Junior School Magazine - Edition 6 (NOV 2018)

C hild L abour - continued

How were the Convention of the rights of the child created and why? The Convention of the rights of the child were created to allow children to have the childhood they deserved. In the Middle Ages, children were thought of as small adults and were made to work like adults too. Then, in the 19th Century, France made laws to start to protect children in workplaces. By 1881, France made a law to say that all children have the right to be educated. In the 20th century, children were being protected in the medical, social and legal fields. In 1919, the League of Nations was formed (now the United Nations). In 1924, the UN created the first child rights document, called the Declaration of the Rights of the Child. This is the first international document for children’s rights. After World War II had ended, all the countries came together to make children safe, and UNICEF was created. UNICEF then puts in place many programs for helping children in their education, health, and getting their access to healthy water and food. Later, the International Charter for Economical, Social and Cultural Rights supported children’s right to be educated and have healthcare. Then in 1979, the UN named it the International Year of the Child and more countries worked to support children. From this, the Convention on the Rights of the Child is created in November 1989. It is about protecting the rights of all children. What rights are challenged under your issue? There are 42 Articles in the Convention of the Rights of the Child document and many of them are related to child labour. A few of the key Articles that are challenged by child labour are listed below. Article 6 of the Convention of the Rights of the Child is being challenged when children are forced to work in child labour. This is because children are not being allowed to live a full life, give that they work dawn to dusk and do not go to school or have fun. Child Labour also challenges Article 18 of the Convention because by sending their children to work at a young age means they are not considering what is best for each child. Each child should be able to enjoy school, friends and fun times. Child labour violates Article 36 of the convention because if they work too hard at a young age when their bodies aren’t fully developed, they may hurt their brain, bones and muscles which could damage their bodies and stop them working when they get older. Child labour also breaches Article 31 of the Convention. It does this by making children work all day, destroying their play time with friends and other fun activities. Access to Equal Opportunity There are several organizations that are working very hard to prevent and eliminate child labour. Some of these organizations include, The International Labour Organisation (ILO), UNICEF and World Vision.

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JSM Edition 6