The government of
Punjab’s promulgation of the Punjab Prohibition of Child Labour at Brick Kilns
Ordinance 2016 is a commendable step. It is recognition of the long struggle of
civil society against child labour in Pakistan and acceptance of the fact the
child labour is a reality and not a myth created by non- governmental
organizations and international community. Steps for the implementation of the
Ordinance and great interest of the Chief Minister Mian Shehbaz Sharif in
ensuring eradication of child labour from the brick kilns of Punjab also proves
that where there is a will there is a way. Once the political leadership is
determined, then nobody knows better than them how to fix complex issues like
eradication of child labour.
I would however, like
to get the attention of the chief minister of Punjab and the entire political
leadership of Pakistan towards a few related socio-economic and cultural
aspects which requires to be considered while embarking on a roadmap for the
eradication of child labour. There is no second opinion that child labour must
be eradicated and all children of the school going age must go to schools and
get education and this is the fundamental right of all children of Pakistan
under Article 25-A of the Constitution.
The federal and
respective provincial governments should not limit eradication of child labour
to brick kilns only and also touch upon some equally worst forms of child
labour such as child domestic labour, child labour in fisheries (Sindh), child
labour in mines (Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) and all other worst forms
of child labour mentioned under various schedules of banned occupations of the
Employment of Children Act 1991. Article 11(3) of the Constitution of Pakistan
also prohibits the employment of children below age 14 in any factory or mine
or any other hazardous employment.
Child domestic labour
is one of the worst forms of child labour and approximately 50 cases of torture
and violence against child domestic workers were reported in media since Shazia
Masih’s tragic and cruel murder in January 2010 in Lahore. Irum (Lahore) Fizza
Batool (Lahore) Jamil (Multan) Yasmin (Okara) Shehzad (Gujranwala) Tehmina
(Islamabad) were all tortured to death in the four walls of their masters’
houses. These cases show that child domestic labour is one of the deadliest
forms of child labour in Pakistan. However, the federal and provincial
governments in Pakistan have failed to respond to the situation.
The federal government is
required
to put an immediate ban on child domestic labour by adding child domestic
labour in the schedule of banned occupations under the Employment of Children
Act (ECA) 1991 through a notification in official Gazette. Similarly, like
child labour in brick kilns, the Chief Minister Punjab should also take a
proactive action and immediately ban child domestic labour under the schedule
of banned occupations of the Punjab Employment of Children (Amendment) Act 2011
and begin with banning child domestic labour in the houses of the government
servants and parliamentarians.
For resolving the
issue of child labour on sustainable basis in Pakistan, the federal and
provincial governments should make serious efforts to implement Article 25-A of
the Constitution of Pakistan about right to free and compulsory education for
children 5 to 16. The Government of Punjab should immediately notify the rules
of the Punjab Right to Free and Compulsory Education Act 2014 and make
sufficient budgetary allocation for the implementation of the law. An Education
Commission should be established to monitor implementation of the Punjab Right
to Free and Compulsory Education Act 2014 so that the law is not limited to law
books only.
The government of
Punjab should also ensure implementation of the Bonded Labour System Abolition
Act 1992 to ensure elimination of the “Peshgi” system whereby families of brick
kilns workers are mortgaged through payment of Peshgi or advance and then they
are compelled to make their entire family work to be able to pay back the
advance which they are never able to pay off. Similarly, all brick kilns should
be registered as factories and brick kilns owners to be made responsible for getting
their workers registered with the Employees Old Age Benefits Institution (EOBI)
and Employees Social Security Institutions (ESSI). To register with the EOBI, an
employer has to contribute about Rs700 per registered employee per month. In
the case of SESSI, the employer has to pay 6% of the salary of each registered
worker per month and that’s why most of the brick kilns workers are deprived of
these important social security benefits.
All the federal and
provincial governments including the government of Punjab should take active
measures to ensure effective implementation of the minimum wage laws. Poor
implementation of the Minimum Wage Ordinance 1961 is one of the key reasons of
parents’ poverty and subsequently engaging their children in child labour. In
Punjab the minimum wages for unskilled labour are Pak Rupees 12,000 per month.
I don’t think any unskilled worker is getting these minimum wages and the
Minimum Wage Board is not effective if it exists at all. The government of
Punjab should ensure implementation of minimum wages of Pak Rupees 962 per 1000
bricks for brick kiln workers. Even this meager amount is not paid in full to
the poor kiln workers.
For improving the
overall labour situation, there is a need to strengthen the labour inspection
machinery. This is also important for sustaining our Generalized System of
Preference (GSP) Plus status by the European Union. Pakistan has ratified all
eight International Labour Organization’s core Conventions however;
implementation of these Conventions has been poor so far. For the effective
implementation of the labour laws, the labour inspection system is of critical
importance and the government of Punjab must focus on putting in place an
effective labour inspection system which will be very helpful in ensuring
implementation of all labour laws including those related to child labour,
forced and bonded labour, minimum wage and social security etc. Once all the
labour laws are implemented in letter and spirit, child labour will be
eliminated automatically and children will go to schools and vocational
training institutes instead and gradually we will have mechanized and technical
labour force in place which will have positive impact on the country’s exports
and reduction in exploitation of the poor labour force.
The writer is a human
rights activist and development practitioner with a Masters in Human Rights
from the London School of Economics (LSE) and tweets at @amahmood72
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