Posted:
There was once a boy,
A thief, a chor
He took nothing, but
time, yes he stole.
A few minutes here,
Another couple there.
He was the boy who stole time.
When he was young,
He learned to walk,
And he learned to talk,
And then he learned to clean the floor.
He wiped the tables,
He served the guests.
He did everything it took,
To be his parents' best.
By day he rattled away,
Fifteen rupees for a plate of chhole bhature,
But by night he wrote and read,
Doing what he loved to do.
Whenever he could,
However he could,
He'd open a book
And sneak a look.
They gave him life,
And they took it away,
But he found it again,
Because he had a dream,
That he dared to hope.
He knew what he wanted,
And thats what he did
So now he's here
An engineer.
He worked hard,
He became a king.
But all he was to begin with,
Was the boy who stole time.
Millions of girls and boys throughout the world are forced to work, often in unsafe and hazardous environments, just to earn money. When they should be playing, studying and enjoying their life, they slave away: in construction sites, making clothes, serving in restaurants, ship breaking, begging, drug trafficking and prostitution!
The International Labour Organisation began the World Day Against Child Labour in 2002 to highlight and make people aware of the condition of these children.
Many companies use children for labour as it costs less to employ them. Nike has been accused of having child employees in their factories in Cambodia, China, South Korea, Indonesia and Pakistan. The pay is as low as 16 cents per hour, and the kids can work for upto 12 hours a day. Not only are they working long hours but are also exposed to hazardous fumes and the entire environment is unsafe. In 1998, Nike raised their minimum working age to eighteen due to the pressure put on them by human rights activists.
Children work in construction sites and in the ship recycling industry, despite the risk involved. Toxic materials are handled without the appropriate protective equipment, and there are no safety harnesses provided when workers are on the ships. Often people are hurt by falling beams and electrical shocks.
Some people force children to beg for them in the streets, since children appear helpless and get more money. There are cases where kids have been kidnapped for this reason, and also cases where the children have been made blind so that people would pity them and give them money. The children don't get to keep the money, they have to give all of it to their boss(es).
Joseph Rao Kony is the leader of a Ugandan guerilla group. Kony ordered the abduction of upto 66,000 children to become sex-slaves and child soldiers. A short movie was made about this in 2012, uniting people all around the world in the Stop Kony Movement.
Sometimes it's the parents that force their children to work. Some even give birth just so that they can have a child to help them out with the expenses. The children start at a young age, working in their family business, or quitting school to do housework. Kids as young as four or five go out foraging for food and carry buckets full of water for long distances. Girls, and boys, are sold as sex slaves to feed the rest of the family.
Iqbal Masih
Iqbal was a Pakistani Christian boy who was forced to work so that his mother could repay the loan she took to help their family survive. He was only four when he started working in the carpet factory. The conditions were horrible: he was fed very little and their boss was cruel. At the age of ten, Iqbal escaped. He joined the Bonded Labour Liberation Front of Pakistan and helped stop and discourage child labour from occuring around the world. He was murdered at the age of 12. Later, his story was written in a book.
Lucy Blacio
Lucy enforces Ecuador's new anti-trafficking legislation by conducting investigations and raids against offendors. She has won many convictions for sexual exploitation of minors and child po*nography. She is kept under 24-hour surveillance due to the numerous threats she receives, yet she persists and continues towards her goal.
Kailash Satyarthi
Kailash is an activist who has freed more than 75,000 child laborers since 1980. In 1998 he organised the Global March Against Child Labour, the largest campaign on child labour. He has an organisation named RugMark, which certifies rugs that are made by child-labor-free factories. These factories agree to be regularly inspected to ensure that no minors are working in them.
To this date, child labour occurs!! While organizations like Amnesty International work to eliminate this problem, your help is needed!!
VOLUNTEER, DONATE or RAISE AWARENESS: every bit counts!!! It's in us to give!!!
On this day (World Day Against Child Labour), let us share any real incidences and/ or heros (you know) who have freed children!
Bade Achhe Lagte Hain
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
