G/TIP VISITS RESCUED BONDED LABORERS IN TAMIL NADU

UNCLAS CHENNAI 000606

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

SIPDIS

STATE FOR G:CBLANK, G/TIP:MTAYLOR, AND SCA/INS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ELAB PHUM ECON KCRM PGOV SOCI KCRM IN
SUBJECT: G/TIP VISITS RESCUED BONDED LABORERS IN TAMIL NADU

REF: Chennai 485


1. (SBU) Summary: The director of the Department's office charged
with combating human trafficking visited South India to hear
first-hand accounts from victims of bonded labor and to witness
government and NGO programs designed to help them. He also spoke
with Karnataka's Chief Secretary, who downplayed the extent of the
problem. Too many Indians know too little about the problem of
bonded labor or simply look the other way, making it a low-priority
issue for many of India's overburdened government officials. End
Summary.

G/TIP visits South India
--------------


2. (U) Ambassador-at-Large Mark Lagon, Director of the Office to
Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (G/TIP),visited the South
Indian states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu on September 19 to meet
government officials, former bonded laborers, and an NGO
(International Justice Mission, or IJM) that rescues and
rehabilitates victims of bonded labor.

First-hand accounts of bonded labor

--------------


3. (U) In Hosur, a town in northwestern Tamil Nadu just across the
border from Bangalore, IJM explained to Ambassador Lagon how it
investigates reported cases of bonded labor, using hidden cameras
and going undercover in some cases. IJM showed a video of a
discussion between an undercover IJM investigator and members of a
family that kept bonded labor, describing how they intimidate their
victims and use their contacts with the police to track down
runaways. IJM also described how it works with local government
officials to rescue victims and insure they receive appropriate
compensation (the law entitles them to INR 20,000 or USD 500). IJM
staff said that many bonded labor victims don't report to the
police, even after their escape, because of both fear of the police
as well as low expectations that anything will actually be done.
They then explained how IJM continues to work closely with victims
-- many of whom have worked as bonded laborers for most of their
lives -- after their rescue to make sure that they avoid falling
back into a bondage.


4. (U) Two victims explained to Ambassador Lagon how they fell into
bondage at a brick kiln by accepting a wage advance that was
impossible to pay back. The victims described their difficult lives
as bonded laborers, subjected to beatings, insults, difficult
working conditions, and threats to them and their families. They
also explained how they managed to escape and rescue their families
thanks to IJM's assistance.


5. (U) IJM also showed Ambassador Lagon a collection of a dozen or
so modest homes 40 km southeast of Hosur (also in Tamil Nadu) built
by the government for freed victims of bonded labor. These victims
(and their families) had worked in either brick kilns or bakeries
near Bangalore before their rescue. Two victims recounted their
lives as bonded laborers in a bakery and then greeted the Ambassador
with a cooking demonstration that resulted in tasty, cookie-type
treats. Another freed laborer demonstrated how to make bricks and
explained that he had used his compensation to establish his own
brick-making business.

A Slightly Different Reality
--------------


6. (SBU) Ambassador Lagon then returned to Bangalore to meet with
Pradhal Mahishi, Chief Secretary of Karnataka, and Gopal Hosur,
Joint Police Commissioner for Crime. Mahishi explained that he was
well acquainted with the bonded labor situation, having headed the
state government division that dealt with bonded labor cases for
five years earlier in his career. Mahishi told Ambassador Logan
that bonded labor was not a pervasive problem in Karnataka. He
stressed that perpetrators of bonded labor faced stiff jail terms
(minimum six months) if caught, making the risk not worth the
possible benefit of keeping bonded labor. Mahishi also explained
that the police are trained to identify bonded labor when they see
it.


7. (SBU) When faced with Ambassador Lagon's skepticism of this
relatively rosy picture, Mahishi back-pedaled a bit, admitting that
the unorganized labor sector was at far greater risk for falling
victim to bonded labor than those working in the organized sector.
He also admitted that properly investigating and enforcing the law
against bonded labor is difficult, as the social fabric of village
life makes it difficult for outsiders to understand, let alone
intervene appropriately.


8. (SBU) Ambassador Lagon questioned whether Mahishi was saying that
bonded labor was not a problem or that it was a difficult problem to
solve. Mahishi said that the government's focus was on enforcing
the Minimum Wage Act, which allows the government to address more
effectively a wider variety of improper labor practices. Mahishi
also promised to provide a written description of the protocols
police use to investigate bonded labor cases and a recent report
prepared by the Women and Children Development Secretary that
described Karnataka's efforts against human trafficking.

Comment
--------------


9. (SBU) The Chief Secretary's account of the bonded labor situation
contrasted starkly with what Ambassador Lagon witnessed earlier in
the day. Mahishi's seeming lack of understanding of the problem
almost certainly stems from the fact that this is simply not an
issue that anyone has brought to his attention recently. This may
well have been his first conversation on the subject since he led
the department responsible for this issue years ago. NGOs like IJM
can play an important role in combating ignorance of the extent of
bonded labor, especially when they work constructively with local
government officials. (Note: Although IJM had informed post that
they would include local government officials in the day's schedule,
this meeting with Majishi was added separately when IJM was not able
to follow through with government meetings. End note). Most
Indians officials certainly recognize instinctively that bonded
labor is morally repugnant, but they seem to know little about it
and to give it a low priority among their numerous responsibilities.
Constructive engagement with local authorities, possibly involving
NGOs and training of police and other officials, may be an effective
way to combat this ignorance.


10. (U) This message was coordinated with Embassy New Delhi but was
not cleared by Ambassador Lagon prior to his departure from India.

HOPPER