Confab tackles ‘children of the canes’

ABOUT 100 delegates from the government sector, non-government organizations and sugar industry stakeholders gather Thursday at the L ‘Fisher Hotel in Bacolod City to address the issue of child labor in the sugar industry.

Dubbed as “Children of the Canes III: A National Conference for the Protection and Development of Children in the Sugar Industry,” the summit was organized by the Laura Vicuña Foundation in coordination with the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG).

The conference aims to bring together government and non-government organizations, particularly those involved in the implementation of socio-economic programs in the sugar industry, towards the integration and coordination of their efforts to rescue child workers from the farms and bring them to the classrooms where, at their age, they rightfully belong.

Interior Secretary Jesse Robredo, Agrarian Reform Secretary Virgilio delos Reyes, Sugar Regulatory Administration chief Ma. Regina B. Martin, Department of Social Welfare and Development Regional Director Minda Brigoli and Department of Education Sipalay District supervisor Leah Rosal will join the conference today, Friday, to speak about their respective agencies’ role in eliminating child labor, particularly in the farms.

Giovanni Soledad, project officer of the International Labor Organization (ILO)-Manila, said the Philippines is bound by its commitment under the Millennium Development Goals to eradicate child labor.

One of the resource speakers was Allen Ojera, a former child laborer from Victorias City who, with the help and guidance of the Laura Vicuña Foundation, has risen from his humble beginnings and now works in a high-end hotel in Manila.

Ojera, who is now an advocate against child labor, brought some of the participants to tears when he asked his mother to stand up and thanked her for her sacrifices and love that had brought him to where he is now. Ojera’s father left his mother when they were still kids and thus they had to fend for themselves.

Lorena Yunque, provincial director of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda), informed the participants about Tesda’s ongoing programs.

One of these programs is the Private Education Student Financial Assistance (Pesfa) through which qualified applicants, including farm worker dependents, can avail themselves of up to P20,000 scholarship, Yunque said, adding that her office will soon release the guidelines for Pesfa availment.

Jaime G. Golez, vice president for Western Visayas of the National Federation of Sugarcane Planters (NFSP), shared NFSP’s experience on the sugar planters’ corporate social responsibility.

NFSP anchors its program on education and technical/livelihood skills training to uplift the quality of life of farm workers and their dependents. Through the NFSP Technical and Livelihood Skills Training Center, NFSP imparts highly employable skills in computer operations, building wiring installation, auto-diesel repair and maintenance and shielded metal arc welding.

“Graduates of our training center easily find employment in the transportation, communication, construction and sugar industries. Some with entrepreneurial spirit have established their own service-repair shops and businesses. A substantial number have also been deployed abroad,” said Golez.

With Golez in the conference were fellow officers headed by NFSP president Enrique D. Rojas; lawyer Iñaki Larrazabal Jr. from Ormoc, Leyte; Romeo Garcia from Bukidnon; lawyer Augusto Araneta Jr. from Iloilo and Jose Mari Miranda from Cebu.

Daphne Culanag, project director of the Pag-Aaral ng Bata para sa Kinabukasan (ABK3): Livelihood, Education, Advocacy and Protection (Leap) program, and former representative Edith Y. Villanueva, president of the Sugar Industry Foundation Inc. (SIFI), also shared their best practices in reducing the incidence of child labor in the farms. (With Teresa D. Ellera) –Butch Bacaoco, Sun Star