World Day Against Child Labour 2005: Child Labour in Mines and Quarries
DOWN IN THE PITS… CHILDHOOD SHATTERED
The monstrous wickedness, of innocent children breaking their bodies and souls in mines and quarries for decades, has been shrugged by the employers and hushed by governments. In spite of international conventions and declarations, especially the ILO Conventions 182 on Worst Forms of Child Labour, prohibiting the use of children in mines and quarries, still in many countries across the world, children are found working in mines. They are found working in quarries, open cast mines and small underground quarries, in conditions, which are amongst the most hazardous in all sectors. Mining and quarrying is among one of the most dangerous and unhealthy occupations, it is very apparent and widely accepted that child and adolescent labourers are becoming more, not less, common in mining and quarrying industry.
Children mine diamonds, gold, and precious metals in Africa, gems and rock in Asia, and gold, coal, emeralds and tin in South America. Rock quarrying, especially near booming cities and construction areas are hubs of child labour as well as bonded and forced labour. Intergenerational bondage is a common feature in stone and rock quarrying mines of South Asia. From dusk to dawn, there are rarely limits to the length of the day these children spend working in mines and quarries, especially in artisanal and small-scale mining. This work is labour intensive, low paying and extremely hazardous, and for most it is a case of debt bondage or bonded labour. The health and development of child miners is jeopardized by deep and poorly reinforced pits, poor ventilation, excessive noise, intense vibrations from machines, excessive heat or cold, high humidity levels, awkward working positions and extremely arduous work. Deaths from explosions or cave-ins are not uncommon and there is a constant threat of respiratory illnesses, dust or gas poisoning. In many cases, first aid and medical facilities are neither available near the workplace, nor considered an option by the employers.
There are nearly equal percentages
of girls and boys working in mines and quarries, but what makes the situation
more precarious for the girls is the rampant exploitation, both mental
and physical from the mine owners, contractors, as well as from the miners.
In India for example, in the age group of 5-14, girl’s form 40% of the
workforce, while in the 15-19 years age group, they form 27% of the workforce.
Snake Boys of Tanzania
The pits, used to mine Tanzanite, can be up to 50m deep and tunnels can
be 300m long, unventilated and extremely hot. The Nyokas (Swahili for snake) are so-named because they crawl
through underground tunnels like snakes. These boys breathe harmful graphitic
dust in the tunnels and can work for up to 18 hours at a time on only
one meal of bread and boiled cassava, earning the equivalent of less than
US$1 per day.
In Peru, Bolivia and Ecuador some 65,000 children of both sexes work in mining, especially gold, silver, tin and zinc, and 135,000 are at risk of getting sucked into this activity. Peru is the largest gold producer in Latin America and number seven worldwide. Gold is the country's main export and 13 per cent, some 15 tons a year, comes from small-scale mining activities with an export value of US$120 million per year, and US accounts for 26% of all exports from Peru.
The situation is grim but not irremediable. The WDACL is not just a one-day event, but also, a platform to campaign to end child labour from mines and quarries.
We must work together to bring light to the girls and boys toiling in
deep dark claustrophobic
and hazardous mines and quarrie
Global March Calls on all Governments to:
Ratify and implement ILO Convention 182 on the Worst Forms of Child Labour
Establish and vigorously enforce legislation to protect the rights of children engaged in mining and quarrying.
Stop trade exports of mining and quarrying products suspected to engage children.
Allocate funds for rehabilitation and education of children engaged in mining and quarrying.
Global March Calls on all Regional, Sub-Regional, Multilateral and Bilateral Organisations to:
Set up significant funds for advocacy, prevention, rehabilitation, and reintegration projects to combat child labour in mines and quarries
Global March Calls on Trade Unions to:
Bring the small and artisanal mines and quarries under the umbrella of the unions
Report, withdraw and educate children engaged in mines and quarries
Lobby for the ratification and implementation of international conventions and government laws on child labour and minimum age of employment.
Global March Calls on All People
Educate themselves on the issue of child labour in mines and quarries and report any incidents of such crimes to appropriate authorities and to concerned NGOs
Boycott products and commodities that are likely to be tainted by the sweat of child labourers
Proposed Activities Around the Globe