|
Rugmark
The
Society is promoting ‘Rugmark’ carpets —
hand-woven carpets, which carry a guarantee against the
use of child labor — in preference to carpets made by
children (some as young as four years of age).
‘Rugmark’.
In August 1994, the Rugmark Foundation was registered in
India by a consortium comprising the following business
associations and human rights organizations: the Carpet
Manufacturers’ Association Without Child Labor, the
Indo-German Export Promotion Council, UNICEF India and
our partners in the international anti-slavery movement,
the South Asian Coalition on Children in
Servitude. Exporters wishing to use the Rugmark
have to register their looms with the Foundation and
they will be checked by inspectors.
The
‘Rugmark’ label on hand-knotted carpets from India
indicates that they have not been produced by child
labor. The conditions for use of the Rugmark are
that the exporters undertake:
It
also requires regular school attendance by children
working at home on family looms. The exporter will
then be given the right to put a label on their carpets,
which will carry a code enabling purchasers to check
each carpet with the Foundation. Spot checks will
be carried out on all looms registered with the
Foundation to ensure they continue to operate without
illegal child labor.
To
date, 100 manufacturers in India and a few suppliers in
Nepàl have applied for registration.
Unfortunately,
some of the largest carpet exporters in India remain
uncommitted, as they are waiting to see how the
inspection scheme operates and the demand (if any) for
Rugmark carpets from consumers.
To
date, the campaign to free these children has not made
much headway in Nepal and Pakistan. The South
Asian Coalition on Child Servitude, a coalition of more
than fifty groups from India, Pakistan, Nepal,
Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, has been campaigning for
increased consumer awareness in the USA, Canada, the UK,
Europe, South Africa, Australia and New Zealand and
better regulation of the industry in their own
countries.
‘Woolmark’.
In addition to the Rugmark, there is the ‘Woolmark’
label of the International Wool Secretariat. The
label is granted to manufacturers who agree to meet
certain criteria set out by the International Wool
Secretariat. Since October 1993, all Woolmark
licensees producing hand-knotted carpets in India,
Pakistan, Nepal, China and Morocco have to sign a
declaration.
However,
unlike the Rugmark, the International Wool Secretariat
in London has informed us that there is no monitoring
mechanism to ensure that products carrying the Woolmark
are free from child labor.
EFFECTING CHANGE
The Anti-Slavery Society believes that the positive
moves made by some manufacturers in India must be
reinforced by purchasers in the USA, Canada, Europe,
Australia and New Zealand like you. If exporters
who have stopped using child labor are perceived as
having a marketing advantage over those who use child
labor, then these other exporters will certainly follow
— initially in India, and then in other countries.
Change
will not come overnight. But the first target of the
campaign, fully supported by the Anti-Slavery Society,
is to put a stop to the exploitation of migrant child
labor in the carpet industry and other dangerous
industries. The international concern raised for these
children gives the best chance of success.
WHAT YOU CAN DO
If you are buying,
or thinking of buying, a hand-knotted carpet ask the
retailer for a guarantee that the carpet was not
produced by exploited child labor. Ask them how they
check on their suppliers.
Ask
your retailer whether they can supply carpets from the
India bearing the Rugmark. Support carpet retailers who
sell “Rugmark” carpets.
|
Links
to other pages dealing with this issue:
Children
in the carpet weaving industry
Rugmark
rugs and carpets
Goods
made by child labor
Different
forms of child labor
Links
to other pages dealing with consumer awareness:
Current
campaigns
Consumer
awareness
Goods
made by child labor
Chocolates
Diamonds
Carpets
made by child labor
Rugmark
Ethical
investment
Get
involved!
Fair
trade
Society's
overseas programs in Africa and Asia
Internet
links:
South
Asian Coalition on Child Servitude
The
Society is not responsible for the content of external
internet sites. |
