While some parts of the world were well underway with celebrating the new year, garment workers in Cambodia were facing a much harsher reality. On Jan. 3, the Cambodian military opened fire on protesters at Canadia Industrial Park, which houses factories for brands like Adidas, Puma, and H&M. Four civilians were killed and many others were wounded.
These horrific events followed a crackdown on protesters at the Yak Jin factory, which makes clothes for Gap and Walmart, in Phnom Penh's Pursenchey district just the day before.A military special command unit was ordered to suppress demonstrations at Yak Jin. According to a report by the Phnom Penh-based Community Legal Education Center (CLEC), the soldiers were "seen brandishing metal pipes, knives, AK47 rifles, slingshots, and batons."It eventually led to two violent clashes that left 20 people wounded. A total of 10 people were arrested, and the director of the Cambodian League for the Promotion of and Defense of Human Rights (LICADHO) expressed grave concern for the safety of those being held.Protesting monks and workers had been beaten previously at nearby factories. Strikes began in December as workers united in an effort to persuade the government to increase their monthly wage from $80 to $160.As a response to the largely peaceful protests of the past two weeks, the Cambodian government literally fired back. Since the shooting, the government has moved to ban public assemblies of more than 10 people.The violent shutdown of peaceful protesters and the new ban on public assemblies represents a disturbing stage of engagement between government and labor. It is clear that the Cambodian government elites are interested in maintaining cheap labor laws in order to attract multinational corporations.Threats to these investment and higher profit margins would be stopped by any means necessary.
corporate greed fires up gov't's to turn against their own in order to capitalize on the money that they then refuse those who make it possible. sounds frighteningly like where we are headed.
Several apparel brands have banded together and issued an open letter to both the Cambodian government and union leaders expressing concern over these events.In a carefully crafted letter signed by H&M, Gap, Inditex (Zara’s parent company), Puma, Adidas, Columbia Sportswear Company, and Levi Strauss & Co., the companies expressed opposition to "all forms of violence," and expressed "great concern" over the "widespread civil unrest and the government's use of deadly force."Nike and Walt Disney, original supporters of the letter, backed out of signing. Others like Walmart have remained silent.the letter never mentions the reason for this which is liveablw wage that makes this faux letter as apathetically indifferent to those workers as they are to the workers here, it's all about the Benjamis blood sweat tears and death don't matter.i read nother story recently where there was a fence around the factory, those in charges claimed it was not to keep peo0ple in but to keep them out the workforce accepting this inequality out number those who seek to attain it hard to protest when there are hundreds or more waiting to take your low paying position.
that is by intention those in power create that dynamic to insure always being able to satify those corporations looking for products on the cheap, and we run out and buy. if we stopped they would stop, but it's all about our needs and wants, becareful what you support it may be your support one day. recognize
