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I n the series Global Ethics and

edited by C A R O L G O U L D
Politics,
The Ethics
of Care
A Feminist Approach to Human Security

Fiona Robinson

TEMPLE UNIVERSITY PRESS

Philadelphia
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power o f rights language should not be underestimated; there is a need,


however, to move beyond rights as the sole normative, transformative
idea. Indeed, we should begin to t h i n k about how rights may, for exam-
ple, serve as an immediate strategy for those w h o are vulnerable and
dispossessed to draw attention to their plight and to secure the condi- 3 | "Women's W o r k "
tions for independence; the ethics o f care, then, could guide us i n the
longer term, based on the conviction that the needs and interests o f all The Global Care and Sex Economies
people w o u l d be better served i n societies that valued interdependence
and acknowledged the vulnerability o f all (F. W i l l i a m s 2 0 0 1 : 481).
The discourse o f individual rights cannot, alone, effectively address the A global demand exists for labour whose core component consists
complex sets o f relations that both lead to situations o f h u m a n insecu- of "women's work. "By this I mean sex, childcare and housework.
rity and can ultimately find lasting solutions to that insecurity. T h i s — M A C K L I N 2003
in no way suggests that the recognition o f political freedom f r o m the
coercive power o f the state is i n some way u n i m p o r t a n t or that the
demands o f justice—especially those that recognize human autonomy
and political freedom—should be ignored. Rather, this approach argues
that h u m a n autonomy can be achieved only through good relations o f

T
care and that justice and political freedom can be enjoyed only under his chapter explores the h u m a n security dimensions o f " w o m -
conditions where care is adequate and given w i t h o u t exploitation or en's w o r k " i n the global economy t h r o u g h the lens o f a critical
marginalization. feminist ethics o f care. By "women's w o r k " I mean care w o r k
(including c h i l d care and care for the sick and elderly); household m a i n -
tenance labor (including cleaning and food preparation); and " i n t i m a t e "
labor (including prostitution, other forms o f sex work, and "mail-order
brides"). Currently, millions o f w o m e n from income-poor, peripheral
states migrate to more affluent countries to do the w o r k that is "associ-
ated w i t h a wife's traditional r o l e — c h i l d care, homemaking and sex"
(Ehrenreich and Hochschild 2002: 4). T h i s situation is usually linked
causally to recent social and demographic transformations i n the nature,
extent, and location o f paid work; the most striking and influential o f
these demographic shifts has been the increase i n women i n the paid
workforce. Ehrenreich and Hochschild report that recent estimates
show women as the sole, primary, or coequal earners i n more than h a l f
o f American families (2002: 3); i n Canada, between 1960 and 2000, the
female share o f the labor force increased from 25 to 48 percent (Hey-
m a n n et al. 2004: 4).

