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NEWSLETTER 14, JULY 2001
Campaigning in Spain:
Made in DDHH (human rights)
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The
Spanish CCC's campaign "Made in DDHH: A Shared Responsibility,"
which started at the end of 2000 continues. As part of this action,
consumers are sending postcards to Spanish companies, demanding
greater transparency in their policies relating to social responsibility.
The campaign estimates that protest postcards are arriving at
a rate of about 60 a day at the offices of the country's top five
garment companies (Adolfo Domínguez, Burberry, Cortefiel,
Mango, and Zara). As of March, approximately 4000 cards had been
sent to the companies.
Street Action
At
the end of February the Ropa Limpia (Clean Clothes) Campaign decided
to take to the streets to explain the action to a wider audience.
The results were spectacular: more than 1, 500 people in Madrid
and Barcelona approached the stands and from there sent over 500
postcards to the main manufacturers in Spain. The companies, as
tends to happen in these cases, have started to consider the issue,
due to pressure from some of their customers.
The Responses
Mango, Cortafiel, and Burberry have opted for personalized responses
to those who sent postcards. In each case the response assures
us that these companies are concerned about the human rights of
both direct and indirect workers in their factories outside of
Spain. Zara's Communications Director told the Spanish CCC that
his company is currently undergoing an internal process, which
aims, amongst other objectives, to approve a corporate code of
conduct. Up until now, Adolfo Domínguez has not responded.
For the organizers of the Spanish CCC, the main clothing manufacturers
in Spain are showing, in very general terms, a change of attitude
-- they are beginning to react. That is why it seems very positive
to continue mailing the postcards. The companies seem to be worried
about the "social image" that could be conveyed to their
potential customers. For the Spanish CCC this action offers yet
more clear evidence of the power that consumers can have.
