigation that links Uzbek cotton to products from both companies.

Despite assurances from the Uzbekistan government that forced child labour was outlawed in 2008, Anti-Slavery International and EJF have obtained images of children picking cotton taken secretly during Uzbekistan’s 2009 cotton harvest, which ended at the beginning of December. Each year, the Uzbekistan government closes schools and forces more than 200,000 school children into the cotton fields during the three-month long harvest.

An investigation carried out by the human rights magazine Independent World Report uncovered that Beximco Textiles (Bextex) in Bangladesh, a supplier to Inditex (the owner of high street chains Zara and Bershka), admitted that 45-50 per cent of their raw cotton was imported from Uzbekistan. The same investigation also uncovered that H&M’s Bangladeshi suppliers deal directly with Bextex.

Anti-Slavery International have asked Inditex to confirm whether Bextex is one of their suppliers in Bangladesh, but have received no response. H&M responded to the allegation with the explanation that they do not demand that their suppliers in Bangladesh keep them informed about the source of fabric or yarn.

Many retailers, including Walmart, Gap and Nike have put in place a ban on Uzbek cotton because of the known use of child slavery in the cotton industry. Anti-Slavery is calling upon companies to ban the use of Uzbek cotton until forced labour has been eradicated from the production process. This ban should be clearly communicated and implemented throughout their supply chains.

Anti-Slavery International also calls upon retailers to put in place systems to begin to track and trace the origin of the cotton in their products. Without implementing such measures a commitment to ban the use of Uzbek cotton becomes virtually meaningless.

Forced child labour

With the help of forced child labour, Uzbekistan produces around 1 million tonnes of cotton, enough to make 1 billion T-shirts. The cotton generates over $1 billion a year. Around 60 per cent of Uzbekistan’s cotton ends up in Bangladesh, a major producer and exporter of cotton-based goods to the European Union.

Each year, the Uzbekistan government closes down the schools for up to three months and forces up to 200,000 children, some as young as ten years old, to pick the cotton harvest.

Children in Uzbekistan are rarely paid for their work and the ‘lucky’ ones receive only 3-4 US cents per kilo for a product that is worth US $1.15 on the global market. The children can pick up to 50 kg of cotton a day and the work is dangerous, with five reported deaths in 2008, due to a lack of safety precautions.

Children are threatened with expulsion from school for refusing to take part in the harvest. Those who fail to meet their quotas or who pick poor quality cotton are reportedly punished by scoldings, beatings, detention or told their grades will suffer.

Joanna Ewart-James, Anti-Slavery International’s supply chain co-ordinator said: “The last thing the British public want to do when they go and buy Christmas jumpers or the usual pair of socks for their loved ones is to be supporting child slavery. It is unacceptable that the cotton used to make these products could be picked by forced child labour.”

Juliette Williams EJF Campaign Director, said: “Despite the Uzbekistan government signing up last year to international conventions on child labour it is clear that children are still being forced into the fields to pick cotton that is ending up on the high street. It is time the EU reconsidered its trading position with Uzbekistan, and follows the lead of those major high street retailers who have already said ‘no’ to Uzbek cotton until forced labour is ended.”

Link with UK cotton traders

An invite list of attendees at the annual Uzbek cotton fair in the capital, Tashkent on 14 October 2009, reveals that as well as representatives from the Government owned Royal Bank of Scotland, seven British cotton traders and companies involved in the cotton industry were present.

EJF has written twice to the CEO of Royal Bank of Scotland to raise concerns about its presence and has received no response to date. Joanna Ewart-James, Anti-Slavery International’s supply chain co-ordinator said: “The presence of British companies at a cotton fair which sells cotton produced in violation of human rights and through the forced labour of children is of deep concern. We call on the UK Government to advise companies not to do business with the Uzbek cotton industry until forced child labour has been eradicated from the production process.”

Here is the relevant section from our story on Blood cotton:

One of the major European companies that resist boycotting Uzbek cotton is H&M. In public statements, the company condemns forced child labour in Uzbekistan. However, H&M claims in its website, “It is often virtually impossible to trace the cotton because it is traded a number of times – and because we do not buy any cotton ourselves.” I checked this claim with Juliette Williams since Environmental Justice Foundation has been working for years on the traceability of cotton.

Juliette Williams refuted the claim saying, “Identifying the source of cotton used by major brands and all the steps along the supply chain is possible. It can be done and has been done. No one thinks that tracing cotton is simple. But, it is certainly not impossible. Look at companies like Tesco and Wal-Mart, which have made a public commitment to avoid Uzbek cotton. The fact that cotton at its various stages of production and processing is traded internationally is important, as there is always paperwork that enables transit through customs. In short, we know that at every stage somebody knows where the cotton is coming from. Companies need to spend some effort, ask the right questions and let their suppliers know what is required, or, in the case of Uzbek cotton, what they want to avoid. They do it for quality reasons, why not for ethical reasons too?”

When I emailed H&M seeking its comment on my investigation that revealed two H&M suppliers in Bangladesh are using fabric made of Uzbek cotton in their productions, H&M emailed back: “We do not demand that our suppliers in Bangladesh keep us informed about the source of fabric or yarn. We can not exclude the possibility that some of the suppliers you have been in contact with could supply fabric or yarn for H&M products.”

Another major European company that does not publicly boycott Uzbek cotton is Inditex. As my investigation found that two Inditex brands – Zara and Bershka – are directly sourcing their garments from a supplier in Bangladesh who imports 45%-50% of its cotton from Uzbekistan, I asked Inditex for its comments on specific findings of my investigation. However, Inditex chose not to comment on those specific inquiries.

When I asked Juliette Williams for her comments on the findings of my investigation, she said “Over the past four years there has been a growing international awareness of the use of forced child labour in Uzbekistan’s cotton fields. As a result of media coverage and consumer awareness, many of the major retailers have denounced the use of forced child labour, and publicly stated that they will no longer accept Uzbek cotton in their supply chains. If these companies are taking cotton from Uzbekistan, via Bangladesh, it is almost certain that it has been produced using forced child labour, undermining their public statements and undermining consumer confidence in these brands. If the companies are actually aware of the source of the cotton, or even perceive the likelihood it would prove to be a shocking and highly damaging blow to their credibility.”

I asked Umida Niyazova for her reaction, “I think, companies which ignore calls to boycott Uzbek cotton, simply demonstrate their tolerance to the shameful practice of child labour. Uzbekistan is a dictatorship. This regime currently holds around five thousand political prisoners. Citizens around the world can support democracy and human rights in my country by boycotting brands which use Uzbek cotton in their production. I hope, soon, we will be making a list of these brands available.”

I am not sure how much cash H&M and Inditex minted during the Christmas and Boxing Day shopping frenzy, but definitely they are successfully creating a global market for child slavery. And that story, thanks to the big media in Sweden or Spain, is entirely missing. Now, here is what you — the reader — can do, if you want to keep your washing machine clean and shut down the shameful engine of slavery.

1. Share this post with as many friends as possible.

2. If you have a blog, highlight this.

3. Sign-up for this action at the Anti-Slavery website.