Government labor inspectors cleared the June Textile Factory Friday of allegations made by a British television documentary team that the factory employed an underage worker to produce garments for clothing giants Nike and Gap.
After attending a meeting at the June factory with regional representatives from Nike and Gap, two labor ministry inspectors said that documents stating Sun Thyda is 18 years old are authentic.
Sun Thyda is featured in an upcoming BBC ‘Panorama’ documentary. She admitted at a Phnom Penh press conference Wednesday that she had told the BBC she was 14 years old.
The allegations of child labor violations at the factory spurred Nike and Gap to suspend contracts with June and publicly distance themselves from the controversy.
Chea Vichea, head of the Free Trade Union of Workers, blasted the ministry’s announcement Friday, calling it a government cover-up to protect foreign investment in the garment industry.
According to Chea Vichea, the documents produced to prove Sun Thyda age are not the documents the girl’s family showed to the BBC cameras.
“I don’t believe this. The government just wants to protect…. The documents they show now are very new,” said Chea Vichea, claiming the original documents were much older.
The Associated Press reported Thursday that a spokeswoman for ‘Panorama’ said they are standing by its film.
Ministry inspectors were dispatched earlier this week to Sun Thyda’s home town in Kompong Cham province to investigate documents which showed she was old enough to work at the factory, said Huot Chanthy, acting director of labor inspections at the Ministry of Social Affairs, Labor, Vocational Training and Youth Rehabilitation.
“[Sun Thyda] was born on the 8th of April 1982. She is a few months more than 18 years old,” said Huot Chanthy, noting that family relatives also joined the meeting Friday to personally testify to the girl’s age.
The meeting and the information provided by the ministry inspectors may lead Nike and Gap to change their decisions to cancel production orders, which accounted for almost 40 percent of June’s output, Huot Chanthy said.
“I discussed with the delegation from Gap and [the representative] said he has changed his mind,” Huot Chanthy said.
“Maybe Nike will change their mind.”
He added he was told reports must still be sent back to both companies’ head offices before any decision is made.
Jeremy Prepscius, Nike’s representative at Friday’s meeting, said by telephone he could not comment.
