On June 9, 2015, the Mannheim Administrative Court overturned a regulation of the Stuttgart Cemetery Statute that prohibited tombstones produced with child labour. Regarding the verdict, as can be seen in the press release of the administrative court, the following must be critically noted: 1. The verdict was made without hearing the parties involved: The non-governmental organization XertifiX, which certifies natural stones, was unable to answer the question of trustworthiness of seals, although XertifiX is directly affected at this point! 2. There is criticism that no certificate has been recognized by “a competent state body”. Here the court must be asked: Which state agency is there that decides on private (social) seals of non-governmental organizations in the natural stone sector, whether their criteria are reliable or not? Conversely, the court does not take into account that XertifiX and Fair Stone received the rating “particularly recommendable” from the portal of the consumer initiative e.V., which provides independent information about seals of approval and certificates. In addition, this portal is funded by the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture as well as the Federal Ministry of Justice and the Federal Ministry of Consumer Protection. [weiter… (German)]
Please refer: Pressemitteilung des Verwaltungsgerichtes Mannheim (German)
Please refer: Grabsteine aus Kinderarbeit wieder erlaubt (German)
