In developing countries growing
populations are making ground for many alarming challenges and issues but Child
laboring is one of that. Child laboring is a type of warm which slowly and
gradually cut the roots of the developmental process. On one hand if Pakistan
ranked 6th by population wise but on other hand according to the Global Slavery
Index 2013, it comes third, after Mauritania and Haiti, in the prevalence of
child laboring. According to Employment of Children Act 1991 a “child” is
categorized as a person below 14 years of age and an “adolescent” is below 18
years of age. The Constitution of Pakistan also regards the minimum work age as
14 years. However, the 18th amendment has actually risen the minimum age up to
16 years without amending the labor laws, this has increased the contradiction.
Article 25(A) of the Constitution says that the state now has to provide
compulsory education to all children between the ages of five and sixteen years,
which means that, a child can’t be allowed to work before 16 years of age. Child
laboring can be seen in a great numbers anywhere in any sector like agriculture,
industry, services and other unethical as well as terrorism. According to the
Child Right Moment (CRM) National Secretariat at Pakistan more than 12.5 million
children are engaged in child laboring and according to the (SPARK) 1.5 million
children were involved in child laboring at 2012 but since no appropriate survey
has been conducted to get latest figures while on government level it was
conducted in 1996 on national level, thus Khyber Pakhtunkhwa PTI government
decided to have fresh data of child labors and located the funds as well to be
conducted after census but still no sign of it. Same case also exists in
Federally Administrative Tribal Areas as well. Thousands of children in each
agency of FATA are feeding their families through child laboring. In both
regions numerous of children can be seen while doing laboring in the shape of
harvesting, brick making, working in local hotels, serving on tea stalls,
domestic services, rag picking, carpet weaving, auto mobile workshops etc but
beside of this we have been observed that these children have been used in many
others unethical and violent activities like terrorism, armed conflicts,
smuggling etc. child laborers are more exposed commercial sexual exploitations
as compare to others. The main reason of increasing of child laboring is extreme
poverty, having no employment opportunities, no sources of income, no career
counseling, in seriousness of government having no practical actions on grounds
and expensiveness of daily usage things and many more aspects. Twelve years old
child Abid Ullah from Khyber Agency consist his family on nine members started
child laboring in the age of 8 years due to extreme poverty. He wanted to go
school and get his fundamental right but his family power economic condition
does not allow him to do this. There are many others like Abid Ullah which are
deprived from his/ her fundamental rights and forced to work on 50 to 100 rupees
on daily wage basis. Under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), Pakistan has
committed to take immediate and effective measures to eradicate forced labor,
modern slavery and human trafficking as well as secure the prohibition and
elimination of the worst forms of child labor, including the recruitment and use
of child soldiers and by 2025, end child labor in all its forms. Unfortunately
along with government, national and international level organizations
performance is also questionable in the eradication of child laboring in
Pakistan. Child laboring can’t be maximize by giving statements in news papers,
if they want to control the child laboring issue first of all they have to
enforce the employment of children act 1991 comprehensively, conducting setting
up of vocational and technical training centers for such children to impart
skills to them to so they could earn a living with honor, to open special school
for them specially in those areas where nearby child laborer easily can access,
providing equal education opportunities to all, empowering NGOs and societies.
If government of Pakistan does not act accordingly especially in Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa and FATA against child laboring than it should start preparation in
advance for a steep walk and alarming threat? Now this is up to Pakistani
government, NGOs and societies to stay limited up to observing Labor Day to 12th
June of every year.