China Increases Penalties for Forced Labor

by Amanda Kloer · 2010-08-23 08:00:00 -0700
Topics:

China is considering a national crackdown on forced labor that would increase the penalties for traffickers from three years in prison to seven. But will these new rules be applied evenly, including to the powerful international manufacturing sector? Or will top global brands skirt the new forced labor law?

The potential changes in China come as a part of a comprehensive legal reform package, which includes lifting the death penalty for non-violent offenses and making withholding wages a criminal offense. The draft amendment states that those forcing another person to labor through violence, coercion, or the restriction of personal freedom can be punished by fines and a maximum seven years in prison. Previously, the maximum sentence was three years, which was unbalanced given the severity of some human trafficking crimes. If passed, the new law could go a long way toward preventing workplace abuses and labor trafficking.

Advocates for the new law cite recent examples of forced labor in brick kilns, where bosses enslaved anywhere from a handful to hundreds of workers. However, there has been little discussion on how these changes might affect larger, more organized manufacturing sectors. China has had some significant problems with forced labor and exploitation of workers in large factories that produce for major brands like Apple, HP, Sony, and others. Stricter penalties against forced labor could help deter would-be traffickers, but those penalties would have to be enforced across the board. People who force others into labor shouldn't be able to hide behind a giant dollar sign or global brand.

Additionally, the new law would penalize people who assisted others in committing forced labor or acted as a "go-between." This could become a useful tool to prevent unscrupulous labor recruiters from sending workers into situations they know to be exploitative, holding even those not directly responsible for the abuse accountable.

As China moves forward with legal reform, they'll hopefully apply these stricter penalties evenly to prevent forced labor in all industries.

Photo credit: Dan Zen

Amanda Kloer is a Change.org Editor and has been a full-time abolitionist in several capacities for seven years. Follow her on Twitter @endhumantraffic
PREVIOUS STORY:
U.S. Government to Iraqi Sex Slaves: Sucks for You, But We're Out
NEXT STORY:
Today is National Human Trafficking Awareness Day, how are you going to take action?

COMMENTS (0)

    Comment Policy

    · All fields are required to comment.

    [X]

    Comments on Change.org are meant for further exploration and evaluation of the campaign on Change.org. To that end, we welcome constructive comments. However, we reserve the right to delete comments which, as determined solely in our discretion: (1) are offensive, abusive, or off-topic; (2) include content solely intended to personally attack the campaign creator, (3) are designed to subvert or hijack comment threads rather than contribute to them; and/or (4) violate our terms of service and/or privacy policy. Repeat offenders may be permanently removed from the site at our discretion. Please also be advised that: (A) we do not actively curate and/or monitor in any manner whatsoever the comments made on the Change.org platform, and (B) the creator of each campaign on Change.org may remove any comment at her/his/its discretion.