SAMSUNG HIT WITH ALLEGATIONS OF LABOR ABUSES IN CHINESE FACTORIES

SAMSUNG HIT WITH ALLEGATIONS OF LABOR ABUSES IN CHINESE FACTORIES

By Irving Feng
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

BEIJING, China – New York based China Labour Watch (CLW) uncovered evidence of potential labor abuses in Chinese factories owned by South Korean electronics giant Samsung.

Workers file into the Suzhou Samsung factory. (Photo Courtesy of The Hankyoreh)

The factories under investigation are located in Huizhou, Shenzhen, Tianjin, Shandong, and Suzhou.  Some of the abuses cited were long working hours in poor conditions and the hiring of children under the age of 18.  The CLW’s report cited that workers worked over 100 hours of overtime per month, stood for 12 or more hours per day, were subjected to potentially unsafe working environments, and were verbally and physically abused.

Workers were allegedly not allowed to use holidays or sick days.  Some workers reported that they went to work sick because management would dock three days of pay if they attempted to use a sick day.  Others reported that they had gone 21 days without a single day off.  During the peak seasons, workers reported that they would work at least four or five hours of overtime per day on top of their regular work schedules.  One plant under investigation reportedly has a base salary of $250 per month for factory workers.

Management has also been accused of manufacturing fake identification cards for underage workers for them to appear older so they could work at the factories.  The underage workers with forged IDs perform the same tasks as adults on assembly lines with no safeguards or special workplace considerations for children.  It is legal in China to employ workers between the ages of 16-18, however, workers as young as 14 and 15 were allegedly seen on the assembly lines of Samsung’s factories.  These young workers are subjected to the same overtime schedules as adults.  Adults can work two to three shifts amounting to 12 or more hours per day.

Labor abuses perpetrated by technology firms have recently come to light since the slew of suicides at a factory owned by Foxconn, a major electronics supplier for Apple.  Foxconn has recently responded to the tragic suicides by cutting working hours and improving factory safety for workers.  China Labour Watch has also been investigating factories that make products for tech firms including HP, Dell, and Microsoft.

Samsung has denied all allegations of labor abuses at their Chinese factories.  Since the allegations of labor abuse, Samsung has broadened inspections on suppliers such as the Chinese factories that are currently under fire for potential labor abuses.  Spokespersons for Samsung have communicated that they perform frequent checks of their factories.  The company also has a zero tolerance policy in regards to child labor, and they were allegedly unaware of the underage hiring practices in their factories.  They have yet to agree to investigations by independent third parties.

For further information, please see:

BBC – Samsung faces fresh claims on Chinese factory workers – 6 September 2012

Bloomberg – Samsung Abuses Workers at Its China Plants, Labor Group Says – 5 September 2012

The Hankyoreh – Samsung found abusing underage workers in China – 5 September 2012

ShanghaiDaily – Samsung responds to under-age claims – 4 September 2012

Mozambique’s Human Rights Commission Takes Office

By Ryan Aliman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

 MAPUTO, Mozambique – After 2 years since its creation in 2009, the National Human Rights Commission (CNDH) finally takes office as its first commissioners were sworn in by Mozambican President Armando Guebuza on Wednesday, September 5, 2012.

Mozambican President Armando Guebuza swore in the members of the National Human Rights Commission. (Photo courtesy of Club of Mozambique)

The CNDH is the first independent oversight body of its kind in Mozambique. It consists of 11 members chosen as follows according to law: three are elected by the political parties who hold seats in the Assembly, four are chosen by civil society, three are appointed by the Prime Minister, and one is chosen by the Mozambique Bar Association.

The ruling Frelimo Party and the main opposition party Renamo chose the three Assembly CNDH members. Two were elected by Frelimo, namely, Aminuddin Mohamad, a prominent imam in the country, and Alberto Viegas, a distinguished expert in educational and cultural matters in the northern province of Nampula. Renamo, on the other hand, elected Eduardo Namburete, the previous Renamo parliamentary deputy from 2004 to 2009.

Civil society groups chose Farida Mamad, Amilcar da Paz Andela, Maria Hunguana and Anastacio Nhomela; while the Prime Minister appointed Augusto Zacarias, Luis Nahe and Dalmazia Cossa. Augusto Zacarias shall serve as deputy chair of the Commission.

The Mozambique Bar Association, meanwhile, appointed Custodio Duma, a notable human rights lawyer, as the chairperson of the Commission.

During his speech at the ceremony, President Guebuza reminded the newly sworn in members that they have major role to play in upholding respect for the constitution and for the fundamental rights of citizens. “We should be fully aware that this fight can only be waged effectively, when each of us contributes, and we unite our efforts, convinced that poverty has its weakness and can be overcome in this country of heroes”, he said.

President Guebuza also added that launching the CNDH was an important step in building the democratic rule of law and in improving the constitutional principles of Mozambique.

The National Human Rights Commission is the highest human rights oversight body in the country. It derives its mandate from the Mozambique Constitution. It has the power to investigate alleged human rights violations, including summoning public officers to answer questions, and to issue recommendations on human rights matters.

