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DE RUEHIL #2828/01 3271356
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O 231356Z NOV 09
FM AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 6114
INFO RUEHBUL/AMEMBASSY KABUL PRIORITY 1195
RUEHLO/AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 1848
RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI PRIORITY 5786
RUEHKP/AMCONSUL KARACHI PRIORITY 2589
RUEHLH/AMCONSUL LAHORE PRIORITY 8189
RUEHPW/AMCONSUL PESHAWAR PRIORITY 7236
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RHEHNSC/NSC WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY
RUMICEA/USCENTCOM INTEL CEN MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY
RHMFISS/CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL PRIORITY
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ISLAMABAD 002828 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER ELAB PK
SUBJECT: BONDED LABORERS HELD HOSTAGE BY LANDLOWNERS IN 
SINDH, PAKISTAN 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary. On October 4, a Pakistani NGO reported to 
Embassy Islamabad that over 150 peasants and their family 
members in rural Sindh had disappeared after filing illegal 
confinement and non-payment wage petitions with local courts. 
 There was strong evidence that the peasants' employers -- 
wealthy landowners who provided them with work and housing -- 
had kidnapped the missing individuals and shifted them to 
Islamabad and Consulate Karachi pressed federal, provincial, 
and district-level authorities to secure their release.  The 
case received extensive media coverage and led to protests by 
civil society organizations.  By November 18, thanks to the 
efforts of the police and to ransom payments made by some of 
the victims' families, all of the individuals had been freed. 
 On November 10, Embassy and Karachi Consulate officers met 
with police officials and NGO representatives in Hyderabad, 
Sindh to gain a better understanding of the details of the 
case as well as the complexities of the informal labor market 
in Pakistan.  That meeting revealed the limitations of law 
enforcement authorities and the judicial system in combating 
bonded labor, as well as some of the short and long-term 
changes necessary to address this issue effectively in 
Pakistan.  End Summary. 
 
¶2. (SBU) On October 4, Ghulam Hyder of the Sindh-based NGO 
Green Rural Development Organization informed the Embassy 
about four cases in which landowners were allegedly holding 
over 150 peasants and their family members against their will 
in the Mirpurkhas area of Sindh Province.  We subsequently 
confirmed the key facts through media reports, court 
documents, and detailed interviews with family members and 
NGO legal staff representing the laborers and their families. 
 The Ambassador raised the issue with Interior Minister 
Malik, while the Karachi Consul General brought it to the 
attention of Sindh Home Secretary Arif Ahmed Khan and PolOff 
met with Secretary of Labor Syed Nayyar and Federal 
Investigation Agency (FIA) Director General Tariq Khosa.  The 
Pakistanis followed up by promptly contacting Mirpurkhas 
Police Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Amir Shaikh with an 
order to take action.  Simultaneously, NGOs staged protests 
about the case and media coverage elevated it to the national 
and international level. 
 
¶3. (SBU) Mirpurkhas Police DIG Amir Shaikh and Senior 
Superintendent/Deputy Police Officer (DPO) Munir Ahmed Shaik 
took the lead in coordinating action on the case and provided 
continuous updates to the Embassy. (Note: Amir Shaikh did 
graduate work in Britain on honor killings in Pakistan and 
Munir Ahmed Shaik was a 2007 Humphrey Fellow who did work on 
victim restorative justice.)  The police, through 
negotiations with landowners and several raids, were able to 
track down and secure the release of all the laborers and 
their families. Some families paid landowners to obtain their 
relatives' release -- an average of $1,000 per person. 
District Sanghar Superintendent of Police Asfhaq Khan risked 
his position in negotiating with landowner Khuda Bux Dars. 
Dars, a local mayor, had sold two laborers (sons of the man 
who filed the police complaint) to another landowner and 
Sanghar police feared Dars would harm or even kill them. As 
the DIG pointed out, influential landowners like Dars also 
often have police transferred who take action against them. 
Superintendent Khan was able to negotiate the laborers' safe 
release with support of other district police 
superintendents. 
 
