by Abdulrhaman Shamlan
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Hundreds of thousands work to help their families survive financially
Sana'a--Mohammed Abdu Al-Jadol, a 13-year-old boy, gets up early in the morning not to go to school like his friends but to go to a small welding shop, where he works from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m .for only $4 a day.
Poverty and harsh economical conditions pushed Mohammed's father to force his children to work and drop out of school to help him provide for their big family. Mohammed says he only studied until the sixth grade.
Wearing a black helmet and polarized sunglasses to protect his eyes from welding light, he told The Media Line, "I don't like school anyway." But it's too early for him to know what's best for him.
"I pushed my children to work because I needed help to feed their younger brothers and sisters," Mohammed's father Abdu, a 48-year-old builder, told The Media Line. "When I brought my two children with me to Sana'a, I was planning to let them continue their studies but that proved to be impractical."
Consoling himself, he added:: "My children can be better than the educated people if they work hard and establish their own businesses in the future. They can even hire those who received certificates."
Like Mohammed, there are hundreds of thousands of Yemeni children aged 5-17 deprived from enjoying their childhood and continuing their education because of their families' harsh economic conditions and lack of awareness about the dangers of child labor.
A recent survey showed that there are over 1.3 million child laborers in Yemen. The study results announced last week were based on a survey conducted in 2010 by the Yemeni government with support from the International Labor Organization (ILO), the Social Development Fund and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).
According to the survey, 17 percent of Yemen’s 7.7 million children in the 5-17 age group and 11 percent of those aged 5-11 are child laborers.
Although the study shows alarming figures, Yemeni activists and government officials working in child rights say that the real number of working children is far more than reported.
Ahmed Al-Qarashi, the chairman of the Seyaj Organization for Childhood Protection, told The Media Line, "The recently-announced study is outdated. It's impractical to announce the results of a study three years after conducting it."
"In the past two years, Yemen has experienced political turmoil and security unrest. The turmoil has significantly increased the child laborers' number," he said.
Mona Ali Salem, the head of Child Labor Unit at Yemen's Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor, told The Media Line, "Child labor is on the increase in Yemen. In 2000, a government survey showed that there were around 421,000 working children and the results of the 2010 survey indicated that there are more than 1.3 million child laborers."
While Jamal Al-Shami, the head of Democracy School, an organization advocating child rights in the country, estimated the current number of working children at three million, Al-Qarashi says he believes there are about five million child laborers in Yemen.
The working children are vulnerable to different kinds of abuse ranging from maltreatment to sexual abuse, child rights activists said.
Al-Qarashi said his organization has documented some cases in which a part of children's bodies was amputated for them to be suitable for certain professions, like begging.
“An ever heightening poverty, increasing instability and high population growth are the main reasons for the alarming widespread of child labor in Yemen," Salem said, an understanding that both Al-Shami and Al-Qarashi shared.
Yemen is the poorest Arab state, with more than half of its population living on less than $2 a day.
Al-Shami told The Media Line, "A lack of awareness about the dangers of child labor and illiteracy among the parents are also factors for the widespread child labor."
Underscoring that, a field study on child labor in the port city of Aden showed about 84% of working children are from rural areas. It indicated that the child laborers' parents are either illiterate or received very basic education.
"Taking into consideration the economical hardships of Yemenis, we only oppose the work of children in hazardous professions or in jobs that interfere with their ability to attend regular school," Afrah Humad, the communication officer for the Supreme Council for Motherhood and Childhood, a governmental body that answers to the prime minister, told The Media Line. "For example, we can't force a mother who says she does not have anything to feed her children not to let her sons work and help her in providing for the family but we can persuade her to make them work in jobs that don't affect their schooling."
Al-Shami said the government should pass laws making education obligatory for children and punishing irresponsible parents who push their children to work without a great necessity for it.
Copyright © 2013 The Media Line. All Rights Reserved.
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Hundreds of thousands work to help their families survive financially
Sana'a--Mohammed Abdu Al-Jadol, a 13-year-old boy, gets up early in the morning not to go to school like his friends but to go to a small welding shop, where he works from 8 a.m. until 8 p.m .for only $4 a day.
Poverty and harsh economical conditions pushed Mohammed's father to force his children to work and drop out of school to help him provide for their big family. Mohammed says he only studied until the sixth grade.
Wearing a black helmet and polarized sunglasses to protect his eyes from welding light, he told The Media Line, "I don't like school anyway." But it's too early for him to know what's best for him.
"I pushed my children to work because I needed help to feed their younger brothers and sisters," Mohammed's father Abdu, a 48-year-old builder, told The Media Line. "When I brought my two children with me to Sana'a, I was planning to let them continue their studies but that proved to be impractical."
Consoling himself, he added:: "My children can be better than the educated people if they work hard and establish their own businesses in the future. They can even hire those who received certificates."
Like Mohammed, there are hundreds of thousands of Yemeni children aged 5-17 deprived from enjoying their childhood and continuing their education because of their families' harsh economic conditions and lack of awareness about the dangers of child labor.
A recent survey showed that there are over 1.3 million child laborers in Yemen. The study results announced last week were based on a survey conducted in 2010 by the Yemeni government with support from the International Labor Organization (ILO), the Social Development Fund and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF).
According to the survey, 17 percent of Yemen’s 7.7 million children in the 5-17 age group and 11 percent of those aged 5-11 are child laborers.
Although the study shows alarming figures, Yemeni activists and government officials working in child rights say that the real number of working children is far more than reported.
Ahmed Al-Qarashi, the chairman of the Seyaj Organization for Childhood Protection, told The Media Line, "The recently-announced study is outdated. It's impractical to announce the results of a study three years after conducting it."
"In the past two years, Yemen has experienced political turmoil and security unrest. The turmoil has significantly increased the child laborers' number," he said.
Mona Ali Salem, the head of Child Labor Unit at Yemen's Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor, told The Media Line, "Child labor is on the increase in Yemen. In 2000, a government survey showed that there were around 421,000 working children and the results of the 2010 survey indicated that there are more than 1.3 million child laborers."
While Jamal Al-Shami, the head of Democracy School, an organization advocating child rights in the country, estimated the current number of working children at three million, Al-Qarashi says he believes there are about five million child laborers in Yemen.
The working children are vulnerable to different kinds of abuse ranging from maltreatment to sexual abuse, child rights activists said.
Al-Qarashi said his organization has documented some cases in which a part of children's bodies was amputated for them to be suitable for certain professions, like begging.
“An ever heightening poverty, increasing instability and high population growth are the main reasons for the alarming widespread of child labor in Yemen," Salem said, an understanding that both Al-Shami and Al-Qarashi shared.
Yemen is the poorest Arab state, with more than half of its population living on less than $2 a day.
Al-Shami told The Media Line, "A lack of awareness about the dangers of child labor and illiteracy among the parents are also factors for the widespread child labor."
Underscoring that, a field study on child labor in the port city of Aden showed about 84% of working children are from rural areas. It indicated that the child laborers' parents are either illiterate or received very basic education.
"Taking into consideration the economical hardships of Yemenis, we only oppose the work of children in hazardous professions or in jobs that interfere with their ability to attend regular school," Afrah Humad, the communication officer for the Supreme Council for Motherhood and Childhood, a governmental body that answers to the prime minister, told The Media Line. "For example, we can't force a mother who says she does not have anything to feed her children not to let her sons work and help her in providing for the family but we can persuade her to make them work in jobs that don't affect their schooling."
Al-Shami said the government should pass laws making education obligatory for children and punishing irresponsible parents who push their children to work without a great necessity for it.
Copyright © 2013 The Media Line. All Rights Reserved.
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