On 6 April, the Cotton Campaign held its annual meeting in Washington DC, including a public meeting to discuss the progress made by the coalition. During a break in the event, some of the meeting participants held an action of solidarity with union brothers and sisters in Belarusian prisons.
Twenty-five delegates were photographed with pictures of prisoners who had been arrested the year before.
At that time the Belarusian authorities arrested two dozen leaders and activists of the independent trade unions of the Belarusian Congress of Democratic Trade Unions (BKDP). The support action was initiated by Abby McGill.
Since 2007, the Cotton Campaign has been at the forefront of the fight against forced child labour in the cotton industry in Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. The organization uses a wide range of legal, political and campaigning tools to promote decent work for cotton workers. This allows activists and independent observers to monitor the implementation of labor rights to push for change in these countries.