¶4. (SBU) On November 10, Embassy and Consulate PolOffs 
traveled to Hyderabad, Sindh for meetings with police and two 
NGOs, the Society for the Protection of the Rights of the 
Child (SPARC), and the Sindh Hari ("Peasant") Council. SPARC 
is a nation-wide NGO that, among other activities, conducted 
an International Labour Organisation (ILO)-funded police 
sensitization training on victim identification and bonded 
labor issues in Hyderabad. SPARC is also working with the ILO 
and parliamentarians to draft bonded labor legal reforms. 
SPARC's Hyderabad-based lawyer screens and assists local 
laborers in petitioning directly to the courts for release 
from their bonded situations. They report that to date during 
2009, they have handled 28 cases and have secured the release 
of 403 laborers, a majority of whom are low-caste Hindus. 
After release, SPARC helps the individuals obtain National 
Identity Cards to facilitate future legitimate employment. 
 
ISLAMABAD 00002828  002 OF 002 
 
 
(Note:  Due to limited skill sets and little if any 
education, such peasants typically continue working in the 
agricultural sector.) The Sindh Hari Council takes a 
different approach by organizing worker committees and 
attempting to negotiate directly with landowners for improved 
working and living conditions. They report success, 
especially among landowners who are affiliated with 
opposition, as opposed to ruling, political parties (and thus 
who have less political clout in defending their own illegal 
use of bonded labor). 
 
¶5. (SBU) DIG Amir Shaikh, DPO Munir Shaikh, and other DPOs 
encouraged PolOffs to meet with a broad range of NGOs (noting 
that many are not credible), judiciary officials, and bonded 
labor victims themselves.  The police agreed that increasing 
the sensitivity of the police and judiciary in these cases is 
essential, but said that NGOs also need to be sensitized to 
police limitations and challenges.  They also revealed that 
with respect to the 150 freed peasants and their families, 
two charges have been filed against landlord Zubair Sehto 
(for kidnapping and illegal confinement).  In a detailed 
presentation, DPO Munir Shaikh described the process of 
freeing bonded laborers. He explained that even when the 
courts mandate that the police secure the release of bonded 
laborers, a follow-on case must be filed with the police for 
them to initiate an investigation of the landowner.  Police 
attributed low prosecution rates to several factors: lack of 
witnesses, lengthy court delays (three to four years for 
simple case processing), and gaps in the legislative 
framework.  One landlord and one NGO representative were also 
present at the police briefing.  They conceded that some 
landlords are abusive -- perhaps three to four percent -- but 
that there is general cultural acceptance of bonded labor 
practices by the employees as well as the employers. 
 
¶6. (SBU) Comment: The case of the missing 150 bonded laborers 
and their families, and meetings with the stakeholders 
revealed the myriad of needs in tackling bonded labor in 
Pakistan.  In addition to legal reforms to make current laws 
more functional and efficient, the local courts require 
resources to reduce case processing times.  Police officials 
also explained that there is a dire need for victim 
identification and treatment training for their officers, 
and, at the same time, there is also great need for resources 
to transport laborers, and provide them shelter and trauma 
counseling. (Note: Police often have to hold bonded labor 
victims, including women and children, one night in jail 
before presenting them to the courts the next day.  In the 
case of women, this is culturally unacceptable, not to 
mention that police do not have the facilities or food to 
provide to the people.) 
 
¶7. (SBU) Comment Continued:  Given the fact that the 
Government of Pakistan and its law enforcement agencies are 
extremely resource-strapped and are obligated to spend an 
ever increasing portion of their budget on anti-terrorism 
activities. Thus in some cases, needs required to tackle the 
bonded labor practice can only be met with donor and NGO 
support, and more coordinated interventions.  For example, 
while the ILO and NGOs are working to draft legal reforms, 
Sindh District police officials were unaware of this and 
expressed a desire to be involved in the process. Creative 
collaboration between the NGO sector and police could help 
meet other needs too. Some shelters exist and there are 
legitimate NGOs that demonstrate a true dedication to help 
bonded labor victims. First, however, the trust deficit 
between NGO and police must be addressed.  More dialogue is 
needed between the two parties to generate a more realistic 
understanding of each side's limitations and to strategize on 
collaboration.  The Embassy and Consulate Karachi are 
exploring ways to address these needs via existing Department 
grants, the International Visitors Leadership Program, the 
Embassy Speaker program, and through facilitating dialogue 
among the stakeholders.  End Comment. 
PATTERSON