KYRGYZSTAN: RESPONSE TO SYSTEMIC FORCED OR

UNCLAS BISHKEK 000602 SIPDIS DEPT FOR SCA/CEN (GEHRENBECK),DRL/ILCSR (MITTELHAUSER), G/TIP (STEINER) LABOR FOR ILAB (RIGBY) E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ELAB EIND ETRD PHUM SOCI KG SUBJECT: KYRGYZSTAN: RESPONSE TO SYSTEMIC FORCED OR EXPLOITATIVE CHILD LABOR INQUIRY REF: STATE 43120 ¶1. In response to reftel request, Post met with local non-governmental organizations, the local UNICEF and International Labor Organization (ILO) offices, the Kyrgyz Ministry of Labor and Social Protection, and trade unions to seek information concerning forced labor and/or exploitative child labor in the Kyrgyz Republic. Kyrgyzstan has ratified two ILO Conventions regarding child labor: Convention No. 138 concerning the minimum age for admission to employment, and Convention No. 182 concerning the worst forms of child labor. In addition, provisions in the Constitution, the Labor Code, and the Child Code prohibit the use of child labor. ¶2. While the NGOs and trade unions we contacted cited the use of child labor in agricultural production (tobacco, rice, and cotton),none of the organizations had evidence of any systemic forced or exploitative child labor in the production of goods, as specified reftel. LITZENBERGER