20 August 2007
Port Louis — Why is the Mauritian government thinking of suing the "Sunday Times"?
The government got very angry at an article in "Sunday Times" stating that two local factories had slave workers. The minister of Labour and Industrial relations, Vasant Bunwaree, has made it clear that regular visits were made in these factories and that they did not see any such problems there. So the ministry of Trade has sent a letter to the newspaper and threatened to go to Court if necessary.
What is the stand of the factory owners?
Both François Woo from the Compagnie mauricienne de textile and Ahmed Parkar from Star Knitwear have strongly denied the allegations. Ahmed Parkar has even said that the journalist did not do her job in an ethical way, as she did not even come to see the living conditions of the workers. Both owners assert that they live in decent conditions and earn a decent wage.
What was the objective of publishing such an article?
For Ahmed Parkar, the reasons are clear: they are mere collateral victims of an article which, in fact, targeted the owner of Arcadia, Philip Green. The manager of Star Knitwear also said he was ready to back up Arcadia if the company decided to sue the newspaper.
Has this article done any damage to thesefactories?
Damage has not only been done to these factories but it could even have been harmful for the whole textile industry. Customers abroad are very sensitive to human rights issues and could boycott a brand if they suspect any wrongdoing.
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