Some of them work in hospitals. Employment deprives Iraqi children of education

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[size=52]Some of them work in hospitals. Employment deprives Iraqi children of education[/size]

[size=45]Blessed be Abdul Majeed[/size]
[size=45]A third of Iraqi children find themselves out of school, working in harsh work environments that are beyond what their small bodies can bear. With laws prohibiting child labor and affirming their right to education, their presence in government institutions, including hospitals, still raises “surprise.” It is inconsistent with these laws.[/size]
[size=45]Safaa Muhammad, (a doctor in a hospital in Wasit Governorate), says, “The phenomenon of child labor is widespread in the hospitals of the governorate, specifically Al-Zahra Hospital, where most children are hired through intermediaries, and as a result of the control of specific parties over the region, this is done quite easily.” .[/size]
[size=45]He explained to (Al-Mada), “Most of the children who work in hospitals are in emergency departments or in cleaning work, while some of them work in private companies inside hospitals,” noting that “their age does not exceed seventeen years.”[/size]
[size=45]He adds, “Children and women are often the first victims of countries’ mismanagement and their backwardness in the political, economic, and social aspects, and Iraq is no exception in this context, as social and economic problems accumulate as a result of political and security instability and ongoing wars, which leads to the emergence of negative phenomena such as child labor.” .[/size]
[size=45]Dr. Muhammad Al-Khazraji, who works in the field of pathological analysis in one of Mosul’s hospitals, describes the situation as “very provocative,” as the hospital relies heavily on children for cleaning work. He pointed out that “this situation is worrying because most of the rooms and medical tools require safety precautions.” And the adoption of specialized people due to the danger resulting from the presence of various viruses and germs, especially dialysis machines that contain large quantities of pollutants, fungi, and bacteria.”[/size]
[size=45]He added, “The ages of these children do not exceed fifteen years, and their faces appear pale and their bodies worn out, and their number is estimated at about twenty children.” Regarding their monthly wages, he explained that “they amount to about 150 thousand dinars, and they are often late in payment in most months, and this amount is considered “Very little compared to the seriousness and harshness of the work they do.” He did not express any surprise at the presence of children working in a government institution, in light of the absence of oversight and follow-up, since the one responsible for this role is the one who allows this phenomenon to continue, according to him.[/size]
[size=45]Human rights activist Mustafa Al-Bayati says, “The laws of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs stipulate punishment for those who cause children to work, ranging from a financial fine to stopping the employer’s activity. The Human Trafficking Law also punishes whoever exploits a person who is not aware of his rights, such as children, with imprisonment or a financial fine.” International laws indicate that the Convention on the Rights of the Child, in Article (32-1), states: “States Parties recognize the right of children to be protected from economic exploitation, and from performing any work that is likely to be harmful to the child’s health or physical, mental, spiritual, moral, or social development.”[/size]
[size=45]Al-Bayati talks to (Al-Mada) about the rest of the laws that are supposed to provide protection for the child: “Labour Law No. 37 of 2015, the latest, prohibits the employment of children under the age of 15, and restricts allowing the employment of those between 15 and 18 according to conditions and supervision and in specific professions, while specifying Penalties for employers if the law is violated, in addition to the compulsory education law.” He believes that “these laws are almost paralyzed and are not implemented. Despite their existence, the reality shows that there are thousands of children working in difficult conditions, spread out in markets, industrial neighborhoods, and on waste dumps.” They work in the harshest conditions that do not respect any law, causing the health and social condition of thousands of children to deteriorate.”[/size]
[size=45]He continues by saying: “The numbers that indicate the presence of ‘one million working children’ are alarming and dangerous, expressing his disappointment at the absence of effective government measures in implementing and enforcing the laws, which leads to continued destruction of Iraqi children and their future generations.”[/size]
[size=45]Former human rights member, Ali Al-Bayati, estimates the number of working children at more than 700,000, at a time when the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) indicates that about 90 percent of Iraqi children do not have the opportunity to obtain early education, and despite Increasing the rate of children's enrollment in primary education at the level of 92 percent, completion of primary school among children from poor families does not exceed 54 percent.[/size]
[size=45]Al-Bayati told Al-Mada, “Child labor is directly linked to the economic situation, as a third of Iraqi children find themselves in dire need of work to help their families, and this pushes them to leave their school seats, which is considered their place of origin.”[/size]
[size=45]Al-Bayati adds, “The presence of children working in government institutions increases the seriousness of the situation, and although this indicates a dire need for money, it confirms the absence of oversight and follow-up from the government agencies themselves.” He also points out, “These children work under informal employment contracts, where daily wages are paid through allocating funds rather than following formal procedures.”[/size]
[size=45]He believes that solving the problem of child labor depends on “ending the poverty file in the country and providing job opportunities for young people.” He also called for implementing “the compulsory education system and creating an educational environment suitable for study by providing the necessary infrastructure and supplies, and imposing strict penalties on those who exploit children in occupations.” arduous.”[/size]
[size=45]The Iraqi Ministry of Labor seeks to end the issue of poverty and eliminate the phenomenon of begging by providing salaries within social welfare. The Ministry’s spokesman, Najm Al-Aqabi, says, “The Ministry is working in coordination with the Ministry of Interior to prepare a comprehensive database of beggars, which will be reviewed to determine the beneficiaries of the social welfare network.” Pointing out that “during the past year, an electronic window was opened to submit applications for social welfare, and more than 900,000 out of 2 million and 700,000 people were excluded, because they were not included in the fulfilling conditions.”[/size]
[size=45]Al-Aqabi added, in an interview with Al-Mada, that “the condition for inclusion of beneficiaries in the social welfare network is (submitting a pledge stipulating not to return to the practice of begging).”[/size]
[size=45]He stated that “the last meeting of the opinion body at the Ministry of Labor discussed the phenomenon of child labor, and emphasis was placed on encouraging families covered by social welfare to send their children back to school by adding sums of money for each child who returns to school.”[/size]
[size=45]During previous years, the Ministry worked on awareness campaigns for shop owners about the danger of child labor and also announced its cooperation with UNICEF to reduce the phenomenon of child labor.[/size]
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