Keep Us Strong WikiLeaks logo

Currently released so far... 97115 / 251,287

Articles

Browse latest releases

Browse by creation date

Browse by origin

A B C D F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W Y Z

Browse by tag

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
ETRD EAGR ETTC EAID ECON EFIN ECIN EINV ELAB EAIR ENRG EPET EWWT ECPS EIND EMIN ELTN EC ETMIN EUC EZ ET ELECTIONS ENVR EU EUN EG EINT ER ECONOMICS ES EMS ENIV EEB EN ECE ECOSOC EK ENVIRONMENT EFIS EI EWT ENGRD ECPSN EXIM EIAD ERIN ECPC EDEV ENGY ECTRD EPA ESTH ECCT EINVECON ENGR ERTD EUR EAP EWWC ELTD EL EXIMOPIC EXTERNAL ETRDEC ESCAP ECO EGAD ELNT ECONOMIC ENV ETRN EIAR EUMEM ENRGPARMOTRASENVKGHGPGOVECONTSPLEAID EREL ECOM ECONETRDEAGRJA ETCC ETRG ECONOMY EMED ETR ENERG EITC EFINOECD EURM EENG ERA EXPORT ENRD ECONEINVETRDEFINELABETRDKTDBPGOVOPIC EGEN EBRD EVIN ETRAD ECOWAS EFTA ECONETRDBESPAR EGOVSY EPIN EID ECONENRG EDRC ESENV ETT EB ENER ELTNSNAR ECHEVARRIA ETRC EPIT EDUC ESA EFI ENRGY ESCI EE EAIDXMXAXBXFFR EETC ECIP EIAID EIVN EBEXP ESTN EING EGOV ETRA EPETEIND ELAN ETRDGK EAIDRW ETRDEINVECINPGOVCS EPEC ENVI ELN EAG EPCS EPRT EPTED ETRB EUM EAIDS EFIC EFINECONEAIDUNGAGM EAIDAR ESF EIDN ELAM EDU EV EAIDAF ECN EDA EXBS EINTECPS ENRGTRGYETRDBEXPBTIOSZ EPREL EAC EINVEFIN ETA EAGER EINDIR ECA ECLAC ELAP EITI EUCOM ECONEFINETRDPGOVEAGRPTERKTFNKCRMEAID EARG ELDIN EINVKSCA ENNP EFINECONCS EFINTS ECCP ETC EAIRASECCASCID EINN ETRP EAIDNI EFQ ECOQKPKO EGPHUM EBUD ECONEINVEFINPGOVIZ ENERGY ELB EINDETRD EMI ECONEFIN EIB EURN ETRDEINVTINTCS EIN EFIM ETIO ELAINE EMN EATO EWTR EIPR EINVETC ETTD ETDR EIQ ECONCS EPPD ENRGIZ EISL ESPINOSA ELEC EAIG ESLCO EUREM ENTG ERD EINVECONSENVCSJA EEPET EUNCH ECINECONCS ETRO ETRDECONWTOCS ECUN EFND EPECO EAIRECONRP ERGR ETRDPGOV ECPN ENRGMO EPWR EET EAIS EAGRE EDUARDO EAGRRP EAIDPHUMPRELUG EICN ECONQH EVN EGHG ELBR EINF EAIDHO EENV ETEX ERNG ED
KMDR KPAO KPKO KJUS KCRM KGHG KFRD KWMN KDEM KTFN KHIV KGIC KIDE KSCA KNNP KHUM KIPR KSUM KISL KIRF KCOR KRCM KPAL KWBG KN KS KOMC KSEP KFLU KPWR KTIA KSEO KMPI KHLS KICC KSTH KMCA KVPR KPRM KE KU KZ KFLO KSAF KTIP KTEX KBCT KOCI KOLY KOR KAWC KACT KUNR KTDB KSTC KLIG KSKN KNN KCFE KCIP KGHA KHDP KPOW KUNC KDRL KV KPREL KCRS KPOL KRVC KRIM KGIT KWIR KT KIRC KOMO KRFD KUWAIT KG KFIN KSCI KTFIN KFTN KGOV KPRV KSAC KGIV KCRIM KPIR KSOC KBIO KW KGLB KMWN KPO KFSC KSEAO KSTCPL KSI KPRP KREC KFPC KUNH KCSA KMRS KNDP KR KICCPUR KPPAO KCSY KTBT KCIS KNEP KFRDCVISCMGTCASCKOCIASECPHUMSMIGEG KNNB KGCC KINR KPOP KMFO KENV KNAR KVIR KDRG KDMR KFCE KNAO KDEN KGCN KICA KIMMITT KMCC