[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 121 (Tuesday, July 25, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1507]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



[[Page E 1507]]


                THE EXPLOITATION OF CHILD LABOR IN INDIA

                                 ______


                            HON. DAN BURTON

                               of indiana

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, July 25, 1995
  Mr. BURTON of Indiana. Mr. Speaker, much attention was appropriately 
focussed on human rights abuses by the Indian Government against 
minorities in Kashmir and Punjab during recent consideration of H.R. 
1868, the foreign aid appropriations bill for 1996. However, there 
exists another little-known human rights problem in India, which is 
every bit as grave. This problem, which received little discussion, is 
the exploitation of child labor. The United States Government and the 
international community have paid little attention to the prolific 
employment of young children. It is time to attend to this neglect.
  Child labor in India is a grave and extensive problem. Children under 
the age of 14 are forced to work in glass-blowing, fireworks, and most 
commonly, carpet-making factories. While the Government of India 
reports about 20 million children laborers, other non-governmental 
organizations estimate the number to be closer to 50 million. Most 
prevalent in the northern part of India, the exploitation of child 
labor has become an accepted practice, and is viewed by the local 
population as necessary to overcome the extreme poverty in the region.
  Child labor is one of the main components of the carpet industry. 
Factories pay children extremely low wages, for which adults refuse to 
work, while forcing the youngsters to slave under perilous and 
unhygienic labor conditions. Many of these children are migrant 
workers, the majority coming from northern India, who are sent away by 
their families to earn an income sent directly home. Thus, children are 
forced to endure the despicable conditions of the carpet factories, as 
their families depend on their wages.
  The situation of the children at the factories is desperate. Most 
work around 12 hours a day, with only small breaks for meals. Ill-
nourished, the children are very often fed only minimal staples. The 
vast majority of migrant child workers who cannot return home at night 
sleep alongside of their loom, further inviting sickness and poor 
health.
  Taking aggressive action to eliminate this problem is difficult in a 
nation where 75 percent of the population lives in rural areas, most 
often stricken by poverty. Children are
 viewed as a form of economic security in this desolate setting, 
necessary to help supplement their families' income. Parents often 
sacrifice their children's education, as offspring are often expected 
to uphold their roles as wage-earning members of their clan.

  The Indian Government has taken some steps to alleviate this 
monumental problem. In 1989, India invoked a law that made the 
employment of children under age 14 illegal, except in family-owned 
factories. However, this law is rarely followed, and does not apply to 
the employment of family members. Thus, factories often circumvent the 
law through claims of hiring distant family. Also, in rural areas, 
there are few enforcement mechanisms, and punishment for factories 
violating the mandate is minimal, if not nonexistent.
  Legal action taken against the proliferation of child labor often 
produces few results. Laws against such abuses have little effect in a 
nation where this abhorred practice is accepted as being necessary for 
poor families to earn an income. Thus, an extensive reform process is 
necessary to eliminate the proliferation of child labor abuses in India 
which strives to end the desperate poverty in the nation. Changing the 
structure of the workforce and hiring the high number of currently 
unemployed adults in greatly improved work conditions is only the first 
step in this lengthy process. New labor standards and wages must be 
adopted and medical examinations and minimum nutrition requirements 
must be established in India. Establishing schools and eliminating the 
rampant illiteracy that plagues the country would work to preserve 
structural changes. However, these changes cannot be accomplished 
immediately. Pressure from the international community, especially the 
United States Government, is absolutely necessary to bring about change 
in India.
  I believe that it is imperative for the U.S. Congress and the Clinton 
administration to pay more attention to the exploitation of children in 
India as well as other areas in South and Southeast Asia. Currently, 
Germany has instigated a pilot program that places a stamp on all 
imported carpets that are child labor free, thus urging consumers to 
buy these products. Because of the high price range of these carpets, 
similar programs can and should be given serious consideration in the 
United States.
  The Child Labor Deterrence Act of 1993, which is still under 
consideration, prohibits importing to the U.S. any product made, whole 
or in part, by children under 15 who are employed in industry. While 
this aspect of the bill may be effective, the United States needs to 
take action regarding child labor abuses, specifically targeted at 
India. Mr. Speaker, I call on every Member of Congress to pay more 
attention to this little-recognized problem. We must acknowledge the 
fact that we cannot continue to sustain the exploitation of children by 
purchasing carpets woven by the hands of children.


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