UNANNOUNCED, PRIME MINISTER TOURS QIZ FACTORIES

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 AMMAN 006707

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

STATE PASS TO USTR LKARESH, AROSENBERG, JBUNTIN
STATE PASS TO DEPARTMENT OF LABOR JRUDE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ELAB ETRD PHUM GTIP KTEX JO
SUBJECT: UNANNOUNCED, PRIME MINISTER TOURS QIZ FACTORIES

REF: A. AMMAN 04167

B. AMMAN 05595

C. AMMAN 05566


1. (SBU) SUMMARY: Prime Minister (PM) Ma'ruf al-Bakhit made
unannounced visits on August 23 to four Qualifying Industrial
Zone (QIZ) factories, including two "bad" factories chosen by
the Ministry of Labor (MoL). According to an MoL contact,
the PM was "surprised" by the working conditions, including
low levels of sanitation and a high number of worker
complaints in some of the factories. Press reports of the
tours cited complaints about working hours and wages. The PM
concluded the tours by affirming GoJ and MoL commitment to
addressing worker complaints.


2. (SBU) The PM's visits follow a mid-August visit by a
USTR/DoL delegation (septel) to Jordan in which the PM and
other ministers demonstrated strong commitment to addressing
QIZ labor violations. While the PM's public attention to
the QIZ problem is important in demonstrating high-ranking
political attention to the problem, more progress on the
public prosecution of labor violators remains a challenging
shortfall that the GoJ needs to address promptly. END
SUMMARY.


3. (U) According to MoL contacts, on the morning of August
23, the PM's office requested that the Ministry of Labor
arrange unannounced visits to factories in the QIZs. The
MoL's Advisor on QIZs arranged for visits to four factories:
two "good" and two "bad" in the Al-Hassan Industrial Estate
in the Irbid governorate. Accompanied by the Minister of
Labor, the MoL Advisor on QIZs, and translators, the PM spent
the entire day visiting the four factories.


4. (SBU) According to the MoL contact who accompanied the PM,
in many instances the PM was "surprised" by the working
conditions (high temperatures at workstations, lack of
sanitation) in the factories. While some workers were afraid
to talk to the PM, a number did offer complaints focusing on
bad working conditions, poor food, and filthy bathrooms. In
one factory, the PM asked a number of foreign workers to sit
with him separately and discuss issues. NOTE: Jordan's QIZ
factories employ approximately 38,000 foreign workers (60% of
the total QIZ work force mostly from Bangladesh, China, and
India. END NOTE. Additionally, the PM took the time to see
the poor conditions of some bathrooms. The MoL contact said
one factory manager was caught trying to coach his workers on
what to say while the PM was there. The PM's guards
overheard the coaching and informed the PM.


5. (SBU) On August 24, Minister of Labor Bassem Salem told
the Ambassador, the visit was a "deliberative effort to
signal high-level interest in labor conditions."


6. (U) Under the August 27 headline, "Government will not
tolerate violations of workers' rights - PM," the Jordan
Times reported that the visit was intended to reflect the
government's concern "to follow up on the issues of foreign
and domestic workers." The PM and Minister of Labor spoke to
foreign workers from Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and China and
"listened to their concerns," reported the Times.
Additionally, the PM was briefed by the Minister of Labor on
the short-term inspection program to be carried out by USAID
in the next three months. At the conclusion of the tours,
the PM said to the accompanying press, "The government will
not tolerate violations of workers' rights in the QIZs or any
other workplace. The government will always work to ensure a
decent and safe working environment in the QIZs."


7. (SBU) While happy with the publicity generated by the
visits, our MoL contact stressed the need for the Ministry of
Interior to take a stronger role in prosecution and arrest.
The contact reiterated that the Ministry of Labor is unable
to stop some of the trafficking, involuntary servitude, and

AMMAN 00006707 002 OF 002


other labor violations being uncovered, citing the Ministry
of Interior as the lead in criminal prosecutions. As an
additional hindrance, our contact cites inconsistent
commitment to fixing the problem at the working levels in the
MoL. The MoL contact said the PM and Minister asked for a
report of the day's visit, but was not aware of any new
action plan or next steps request as an outcome of the
highly-publicized visit.


8. (SBU) COMMENT: Embassy will continue to follow closely
the range of issues involving foreign labor and the QIZs.
The Embassy will also seek the Ministry of Interior's views
of next steps in criminal prosecutions of violators.
HALE