VZCZCXYZ0000
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHGZ #0409/01 1880843
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 070843Z JUL 09
FM AMCONSUL GUANGZHOU
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0751
INFO RUEHGZ/CHINA POSTS COLLECTIVE 0201
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHINGTON DC 0112
RUEHC/DEPT OF LABOR WASHDC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC 0188
RUEKJCS/DIA WASHDC 0184

UNCLAS GUANGZHOU 000409 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR EAP/CM 
STATE PASS USTR CHINA OFFICE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ELAB ETRD ECON PGOV CH
SUBJECT: Two New Labor NGOs - Different Missions, Different 
Government Reaction 
 
REF: GUANGZHOU 192 
 
(U) This document is sensitive but unclassified.  Please protect 
accordingly. Not for release outside U.S. government channels. Not 
for internet publication. 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary and comment: How much room do labor 
non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have to operate in the Pearl 
River Delta (PRD)?  The different experiences of two new 
organizations show that it depends on the group's mission.  The 
Green Grass Workers Service Department is trying to expose poor 
working conditions in local factories.  It has not been able to 
register as an NGO and has faced government interference.  The 
Zhuhai Center for Social Work Facilitators, on the other hand, has 
less confrontational goals -- helping migrant workers adjust to 
living and working far from home.  The Zhuhai Center is fully 
registered and enjoys a cooperative relationship with the 
government-controlled labor union.  Green Grass's experience sheds 
some light on the limits of the Chinese government's tolerance of 
labor NGO activities.  However, the fact that it is allowed to 
operate at all is perhaps a step forward.  End summary and comment. 
 
Different Missions 
------------------ 
 
¶2. (SBU) Two new labor NGOs have recently opened shop in the PRD 
with very different missions.  The Green Grass Workers Service 
Department was founded in April 2008 as the Shenzhen office of New 
York-based China Labor Watch.  It focuses on reporting on working 
conditions in PRD factories and on the treatment workers.  According 
to Yang Min, one of Green Grass's employees, it often cooperates 
with international brand name companies like Adidas and Nike to 
perform undercover investigations of their suppliers.  Yang Min told 
us that after its reports are released, factory owners often take 
corrective measures to improve working conditions. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Meanwhile, across the Pearl River in Zhuhai, the Zhuhai 
Center for Social Work Facilitators opened its doors in December 
¶2008.  The Zhuhai Center is a branch of The Culture and 
Communication Center for Facilitators, a Beijing-based NGO.  Its 
mission is to help local migrant workers improve their quality of 
life and adjust to the challenges of living far away from home. 
According to the center's director, Yang Daimao, the events it has 
organized include a photo exhibit showing the life and work of 
migrant laborers, a play about the challenges they face and a debate 
on how to improve their living and working conditions.  The center 
also offers language training in English and Cantonese and some 
counseling services. 
 
Different Treatment 
------------------- 
 
¶4. (SBU) Government reaction to the two new NGOs has been 
dramatically different.  Green Grass's Yang Min told us that the 
authorities have kept a close eye on her organization since it began 
operations in Shenzhen, pointing out that foreign-funded NGOs are 
usually subject to closer scrutiny.  She said that the government 
had intervened twice in projects that Green Grass was working on, 
asking the organization to suspend operations in one case.  Green 
Grass has been unsuccessful in its attempt to register with the 
Civil Affairs Bureau as an NGO and instead had to register as a 
private enterprise with the Administration of Industry and 
Commerce. 
 
¶5. (SBU) The Zhuhai Center, in contrast, has a very cooperative 
relationship with the government.  It has successfully registered as 
an NGO with the Zhuhai Civil Affairs Bureau.  It works closely with 
the government-controlled labor union at Flextronics Corporation, 
the largest local employer.  A representative of the Flextronics 
union participated in econoff's visit to the center's office. 
Flextronics funds most of the center's operation, and most of the 
center's clients are Flextronics employees. 
 
Different Challenges 
-------------------- 
 
¶6. (SBU) Green Grass's Yang Min identified child labor in the PRD as 
a top concern of the organization.  She noted that child labor in 
most local factories is voluntary and the underage employees use 
false or borrowed identification documents to get their jobs.  She 
said parents often support the efforts of their children to work in 
the factories.  In addition, Yang Min expressed concern that the 
 
global economic downturn was increasing the government's tendency 
rule in favor of factory owners in labor disputes with migrant 
workers. 
 
¶7. (SBU) At the Zhuhai Center, Yang Daimao said the organization's 
main concern was attracting more volunteers to work at the center. 
The center has a staff of five paid employees and about 40 
volunteers.  She said that only about half of the volunteers fall in 
to a group of "core volunteers" who are active in most of the 
center's programs.  Yang Daimao explained that attracting more 
active participation from workers would be essential to achieving 
the center's goals for improving the lives of migrant laborers. 
 
JACOBSEN