Child Labour News

21 Sep ;  In a shocking display of indifference by the authorities towards child labour, small children extracting contraband from ‘bhang’ (cannabis) leaves in the fields is a common sight in Matli Village in Uttarakhand.

Most of the children of Matli, many of them around ten years old, instead of being at school, are seen around cannabis fields extracting contraband for a meager amount to supplement paltry incomes of their poor families.

The extraction from the leaves of the cannabis plant is smoked, chewed, eaten, or infused and drunk to obtain mild euphoria.

“We squeeze bhang (cannabis) leaves and sell it. Most of the people buy it from us. We earn around 30-40 rupees in the process,” said Anil, a child involved in the process of squeezing bhang leaves.

Consequently, these children have not merely become child labourers but are involved in the drugs trade totally oblivious of the consequences. Read the rest of this entry →

Iran, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Pakistan, and Yemen Executed 32 for Crimes Committed as Children(New York, September 10, 2008) – Ending executions for crimes committed by children in just five countries would result in universal implementation of the prohibition on the juvenile death penalty, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. Governments should use next week’s United Nations General Assembly session opening to commit to urgently needed reforms to protect the rights of children in conflict with the law. Read the rest of this entry →

27 August :The UNICEF has pointed out poverty as being the single most important reason for child trafficking in South Asia even as it praised India and Sri Lanka for signing an international protocol against the scourge.
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World Vision India and NalandaWay are observing of World Day against Child Labour (falling on June 12 every year) by organising an exhibition titled ‘At the Cost of Childhood’ that showcases the ‘tools of the trade’ of children involved in child labour.  The exhibition, held at ‘Anokhi’ on Chamiers road consists of creative and artistic installations that highlight the various implements and tools used by child labourers and was inaugurated by Dr. Prateep V Philip, Inspector General of Police for Social Justice and Human Rights today in an event attended by NGO leaders and child labour activists.  The inauguration was carried out by lighting a lamp (‘kuthuvilaku’) that was polished by a child worker from Kumbakonam as part of his daily work.

“We can see child labour everywhere, if we care to look,” said Sriram V Ayer, Founder and CEO of NalandaWay Foundation and Ashoka Fellow, “‘At the cost of childhood’ is an exhibition that attempts to touch the conscience of society that is indifferent to child labour by showing them the ‘tools of the trade’ of children who are forced to give up their childhood and work because of poverty and injustice.” Read the rest of this entry →