KLFU KMSG KSEC KUM KCUL KMNP KSMT KCOM KOMCSG KSPR KPMI KRAD KIND KCRP KAUST KWAWC KTER KCHG KRDP KPAS KITA KTSC KPAOPREL KWGB KIRP KJUST KMIG KLAB KTFR KSEI KSTT KAPO KSTS KLSO KWNN KPOA KHSA KNPP KPAONZ KBTS KWWW KY KJRE KPAOKMDRKE KCRCM KSCS KWMNCI KESO KWUN KPLS KIIP KEDEM KPAOY KRIF KGICKS KREF KTRD KFRDSOCIRO KTAO KJU KWMNPHUMPRELKPAOZW KEN KO KNEI KEMR KKIV KEAI KWAC KRCIM KWCI KFIU KWIC KCORR KOMS KNNO KPAI KBWG KTTB KTBD KTIALG KILS KFEM KTDM KESS KNUC KPA KOMCCO KCEM KRCS KWBGSY KNPPIS KNNPMNUC KWN KERG KLTN KALM KCCP KSUMPHUM KREL KGH KLIP KTLA KAWK KWMM KVRP KVRC KAID KSLG KDEMK KX KIF KNPR KCFC KFTFN KTFM KPDD KCERS KMOC KDEMAF KMEPI KEMS KDRM KEPREL KBTR KEDU KNP KIRL KNNR KMPT KISLPINR KTPN KA KJUSTH KPIN KDEV KTDD KAKA KFRP KWNM KTSD KINL KJUSKUNR KWWMN KECF KWBC KPRO KVBL KOM KFRDKIRFCVISCMGTKOCIASECPHUMSMIGEG KEDM KFLD KLPM KRGY KNNF KICR KIFR KM KWMNCS KAWS KLAP KPAK KDDG KCGC KID KNSD KMPF KPFO KDP KCMR KRMS KNPT KNNNP KTIAPARM KDTB KNUP KPGOV KNAP KNNC KUK KSRE KREISLER KIVP KQ KTIAEUN KPALAOIS KRM KISLAO KWM KFLOA
PHUM PINR PTER PGOV PREL PREF PL PM PHSA PE PARM PINS PK PUNE PO PALESTINIAN PU PBTS PROP PTBS POL POLI PA PGOVZI POLMIL POLITICAL PARTIES POLM PD POLITICS POLICY PAS PMIL PINT PNAT PV PKO PPOL PERSONS PING PBIO PH PETR PARMS PRES PCON PETERS PRELBR PT PLAB PP PAK PDEM PKPA PSOCI PF PLO PTERM PJUS PSOE PELOSI PROPERTY PGOVPREL PARP PRL PNIR PHUMKPAL PG PREZ PGIC PBOV PAO PKK PROV PHSAK PHUMPREL PROTECTION PGOVBL PSI PRELPK PGOVENRG PUM PRELKPKO PATTY PSOC PRIVATIZATION PRELSP PGOVEAIDUKNOSWGMHUCANLLHFRSPITNZ PMIG PREC PAIGH PROG PSHA PARK PETER POG PHUS PPREL PS PTERPREL PRELPGOV POV PKPO PGOVECON POUS PGOVPRELPHUMPREFSMIGELABEAIDKCRMKWMN PWBG PMAR PREM PAR PNR PRELPGOVEAIDECONEINVBEXPSCULOIIPBTIO PARMIR PGOVGM PHUH PARTM PN PRE PTE PY POLUN PPEL PDOV PGOVSOCI PIRF PGOVPM PBST PRELEVU PGOR PBTSRU PRM PRELKPAOIZ PGVO PERL PGOC PAGR PMIN PHUMR PVIP PPD PGV PRAM PINL PKPAL PTERE PGOF PINO PHAS PODC PRHUM PHUMA PREO PPA PEPFAR PGO PRGOV PAC PRESL PORG PKFK PEPR PRELP PREFA PNG PGOVPHUMKPAO PRELECON PINOCHET PFOR PGOVLO PHUMBA PRELC PREK PHUME PHJM POLINT PGOVPZ PGOVKCRM PGOVE PHALANAGE PARTY PECON PEACE PROCESS PLN PRELSW PAHO PEDRO PRELA PASS PPAO PGPV PNUM PCUL PGGV PSA PGOVSMIGKCRMKWMNPHUMCVISKFRDCA PGIV PRFE POGOV PEL PBT PAMQ PINF PSEPC POSTS PHUMPGOV PVOV PHSAPREL PROLIFERATION PENA PRELTBIOBA PIN PRELL PGOVPTER PHAM PHYTRP PTEL PTERPGOV PHARM PROTESTS PRELAF PKBL PRELKPAO PKNP PARMP PHUML PFOV PERM PUOS PRELGOV PHUMPTER PARAGRAPH PERURENA PBTSEWWT PCI PETROL PINSO PINSCE PQL PEREZ PBS

