Socially Responsible Textiles
writer: erin luhmann
photographer: yan seiler
the names of former child laborers
in this story have been changed. |
Photographer Yan Seiler took this photo of a child laborer at the loom in India prior to documenting this story. While photographing rug-making factories in nepal for NEED magazine, he witnessed no child labor. |
At what point does a child lose the ability to smile, laugh or dream? For child laborers in the carpet-weaving sectors of Nepal, their playful spirits are stifled when their hands become commodities. Factory owners jeopardize the health and welfare of these young "apprentices" for a selfish profit when children as young as 4 are enslaved at the loom.
Thanks to RugMark, an international nonprofit devoted to eliminating child labor in the handmade carpet industry, all hope is not lost. Their comprehensive approach gives rescued children a new lease on life. RugMark's efforts call for the cooperation of consumers, manufacturers, distributors and adult workers alike to redefine a major industry in Nepal. |
Sarashwoti Muktan, 26, has been working in a child-labor-free factory for five months and says the conditions are much better than the previous factory she worked in. |
With a well-crafted system, RugMark has conducted over 34,000 factory inspections since December 1996. Their mission states, "If enough people demand certified child-labor-free rugs, manufacturers will only employ skilled, adult artisans, and the exploitation of children in the carpet industry will come to an end." Physically removing children from forced labor is the main responsibility of RugMark inspectors. This task requires constant monitoring of cooperating factories and an ambitious pursuit of undiscovered facilities.
Once a factory meets child-labor-free standards, it is awarded certification and may place RugMark's smiling logo on the back of its rugs. RugMark inspectors hold factories that are registered as child-labor-free accountable through unannounced inspections and associated licensing fees. Consumers can be assured of a rug's socially responsible construction by tracking each unique code back to the loom on which it was made. |
Barati (right) and his friends play a board game at the Rugmark rehabilitation center. |
Barati’s rural farming family of seven simply could not afford to stay together. At age 12, his family sent him to work for a broker in a carpet factory where each day bled into the next. Despite the broker’s attempts to hide him from RugMark inspectors, Barati was rescued from the loom on March 7, 2007. Now 13, he wants to become a social worker like RugMark inspectors. His hopes for the future reflect the impact that RugMark inspectors make on the lives of former child laborers.
In impoverished Nepal, an education is a privilege that few can afford, and Barati knows from experience that it is certainly nothing to take for granted. Nina Smith, executive director of RugMark USA, explains, “If you have child labor, you are going to have poverty. You are going to have [a] lack of education, and it’s going to perpetuate a cycle of poverty. Any child that is given the chance to be educated, instead of work, can succeed.” Smith adds, “It doesn’t matter if they come from a poor region of the world or from a poor family.” |
The boys at the rehabilitation center eat a nutritious meal. |
“If you have child labor, you are
going to have poverty. You are going
to have [a] lack of education, and it’s
going to perpetuate a cycle of poverty.” |
Devi Bashyalis (right), 38, has been working in the carpet industry for 15 years. After hearing good reports about a factory in her area, she applied for a job there and has been working in a child-labor-free environment for two years. |
| Under the pressures of poverty, any number of hardships can land a child in front of a loom. Whether a child is forced or sold into slavery, the daily abuses endured fall nothing short of devastating. “The conditions of the carpet industry [in] Nepal can be … deplorable,” says Stephanie Odegard, one of the directors of the RugMark Foundation. Long hours spent focusing on a poorly lit loom can cause vision impairments. Tight quarters force poor posture that may eventually lead to spinal deformities. Even a breath of air comes at a cost to one’s health – the inhalation of wool fibers results in serious respiratory problems. Children are fed meager meals in unsanitary quarters, leaving them malnourished and susceptible to tuberculosis and other diseases. The children cannot escape the habitual scolding and abuse they receive from factory owners. In fact, “Carpet work is actually considered one of the worst forms of child labor,” confirms Smith. |
Padam Lama, 28, has been dyeing wool to be used in making rugs for nine years. |
Phulmaya Lama (foreground), 29, has been working in a child-labor-free factory for two years. Rather than working beside her, Lama's child is cared for in the factory's day care center.
Children are able to play in the factory's on-site, day care center. |
Children attend the Rugmark school while their parents work in the carpet factory. |
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