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Factory cleared for safety before deaths
New York Times - September 21, 2012
The Karachi tragedy is a huge shame to the factory monitoring system, in which many Western garment and electronics companies rely on auditing groups to provide a seal of approval to their low-cost suppliers in the developing world.
In August, two inspectors who visited the Ali Enterprises factory, gave it a prestigious SA8000 certification, meaning it had met international standards in nine areas, including health and safety. The inspectors were working on behalf of Social Accountability International, a nonprofit monitoring group based in New York that obtains much of its funding from corporations and relies on affiliates to do most of its inspections.
The SA8000 certification is central to the work of Social Accountability International, which is supported by companies such as Gap, Gucci and Groupe Carrefour, as well as representatives of some labour rights groups.
"The whole system is flawed," said Scott Nova, the executive director of the Worker Rights Consortium, a monitoring group in Washington. "This demonstrates, more clearly than ever, that corporate-funded monitoring systems like SAI cannot and will not protect workers."
Social Accountability International said it had suspended work in Pakistan with the RINA Group, an Italian company that carried out the Ali Enterprises audit on its behalf. It was engaged in a broad review of its certification process.
The three owners of the factory, who fled Karachi after the fire, have had their accounts frozen, their passports confiscated, and may face charges.
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