CHILD LABOUR IN PAKISTAN: A SERIOUS ISSUE TO DEAL WITH

Allah has given man the wisdom and knowledge to think upon this world. Children are the flowers of heaven. They are the most beautiful and purest creation of Allah almighty. No doubt, they are the beauty of this world. Early in the morning when the children put on different kinds of clothes and begin to go to schools for the sake of knowledge, we feel a specific kind of joy through their innocence.

But there are also other children, those who cannot go to schools due to financial problems; they only watch others go to schools. It is due to many hindrances and difficulties; desperate conditions that they face in life. Having been forced to kill their aspirations, dreams and other wishes, they are forced to earn a living for themselves and for their families. It is also a fact that there are many children who play a key role in sustaining the financial life of their family without which, their families would not be able to survive. When a child in addition to getting education, earns his livelihood, this act of earning a livelihood is called as child Labour. The concept of child Labour got much attention during the 1990s when many countries announced a ban on the goods of the less-developed countries because of child Labour. 

Child Labour is an important and a serious issue in Pakistan, but, it is also very common in Latin America, Africa and Asia. According to some, in several Asian countries’ 1/10 manpower consists of child Labour. In Pakistan children aged 5-14 are above 40 million. Statistics  also show that 14% children age group of 5-14 years are working in Pakistan, out of which  fifty percent of these economically active children are in age group of 5 to 9 years. A large ratio of children were claimed to be working in the agriculture sector. 70% of these children are males.

According to research it was identified that most occupations and the categories of work are hazardous for the health of child of the age group. Which is given below:
1. Work inside underground mines
2. Work with power driven cutting machinery e.g. saws
3. Work with live electrical wires
4. All operation related to leather processing
5. Work with exposure to ALL toxic, explosive and carcinogenic chemicals.
6. Work with exposure to cement dust
7. Work with exposure to coal dust
8. Work on glass and metal furnaces 
9. Work in the cloth printing, dyeing and finishing sections
10. Work inside sewer pipelines, pits, storage tanks
11. Stone  crushing
12. Lifting and carrying of heavy weight especially in transport industry
13. Working at hotels and car workshops

Now we can easily imagine in the light of above mentioned facts and figures how the nation’s future namely children are deprived of pleasures of life, struggle has reduced their abilities of thinking right or differentiating between right and wrong, as well as their life-chances, to their prevention from education.

It is outcome of poverty, lack of opportunities, high rate of population growth, unemployment, uneven distribution of wealth and resources, outdated social customs.

Consider the point that if 30% of our country’s total population is leading life below the poverty-line wherein the people are deprived of basic necessities of life like clothing, shelter, food, education and medication, the children of these people will be forced to become Labourers or workers in order to survive. Another reason of child Labour in Pakistan is that our people don’t have the security of social life. There is no aid plan or allowance for children in our country. low education system is another reason for increasing child Labour; villages lack standards of education systems and as a result, child Labour is increasing in rural areas. The government has not put its laws into practice to stop child Labour in our country.

Child Labour is a serious problem which demands a urgent solutions. There is no better way to the present government in Pakistan has made elementary education compulsory. There is strict need to stop child Labour in this country. Awareness must be raised and the attention of parents should be education of their children. Child Labour Laws should be put into practice strictly. In addition, the educational system of the country-must be reshaped and restructured according to national development goals. The orphans and other deserving children must be helped financially. It is also essential to eliminate child Labour from the country, that the political, economical and social system of the country are need to be reshaped and such steps taken that make child Labour in this country a crime. So it’s the time of change and we should all get united and step up against child labour. Prevent child Labour than to make education compulsory.

Munsoor Ismail

Sec F