Colombians blast flower trade (child labor, slave labor)

[Judi Lynn]

Colombians blast flower trade
Activists urge Canadians to shun blooms grown by 'slave labour' – and reject free trade deal
Feb 10, 2009 04:30 AM

Linda Diebel
NATIONAL AFFAIRS WRITER

Flowers from Colombia are grown in blood, according to a small delegation from that country asking Canadians to think twice about the origin of flowers they buy for Valentine's Day.

It's the blood of women and children as young as 10, who work in slave labour conditions in sprawling greenhouses around the capital. They arrive from all over the country to package beauty, working long hours for little pay, no guaranteed labour rights and health problems that include infertility, lung disorders, joint issues and cancer.

"It is essentially slave labour," Yolanda Becerra Vega, director of the Popular Women's Organization, said yesterday. The Amnesty International-sponsored delegation is here to plead with Canadian parliamentarians to reject the Canada-Colombia free trade agreement, signed last November and expected to be introduced in the House soon.

Becerra Vega is recognized internationally for human rights work in a country where grassroots activists are regularly targeted by death squads with proven links to the military. The last death threat to her organization came two weeks ago.

"We know the threats come true," she said quietly. One colleague was threatened Dec. 19 and killed Jan. 5.

More:
http://www.thestar.com/News/Canada/article/584994