LESOTHO: REPORT ON FORCED LABOR AND CHILD LABOR IN THE

UNCLAS MASERU 000149 SIPDIS DEPT FOR AF/S, DRL/ILCSR (MARK MITTELHAUSER),G/TIP (STEVE STEINER); DEPT OF LABOR FOR DOL/ILAB (RACHEL RIGBY) E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EIND ELAB ETRD PHUM SOCI LT SUBJECT: LESOTHO: REPORT ON FORCED LABOR AND CHILD LABOR IN THE PRODUCTION OF GOODS REF: STATE 43120 ¶1. Per reftel request for information on the use of forced labor and exploitative child labor in the production of goods, post contacted representatives of the International Labor Organization (ILO),Lesotho's Office of the Commissioner of Labor, and the Ministry of Trade. Post was not able to develop any information on cases of forced or child labor in the production of goods in the Kingdom of Lesotho. Lesotho's manufacturing sector is dominated by textiles and garment production. Lesotho law expressly prohibits employment in the formal sector under the age of eighteen, and there is no evidence of underage employment in manufacturing enterprises. As noted in previous reports such as Lesotho's Country Report on Human Rights, limited child labor is present in the domestic/household and agricultural spheres. ¶2. The GOL has established a National Committee on Orphans and Vulnerable Children which drafted a policy document on child labor and trafficking. This document, written with the assistance of ILO, will be reviewed by Lesotho's cabinet in June ¶2008. MURPHY