Action at International Shoe Agency in London because of Agra (India) factory fire

Today, may 23, 15 activists from the Clean Clothes Campaign, its UK chapter Labour behind the Label, the UK based group No Sweat and several international partner organisations of the CCC paid a surprise visit to the office of the International Shoe Agency ISA in London. This week it is one year ago that 43 workers burned to death in a factory in Agra (India) due to neglicence and non-compliance with national and international health and safety standards. According to shippingrecords discovered after the fire, ISA was one of the companies sourcing from the factory concerned. Repeated efforts from the CCC and LbL to contact ISA to obtain information about its activities subsequent to the fire and about ISA's ethical policies were totally unsuccesfull: ISA never replied. The activists managed to get into the office, but according to the staff at the premises none of the managers were available, and they refused to contact them claiming both the managing director and the sales director were unreachable. Repeated efforts from the activists to explain the details of the case to the staff present were ignored or went unanswered. The company in the end contacted the police who ordered the activists to leave the building. After receiving assurance from the staff that upon the return of the managing director, first thing tuesday morning, an appointment would be scheduled the activists left the building and continued leafletting and picketing for another half hour in front of the office.

Since then ISA has contacted the Clean Clothes Campaign and a meeting has been scheduled.