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GLOBAL ACTION TO COMBAT FORCED LABOURbonded labour question in Nepal beyond the kamaiyasystem. In India, by contrast, little academic researchon bonded labour has been conducted in recent years.Some specific research has been commissioned by theILO project on the prevention and elimination ofbonded labour in South Asia (PEBLISA), includingon the gender dimensions of bonded labour and onthe perspectives of agricultural employers, both inAndhra Pradesh. 10 Project research has also produceda “Vulnerability to Debt Bondage Index”, intended asa tool for targeting interventions to the groups mostat risk of falling into bonded labour.320. Pioneering efforts elsewhere in Asia have brokenthe ice on a previously taboo subject. Experience inMongolia and Viet Nam, for example, demonstratesthe complementarity of processes leading to ratificationof ILO Conventions and promotional assistancefor understanding and solving problems in practice.321. The Government of Mongolia announced itsintention to ratify both forced labour Conventions,and requested ILO assistance in 2001. Initial consultationssuggested that forms of forced labour thathad prevailed in the central command economy,despite being outlawed, might not have disappearedentirely, and that market forces might have givenrise to some new forms. It was agreed to conducta study exploring issues including forced overtimein manufacturing, and prisoners being made availableto private companies in the textile and garmentindustries. Tripartite workshops were held to agreeon terms of reference and to discuss and validate thefindings. Various follow-up activities are now underconsideration.322. A similar process is under way in Viet Nam,paving the way for ratification. A high-level interministerialtask force has been set up to oversee acomprehensive study of forced labour. 11 A series ofworkshops and meetings since 2002 resulted in agreementon parameters for the study. Field studies werecompleted, and desk reviews will produce comparativeanalyses of relevant legislation in the nine areasof possible forced labour under consideration. Theprocess so far has succeeded in mobilizing a widerange of government departments under the leadershipof the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and SocialAffairs (MOLISA), creating widespread acceptanceof the relevance to Viet Nam of the elimination offorced labour and building consensus on what forcedlabour means in the Vietnamese context. This technicalunderstanding must now be developed further,passed on to the political leadership and translatedinto changes in law and practice.323. Recent ILO research on trafficking has aimedto shed light on trafficking for labour exploitation,in addition to sexual exploitation, examining bothsupply and demand factors. In Asia, the findingsof IPEC rapid assessments of child trafficking in anumber of origin countries 12 have fed into policyadvice and project design. In the Greater MekongSubregion, for example, research has shown that mosttrafficked victims initially leave their homes voluntarilyin search of better economic opportunities,but end up in highly exploitative situations of forcedlabour and the worst forms of child labour. IPEC’sMekong Subregional Project to Combat Traffickingin Children and Women 13 is therefore addressing traffickingwithin the larger labour migration framework,developing bilateral and multilateral memorandaof understanding on trafficking. An IPEC regionalstudy on the demand for trafficking in Asia, coveringBangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, iscurrently under way.324. Studies can focus on particular target groups.For example, in the Philippines and Indonesia, a newSAP-FL project on mobilizing action for the protectionof domestic workers from forced labour and traffickinghas undertaken situation analyses on migrantdomestic work. 14 The study in the Philippines, acountry which has adopted significant measures forits migrant workers, nevertheless uncovered significantgaps in their protection. In Indonesia, the studyrevealed various abuses, including situations of forcedlabour suffered by aspiring migrants in pre-departuretraining camps, an aspect that has been raised by theILO supervisory bodies. 15325. SAP-FL has given particular priority to improvingknowledge of the demand for forced labour,especially as it relates to trafficking into industrializedcountries. Conceptual research has shed light onthe economic underpinnings of trafficking linked tochanging industrial demand patterns. 16 In westernEuropean and other industrialized countries, field10. S. Subrahmanyam et al.: Labour and fi nancial markets from employers’ perspective: The case of Ranga Reddy District in Andhra Pradesh(Hyderabad, India, Centre for Economic and Social Studies, unpublished document, Dec. 2003); B. Chakravorty: Study on bonded labourwith a gender lens in Rangareddy District, Andhra Pradesh (unpublished document, Feb. 2004).11. The task force includes representatives of MOLISA, the Prime Minister’s Office, the Ministries of Home Affairs and Public Security, theOffice of the National Assembly and the Supreme People’s Court.12. Bangladesh, China (Yunnan Province), Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Nepal and Thailand.13. Covering Cambodia, China (Yunnan Province), Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Thailand and Viet Nam.14. The project involves the Philippines and Indonesia as source countries, but also China (Hong Kong Special Administrative Region),Malaysia and Singapore as destination countries. IPEC also operates a project on the internal labour migration of girls and women betweenfive provinces of China (Anhui, Guangdong, Henan, Hunan and Jiangsu Provinces).15. ILO: Report of the Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations, Report III (Part IA), International LabourConference, 92nd Session, Geneva, 2004, pp. 137-138.16. G. Van Liemt: Human traffi cking in Europe: An economic perspective, Special Action Programme to Combat Forced Labour, DECLARATIONWorking Paper No. 31 (Geneva, ILO, 2004).71
