Child Labour in Cottonseed Production - A Case study of Cottonseed Farms in North Gujarat (Dakshini Rajasthan Mazdoor Union, April 2008)

The Children Behind Our Cotton (Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF), December 2007) Child Bondage Continues in Indian Cotton Supply Chain: More than 400,000 children in India involved in hybrid cottonseed cultivation (study by Davuluri Venkateswarlu, September 2007) Seeds of Change: Impact of Interventions by Bayer and Monsanto on the Elimination of Child Labour on Farms Producing Hybrid Cottonseed in India (study by Davuluri Venkateswarlu, June 2007) Wages of Adolescence: Annual exodus of tribal adolescents from south Rajasthan to BT cotton seed plots of north Gujarat (case study by Sudhir Katiyar, 2006) The Price of Childhood - On the link between prices paid to farmers and the use of child labour in cottonseed production in Andhra Pradesh (LIW report, October 2005) Elimination of Child Labour in Cotton Seed Farms through Social Mobilisation (MV Foundation, March 2004 to January 2005) Child Labour in Hybrid Cottonseed Production in Andhra Pradesh: Recent Developments (LIW report, October 2004) Child Labour in Hybrid Cottonseed Production in Gujarat and Karnataka (LIW report, October 2004) Combating child labour in cottonseed production: A statement on the present role of MNCs in AP (MV Foundation, October 2004) Child Labour and Trans-National Seed Companies in Hybrid Cotton Seed Production in Andhra Pradesh (LIW report, April 2003) (Übersetzung in Deutsch / German translation)

Persbericht EJF 5-12-2007: Children Behind Our Cotton: The army of child labour supporting the world's cotton industry.

Persbericht 3-10-2007: Oproep Stop Kinderarbeid aan Kamer: Zorg nu voor actief beleid tegen kinderarbeid!

Persbericht 27-9-2007: Nieuw rapport: Ruim 416.000 Indiase kindslaven in de katoenketen.

Persbericht 8-6-2007: Child labour in India in cotton seed tackled by MNC’s Bayer and Monsanto but issue is far from solved.

Persbericht 26-10-2005: Multinationals oorzaak van kinderslavernij door onderbetaling boeren.

Persbericht 4-10-2004: Nederlandse bedrijven nog steeds betrokken bij gevaarlijke kinderarbeid in India: Bedrijven komen belofte om kinderarbeid in katoenzaadteelt uit te bannen niet na.

Persbericht 24-10-2003: Multinationals beloven eind te maken aan kinderarbeid in Indiase katoenzaadproductie.

Persbericht 16-5-2003: Afspraak met Unilever over aanpak kinderarbeid.

Persbericht 14-5-2003: Unilever, Monsanto and other multinationals involved in large-scale child labour in India's cotton seed production.

Persbericht 5-5-2003: Unilever betrokken bij kinderarbeid, maar belooft bijdrage aan oplossing.

Nieuws:

Bayer CropScience' response to the report "Child bondage continues in Indian cotton supply chain" of Dr. Davuluri Venkateswarlu (Bayer CropScience, 25 nov 2007)

Monsanto response to "Child bondage continues in Indian cotton supply chain" (Business & Human Rights resource Centre, 23 okt 2007)

Child labour in BT cotton fields (TimesNow.tv, 12 aug 2007)

Children sold like cattle in Gujarat (TimesNow.tv, 11 aug 2007)

Reactie van Monsanto (30-5-2006) op een brief van de Landelijke India Werkgroep (6-2-2006) over kinderarbeid bij katoenzaadproductie.

Vragen Max van den Berg (PvdA) (28-11-2005) aan de Europese Commissie over multinationale bedrijven en kinderslavernij.

Antwoorden (25-11-2005) op kamervragen (3-11-2005) aan de ministers van Economische Zaken en van Buitenlandse Zaken over de schending van rechten van volwassenen en kinderen door multinationals.

Antwoorden (17-11-2004) op kamervragen (8/11-10-2004) aan de Staatssecretaris van Economische Zaken over de betrokkenheid van Nederlandse bedrijven bij gevaarlijke kinderarbeid in India.

