This week we will be exploring Articles: 32 & 35
World Day Against Child Labour
Throughout history, children have had to work in all sorts of different ways. In the 20th Century the world agreed that work that endangered children or stopped them from enjoying all their rights was unacceptable. In 2002, The International Labour Organization (which was set up by the United Nations) launched the first World Day Against Child Labour to highlight the struggles faced by working children. Held each year on 12th June, the day is intended to promote and encourage the growing worldwide movement against child labour. It is hard for most children and young people in the UK to imagine what it must be like to have to work as a child. Exploring articles 32 and 35, through the activities this week, will help you to understand and think about the effect of child labour.
Article 32 Child labour – Governments must protect children from economic exploitation and work that is dangerous or might harm their health, development or education. Governments must set a minimum age for children to work and ensure that work conditions are safe and appropriate.
Article 35 Prevention of sale and trafficking -Governments must protect children from being abducted, sold or moved illegally to a different place in or outside their country for the purpose of exploitation.
Why not have a go at one of the following activities to help you think more critically about our Articles of the week?
Activity 1
Explore how children ‘help out’ with ‘jobs’ at home and in school. What would it be like to do these all the time and have no time for play or learning?
Activity 2
Draw a large clock on a piece of paper and divide it up into 12 equal segments. In each segment write or draw what you are doing on a normal day. Are you at school, sleeping, playing or watching TV? Now imagine you have to fit a job into your day too. What would you have to stop doing to be able to work?
Activity 3
Watch Ibrahim’s Story and read about UNICEF’s work to end child labour here. Create a poem or a piece of art, drama or music to explore some of the feelings involved in what you have seen.
