Child Labor Does Exists

Millions of children in the world are forced to work, even from a very early age, before they are six years old. This is stated by the International Labor Organization (ILO), a specialized agency attached to the United Nations.

Driven by circumstances or demanded by adults, in other cases, outside of Cuba, it’s common to see them stationed, alone or in a group, at traffic lights and crowded corners, or wandering through high-traffic places where they howl lottery numbers, sweets, and cigars; they offer to clean windshields or to help with some service, or simply beg for money. Also from intricate areas we receive reports of children being exploited in mining, agriculture, industries or garbage dumps, for example, and many times this happens before everybody’s view.

It's complex for a society to have enough social infrastructure to detect and eliminate it. However, it’s worrying that there are millions of children who remain in such a vulnerable situation, sometimes homeless, starving or without a family. The causes are diverse, child labor means poverty, and harms both their physical and psychological development because it deprives them of their childhood, limits their potential, and damages their dignity.

According to ILO, a large number of children abandon their studies to work, while others manage to combine both tasks, but, undoubtedly, it brings them physical and mental harm. Likewise, it warns about the negative consequences of some jobs that are dangerous to health, such as chronic pain, amputations and burns.

Child labor affects the emotional development of the child, triggers stress and a low level of self-esteem, among other psychological consequences. Usually, they live in a hostile environment, devoid of all care, and this forces them to think about their survival, to defend themselves in the face of insecurity. It’s a condition condemned by international humanitarian law, and it’s becoming more recurrent and worrying. In the worst cases, it’s related to slavery and human trafficking, either for daily work and services, as well as in armed conflicts and prostitution.

For all this, every June 12^th celebrates the World Day against Child Labor, a day dedicated to denouncing this scourge that immediately robs them of the possibility of a full life that allows their well-being and normal development. This year the date has the motto «Social justice for all. Let's end child labor!"

The truth is that children should not work, they suddenly lose their innocence, skip stages and often face very complex situations related to abuse and crime, a chaotic world from which they almost never manage to get out alive.

The international call is for governments, together with the relevant entities, to commit to ending child labor. With this goal set for 2025, the call is to design strategies and take measures that guarantee safety and full development in. A utopia, undoubtedly, unfortunately.

Translated by Amilkal Labañino / CubaSí Translation Staff