Open brief (27-1-2004) van Duitse organisaties aan Bayer over kinderarbeid in de katoenzaadteelt.

Antwoorden (23-6-2003) op kamervragen (8-5-2003) van de leden Koenders en Tjon-A-Ten (beiden PvdA) aan de Staatssecretaris van Economische Zaken en de Minister van Buitenlandse Zaken en de Staatssecretaris voor Ontwikkelingssamenwerking over de betrokkenheid van Unilever bij kinderarbeid.

Uit de pers:

Child labour stain on Bt cotton (ExpressBuzz.com, 5 nov 2009)
Life's cheap in the Bt cotton fields of Gujarat (The Times of India, 28 aug 2009)
Child labour: That garden stone, handmade carpet or embroidered T shirt you just bought was probably made by Child Labor (Forbes.com, 25 feb 2008)
Child labour: Govt to expand list of hazardous jobs, amend law (The Indian Express, 8 jan 2008)
'YSR govt spawning child labour' (The Times of India, 11 dec 2007)
Gujarat Farmers Seek Time to End Child Labour / Crack the Whip to Ban Child Labour in Cotton Seed Farming (Infocus, dec 2007)
Child slavery thriving in Indian cotton industry (OneWorld South Asia, 26 okt 2007)
"Indiaas katoen besmet met kindslavernij" (IndianFeelings.com, 18 okt 2007)
Kinderarbeid blijft schrijnen (Nederlands Dagblad, 15 okt 2007)
Over 4-Lakh Children Work As Bonded Labour In India - A Survey Report (TopNews.in, 2 okt 2007)
Over 4 lakh children work in cotton seed farms (The Hindu, 1 okt 2007)
India's cotton fields: Over 4 lakh child labourers (Rediff.com, 29 sep 2007)
'Over 4 lakh kids in India are bonded labourers' (Times of India/Press Trust of India/India Express/ZeeNews.com/The Hindu, 29 sep 2007)
"Katoen besmet met kindslavernij" (MO.be, 28 sep 2007)
Child labour on the rise in cottonfields (Business Standard, 28 sep 2007)
Four lakh children slogging in cotton fields: report (Hindustan Times, 27 sep 2007)
Childhood lost in Bt cotton farms (Ahmedabad Newsline, 29 aug 2007)
GALU gears up to stop child labour on Bt cotton farms in North Gujarat (Ahmedabad Newsline, 21 jun 2007)
Disha on route to root-out child labour (Fibre2Fashion.com, 21 jun 2007)
India's lost children (IndUS Business Journal, 2 mrt 2006)
Bt cotton seed farms spring up in border villages (The Hindu, 2 feb 2006)
Bt cotton seed firms at the receiving end (Financial Express, 11 jan 2006)
Proagro penalises 11 cottonseed growers for employing child labour (Business Standard, 5 jan 2006)
Child Labor (Unbroken People, jan 2006)
Proagro to provide lower interest credits to farmers (Business Standard, 30 dec 2005)
Bonded for life (NewIndPress, 23 dec 2005)
European Commission cottons on child labour (The Times of India, 4 dec 2005)
Child labour rampant in AP cotton farms, report (Financial Express, 25 nov 2005)
MNC seed cos chalk out action plan for child labour (Business Standard, 17 nov 2005)
India: Cotone, prezzi bassi e lavoro minorile (Unimondo.org, 10 nov 2005)
Low cottonseed procurement price spawns child labour (Business Standard, 9 nov 2005)
"Glückliche Ernte" für Bayer-Profite (Die Tageszeitung, 25 okt 2005)
Withering cotton kids (Mumbai Mirror, 11 sep 2005)
Children of the farms (Mumbai Mirror, 10 sep 2005)
Food multinationals threaten fight against poverty (ActionAid, 25 jan 2005)
Kinderarbeid op de Indiase katoenvelden wordt langzaam minder: 'Armoede is niet de oorzaak' (Bondgenoten Magazine, jan 2005)
Lavoro minorile? Un vero affare (www.barcellonapg.it, 1 dec 2004)
MNCs continue exploitation of children (Indiatogether.org, nov 2004)