I n income-rich countries, i n the absence o f accessible, affordable,


universal child-care programs, many women w o r k i n g outside the home
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now purchase transnationally the reproductive labor that they no longer to overwork or physical and sexual abuse. Finally, women w h o are
have time to provide. Between 1985 and 1990, the number o f women pushed toward trafficking for sex w o r k as an alternative to the drudgery
migrating to another country increased at a faster rate than the n u m - and danger that characterizes their daily lives at home are particularly
ber o f men ( U N I F E M 2000: 31). By the beginning o f the twenty-first vulnerable to myriad physical and mental health problems, including
century, women made up almost 50 percent o f the world's 120 m i l - H I V / A I D S , sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), and unwanted preg-
lion migrants, many o f them seeking reproductive work i n the nearest nancies (Heyzer 2006: 107-109).
comparatively rich country (Agathangelou 2004: 5). I n countries like Second, by employing a critical feminist ethics o f care as an onto-
the Philippines, Indonesia, and Sri Lanka, female migrant workers sig- logical and normative lens t h r o u g h w h i c h to view the h u m a n security
nificantly outnumber men ( U N I F E M 2005). W h i l e the focus o f this dimensions o f women's transnational reproductive labor, I use the con-
migration tends to be on nannies and domestic workers, the migration text o f women's migrant and trafficked labor to illustrate w h y h u m a n
o f women for sex work is a substantial part o f this trend. As Agathange- security must be understood relationally. I argue that the concept o f the
lou points out, "desire industries" constitute one o f the fastest-growing global care chain provides an excellent tool for highlighting the relational
employment sectors for working-class migrant women (2004: 6). nature o f h u m a n security i n this context. The concept o f the global care
B o t h the " p u l l " and "push" sides o f these migration flows reveal a chain refers to "a series o f personal links between people across the globe
growing crisis o f care i n b o t h the Global N o r t h and the Global South. based on the paid or unpaid w o r k o f caring" (Hochschild 2 0 0 0 : 131).
I n the income-rich N o r t h , care gaps are left as more women enter or I n Hochschild's original formulation, the concept typically entails "an
reenter the paid labor force. I n the South, countries are still struggling older daughter from a poor family w h o cares for her siblings while her
to accommodate the conditions o f neoliberal economic globalization, mother works as a nanny caring for the children o f a migrating nanny
including structural adjustment programs (SAPs), the opening o f their w h o , i n t u r n cares for the c h i l d o f a family i n a rich c o u n t r y " (131).
economies to foreign firms, and International Monetary Fund ( I M F ) As Nicola Yeates argues, global care chains do not simply demon-
austerity measures following financial crises (Sassen 2002: 257). M e a n - strate the connections between personal lives and global politics; they
while, many w o m e n i n developing economies are struggling to find elucidate the structures and processes that reflect and perpetuate the
ways to support themselves and their families, i n the light o f reduced unequal distribution o f resources globally (2004: 373). I also argue that
employment opportunities for men and women and cutbacks i n social the concept demonstrates clearly the extent to w h i c h the h u m a n secu-
services linked to the burden o f debt servicing. T h i s chapter addresses rity o f women, children, and entire families is linked i n a complex rela-
the h u m a n security dimensions o f women's transnational labor i n the tional ontology that often crosses regional and state boundaries. T o put
global economy. I argue, first, that the increase i n legal and illegal it simply, the human security o f children and families i n many income-
migration flows o f women interact w i t h structures o f gender equality poor countries cannot be considered independently f r o m the security
at every level—global, national, c o m m u n a l , and familial (Heyzer 2006: o f m i g r a t i n g or trafficked women w h o have left them behind. These
102)—and that this creates the potential for enormous insecurity for relationships, furthermore, must be understood as embedded i n b o t h
