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Labor has ended the features of their innocence.. 5% of Iraqi children are “raised by the streets” against their will
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2024-05-25 07:19
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Shafaq News/ “The money has been stolen from my mother and father.. (Kill them).” This is how one of the children selling water, no more than 12 years old, in the Bab al-Sharqi area, central Baghdad, threatens his older brother (under 18 years old), raising his hand. A white weapon (knife) as a result of their dispute over a sum of money led to a number of taxi drivers intervening to resolve the dispute between the two children and trying to reconcile them, which opens the door wide to child labor in Iraq and how this group enters the furnace of work, crime, and even sexual exploitation.
Amid difficult economic conditions, thousands of Iraqi children are forced to work to support their poor families, while specialists confirm that child labor results in physical and psychological harm, as it is - in most cases - hard work that is not appropriate for their ages, amid warnings of the seriousness of these influences that will reflect negatively on the child’s life. In the future.
The rise in poverty rates in Iraq has pushed the child labor index to record new high numbers in most of the country's cities in the past two years, according to human rights reports as well as Iraqi officials.
Killer and killed
With the “armed” child in Bab al-Sharqi, victims appear among child workers whose only fault is their presence in families suffering from poor living conditions, including the child Muhammad (12 years old), one of the displaced people from Salah al-Din, who supports his family of three daughters and their mother by working as a laborer. One of the shops in Al-Radawi Market, one of the popular markets in Al-Sadr City, east of Baghdad.
The child explains that his work in the market came after his father was killed by ISIS during the period of the organization’s control over the governorate and his escape with his family to their relatives in Baghdad.
The child expresses his fear of the idea of his family returning to the governorate and the district again after what happened, and explains that working here spares his family the risks of returning because the conditions there are no longer known.
The child who dropped out of school adds that I have to choose between work or study, as the peak of work here is in the morning, and I have nothing to work hard for after my father’s death, indicating that what he earns daily is not enough to support his family, but some neighbors help the family with food and drink. And clothes, while they live in a small room with their relatives.
On the outskirts of Baghdad, smoke emanating from the brick factories used in building homes covers the sky of the city of Nahrawan (east of Baghdad), while dozens of families work in those factories in search of a living, as many children accompany their families to work there for long hours. To obtain a low return that prompts them to leave their studies without guarantees or rights that protect them from environmental pollutants or the harshness and difficulty of work.
The child Ali (11 years old) says that he “gets $6 for working more than 10 hours, and his motivation is to help his family, leaving school behind.”
The International Rescue Committee in Iraq says that child labor rates are alarmingly high in the country, and it continues to disrupt children’s education and deprive them of their childhood and basic rights, in addition to exposing them to unsafe conditions. The government is required to enforce its laws for their care and protection.
The report states that 85% of children involved in work do not feel safe in their workplaces, citing cases of harassment and not having the appropriate equipment to protect themselves while working in factories or on the streets.
The report stated that Iraq is a signatory to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, and its constitution stipulates compulsory primary education for all children, but the reality is very different for children across the country.
Reasons for the spread of child labor
Speaking to Shafaq News Agency, the President of the Iraqi Psychological Society, Qasim Hussein, attributes the main role in creating the phenomenon of child labor in Iraq to “the wars from 1991 to 2003, and the economic blockade that accompanied them, which resulted in the spread of poverty until it reached 13 million poor people, according to the Ministry’s recognition.” Planning, in addition to the social culture that encourages the child to work to help his family earn a living.”
The damage caused by the phenomenon of child labor can be divided into (physical, psychological, social, and cultural), while the first is through the child carrying heavy weights that are not proportionate to the size of his body. In addition to that, the child is also exposed to insults and pressures, which is represented by the psychological aspect. According to Hussein.
The danger of child labor in Iraq
According to the head of the Strategic Center for Human Rights in Iraq, Fadel Al-Gharawi, “More than 200 million children in the world between the ages of 6 and 17 years are working in the labor market, of whom males represent 80%.