A GLOBAL ALLIANCE AGAINST FORCED LABOURresearch has looked at the interplay of supply anddemand factors in specific sectors, the profile of themigrant victims of forced labour, and the effectivenessof law and policy frameworks. 17 A forced labourand trafficking database has been derived from surveyinterviews. The research is informing an emergingpolicy debate over migrant labour exploitation,whether under forced labour or trafficking laws, aswell as the development of various manuals for theuse of ILO constituents and others.326. In Africa, preliminary research on forced labourencountered some difficulties. Certain countrieswere reluctant to engage on this sensitive issue, suggestingthat a thematic or subregional approach maybe advisable in future. Others, however, includingBurkina Faso, Guinea, Madagascar, Mali and Niger,have welcomed ILO assistance for studies, collaboratingin their implementation, tripartite validationworkshops and some follow-up activities. IPEC hasundertaken rapid assessments of child traffickingin nine countries of west and central Africa. TheGovernments of Ghana and Nigeria are now supportingadditional studies, in the context of a newSAP-FL subregional project, to shed light on patternsof trafficking in adults to complement the betterknownsituation of children. Baseline studies in selectedareas in both countries will provide the basisfor the design of community-based programmes forprevention of trafficking and reintegration of victims.In Ghana, government social workers havebeen trained in basic fact-finding and identificationof trafficking cases, thus ensuring that this work willcontinue after the end of the project.327. In Latin America, studies in Bolivia, Brazil,Paraguay and Peru have served to engage governmentand the social partners in discussing the problems,and to identify appropriate intervention strategies.The experience in Bolivia is illustrative. Togetherwith the Government, a decision was taken to focusresearch on particular areas and issues: debt bondagein the Bolivian northern Amazon; labour recruitmentmechanisms in the lowland Santa Cruz department;and the slavery-like conditions affecting Guaraníindigenous people in the Chaco region. Results ofthe research were presented to the authorities andsocial partners at a tripartite meeting in La Paz inAugust 2004. The Minister of Labour subsequentlyrequested the ILO to provide technical assistance forthe design and implementation of a national strategyto eradicate forced labour. This strategy will be implementedby a National Commission on ForcedLabour created by an inter-ministerial conventionin December 2004. Preliminary activities have includedworkshops with regional directors in chargeof labour inspection and with employers from sectorswhere forced labour was found.328. The above examples illustrate the depth anddiversity of recent research into forced labour, andhow it can provide a firm foundation for follow-upinterventions. Using creative approaches and techniques,a thorough understanding of forced labourproblems can be acquired.Awareness raising and advocacy329. Using the knowledge generated throughstudies is essential to raise awareness of forced labourconcerns among government agencies, the social partners,human rights and development agencies, civilsociety and public opinion generally. Approaches havediffered according to country or region, depending onwhether the main objective was to prepare the groundfor ratification of the forced labour Conventions,or rather to identify problems in their application.Moreover, efforts to advocate policy change amongsenior government officials will be different fromthose aimed at alerting potential migrant workers tothe dangers of abusive recruitment practices.330. In Asia, where the level of ratification of theforced labour Conventions is lower than elsewhere, theinitial focus of awareness raising has been on these ILOinstruments. Following a workshop in China in 2003to familiarize government officials and employers’ andworkers’ representatives with ILO forced labour conceptsand instruments, a study tour by high-level officialsfrom relevant Chinese ministries and institutionswas undertaken to several European countries, highlightingthe forced labour issues arising in the contextof punishing minor offences. An inter-ministerialworkshop in 2004 identified follow-up activities, designedto lead to the ratification and implementationby China of the forced labour Conventions.331. A workshop in Hong Kong SAR, China, inFebruary 2003 focused on the situation of migrantdomestic workers within and outside the region. Thisactivity prepared the ground for the new SAP-FLproject on mobilizing action for the protection of domesticworkers from forced labour and trafficking inIndonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia and Hong KongSAR, China.332. In Pakistan, the ILO supported an awarenessraisingand consensus-building event in December2003 organized by the brick-kiln owners’ association;and a series of awareness-raising events for workersis being implemented by the All Pakistan Federationof Trade Unions (APFTU). A national seminar tolaunch the findings of the rapid assessments has receivedsignificant national press coverage. Since then,various follow-up activities have continued to receivesignificant media attention.333. In India, the state government of AndhraPradesh organized, with ILO support, a Convention17. Destination country studies have been conducted in France (focusing on the situation of migrant Chinese workers), Germany, Japan, theRussian Federation, Turkey and the United Kingdom.72
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A Global AllianceAgainst Forced Lab
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REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR-GENERALA glo
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ContentsIntroduction . . . . . . .
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Introduction1. Four years ago, the
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PART IUnderstanding and measuringfo
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UNDERSTANDING AND MEASURING FORCED
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A GLOBAL ALLIANCE AGAINST FORCED LA
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