those women. T h i s insecurity has b o t h economic and physical d i m e n - the institutions and structures o f the global care economy and i n the
sions. A l t h o u g h many women migrate i n order to pursue economic gender and racial norms and hierarchies that feminize and devalue car-
opportunities that may improve their overall economic security, this ing labor. Indeed, the h u m a n security impact o f migrant care w o r k is
usually comes at a cost. I n many countries, substandard employment o f greater significance i n the light o f Yeates's argument that the concept
practices and the use o f undocumented workers can lead to the con- o f the global care chain should be expanded to include other groups o f
cealing o f workers by employers t h r o u g h physical confinement. Because migrant care workers—such as nurses—in different care contexts over
they w o r k i n private homes, domestic workers are particular vulnerable different historical periods (2004: 374).
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As I have argued previously i n this book, a critical ethics o f care does and migrant child-care workers, b o t h must be understood i n the con-
not valorize caring relations or caring values as essentially "feminine," text o f gendered and racialized processes i n the contemporary global
intrinsically morally superior, or more desirable based on their " f e m i - political economy. Furthermore, I argue that sex workers show us, i n
n i n i t y . " O n the contrary, it is essentially a set o f claims about how moral Olena Hankivsky's words, the " d a r k side o f care" (forthcoming) and
responsibilities and practices arise and about the nature and substance that a feminist ethics o f care can help us to understand b o t h the m o t i -
o f morality. By locating moral responsibilities and the practices that seek vations o f sex workers and the implications o f this w o r k for h u m a n
to f u l f i l l them, care ethics focuses on ontology. Specifically, this lens security.
focuses our attention on the subjects o f security as beings-in-relation;
the degree and nature o f insecurity o f most individual h u m a n beings The Crisis of Care and the Transnationalization
are intimately connected to the lives and security o f others. Moreover,
of Care Work
it allows us to see the extent to w h i c h all persons rely on adequate care
as a fundamental condition o f survival and security. As care becomes A l l over the w o r l d , demographic and social transformations have altered
transnationalized, the webs o f relations that provide care and security the nature, extent, and location o f paid w o r k . These changes began i n
become more complex. As care is increasingly commodified, feminized, the mid-nineteenth century i n N o r t h America and Europe, as men, and
and racialized, its links to security demand attention to transnational then women, moved into the industrial and postindustrial workforces,
hierarchies o f gender and race, the normative structures o f hegemonic but the changes have now occurred and are c o n t i n u i n g to take place
masculinities, and the moralized discourses o f "womanhood," "family," worldwide ( H e y m a n n et al. 2004: 3). T h e urbanization o f the global
"exoticism," and "national security." A feminist ethics o f care can thus p o p u l a t i o n — f r o m 18 percent at the beginning o f the twentieth century
help to uncover and elucidate the normative discourses and structures to nearly 50 percent at the end—has led to important changes i n com-
that govern the global distribution o f " i n t i m a t e services" and o f respon- m u n i t y , work, and family life, i n c l u d i n g the inability o f extended fami-
sibilities and demand for those services. Moreover, as a feminist ethics, lies to live together and the need for more adult family members to take
it can assist i n revealing the reasons why women, especially women o f up paid employment away from the home (4). But perhaps the most
color, are responsible for sex work, as they are for housework and care striking demographic shift has been the increase i n women i n the paid
work, and w h y there is relatively little critical moral reflection on this i n workforce: I n K u w a i t , the increase was from 4 to 31 percent. I n many
the context o f relations o f gender and race at the global level. other regions, i n c l u d i n g southern A f r i c a , the female participation i n the

