VZCZCXYZ0001
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHCG #0606/01 2710950
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 280950Z SEP 07
FM AMCONSUL CHENNAI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 1251
INFO RUEHCG/ALL SOUTH AND CENTRAL ASIA COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS CHENNAI 000606 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR G:CBLANK, G/TIP:MTAYLOR, AND SCA/INS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ELAB PHUM ECON KCRM PGOV SOCI KCRM IN
SUBJECT:  G/TIP VISITS RESCUED BONDED LABORERS IN TAMIL NADU 
 
REF:  Chennai 485 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary:  The director of the Department's office charged 
with combating human trafficking visited South India to hear 
first-hand accounts from victims of bonded labor and to witness 
government and NGO programs designed to help them.  He also spoke 
with Karnataka's Chief Secretary, who downplayed the extent of the 
problem.  Too many Indians know too little about the problem of 
bonded labor or simply look the other way, making it a low-priority 
issue for many of India's overburdened government officials.  End 
Summary. 
 
G/TIP visits South India 
------------------------ 
 
¶2. (U) Ambassador-at-Large Mark Lagon, Director of the Office to 
Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons (G/TIP), visited the South 
Indian states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu on September 19 to meet 
government officials, former bonded laborers, and an NGO 
(International Justice Mission, or IJM) that rescues and 
rehabilitates victims of bonded labor. 
 
First-hand accounts of bonded labor 
 
----------------------------------- 
 
¶3. (U) In Hosur, a town in northwestern Tamil Nadu just across the 
border from Bangalore, IJM explained to Ambassador Lagon how it 
investigates reported cases of bonded labor, using hidden cameras 
and going undercover in some cases.  IJM showed a video of a 
discussion between an undercover IJM investigator and members of a 
family that kept bonded labor, describing how they intimidate their 
victims and use their contacts with the police to track down 
runaways.  IJM also described how it works with local government 
officials to rescue victims and insure they receive appropriate 
compensation (the law entitles them to INR 20,000 or USD 500).  IJM 
staff said that many bonded labor victims don't report to the 
police, even after their escape, because of both fear of the police 
as well as low expectations that anything will actually be done. 
They then explained how IJM continues to work closely with victims 
-- many of whom have worked as bonded laborers for most of their 
lives -- after their rescue to make sure that they avoid falling 
back into a bondage. 
 
¶4. (U) Two victims explained to Ambassador Lagon how they fell into 
bondage at a brick kiln by accepting a wage advance that was 
impossible to pay back.  The victims described their difficult lives 
as bonded laborers, subjected to beatings, insults, difficult 
working conditions, and threats to them and their families.  They 
also explained how they managed to escape and rescue their families 
thanks to IJM's assistance. 
 
¶5. (U) IJM also showed Ambassador Lagon a collection of a dozen or 
so modest homes 40 km southeast of Hosur (also in Tamil Nadu) built 
by the government for freed victims of bonded labor.  These victims 
(and their families) had worked in either brick kilns or bakeries 
near Bangalore before their rescue.  Two victims recounted their 
lives as bonded laborers in a bakery and then greeted the Ambassador 
with a cooking demonstration that resulted in tasty, cookie-type 
treats.  Another freed laborer demonstrated how to make bricks and 
explained that he had used his compensation to establish his own 
brick-making business. 
 
A Slightly Different Reality 
---------------------------- 
 
¶6. (SBU) Ambassador Lagon then returned to Bangalore to meet with 
Pradhal Mahishi, Chief Secretary of Karnataka, and Gopal Hosur, 
Joint Police Commissioner for Crime.  Mahishi explained that he was 
well acquainted with the bonded labor situation, having headed the 
state government division that dealt with bonded labor cases for 
five years earlier in his career.  Mahishi told Ambassador Logan 
that bonded labor was not a pervasive problem in Karnataka.  He 
stressed that perpetrators of bonded labor faced stiff jail terms 
(minimum six months) if caught, making the risk not worth the 
possible benefit of keeping bonded labor.  Mahishi also explained 
that the police are trained to identify bonded labor when they see 
it. 
 
¶7. (SBU) When faced with Ambassador Lagon's skepticism of this 
relatively rosy picture, Mahishi back-pedaled a bit, admitting that 
the unorganized labor sector was at far greater risk for falling 
victim to bonded labor than those working in the organized sector. 
He also admitted that properly investigating and enforcing the law 
against bonded labor is difficult, as the social fabric of village 
life makes it difficult for outsiders to understand, let alone 
intervene appropriately. 
 
¶8. (SBU) Ambassador Lagon questioned whether Mahishi was saying that 
bonded labor was not a problem or that it was a difficult problem to 
solve.  Mahishi said that the government's focus was on enforcing 
the Minimum Wage Act, which allows the government to address more 
effectively a wider variety of improper labor practices.  Mahishi 
also promised to provide a written description of the protocols 
police use to investigate bonded labor cases and a recent report 
prepared by the Women and Children Development Secretary that 
described Karnataka's efforts against human trafficking. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶9. (SBU) The Chief Secretary's account of the bonded labor situation 
contrasted starkly with what Ambassador Lagon witnessed earlier in 
the day.  Mahishi's seeming lack of understanding of the problem 
almost certainly stems from the fact that this is simply not an 
issue that anyone has brought to his attention recently.  This may 
well have been his first conversation on the subject since he led 
the department responsible for this issue years ago.  NGOs like IJM 
can play an important role in combating ignorance of the extent of 
bonded labor, especially when they work constructively with local 
government officials.  (Note:  Although IJM had informed post that 
they would include local government officials in the day's schedule, 
this meeting with Majishi was added separately when IJM was not able 
to follow through with government meetings.  End note).  Most 
Indians officials certainly recognize instinctively that bonded 
labor is morally repugnant, but they seem to know little about it 
and to give it a low priority among their numerous responsibilities. 
 Constructive engagement with local authorities, possibly involving 
NGOs and training of police and other officials, may be an effective 
way to combat this ignorance. 
 
¶10. (U) This message was coordinated with Embassy New Delhi but was 
not cleared by Ambassador Lagon prior to his departure from India. 
 
HOPPER