Reports show that the planned priority areas for the CNDH include: addressing cases of torture and violence by law enforcement agencies, corruption in the judiciary, the rights of prisoners and detainees, alternative sentencing, outstanding ratifications of international human rights instruments, access to water, food, sanitation, education and healthcare, and strengthening of civil society.

 

For further information, please see:

AllAfrica – Mozambique: Giant Leap for Human Rights in Mozambique – 6 September 2012

AllAfrica – Mozambique: Human Rights Commission Takes Office – 5 September 2012

UK in Mozambique – Human Rights Commission created in Mozambique – 3 May 2012

Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa – Human Rights Commission in Mozambique – 15 April 2012

United Nations Development Programme – Mozambique to adopt a new mechanism to protect human rights – 16 September 2010

 

Iranian Journalist Zhila Bani-Yaghoub Goes to Prison

By Justin Dorman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Middle East

TEHRAN, Iran – Ever since the 2009 presidential election that saw Mahmoud Ahmadinejad retain control of the country, Iranian journalists and rights activists have been targeted as criminals for peacefully writing or saying anything that can be construed as anti-government propaganda. On Sunday, Zhila Bani-Yaghoub–also known as Jila Bani-Yaghoub, Jila Baniyaghoob, or Jila Jacob–arrived at the women’s wing of Evin prison to serve at one-year sentence. There, she will join many of her former colleagues, including activists Nasrin Sotoudeh, Bahareh Hedayat, and Mahsa Ambradi.

Zhila Bani-Yaghoub heads to prison. (Photo Courtesy of the Guardian)

“Journalists in Iran face numerous restrictions on their legitimate work, including peaceful criticism of the authorities and reporting on human rights,” wrote Ann Harrison, Amnesty International’s Deputy Programme Director for Middle East and North America.  “The Iranian authorities must relax unlawful restrictions on them and release all journalists held solely for their journalism and human rights work.”

Bani-Yaghoub was the editor of the women’s rights website, Focus on Iranian Women. In 2009, she was awarded the Courage in Journalism prize by the International Women’s Media Foundation. Additionally, in 2010, she was awarded the Freedom of Speech Award from Reporters Without Borders.

In addition to serving a one-year prison term, Bani-Yaghoub also faces a thirty-year ban on any journalistic or media activities.  The sanctions against her stem from a 2010 charge of “spreading propaganda against the regime” and “insulting the president.”  The charges followed articles she wrote during the campaign period for Iran’s 2009 election .

At the same time, her husband, Bahman Ahmadi-Amoui, was also arrested. Ahmadi-Amoui was the editor of the business paper, Sarmayeh.  He wrote articles that were critical of the Ahmadinejad government which earned him the charges of “propaganda against the state,” “insulting the president,” “acting against the national security,” and “disrupting public security.”  Ahmadi-Amoui was sentenced to seven years and four months in prison, as well as thirty-four lashes.  On appeal, his sentence was reduced to five years in prison.

Ahmadi-Amoui originally started his jail stay in Evin prison but was “violently transferred” to a solitary confinement cell in Rajai Shahr prison. Human Rights Watch reported, through an anonymous source, that “during the transfer, authorities harassed and insulted Ahmadi-Amoui, and subjected him to a strip search.”  The authorities at Rajai Shahr have consistently denied him visitation rights and phone privileges.

Bani-Yaghoub and Ahmadi-Amoui are not the first Iranian journalists and activists to be imprisoned for peacefully exercising their rights of freedom of expression, nor will they be the last; nor will their charges be the worst.

Arzhang Davoodi, a peaceful political activist who preached freedom and democracy, has been imprisoned in Iran since October 2003.  Despite being jailed for nine years, he was brought back in front of Branch 15 of the Revolutionary Court of Tehran on August 28 for a hearing on a new charge of “enmity against God,” which carries a possible death sentence.

For further information, please see:

Guardian – Iranian Activist Zhila Bani-Yaghoub Packs Her Bags and Heads to Prison – 5 September 2012

Amnesty International – Iran Must Release Prisoner of Conscience Zhila Bani-Yaghoub – 4 September 2012

Iranian – Jila Bani-Yaghoub: Prisoner of the Day – 3 September 2012

Focus on Iranian Women – Jacob in Prison Jila + Photos – 2 September 2012

Amnesty International – Iran Must Immediately Release Prisoner of Conscience Arzhang Davoodi – 24 August 2012

Human Rights Watch – Iran: End Abuse of Imprisoned Journalists – 13 July 2012

Tanzania’s Ban on Political Rallies Claims a Local Journalist’s Life

By Ryan Aliman
Impunity Watch Reporter, Africa

DODOMA, Tanzania – A Tanzanian journalist was killed by police during an alleged political rally on September 2, 2012.

Widow of slain journalist, Daudi Mwangosi, mourning at his grave. (Photo courtesy of The Daily Maverick)

Daudi Mwangosi, a journalist for the local station Channel Ten and the Chairperson of the Iringa Press Club, was covering a gathering of members of the conservative opposition party Chadema cha Demokrasia na Maendeleo (Chadema) in Nyololo village when he was killed by police.

