ILO starts mission to check Myanmar forced labor<\/p>\n
YANGON (Agencies): Myanmar on Monday promised to fully
\ncooperate with an International Labor Organization team that
\nbegan an unprecedented three-week visit to assess the military
\njunta's efforts to end forced labor.<\/p>\n
A high level International Labor Organization (ILO) mission
\narrived in Myanmar on Monday for a three-week visit to check the
\nmilitary government's pledge it has ended forced labor.<\/p>\n
A four-member team, headed by former Australian governor
\ngeneral, Sir Ninian Stephen, flew from Bangkok to Yangon on
\nMonday for five days of meeting with officials and others.<\/p>\n
The other members of the team are: Ms. Nieves Roldan-Confessor
\nof the Philippines, Kulatilaka Arthanayake Parinda Ranasinghe of
\nSri Lanka and Jerzy Makarczyk of Poland.<\/p>\n
In the following days the multinational team will travel to
\nvarious places around the country \"to investigate the situation,\"
\nthe United Nations agency said in a statement.<\/p>\n
This is the first time that the ILO has been allowed by the
\njunta to travel around the country to make its \"own direct
\nassessment of the forced labor situation,\" the statement said.<\/p>\n
The team's mandate is to assess the practical implementation
\nand the impact of various laws and measures announced by the
\ngovernment to stop forced labor in response to ILO threats of
\nsanctions.<\/p>\n
A Myanmar Foreign Ministry official said the ILO team will be
\nallowed to move around freely and the government will not
\ninterfere in its work.<\/p>\n
Government officials, factory owners and managers were told to
\ncooperate fully with the ILO mission by providing correct and
\ncomplete information, said the official, speaking on condition of
\nanonymity.<\/p>\n
Factory workers were also told not to bring along their
\nchildren to work places as \"children inside factories could be
\nmisconstrued as violation of child labor,\" said a member of the
\nMyanmar Chamber of Commerce and Industry.<\/p>\n
Myanmar's military has been accused of forcibly recruiting
\ncivilians to build road and railways and to act as military
\nporters for the army on campaigns in border regions against anti-
\ngovernment insurgents.<\/p>\n
In an unprecedented move last November, the ILO urged its 175
\nmember governments to impose sanctions and review their dealings
\nwith Myanmar to ensure they are not abetting forced labor.<\/p>\n
The ILO recommended individual governments, organizations and
\nlabor unions should decide for themselves what to do.<\/p>\n
Faced with such sweeping censure, the Myanmar junta made it
\nillegal for authorities to force anyone to work, and promised to
\ncirculate the directive to every village to ensure compliance.<\/p>\n
Myanmar, also known as Burma, has been ruled by the military
\nsince 1962, employing a pervasive military intelligence
\napparatus. According to human rights groups, it has more than
\n1,800 political prisoners. Its rights record has earned the
\ncountry pariah status in the West.<\/p>\n
The ILO said that in an understanding with Myanmar in May, the
\nILO team will have \"full discretion\" to establish a program of
\ncontacts and visits \"as it considers appropriate across the
\ncountry.\"<\/p>\n
Myanmar authorities also promised that the people who give
\ninformation to the team or assist its work will not face
\nretribution. The authorities will also not seek to identify such
\npersons, the ILO statement said.<\/p>\n
The team's report will be considered by the ILO Governing
\nBody, which will meet at the agency's headquarters in Geneva in
\nNovember.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/ilo-starts-mission-to-check-myanmar-forced-labor-1447899208",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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