T h u s , I explore the global crisis o f care i n the context o f the con- labor force was already well over 40 percent i n 1960 and remained high

temporary global political economy. I n an effort to demonstrate the in 2 0 0 0 ( H e y m a n n et al. 2004: 3 - 4 ) . I n 2003, 1.1 b i l l i o n o f the world's

h u m a n security costs o f this crisis, and the relational nature o f those 2.8 b i l l i o n workers, or 40 percent, were women, representing a w o r l d -

human security effects, I examine the coping strategies o f women and wide increase o f nearly 200 m i l l i o n women i n employment i n the past

families, especially i n developing countries. For women i n the income- ten years ( I L O 2004).

rich Global N o r t h , coping w i t h the "care gap" often involves employ- T h i s trend is occurring concurrently w i t h exponential g r o w t h i n
ing migrant domestic workers from developing countries. I t is crucial the global population. A l t h o u g h the number o f children per family
to address not only the insecurity experienced by these migrant women has dropped i n b o t h the industrial, and m u c h o f the developing, w o r l d
but also that experienced by others i n the global care c h a i n — i n c l u d i n g since the 1970s, 77 m i l l i o n people continue to be added to the w o r l d
dependent c h i l d r e n — t h a t they leave behind. Finally, I explore the ethi- every year (Radford Ruether 2005: 23). As Rosemary Radford Ruether
cal and security dimensions o f sex workers. I argue that although there notes, Western concerns w i t h population have usually ignored the gen-
are obvious differences between the activities o f trafficked sex workers der dimension o f this question. W o m e n bear the children and do most
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o f the caretaking (23). I n the industrialized N o r t h , and i n the absence an exercise o f "choice" and a desire for financial independence and the
o f accessible, affordable, universal child-care programs, women w o r k i n g satisfaction that w o r k can bring. T h i s is not to d i m i n i s h the extent to
outside the home have turned to poor women o f color—often i m m i - w h i c h many women i n the N o r t h w o r k outside the home first and fore-
grant w o m e n — t o care for their children. These women may be citizens most due to financial need; indeed, this is especially true i n the case for
or permanent residents o f these industrialized countries, or they may be female-headed, single-parent families. But all o f these w o m e n , regard-
"illegal aliens"; they may even be migrants participating i n schemes to less o f their socioeconomic circumstances, require care for their children
bring female domestic workers to the N o r t h from countries such as the when they w o r k outside the home—except i n those increasing but still
Philippines. Between 1985 and 1990, the number o f women m i g r a t i n g rare cases where men cease their w o r k outside the home to take on the
to another country increased at a faster rate than the number o f men role o f p r i m a r y caregiver. Ironically, while i t is i m p o r t a n t to recognize
( U N I F E M 2000: 21). that w o m e n i n the N o r t h often w o r k outside the home because o f f i n a n -
I n parts o f the Global South, the recent acceleration o f these t w i n cial need, i t is also the case that many women give up their paid labor
trends o f urbanization and rising paid labor f o r c e — w i t h most notable to care for their children because c h i l d care is too expensive. I n other
rises i n female participation—can be explained partly by the nature o f words, financial need forces them to leave their j o b s — w h i c h they may
economic globalization or, more specifically, global economic restruc- enjoy and value—because the cost o f child care, especially for a n u m -
turing. 1 I n this era o f accelerated speed and scope o f global trade and ber o f children, is prohibitive. T h i s i n itself demonstrates a disjuncture
investment, states compete fiercely to provide a low-cost economic envi- between the needs and rights o f women and the role and policies o f
ronment that is attractive to investors. T h i s has often meant the reloca- wealthy Western states i n the current era.
tion o f production processes to the Global South, where regulations are I n parts o f the Global South, structural adjustment policies and
m i n i m a l and wages and w o r k i n g conditions are poor. W o m e n for the development programs have propelled a global increase i n women's
most part have taken up these new "opportunities" i n export sectors, employment i n the low-wage service sector ( L i t t and Z i m m e r m a n 2003:
w h i c h has meant long hours w o r k i n g outside the home. Moreover, while 157). T h e increased concentration o f women i n manufacturing w o r k i n
social programs have been under fire for decades all over the w o r l d , the the South certainly raises women's earnings; however, this w o r k is usu-
power o f international financial institutions i n developing countries has ally inflexible w i t h regard to hours and incompatible w i t h c h i l d supervi-
meant that the erosion o f state-run welfare provision is felt the hard- sion (Glick 2003: 148). Moreover, the dependence o f t h i r d - w o r l d states
est there. Women—already overburdened w i t h labor responsibilities— on international financial institutions has weakened state provisions for
must f i l l i n the gaps. W h e n all adults w i t h i n a household w o r k outside health, education, and social services, placing an increased burden on
the home for pay, obvious and often serious problems arise. Financial women's unpaid labor—or care w o r k — i n the home ( L i t t and Z i m m e r -
responsibilities must be balanced w i t h caregiving responsibilities, espe- man 2003: 157). W h i l e the causes and circumstances o f the increase
cially where care is required for children; elderly, i n f i r m , or disabled in women's paid labor i n the South differ from those o f women i n the
adults; and acutely or chronically i l l family members. N o r t h , the effects are also dramatically different.

Moreover, while these trends are evident throughout the w o r l d , it is First, and most obviously, the households i n the South are t r y i n g
important to consider the differential effects o f these changes on work- to meet their caregiving needs w i t h far fewer resources. W h i l e many
ing families i n the Global N o r t h and the Global South. I n many cases, w o r k i n g women i n the N o r t h are confronted w i t h real choices regarding
women's entry into the paid labor force i n the Global N o r t h represents w o r k and care, many women o f the South have no choice. T h i s means,
in simple terms, that they must w o r k for wages or they and their chil-
dren w i l l not survive; often, this means they are forced to leave small
1 O n the difference between "globalization" and "global restructuring," see Marcband and
Runyan 2000. children home alone and unsupervised because they cannot afford to
70 | CHAPTER 3 "WOMEN'S W O R K " | 71