Al-Gharawi explained to Shafaq News Agency that “Iraq ranks fourth in child labor after Yemen, Sudan and Egypt, with a rate of 4.9% in young age groups, and their work is concentrated in the industrial, agricultural and service sectors in high proportions,” indicating that the reasons for the high rates of child labor in Iraq are due to the economic conditions due to Low family income, high rates of unemployment and poverty, the conflicts experienced by Iraq, displacement, high rates of domestic violence against children, and a weak system of legal legislation and strategies to protect children’s rights.
Al-Gharawi adds, “Although Iraq has ratified the main basic agreements that protect children from all forms of child labor, and is also a signatory to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, the rates of child labor in Iraq are still high.”
Economic researchers warn that “child labor represents a great danger, in addition to the negative effects that may result from this work and the possibility of them being exposed to blackmail and harassment in a continuous manner, in addition to family disintegration and school dropout. Given these grave effects, the state must intensify its efforts in trying to To reduce this matter.
Interior: We are not shelters
A source in the Ministry of Interior confirms that “the problem of child labor is a social one and not a security problem. We are working to protect children whose bodies cannot withstand difficult environments, working in brick factories, or begging in the streets in the scorching summer.”
He added, "Our strategic duty is to protect the vulnerable groups in society, including children, but we face a real problem through the increase in the number of children working on the streets. When the ministry steps forward to combat child labor and arrests beggars and refers them to the juvenile department and to the Ministry of Labor, we notice that they easily exit and leave." Shelter homes only days after they entered them.”
The source explains that “the Juvenile Police Directorate monitors stores that sell alcoholic beverages so that they do not sell them to juveniles, and it arrests those who deal with such cases in flagrante delicto, and monitors places where the presence of juveniles is prohibited, while the Family and Child Protection Directorate works on aspects of child abuse, in addition to the community police. These departments The specialist is close to the community and the child, and these are bodies that work to protect children.
For his part, a source in the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs confirms that “the ministry’s shelter homes are a nurturing environment for children, but there are no laws obligating children to stay there, as they are shelter homes, not detention centers.”
UNICEF and Iraq's international obligations
The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) previously estimated the volume of child labor in Iraq at about one million children
According to the international organization, a third of Iraqi children are going through difficult economic conditions that place them in the face of work requirements to support their families, and it explains that Iraqi children are facing the highest increase in poverty rates, as there are 2 poor children out of every 5 children.
“Children should learn and play, not work,” says Ghulam Ishaqzai, UN Resident Coordinator in Iraq. “They deserve opportunities that allow them to thrive and build a promising future.”
He added: “To eliminate child labour, we must continue to work with the government and all relevant stakeholders to strengthen policies, build capacities and institutions, to address the root causes that push many children to work.”
Iraq has ratified the main basic conventions that protect children from all forms of child labour, namely ILO Convention No. 138 on Minimum Age, and ILO Convention No. 182 on Worst Forms of Child Labor, which entered into force between 1985 and 2001. A signatory to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Iraq also ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child in Law No. 5 of 1994, and the two protocols annexed to it, in Law No. 23 of 2007.
States party to the Universal Convention on the Rights of the Child, and in Article (32-1) specifically, recognize the right of children to be protected from economic exploitation, and from performing any work that is likely to be harmful to their health or physical, mental, spiritual, moral and social development.
The laws of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs in Iraq stipulate that anyone who causes child labor is punished with a penalty ranging from “a fine and suspension of the employer’s permit,” or even stopping the activity. In the Human Trafficking Law, whoever exploits a person who is not aware of his rights - such as children - is punished with imprisonment or a financial fine. .
Internationally, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, in Article 32-1, says: “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.”
According to previous statements by the official of the Anti-Child Labor Division in the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, Hassan Abdel-Sahib, “Child labor is constantly increasing due to the wars, conflicts, and displacement that have occurred, especially in the provinces that were subjected to the invasion of ISIS,” indicating that “These conditions have helped to increase child labor, because “We now have many families without a breadwinner, so the mother was forced to leave her son to work.”
Abdul-Sahib states that “Iraqi law prohibits the work of children under the age of 15, and anyone who violates this law is punished with a fine and imprisonment for a period that may exceed six months.”
To reduce child labor, the Ministry of Labor currently provides a monthly “social care” salary to a large number of poor families, according to the official, but this resource remains limited in the face of life’s requirements.
