5. The following non-governmental organizations in consultative status, attended the session: Anti-Slavery Society for the Protection of Human Rights (represented by Col. Patrick Montgomery, Ms. Leah Levin, Mr. Sanjib Baruah, Mr. Denis von der Weid, Ms. Asha D'Souza); International Federation of Women Lawyers (represented by Ms. Hélène Pfander); International Union for Child Welfare (represented by Ms. Evi Underhill); International University Exchange Fund (represented by Mr. John Wilson); Minority Rights Group (represented by Mr. Kenneth B. Liberman and Ms. Amy Young-inawaty).
Mection of Officers
6.
At the first meeting, on 16 August 1978, Mr. Justice Abu Sayeed Chowdhury was elected Chairman-Rapporteur of the Working Group.
Documentation.
7.
The Working Group had before it the following documentation:
(a) Provisional agenda (E/CN.4/Sub.2/AC.2/23);
(b) Reports submitted by States concerning the situation with respect to the Supplementary Convention on the Abolition of Slavery, the Slave Trade, and Institutions and Practices Similar to Slavery of 1956 and the Convention on the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others of 1949 (E/CN.4/Sub.2/AC.2/16/Add.1 and Add.2; E/CN.4/Sub.2/AC.2/24 and Add.1; E/CN.4/Sub.2/AC.2/25 and Add.1);
(c) Note by the Secretary-General containing comments submitted by certain Governments in reply to inquiries addressed to them under para. 6 of. Sub-Commission resolution 6B (XXXI) (E/CN.4/Sub.2/AC.2/26 and Add.1);
(a) Information received from United Nations agencies, inter-governmental and non-governmental organizations (E/CN.4/Sub.2/AC.2/27);
(e) An interim report of the Secretary-General on "Apartheid as a collective form of slavery" (E/CN.4/Sub.2/AC.2/28);
(f) A report of the Secretary-General on "The exploitation of child labour"· (E/CN.4/Sub.2/LC.2/29);
(g) Information received from the International Criminal Police Organization INTERPOL) pursuant to Economic and Social Council resolution 1695 (L11) (E/CN.4/Sub.2/419);
(12) Papers submitted by the Anti-Slavery Society for the Protection of Human Rights and the International University Exchange Fund.
II.
REVIEW OF DEVELOPMENTS IN THE FIELD OF SLAVERY AND THE SLAVE TRADE IN ALL THEIR PRACTICES AND MANIFESTATIONS
A.
Debt Bondage
8.
A representative of the Anti-Slavery Society for the Protection of Human Rights, drew the attention of the Group to press reports from India on violence against "untouchables". For instance, he pointed out that in a single year in the city of Poona, the local press reported as many as 120 such cases. While not all "'untouchables" were bonded labourers in the juridical sense of the term, most of them were living in a situation of acute indebtedness because of their extreme poverty.