Browse by classification

Community resources

courage is contagious

Viewing cable 05DHAKA2309, LABOR CONDITIONS IN THE BANGLADESH SHRIMP

If you are new to these pages, please read an introduction on the structure of a cable as well as how to discuss them with others. See also the FAQs

Understanding cables
Every cable message consists of three parts:
  • The top box shows each cables unique reference number, when and by whom it originally was sent, and what its initial classification was.
  • The middle box contains the header information that is associated with the cable. It includes information about the receiver(s) as well as a general subject.
  • The bottom box presents the body of the cable. The opening can contain a more specific subject, references to other cables (browse by origin to find them) or additional comment. This is followed by the main contents of the cable: a summary, a collection of specific topics and a comment section.
To understand the justification used for the classification of each cable, please use this WikiSource article as reference.

Discussing cables
If you find meaningful or important information in a cable, please link directly to its unique reference number. Linking to a specific paragraph in the body of a cable is also possible by copying the appropriate link (to be found at theparagraph symbol). Please mark messages for social networking services like Twitter with the hash tags #cablegate and a hash containing the reference ID e.g. #05DHAKA2309.
Reference ID Created Released Classification Origin
05DHAKA2309 2005-05-18 02:20 2011-08-25 00:00 UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY Embassy Dhaka
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DHAKA 002309 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ELAB PGOV SENV PHUM BG
SUBJECT: LABOR CONDITIONS IN THE BANGLADESH SHRIMP 
PROCESSING INDUSTRY 
 
 
1. (SBU)  Summary: While Bangladesh wants to increase its 
annual shrimp exports from $300 million to a billion dollars 
over the next decade, current labor practices undermine its 
ability to boast productivity and win new markets.  End 
Summary. 
 
2. (U) Bangladesh's second largest export, after ready made 
garments, is processed shrimp.  In 2004, it shipped $300 
million worth of shrimp to the EU and US.  Most of the shrimp 
processing, the de-shelling, de-veining, and packaging, takes 
place in the city of Khulna, located 350 kilometers southwest 
of Dhaka.  Khulna, on the Kunga river within the water- rich 
Sundarbans region of Bangladesh, is also close to Mongla 
port, making it a logical location for shrimp processing for 
export. 
 