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2024-05-25 07:19
Share
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Shafaq News/ “The money has been stolen from my mother and father.. (Kill them).” This is how one of the children selling water, no more than 12 years old, in the Bab al-Sharqi area, central Baghdad, threatens his older brother (under 18 years old), raising his hand. A white weapon (knife) as a result of their dispute over a sum of money led to a number of taxi drivers intervening to resolve the dispute between the two children and trying to reconcile them, which opens the door wide to child labor in Iraq and how this group enters the furnace of work, crime, and even sexual exploitation.
Amid difficult economic conditions, thousands of Iraqi children are forced to work to support their poor families, while specialists confirm that child labor results in physical and psychological harm, as it is - in most cases - hard work that is not appropriate for their ages, amid warnings of the seriousness of these influences that will reflect negatively on the child’s life. In the future.
The rise in poverty rates in Iraq has pushed the child labor index to record new high numbers in most of the country's cities in the past two years, according to human rights reports as well as Iraqi officials.
Killer and killed
With the “armed” child in Bab al-Sharqi, victims appear among child workers whose only fault is their presence in families suffering from poor living conditions, including the child Muhammad (12 years old), one of the displaced people from Salah al-Din, who supports his family of three daughters and their mother by working as a laborer. One of the shops in Al-Radawi Market, one of the popular markets in Al-Sadr City, east of Baghdad.
The child explains that his work in the market came after his father was killed by ISIS during the period of the organization’s control over the governorate and his escape with his family to their relatives in Baghdad.
The child expresses his fear of the idea of his family returning to the governorate and the district again after what happened, and explains that working here spares his family the risks of returning because the conditions there are no longer known.
The child who dropped out of school adds that I have to choose between work or study, as the peak of work here is in the morning, and I have nothing to work hard for after my father’s death, indicating that what he earns daily is not enough to support his family, but some neighbors help the family with food and drink. And clothes, while they live in a small room with their relatives.
On the outskirts of Baghdad, smoke emanating from the brick factories used in building homes covers the sky of the city of Nahrawan (east of Baghdad), while dozens of families work in those factories in search of a living, as many children accompany their families to work there for long hours. To obtain a low return that prompts them to leave their studies without guarantees or rights that protect them from environmental pollutants or the harshness and difficulty of work.
The child Ali (11 years old) says that he “gets $6 for working more than 10 hours, and his motivation is to help his family, leaving school behind.”
The International Rescue Committee in Iraq says that child labor rates are alarmingly high in the country, and it continues to disrupt children’s education and deprive them of their childhood and basic rights, in addition to exposing them to unsafe conditions. The government is required to enforce its laws for their care and protection.
The report states that 85% of children involved in work do not feel safe in their workplaces, citing cases of harassment and not having the appropriate equipment to protect themselves while working in factories or on the streets.
The report stated that Iraq is a signatory to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, and its constitution stipulates compulsory primary education for all children, but the reality is very different for children across the country.
Reasons for the spread of child labor
Speaking to Shafaq News Agency, the President of the Iraqi Psychological Society, Qasim Hussein, attributes the main role in creating the phenomenon of child labor in Iraq to “the wars from 1991 to 2003, and the economic blockade that accompanied them, which resulted in the spread of poverty until it reached 13 million poor people, according to the Ministry’s recognition.” Planning, in addition to the social culture that encourages the child to work to help his family earn a living.”
The damage caused by the phenomenon of child labor can be divided into (physical, psychological, social, and cultural), while the first is through the child carrying heavy weights that are not proportionate to the size of his body. In addition to that, the child is also exposed to insults and pressures, which is represented by the psychological aspect. According to Hussein.
The danger of child labor in Iraq
According to the head of the Strategic Center for Human Rights in Iraq, Fadel Al-Gharawi, “More than 200 million children in the world between the ages of 6 and 17 years are working in the labor market, of whom males represent 80%.
Al-Gharawi explained to Shafaq News Agency that “Iraq ranks fourth in child labor after Yemen, Sudan and Egypt, with a rate of 4.9% in young age groups, and their work is concentrated in the industrial, agricultural and service sectors in high proportions,” indicating that the reasons for the high rates of child labor in Iraq are due to the economic conditions due to Low family income, high rates of unemployment and poverty, the conflicts experienced by Iraq, displacement, high rates of domestic violence against children, and a weak system of legal legislation and strategies to protect children’s rights.
