WRITTEN QUESTION P-0359/00

by Robert Evans (PSE) to the Commission

(4 February 2000)

Subject: Bonded labour

Bonded labour is a human rights violation which, according to the UN Working Group on Contemporary Forms of Slavery, affects around 20 million people in the world. A large proportion of these bonded labourers are in India and Pakistan.

In the light of this, can the Commission inform me as to what action it is taking to:

1. Work with the United Nations and the ILO to urge all States to sign the pertinent international instruments which outlaw bonded labour, particularly ILO Conventions 29 on forced labour and Convention 182 on the worst forms of child labour?

2. Support States in developing and implementing domestic legislation to outlaw bonded labour, including carrying out detailed regional surveys to identify and rehabilitate bonded labourers and to ensure that those responsible for keeping bonded labourers are prosecuted in accordance with national laws?

Answer given by Mr Lamy on behalf of the Commission

(8 March 2000)

The Commission shares the concerns of the Honourable Member with regard to bonded labour practices and, like the Member States, recognizes the importance of abolishing child labour, which deprives children of their right to childhood, their right to education, and their freedom from forced labour. The Community is actively supporting the work of the United Nations, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) in this area. It welcomes the adoption of a new ILO Convention concerning the prohibition and immediate actions for the elimination of the worst forms of child labour. The Community will help ensure that the Convention makes a positive contribution to the elimination of the most intolerable forms of child labour, including bonded labour and the exploitation of children in

prostitution. The Community sees the adoption of the Convention as a major step forward and calls for its early ratification and effective implementation.

The International Labour Organisation has well-established mechanisms for supervising the application of international labour standards, including the ILO's Conventions on forced labour (29) and on the worst forms of child labour (182). It is recalled that the 1999 International Labour Conference examined a very critical report on Myanmar and decided to suspend the benefits of ILO technical assistance for this country. It is, however, clear that there is no basis for trade measures preventing the import of goods produced using bonded or child labour in any international instrument at present.

The Community follows an approach based on the offer of positive incentives and other forms of assistance, as opposed to the use of sanctions, in order to promote or enhance the ability of poor countries to adhere in practice to accepted standards in the area of core labour standards. However, in extreme and well-specified cases, the Community's generalized scheme of preferences (GSP) system allows the suspension of benefits accruing to countries where severe violations of human rights have been found. This provision has been applied to Myanmar and still is in force.

Considering the case of Pakistan, its government has introduced legislation to outlaw bonded labour and child labour and keeps the Commission informed of the efforts of its authorities to implement this legislation (investigations, convictions, rehabilitation). The Commission uses all appropriate occasions to impress on Pakistan its concerns in this area. In addition, the Honourable Member will be aware of the considerable importance for India and Pakistan of the International programme for the elimination of child labour (IPEC) programme under the ILO aegis for the education of children which helps children to go to school and families to get a job or some money to survive. The Community is a major contributor to this innovative instrument to fight against poverty as well as bonded and child labour.