200.000 bambini indiani tra i semi di cotone (www.piccolopopolo.org, 13 okt 2004)
MNCs Reap Profits from Child Labor in India's Cottonseed Farms (OneWorld, 8 okt 2004)
Cotton multinationals slow to address child exploitation (Ethical Corporation, 7 okt 2004)
RSC.- Monsanto, Bayer y Unilever, acusadas de permitir el trabajo infantil en sus filiales en India (Labolsa.com, 7 okt 2004)
'Kinderarbeid gaat door in katoen' (Nederlands Dagblad, 6 okt 2004)
'Unilever betrokken bij kinderarbeid' (SOPN.nl, 6 okt 2004)
'Bedrijven te traag met uitbannen kinderarbeid in India' (OneWorld, 5 okt 2004)
'Nederlandse bedrijven nog betrokken bij kinderarbeid' (ANP, 5 okt 2004)
US companies, Monsanto and Emergent Genetics, still profit from bonded child labor on cottonseed farms in India (Laborrights.org, 4 okt 2004)
Cotton farms continue to employ children: survey (The Hindu, 4 okt 2004)
Bedrijven nog steeds betrokken bij kinderarbeid India (OneWorld, 3 okt 2004)
Kinder sind gut für den Profit (www.telepolis.de, 24 aug 2004)
Verslaggeving over mvo bij Unilever blijft zorgenkind (VBDO-Bericht, jul 2004)
Probe demanded into child labour in seed farm (The Hindu, 30 jun 2004)
Pesticide exposure claims another child labourer's life (The Hindu, 29 jun 2004)
Syngenta opens up to independent scrutiny (The Financial Times, 12 mei 2004)
Triodos Meerwaardefonds laat stem horen op jaarvergadering (www.triodos.nl, 12 mei 2004)
Seeds of Child Labor (IndiaNest.com, 9 mei 2004)
Wél kinderarbeid bij Unilever (Trouw, 6 mei 2004)
Zaadbedrijven India sturen jeugd naar school, ouders boos (Trouw, 24 apr 2004)
Werkbezoek Lodewijk de Waal aan India (www.fnv.nl, 21/22 apr 2004)
Dutch Union to Meet HLL Brass (Financial Express, 21 apr 2004)
Bambini sfruttati per i semi di cotone (Unimondo / La Stampa Web, 3 jan 2004)
MNCs get together against child labour (The Pioneer, 2 nov 2003)
Indian Activists Welcome MNC Pledge to Ban Child Labor (Yahoo! News, 25 okt 2003)
Katoenzaad zonder kinderarbeid (NRC Handelsblad, 25 okt 2003)
No children on the farm (Indiatogether.org, okt 2003)
Seed group pledges to end child labour in India by March 2004: Monsanto (Business and Corporate Ethics, 24 sep 2003)
Monsanto, Syngenta, ProAgro agree measures to tackle child labour in India (Business and Corporate Ethics, 23 sep 2003)
Kinderarbeit im indischen Baumwoll-Anbau: Bayer, Monsanto und Unilever in der Kritik (LabourNet Germany, 28 aug 2003)
Interview: Syngenta vows to eradicate child labour in Indian seed operations (Human Rights, 31 jul 2003)
Bayer: Absichten besser als Wirklichkeit (Die Tageszeitung, 31 jul 2003)
Kinderarbeit für Wucherzinsen (Die Tageszeitung, 31 jul 2003)
Grote bedrijven bagatelliseren uitbuiting kinderen (Reformatorisch Dagblad, 20 jun 2003)
Syngenta questioned on "no child labour" label (AFX Global Ethics Monitor, 17 jun 2003)
Syngenta to urge Monsanto, Unilever, others to set up child labour monitor (AFX Global Ethics Monitor, 17 jun 2003)
En Inde, Monsanto et Unilever emploient de la main-d'oeuvre infantile (Transnationale.org, 11 jun 2003)
Hind Lever accused of using child labour: Company says not responsible for third-party sourcing (Business Standard, 6 jun 2003)
Unilever onder vuur van NGO's wegens kinderarbeid (VBDO-Bericht, jun 2003)
Advanta ontkent inzet kinderarbeid (Provinciale Zeeuwse Courant, 20 mei 2003)
Girls fettered: bonded labour on AP farms (Deccan Herald, 17 mei 2003)
