America Suspects Four Products in Cambodia Related to the Use of Child Labor – Saturday, 12.9.2009

http://cambodiamirror.wordpress.com/
Posted on 13 September 2009
The Mirror, Vol. 13, No. 629

“Phnom Penh: A report of the Department of Labor of the United States of America suspects that four products from Cambodia are produced with child labor.

“According to a statement of the US Embassy to Cambodia, the four products are bricks and roof tiles, shrimps, rubber, and salt. Therefore, the United States of America cooperates actively with the government of Cambodia to reduce child labor at the places of those productions and in the whole economy. The government of Cambodia has made improvements in this work, for example by organizing a national level activity plan about the most serious cases of child labor (2008-2012).

“The national activity plan aims at reducing the number of children between the ages of 5 and 17 who are doing work in Cambodia to only 10.6% in 2010, and to 8% in 2015. Also, the Royal Government of Cambodia has joined in some programs led by the USA to stop the most serious forms of child labor in different sectors, as stated by the US Department of Labor.

“The USA hopes that continued cooperation to solve this problem will totally eliminate child labor in Cambodia, and they hope that all forms of exploitation and human trafficking are being reduced.

“According to the statement, the Bureau of International Labor Affairs of the US Department of Labor released three reports about child labor and forced labor at some countries around the world on 10 September 2009. Those documents include ‘List of Goods Produced by Child or Forced Labor’ which is prohibited by the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act of 2005 (TVPRA List).

“The list required by the TVPRA details 122 types of products from 58 countries which are believed by the Office of Child Labor, Forced Labor, and Human Trafficking, which is part of the Bureau of International Labor Affairs of the US Department of Labor, to be produced using also child labor and forced labor, violating international standards. Furthermore, the Office of Child Labor, Forced Labor, and Human Trafficking of the US Department of Labor released recent information, as it is required to put it into the ‘List of Goods Produced by Child or Forced Labor’ and its annual ‘findings … to eliminate the worst forms of child labor,’ as required by the Trade and Development Act of 2000, about efforts of local authorities of 141 countries in their fight against child labor exploitation.

“The major intention of the TVPRA list is to promote understanding among the public about child labor and forced labor in producing goods, in the countries listed, and to boost efforts to eliminate such practices.

“This report mentioned four products in Cambodia that are suspected to being made with child labor: bricks and roof tiles, shrimps, rubber, and salt. The USA has closely has cooperated with the Royal Government to reduce child labor at those places of production, and in the whole economy. The Royal Government of Cambodia has made improvements in this work by creating a national level activity plan about the most serious forms of child labor (2008-2012).”

Rasmei Kampuchea, Vol.17, #4997, 12.9.2009
Newspapers Appearing on the Newsstand:
Saturday, 12 September 2009

Posted in: Khmer News