Law enforcement officers arrived on the scene to order the Chadema members to disband the assembly in compliance with the government’s ban on political rallies. Chadema supporters, however, denied that they were holding a rally. They argued that they were merely conducting an internal meeting.

As these two opposing forces clashed, Mwangosi, was trying to question Regional Police Commander Michael Kamuhanda. Other journalists reported that Kamuhanda was frustrated with Mwangosi’s persistent interrogation that he snapped at him asking, “why are you always not satisfied with the answers?”

A few minutes later, the police started to break up the crowd by force. Eyewitnesses report that the police assaulted and arrested both Chadema members and journalists. Some members of the crowd attempted to appease the law enforcement officers by sitting with their hands on their heads to show they were not a threat. Despite this, however, the police fired teargas into the crowd.

It was around this moment when Mwangosi saw a fellow reporter being harassed by a police officer for taking pictures of the commotion. He interfered to rescue his colleague, but as another journalist recalled, “police turned on him and started to beat him. Seeing that his life is in danger Mwangosi started to struggle, apparently seeking to disentangle himself from the grips of the law enforcers. One unidentified police officer fired a teargas canister at Mwangosi, ripping off his stomach and injuring another policeman who was standing nearby. After seeing Mwangosi’s dismembered body, people started to scamper for their lives.”

Media groups in Tanzania report the death of Mwangosi, a father of four, as the first work-related fatality for a journalist in the country since it began keeping detailed records in 1992. The same groups have also pleaded with the government to “immediately lift the indefinite ban on rallies and demonstrations” so as to uphold its Constitution and international human rights obligations.

Meanwhile, organizations such as the Tanzania Constitution Forum called for the resignation of Commander Kamuhanda. Deus Kibamba, the Forum’s Chairman, said at a press conference that “there will be no fair and free investigations if the involved people are left in office.”

 

For further information, please see:

IPPmedia – Fire all police officers involved-Press clubs – 7 September 2012

The Citizen – Suspend officers in Mwangosi killing case, minister urged – 6 September 2012

AllAfrica – Tanzania: The Shocking Death of a Journalist Tests Democracy – 6 September 2012

AllAfrica – Tanzanian Journalist Killed in Political Rally – 5 September 2012

Detox Program for Agent Orange Victims

By Karen Diep
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia

HANOI, Vietnam – Yesterday, the Church of Scientology announced that it would treat victims of Agent Orange.  During the Vietnam War, American troops used this defoliant against communist insurgents.

Helicopter spraying Agent Orange in the Mekong delta. (Photo Courtesy of The Business Insider)

According to the Guardian, between 1962 and 1971, the United State’s military sprayed at least 20m gallons of Agent Orange, among other herbicides, on approximately a quarter of South Vietnam resulting in 5m acres of deforestation.  Furthermore, according to the Business Insider, during the late 1990s, the Vietnam Red Cross conducted a survey revealing that approximately 3 million Vietnamese men and women were affected by this toxin, including 150,000 children born with birth defects.

A doctor at the Vietnam Military Medical University, Nguyen Ba Vuong, shared with the New York Times that the Association for Better Living and Education, a group financed by the Church of Scientology, trained members of his clinic.

Moreover, Vietnamese news sources relayed to the New York Times that the program treated approximately 300 victims so far.  The “Hubbard Method” includes, among other things, vitamin and mineral intake, vigorous exercise, and sauna sessions to induce perspiration.  After 9/11 in New York City, Scientologists offered said services to those who may have been exposed to toxins.  These measures have also been used to aid in alcohol and drug-related rehabilitation.

“I hope my wife and I will fully recover completely and will not suffer after-effects to pass on to my descendants,” said Nguyen Dai Sang to the Viet Nam News daily.  Though those in Mr. Sang’s situation are hopeful, many researchers doubt the “Hubbard Method.”

“I would not expect that it would lower the body burden of dioxin in a given person,” stated Dr. Marcella L. Warner, a research epidemiologist at the University of California, Berkeley.  Dr. Warner has studied the long-term health effects of dioxin exposure.  Though she is not well versed in the “Hubbard Method,” Dr. Warner believes a program’s emphasis on excessive perspiration is not effective.

In addition, a spokesman for the American Embassy in Hanoi, Christopher Hodges, stated, “We are not aware of any safe, effective detoxification treatment for people with dioxin in body tissues.  The best way to reduce health risks associated with dioxin is to prevent human exposure to dioxin.”

Although the United States purports that no link between Agent Orange and health problems exists, last month, it initiated a project to clean the toxins from a former airbase, where American troops previously stored and mixed the toxin.  Furthermore, since 2007, Vietnam has received approximately $60m from the United States for forest restoration and social services.

For more information, please see:

The Business Insider – Vietnamese Citizens are Turning to a Scientology Detox Program to Cure Effects of Agent Orange – 06 Sept. 2012

Fox News – Vietnam Agent Orange Victims get Scientology ‘Detox’ – 06 Sept. 2012

The Guardian – Agent Orange Victims in Vietnam to get Scientology ‘Detox’ Treatment – 06 Sept. 2012

New York Times – Agent Orange Victims Get Scientology Treatment – 05 Sept. 2012