As illiterate parents fail to realise the importance of educating their children
TURBAT KECH: Child labour is cruelty. And it is a problem prevalent in the country, particularly in Balochistan. Primarily, illiterate parents are responsible for this as they fail to realise the importance of education for their children. They bear offspring with the primary motive of having as many breadwinners as they can. Often children are forced to leave education and support their parents in their work and girls to help their mothers with household chores.
The major reason for child labour, according to the International Labour Organisation, is poverty and both federal and provincial governments need to manage it better.
Child labour is any child below the age of 14 receiving compensation for work or is being forced into labour against their will. Children between the ages of 14 and 18 are allowed to work for a maximum of three hours a day under international law.
While part-time work is advantageous for teaching young adults about responsibility, it would have made more sense to align the child labour law with the mandated compulsory education age of 16 years in Article 25-A of the Constitution of Pakistan, the right to free and compulsory education. However, as with many laws introduced here, Article 25-A never truly made it to the implementation stage.
Going forward, implementation of the law in tandem with implementation of free and compulsory education will greatly aid in keeping children off streets and protect them from exploitation and forced labour by parents and employers.
Aqib Daad
Published in The Express Tribune, February 21st, 2019.
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