Advanta Seeds beschuldigd van kinderarbeid (De Volkskrant, 17 mei 2003)
Unilever-dochter gaat praten over kinderarbeid India (Reformatorisch Dagblad, 16 mei 2003)
Girls in India Labor to Fill MNC Coffers, Says Report (OneWorld South Asia, 16 mei 2003)
Wykorzystywane dzieci z Indiach (Pomagamy, 16 mei 2003)
Monsanto, Unilever use child labour in India (IndiaResource.org, 14 mei 2003)
Unilever and child labour (Expatica.com, 9 mei 2003)
Beste baas kampt met kinderwerk (Nederlands Dagblad, 9 mei 2003)
Unilever: Geen ngo's gezien (Trouw, 8 mei 2003)
Unilever, Monsanto, others linked to child labour in India's cotton industry (Global Ethics Monitor, 7 mei 2003)
Unilever: Geen ngo's gezien voor gesprek kinderarbeid (Sp!ts, 7 mei 2003)
Unilever wijst aantijging kinderarbeid af (De Telegraaf, 6 mei 2003)
Unilever denies child labour link (BBCNews.com, 6 mei 2003)
Unilever to discuss child labour (BBC World Service, 6 mei 2003)
Unilever to work on child labor practice (Newsday.com, 5 mei 2003)
Schuldslavernij in Indiase katoenzaadindustrie (NRC Handelsblad, 5 mei 2003)
Unilever werkt mee aan kinderarbeid (Nederlands Dagblad, 5 mei 2003)
Unilever beticht van gebruik kinderarbeid (Reformatorisch Dagblad, 5 mei 2003)
Unilever laat kinderhanden voor zich werken in India (Utrechts Nieuwsblad, 5 mei 2003)
Kinderarbeid bij Unilever (De Telegraaf, 5 mei 2003)
Kinderarbeid voor Unilever (Trouw, 5 mei 2003)
Kinderarbeid bij dochter Unilever (Het Parool, 5 mei 2003)
Unilever van kinderarbeid beschuldigd (Algemeen Dagblad, 5 mei 2003)
Unilever, Watchdog Groups To Discuss Indian Child Labor (Morningstar.com, 5 mei 2003)
Unilever beticht van kinderarbeid (NRC Handelsblad, 3 mei 2003)
'Unilever medeverantwoordelijk voor kinderarbeid' (Planet.nl, 3 mei 2003)
Schuldslavernij van kinderen: Nederlandse bedrijven Unilever en Advanta beloven schoorvoetend beterschap (India Nu, 143, mei-aug 2003)
Kinderarbeid in de katoenteelt: Zaadhandelaren ruiken het grote geld (India Nu, 94, mrt-apr 1995)

Verdere informatie:

"Think Locally, Act Globally?" (mrt 2007, Julia Brümmer)
Deze scriptie brengt in beeld hoe de LIW samen met anderen kinderarbeid in de katoenzaadteelt bestrijdt. En wat daarmee wordt bereikt.....

"100% Cotton - Made In India"
TV documentation about poisonings with Bayer's pesticides in India.
(more info >>>>)

"Seeds of Burden"
A documentary film that primarily addresses the working conditions of young girls employed in a fast growing cotton seed industry. It touches upon the farmers' bias in employing young female workers, and briefly, the work done by NGO's like the M.V.Foundation and the AP Mahila Samatha Society to solve the problem. (more info >>>>)

"Seeds of Bondage: Female child bonded labour in hybrid cottonseed production in Andhra Pradesh" (2001, Davuluri Venkateswarlu)
This study gives a vivid account of how children are virtually trapped in a never ending cycle of debt and exploitation and are forced to work on long-term contract basis with low wages. During the summer season when availability of work becomes very scarce in the region, seed producers approach families and extend loans to them on the promise that they send their young daughters to work in the cotton fields during the next season. Parents are thus forced to send their daughters for work in the cotton fields as per the agreement settled in the earlier season.

Landelijke India Werkgroep -