EU Lawmakers Block Textile Deal With Uzbekistan Over Child Labor Concerns

The EU today rejected a trade deal that would have made it easier for Uzbekistan to export textiles to Europe, due to its objections to the country’s continued use of forced child labour to pick cotton. The news came after intensive lobbying from Anti-Slavery international and our partners for the deal to be blocked.  

The European Parliament’s foreign affairs committee unanimously voted against the inclusion of textiles in the Partnership and Cooperation Agreement, a document that has formed the basis of trade in most other goods between the EU and Uzbekistan since it came into force in 1999. The deal would have lowered the tariffs on EU imports of Uzbek Cotton, which currently represent one-quarter of the country’s exports.

Despite this progress, the EU still allows Uzbekistan to benefit from reducing trading tariffs for all its imports into the EU due to it low development ranking. Although today’s result is major step forward in securing tougher action from the EU with regards to the use of forced child labour, we need to ensure action is taken across the EU and that their policy in relation to trade with Uzbekistan is consistent, in order to put pressure on the country to end this practice.

Anti- Slavery International’s Cotton Crimes campaign continues to call for the EU to remove all trade preferences for Uzbekistan. Please support us here: www.antislavery.org/cottoncrimes.

News source: http://www.rferl.org/content/eu_lawmakers_block_textile_deal_with_uzbekistan_over_child_labor_concerns/24349083.html