Al-Gharawi adds, “Although Iraq has ratified the main basic agreements that protect children from all forms of child labor, and is also a signatory to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, the rates of child labor in Iraq are still high.”
Economic researchers warn that “child labor represents a great danger, in addition to the negative effects that may result from this work and the possibility of them being exposed to blackmail and harassment in a continuous manner, in addition to family disintegration and school dropout. Given these grave effects, the state must intensify its efforts in trying to To reduce this matter.
Interior: We are not shelters
A source in the Ministry of Interior confirms that “the problem of child labor is a social one and not a security problem. We are working to protect children whose bodies cannot withstand difficult environments, working in brick factories, or begging in the streets in the scorching summer.”
He added, "Our strategic duty is to protect the vulnerable groups in society, including children, but we face a real problem through the increase in the number of children working on the streets. When the ministry steps forward to combat child labor and arrests beggars and refers them to the juvenile department and to the Ministry of Labor, we notice that they easily exit and leave." Shelter homes only days after they entered them.”
The source explains that “the Juvenile Police Directorate monitors stores that sell alcoholic beverages so that they do not sell them to juveniles, and it arrests those who deal with such cases in flagrante delicto, and monitors places where the presence of juveniles is prohibited, while the Family and Child Protection Directorate works on aspects of child abuse, in addition to the community police. These departments The specialist is close to the community and the child, and these are bodies that work to protect children.
For his part, a source in the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs confirms that “the ministry’s shelter homes are a nurturing environment for children, but there are no laws obligating children to stay there, as they are shelter homes, not detention centers.”
UNICEF and Iraq's international obligations
The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) previously estimated the volume of child labor in Iraq at about one million children
According to the international organization, a third of Iraqi children are going through difficult economic conditions that place them in the face of work requirements to support their families, and it explains that Iraqi children are facing the highest increase in poverty rates, as there are 2 poor children out of every 5 children.
“Children should learn and play, not work,” says Ghulam Ishaqzai, UN Resident Coordinator in Iraq. “They deserve opportunities that allow them to thrive and build a promising future.”
He added: “To eliminate child labour, we must continue to work with the government and all relevant stakeholders to strengthen policies, build capacities and institutions, to address the root causes that push many children to work.”
Iraq has ratified the main basic conventions that protect children from all forms of child labour, namely ILO Convention No. 138 on Minimum Age, and ILO Convention No. 182 on Worst Forms of Child Labor, which entered into force between 1985 and 2001. A signatory to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.
Iraq also ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child in Law No. 5 of 1994, and the two protocols annexed to it, in Law No. 23 of 2007.
States party to the Universal Convention on the Rights of the Child, and in Article (32-1) specifically, recognize the right of children to be protected from economic exploitation, and from performing any work that is likely to be harmful to their health or physical, mental, spiritual, moral and social development.
The laws of the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs in Iraq stipulate that anyone who causes child labor is punished with a penalty ranging from “a fine and suspension of the employer’s permit,” or even stopping the activity. In the Human Trafficking Law, whoever exploits a person who is not aware of his rights - such as children - is punished with imprisonment or a financial fine. .
Internationally, the Convention on the Rights of the Child, in Article 32-1, says: “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.”
According to previous statements by the official of the Anti-Child Labor Division in the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, Hassan Abdel-Sahib, “Child labor is constantly increasing due to the wars, conflicts, and displacement that have occurred, especially in the provinces that were subjected to the invasion of ISIS,” indicating that “These conditions have helped to increase child labor, because “We now have many families without a breadwinner, so the mother was forced to leave her son to work.”
Abdul-Sahib states that “Iraqi law prohibits the work of children under the age of 15, and anyone who violates this law is punished with a fine and imprisonment for a period that may exceed six months.”
To reduce child labor, the Ministry of Labor currently provides a monthly “social care” salary to a large number of poor families, according to the official, but this resource remains limited in the face of life’s requirements.
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