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SLAVE LABOUR IN SOUTH COIUS
A note stowed away in a box
When one woman, whose name shall not be published at her request for the sake of privacy, opened the box for her new LD™ television from LotusDreamsLTD, a corporation based out of the landlocked Grand Principality of Phula, she says a hand-written note fell out. Written in plain and clear Estmerish, she tells us that the note detailed the horrific working conditions of the factory the electronic device was manufactured in. The note claims that prisoners are being shuttled from nearby institutions and forced to work fourteen hours per day with no lunch break for less than one Euclo per hour.
The note goes on to state other conditions that the prisoners must endure. They are not allowed to talk or look at other prisoners, or else they will be beaten with batons. Armed guards loom over them constantly while they work, ready to pounce like predators if they spot any violations of their strict rules. The factories are poorly ventilated, and with large crowds, plenty of active machinery, and Phula's tropical location, lends itself to a dangerous environment where everyone is at risk of overheating. The humid air does little to help this, and only warm drinks are served to the prisoners.
The Phulese government has remained entirely silent on the matter, and has taken no action in recent years to try to curb abuses such a this. Their silence has only enabled the practice, and we in Euclea have been too compliant, never asking where our products come from. While accusations of unfair or unfree labour have been made against Coian industry for years, these have often been written off as being politically motivated and ignored in the broader conversations that mainstream society is having. Now, though, the conversation seems to be reemerging.
Conservative sectors have long bemoaned the over-reliance on foreign industry as a flaw of the modern world. They have promoted buying locally, where fair and free labour is assured, and where the money will be kept within the domestic economy. The 'buy local' campaign promotes self-reliance and keeping wealth in our economy rather than sending it abroad, both of which are seen as very favorable conditions by economists. With the note's reveal, this campaign has risen like a phoenix to explain the benefits of buying domestic products even at an increased price.
We all await the Phulese government's response to the unveiling of the note, but not many are hopeful that it will be handled responsibly. Being an autocratic government like most of Coius, the Euclean opinion seems to be that the Phulese will try to hide, deny, or otherwise obfuscate, rather than conducting a legitimate investigation into the corporate practices of their nation. Only time will tell for sure, but few are holding their breath with regards to this scandal. We will keep readers informed when the official response is released, and what it means for the future of trade between South Coius and Euclea.
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© The Ashcombe Herald 2019
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