Editorial: A call against child labor

IT’S illegal but child labor remains to be an unsolved problem. Employing children who are less than 18 years of age in dangerous and life threatening activities is almost everywhere.

Hundreds of millions of girls and boys throughout the world are engaged in work that deprives them of adequate education, health, leisure and basic freedoms, violating their rights. Many are exposed to the worst forms of child labor such as work in hazardous environments, slavery, or other forms of forced labor like domestic work, illicit activities such as drug trafficking and prostitution, and even armed conflict.

In the Philippines, a 2001 survey showed that child workers totaled to 4.18 million who are forced to work in rock quarries, farms, industries, mines and on fishing boats.

It will be 10 years tomorrow since the International Labour Organization (ILO) launched the first World Day Against Child Labour in 2002 to highlight the plight of these children. World Day Against Child Labour, which is observed on June 12th, is aimed to serve as an instrument for the growing worldwide movement against child labour.

The World Day Against Child Labour provides an opportunity for national and local activities to follow up on the momentum of support from social partners, civil society and others, including schools, youth and women’s groups as well as the media, in the campaign against child labour.

However, despite the progress, much remains to be done because too many children remain trapped in such totally unacceptable forms of labor. Let us not cripple their physical, mental and emotional state but provide them with a sound education and nutrition to develop them into healthy adults.

How can we worry about what a child will become tomorrow if we forget that he is someone today. –Sunstar