3. (U) The majority of shrimp processors have plants that 
front the Kunga river.  Shrimp is brought in from nearby 
shrimp farms which are former rice fields now flooded with 
the brackish water of the Sundarbans.  The farmers raise the 
fry or hatchlings to market size in the ponds, with some 
farmers using pesticides and antibiotics to increase yields 
and the size of their shrimp.  The farmers take on debt to 
buy the fry from wholesalers in the hopes of reaping a large 
return on their investment.  However, once they flood their 
fields with the brackish water, returning the land to other 
uses requires eliminating the salt.  Consequently, many are 
locked into raising shrimp. 
 
4.  (U) Shipped to the processing plants on locally 
constructed ships, the shrimp are transferred from the boat 
to the processing plants by young boys aged eight to 12 and 
paid less than half a taka per kilo.  (There are 60 taka to 
the dollar.)  The transfer is done in small baskets with the 
boys balancing the loads on their heads across dirt roads to 
the processing plants.  There is an unloading quay for the 
several processing plants but, like most infrastructure in 
Bangladesh, it is barely adequate. 
 
5.  (SBU) Once in the processing plants, the shrimp are 
chilled and placed in large stainless steel buckets where the 
shrimp are washed.  Many of the workers are women, mostly in 
their mid 20s.  Many are glad to have the work in this very 
rural part of Bangladesh where even college graduates rarely 
find work.  The shrimp processing industry is new and many 
workers started out in their teens.  Using children as young 
as 12 is, while not common, more the rule than the exception. 
 
 
6. (U) Outside a processing plant, poloff observed several 
young girls wearing rubber boots. They said they worked in a 
nearby processing plant where they weighed bags of processed 
shrimp.  When asked their age, one said she was 14 years but 
the other girls giggled and said she was only 12 like them. 
In response to a question if they liked working the 
processing plant, they said it was cold and they don't have 
gloves.  As a result, their hands dry out from being in water 
and cold all the time.  She showed poloff her hands which 
were chapped and still white from immersion in water. 
 
7. (U) Older women, those in their 20s, perform the peeling 
and de-veining of shrimp.  However, in some processing 
plants, small children are sometimes used to peel the shell 
from the shrimp.   One plant manager explained, "Where the 
women work, so go the children" meaning that without day care 
the children have no choice but to stay with the female 
parent.  However, some women actually prefer taking their 
children with them to work.  In such cases, women who have 
permanent employee standing have asked to be retained as 
contractors and to paid by the weight of shrimp peeled. 
Being paid by weight, the use of children is advantageous to 
the contractor/employee, but being a contractor means when 
the seasonal down time comes, they are the first to be let go. 
 
8. (U) Due to climatic conditions, monsoons and the breeding 
cycle of the various types of shrimp, there are peak and 
slack seasons. Most workers admit that there is really only 
sufficient work 10 months of the year.  During the down 
times, some workers are let go while others are given other 
tasks to perform tasks unrelated to their normal work.  For 
example, if they are peelers, they may be given jobs such as 
mopping floors or moving equipment.  However, during peak 
times, many work up to 14-16 hours a day.  Many managers 
defend such practices, noting that they are at the mercy of 
the weather and the intensive nature of shrimp farming; all 
the shrimp grow best and mature according to the season. 
 
9. (SBU) Many owners defend their practices by saying that 
the shrimp processing business is very competitive and they 
need every advantage possible to reduce costs and improve 
their competitive edge.  Other owners see value in fairer 
labor practices and are working with USAID's Shrimp Seal of 
Quality (SSOQ) program.  Participants in this program agree 
to adhere to a high degree of sanitary conditions, high level 
of sound processing practices including not using shrimp 
raised with antibiotics or pesticides, and maintaining fair 
labor practices and working conditions.  Such practices 
assure US and EU wholesale buyers that the shrimp they 
purchase conform to modern and fair industry practices. 
 
10. (SBU) Comment: Both the Bangladesh government and the 
shrimp processing industry see potential for the $300 million 
a year industry to grow into a billion dollar industry within 
ten years. While the BDG supports the SSOQ, the majority of 
processors resist improving working conditions citing the 
need to maintain a high level of productivity. 
THOMAS