by Elizabeth Grossman
Bananas in Ecuador, Nicaragua, Belize, and the Philippines; broccoli in Guatemala; carpets in India, Nepal, and Pakistan; cocoa in Ghana, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, and Cameroon; coffee in Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Kenya, Mexico, and Panama; cotton in Egypt, Brazil, China, Uzbekistan, and Turkey; electronics and toys in China, clothing in China, India, Malaysia, Thailand, and Argentina; rice in Brazil, India, and the Philippines; melons, onions, and tomatoes in Mexico What these products - along with diamonds, gold, sugarcane, shoes, rare earth and strategic metals - have in common is that they're among the 130 different products made by child and forced labor in 71 countries listed in reports released earlier this month by the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB).
Two of these reports are required by Acts of Congress, The Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor and the List of Goods Produced by Child or Forced Labor; an Executive Order mandates the other, The List of Products Produced by Forced or Indentured Child Labor. All describe the incidence of child and forced labor and what's being done to address these issues, including making education accessible and affordable. What these reports do not do is trace these goods to market. But by showing how widespread this labor is and that it involves so many high-volume exports, they raise the distinct possibility that everyday consumer purchases could include the products of child and forced labor.
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