pay for c h i l d care. Second, the age-dependency ratios—of children and to provide care—with the inevitable long-term consequences for
elderly to working-age adults—tend to be 50-100 percent higher i n the the life options available to the g i r l — a n d leaving her o w n toddler
developing world than in developing countries ( H e y m a n n , Fischer, and home alone—as too many others i n her neighborhood had been
Engelman 2003: 77). Thus, the burden is already significantly heavier, forced to do. (Heymann 2003a: 1)
simply due to demographic differences. Finally, rates o f b o t h c o m m o n
illness and serious diseases are higher i n developing countries, w h i c h T h i s is the story o f a w o m a n l i v i n g i n the slums surrounding Tegu-
places even greater demands on adult caregivers (77-78). cigalpa, Honduras, as told by Jody H e y m a n n . T h i s short paragraph
Clearly, a series o f reasons explains w h y many women in parts o f tells a long and complex story about the gendered consequences and
the South feel the global crisis o f care more strongly. However, there coping strategies o f women i n the South when faced w i t h their o w n
are dangers i n drawing this distinction too sharply. W i t h i n the indus- crises o f care. I n some developing countries, many adults are forced to
trialized N o r t h , there are vast differences i n state responses to care— work extended hours i n order to provide for the needs o f their f a m i -
consider the contrast between the social democratic N o r d i c countries, lies. A workweek o f sixty hours o f paid labor outside the home, for all
for example, and liberal economies such as that o f the U n i t e d States adults i n a household, is not u n c o m m o n i n many developing countries
( H e y m a n n et al. 2004). Moreover, w i t h i n individual nation-states, care ( H e y m a n n , Earle, and Hanchate 2004: 250). T h i s represents a twelve-
work is overwhelming undertaken by women o f color and o f ethnic hour workday—every day o f the week—even before transportation is
minorities o f low socioeconomic status. Similarly, w i t h i n many develop- included. T h i s situation has obvious implications for children's and
ing countries, the legacy o f colonialism maintains the situation whereby adults' physical and emotional health and safety.
domestic and caring work is done for the white m i n o r i t y by poor women Leaving young children home alone to care for themselves is a com-
o f color. Thus, while women the w o r l d over face challenges and choices m o n coping strategy i n many income-poor countries. I n a study done
regarding the balancing o f w o r k and care, the situation i n the Global by the Project on Global W o r k i n g Families, large percentages o f respon-
South illustrates that the politics o f caring reveals power inequalities dents i n developing countries—50 percent i n Botswana, 20 percent i n
related not only to gender but also to race and locational politics. T h i s V i e t n a m — r e p o r t e d that they had left their children home alone. O f
situation is often made worse by the effects o f violent conflict, environ- those, similarly large percentages—33 percent i n Botswana, 29 percent
mental disasters, or chronic health crises. in V i e t n a m — r e p o r t e d that their children had experienced accidents
or other emergencies ( H e y m a n n , Fischer, and Engelman 2003: 88). I n
order to avoid a situation where y o u n g children have to stay home alone
The Global Care Crisis: Consequences and
and unsupervised, parents often t u r n to their older female children, or
Coping Strategies their older girls w i t h i n the extended family, to care for the young c h i l -
Laura was raising her 18-month-old daughter alone since the dren. As a result, these older girls are missing much o f their schooling
death o f her husband. She worked i n a foreign-owned factory or d r o p p i n g out completely. Instead o f attending school and gaining an
7 days a week. The shifts were inhumanely long—ranging from education that could enrich their lives and help their employment pros-
15 to 22 hours a day. But it had been the only job she could pects i n the future, these girls are t a k i n g on a weighty physical and emo-
find. I t was summertime, and Laura's niece temporarily provided tional burden at a very young age.
care for her daughter, but she was due to return to school i n a Another solution to the problem o f f u l f i l l i n g b o t h care w o r k and
m o n t h . Earning only $26 every 2 weeks and having to pay $14 paid labor responsibilities is to alter the nature and location o f income-
to the factory for the one meal a day she received, Laura earned earning work. Indeed, this double burden, combined w i t h deteriorating
too little to afford child care. Soon she w o u l d have to choose work conditions i n the formal economy and decreasing state welfare, is
between trying to get her 10-year-old niece to drop out o f school p u t t i n g increasing pressure on families—especially w o m e n — t o engage
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in i n f o r m a l activities to compensate for declining resources (Peterson Similarly, i n her study o f women i n Suriname, Mayke K r o m h o u t
