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This fortnight's themeChild Labour Issue 109
 
 

 
The era of slavery is definitely far from over

What do you want to be when you grow up? Maybe you would like to be a policeperson or a truck driver. You could work on your gymnastics skills and become a trapeze artist in a circus. Otherwise there is the chance of going to university to study science in order to pursue a career as a medical scientist. The possibilities are endless. However, they are only endless if you have the opportunity to have an education. For many children in our global community it is not a question of what do I want to be when I grow up, it is a matter of what do I have to do now in order to survive?

Mother and Child

Situations of poverty mean that for many children the opportunity to have an education and choose a career is non-existent. When a child is hungry and their family has little or no money for food and shelter the priority of education comes after the priority to be fed and sheltered. For this reason, many children in our world do not go to school. Instead of getting a formal education they are forced to work. UNICEF estimates that 246 million children are engaged in child labour and of those, almost three-quarters (171 million) work in hazardous situations or conditions.

Not only is the number of children involved in child labour large but it is also growing. Without a doubt, children represent a cheap and obedient workforce. Many companies and individuals are prepared to abuse the rights of children for profit. A lot of these companies make popular products which are sold in department stores all over the world. It is a fact that the wealth of many international companies is strengthened by exploiting the rights of children in poor countries.

Mother nursing her child

The working conditions for many children involved in child labour are appalling. Many children involved in child labour face significant threats to their health and safety. Countless children in rural areas are forced to work exceptionally long hours on local farms where they are exposed to harsh conditions such as extreme climates, sharpened tools, and heavy loads. Such work will also often expose children to toxic chemicals and dangerous motorised equipment.  

A large proportion of the children who work are domestic servants. These children, most of them girls, find themselves working far away from home. Many of these girls become victims of physical, mental and sexual abuse, which usually goes unreported. Children's rights are continually abused because they have no voice. Many children are sold as domestic servants by their families who receive a small sum of money. In India, the average rate is US$5. While it is incredibly difficult to understand how any parent could "sell" their child and enforce them to work in appalling conditions there is often little or no choice. Many poor families have huge debts; they have borrowed money from local "loan sharks" and must repay the money and the enormous interest or lose everything. As well as this, many families remain unaware of the terrible situations they send their children off to. There are numerous case studies where families are given a small amount of money to send their children off to be "trained" by companies; however they never see their children again.

Young Boys

While the term used to describe children who work is "child labour" a much more appropriate term is "child slavery". The activities which follow will encourage you to explore various situations where child slavery occurs as well as investigate initiatives which organisations such as Caritas Australia and The United Nations are involved in to combat this terrible situation.

For past OzSpirit issues about slavery visit: www.ozspirit.info/archives.html#sla

Young child

 

    

Teaching and Learning Activities

Activities Across the Curriculum

1) One of the ways to combat child labour is to help eliminate poverty. The Millennium Development Goals are a United Nations initiative which aims at eliminating extreme poverty by 2015. Australia has signed an agreement to help with this aim. To find out how you can become involved in the Millennium Development Goals initiative visit
www.caritas.org.au/ourwork/advocacy_mdg.htm

2) The United Nations declaration of Human Rights declares that "no-one shall be held in slavery and servitude...". Imagine that you work for the United Nations and have been asked to compile a report on child slavery in our world. Your report will need to address the following questions:

  • Does child slavery exist?

  • Where does child slavery exist?

  • How many children are involved in child slavery?

  • What are some of the reasons for child slavery?

  • What are some ways to help combat child slavery?

Your report must also include one case study (specific example of a child slavery incident). To complete the research for this report visit the following sites:

3) June 5 th has been set aside for 'World Day Against Child Labour'. Visit the following site to find out about this initiative:
www.globalmarch.org/events/index.php#1-w.

Answer the following questions from the website:

  • What is the focus for this year's 'World Day Against Child Labour'?

  • What are some of the problems associated with this area of child labour?

  • Scroll down to the "Call to Action" section and record 5 different recommendations to combat child labour.

5) Complete the educational quiz on child labour at the following site: www.unicef.org/voy/cgi-
bin/quizlab.cg

English

1) Read the story below which outlines how 7 children were freed from a textile factory where they were locked up and working as slaves for 12 – 14 hours a day: www.corrystuart.com/slavechildren7.html
Answer the following questions from the story:

  • What country where the children from?
  • What were their working hours (include hours in the day and days per week)?
  • What were the children paid for their labour?
  • Why did the families agree to have their children taken?
  • How much were the children sold as slaves for (approximately)?
  • What were the conditions of work like for the 7 children?
  • Write a paragraph on how the children were freed.

2) Imagine that you are one of the children in the above story and you are living in the textile factory. You find a piece of paper in the factory and decide to write a letter to your parents explaining what has happened. You know that you can smuggle the letter out and get it to them. Write a 250 word letter to your parents explaining the situation; include your thoughts and feelings.

Maths

1) Visit the following site www.unicef.org/protection/index_childlabour.html and find out the figures below:

  • The estimated number of children engaged in child labour.
  • The number of children who work in hazardous situations.
  • The number of girls who are trafficked each year.
  • The number of girls forced into prostitution and pornography.
  • The percentage of children who work in the agricultural section.

2) At the same site find out both the number and the percentage of children who are involved in child labour in each of the following regions:

  • Asian and Pacific
  • Sub-Saharan Africa
  • Latin America and Caribbean

 

Parish/Community/Social Justice Groups

1) The following quote by Irene Rozario, of Caritas Bangladesh relates to the global problem of slavery: "the trade in human flesh is even thought to be the third most profitable kind of organised crime in the area after arms dealing and drug trafficking".

  • Discuss the above statement and include your ideas on why slavery still exists in our global community.

  • In what ways do you think your government can become involved in the issue of child labour?

Other Useful Links:

 

  
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