ILO tells Myanmar to stop forced labour

The U.N. International Labour Organisation told Myanmar on Saturday to end forced labour, saying the action it had taken so far was "totally inadequate".

But the ILO's committee on labour standards stopped short of referring Myanmar to the International Court of Justice, the top U.N. tribunal, as worker representatives demanded.

The ILO has been at odds with the former Burma for more than a decade over what it says is a widespread practice of forcing villagers to work on infrastructure projects or as porters for the army.

The committee said Myanmar's military government had taken some steps to tackle underage recruitment into the military, and to publicise a temporary complaints mechanism, which was extended for one year.

"The Committee was however of the view that these steps are totally inadequate," it said in the conclusions of its meeting.

The committee told the government it must amend both existing legislation and the new constitution to ban forced labour, publicise the ban, punish those who impose it, and stop harassing people who complain about it or those who help them.

Myanmar's ambassador in Geneva, Wunna Maung Lwin, told the committee: "Myanmar has shown its political will, and she has been and will be cooperating with the ILO in a constructive manner with a view to eradicating the practice of forced labour in the country."

But employers' and workers' representatives and Western governments at the ILO dismissed this.
http://in.reuters.com/article/idINIndia-40127420090606