2003: 87). As Spike Peterson has argued, global restructuring has dra- argues that many women have turned to a variety o f sources o f alterna-
matically increased the volume, value, extent, and sociopolitical sig- tive income because o f the great difficulties they experience i n h o l d i n g
nificance o f informal-sector activities (2003: 85). I n f o r m a l economic on to their jobs i n the formal sector. T h e specific survival strategies these
activities are undertaken largely by women, migrants, and the poor. women use demonstrate the importance o f caring work i n their day-to-
M a n y women "choose" i n f o r m a l labor because it is often located i n the day lives and the ways i n w h i c h household composition is changing to
home, so they can carry out their o w n caretaking and their income- facilitate social reproductive tasks. M a n y Javanese women i n Suriname
earning w o r k simultaneously. Moreover, it is important to note that gen- who are entering the labor market use their extra earnings to provide
der hierarchies intersect w i t h those o f race/ethnicity, class, and national housing for relatives i n return for the sharing o f domestic tasks such as
patterns i n determining w h i c h households engage i n w h i c h forms o f child care and food preparation. T h i s strategy o f "house sharing" is a
informal labor. W h i l e these are related to what types o f w o r k are avail- way o f coping w i t h the obvious difficulties that women experience i n
able and where informalization is concentrated, the relationship largely c o m b i n i n g w o r k for production w i t h the management o f their house-
comes d o w n , quite simply, to who is most likely to be available for and holds ( K r o m h o u t 2000: 147).
w i l l i n g to undertake informal activities (89). Given the conditions i n many developing countries, it is perhaps
Mehrangiz Najafizadeh describes how these trends have material- not surprising that a number o f women eschew factory or i n f o r m a l
ized i n post-Soviet Azerbaijan. The closure o f Soviet factories, and w i t h work i n favor o f state-sponsored domestic worker migration programs.
it the loss o f formal-sector jobs, has led to a dramatic rise i n informal- The migration o f care workers from the Global South to the Global
economy activities d u r i n g the post-Soviet transition. M a n y women N o r t h is a startling example o f a pervasive, yet often hidden, side o f
have turned to the informal sector to take on the role o f sole or p r i m a r y globalization. O f course, these patterns o f migration are not happen-
breadwinner—especially i n situations where husbands have migrated ing spontaneously: rather, they have been aided by the state-sponsored
in search o f w o r k . T h i s , o f course, is i n addition to their traditional spread o f such solutions i n Western Europe, often fueled by a m i x o f
responsibilities as the m a i n family caregiver. I n the economy context o f still-hegemonic mother-substitute "ideals o f care" and i m m i g r a t i o n
transition, w h i c h has included the elimination o f state services—includ- regimes that facilitate such flows ( M a h o n and Robinson, forthcoming).
ing medical, c h i l d , and elder care—this dual role for women has been American researchers have documented the heavy reliance o f U.S. f a m i -
particularly d i f f i c u l t (Najafizadeh 2003: 296). lies o n (documented and undocumented) women migrants from South
As Najafizadeh's research has demonstrated, however, Azeri women America and elsewhere (Parrenas 2001; Ehrenreich and Hochschild
should not be constructed as the passive and vulnerable victims o f these 2002), whereas i n Canada, the Domestic Live-In Caregiver program has
burdens. Since 1991, more than twenty nongovernmental Azeri w o m - attracted a large number o f female domestic workers f r o m the Philip-
en's advocacy associations have emerged that b r i n g women's issues to the pines (Bakan and Stasiulis 1997; T r o n t o , forthcoming).
forefront o f public debate and attempt to influence social policy. These W h i l e there has been some research done on the threats to h u m a n
associations are now providing particular types o f caregiving services security faced by migrant domestic workers—including exploitation
(Najafizadeh 2003: 298). Importantly, these associations are engaged because o f unregulated home-based employment, physical confine-
i n a dual f u n c t i o n : to serve as caregivers to w o m e n — p r o v i d i n g medi- ment, and sexual abuse—the relational nature o f h u m a n security i n
cal and legal assistance, family counseling, or job training; and to assist this context is rarely explored. W o m e n w h o migrate for domestic labor
women i n becoming more effective caregivers to their o w n families and usually leave children behind. Sometimes they leave behind a husband
communities through the provision o f prenatal, child, and elder care who is the father o f those children; often, the fathers have already left
and i n teaching skills for income generation (303). (Parrenas 2001: 85). Thus, they must find care for their children; often,

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