SC’s help sought for enforcing child labour laws

Rights activists express concerns over minor Tayyaba’s torture case, urge apex
court to pressure government for implementation of child labour ban

Expressing their concerns over the recent case of Tayyaba, a 10-year-old girl who was tortured allegedly by a judge’s family at the house where she worked, rights and labour activists urged the apex court on Friday to direct the government to enforce child labour laws so that this present-day form of slavery could be ended.

Karamat Ali, the secretary of the National Labour Council, and other activists at a press conference at the Karachi Press Club condemned the torture of the child and welcomed the Supreme Court’s move to take suo-moto notice of the issue when media reports emerged that the girl’s father, who had reportedly sold her to the judge two years ago, had reached a settlement over the matter.

The speakers said child abuse in the form of making children work as domestic aides and the torture they suffered in many of these cases was alarming and shameful.

“Over nine million children are currently estimated to be engaged in child labour in Pakistan,” said Ali, citing reports. “And they work under oppressive and hazardous conditions, and are often subjected to long-working hours and torture.”

Mentioning the National Policy and Plan of Action to end child labour in Pakistan, a policy created in 2000, the veteran labour rights activist said the government did not take any action to implement it.

“The policy is still valid and conforms to global standard on children’s rights. The Supreme Court should take notice of it and pressure the government to implement it,” Ali said. He also offered the top court to provide assistance in this connection. “We are also thinking of become party in the Tayyaba case,” he added.

Reading out various clauses of the law and policy, Ali said governments had to ensure that all children up to the age of 16 years must be in the schools. “After the inclusion of Article 25-A  as a result of the 18th Amendment in the Constitution, it is the responsibility of the State to provide free and compulsory education to all children up to the age of 16 years,” he said.

“The employment of children in households is totally against the spirit of Article 25-A. We may still have a chance to stop this practice, but only if we ensure that the judge and his wife who employed and beat up Tayyaba are punished.”

Pakistan has also ratified the UN's Child Right Convention and under which it is obligatory for Pakistan to protect all fundamental rights of all children.

Admitting that poverty was a huge factor in people sending children out to work, the speakers said the federal and provincial governments should take measures to ensure implementation of the minimum wage law.

Habibuddin Junaidi, the convener of the Sindh Labour Solidarity Committee, Shafeeq Ghauri from the Sindh Labour Federation, Mir Zulfiqar Ali of the Workers Education and Research Organization, Farhat Parveen from the NOW Communities and Shaikh Majeed, a prominent trade unionist, were among the other speakers.