From the frontlines of child advocacy around the world, guest commentary on the work that's being done to help children.
DHS Launches Promising Campaign to Fight Human Trafficking
July 29, 2010 | Monique Marie DeJong
Last week, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano launched Blue Campaign, an agency-wide initiative strengthening anti-trafficking efforts through raising public awareness, offering victim assistance programs, and providing training for law enforcement officials. Focusing on the Four Ps, Protection, Public awareness, Prosecution, and Partnerships, DHS will be taking a “victim-centered approach,” said Alice Hill, Senior Counselor to Secretary Napolitano. (more…)
Struggling to Make a Living in Ethiopia
July 22, 2010 | Jina Krause-Vilmar
Food is scarce in Ethiopia, where most of the population lives in rural, drought-prone areas in a state of chronic poverty. In 2010, the Government of Ethiopia identified 5.2 million people in need of emergency food aid. Not surprisingly, this hunger crisis also impacts the thousands of refugees living just within Ethiopia’s borders. (more…)
Who will be Next?
July 18, 2010 | U. Roberto Romano
In the Ivory Coast, the cocoa sector has long been known to be one of the most corrupt and abusive in the global commodities market. Controlled by the government, a small coterie close to the presidency and a handful of multinational corporations, the industry has long been dogged by charges of slavery, the worst forms of child labor, corruption and even murder. (more…)
Children in the Brickworks – Photographer’s Notes
July 15, 2010 | David Parker
Throughout much of the world, bricks are fabricated by hand. This involves four basic steps: (1) mining the clay; (2) mixing or “pugging” the clay; (3) molding and drying the bricks; and (4) firing. Mud is dug in nearby fields using shovels, picks, a awls and hauled for mixing. During the rainy season the holes become breeding areas for mosquitoes and other insects. In 
Bangladesh oxen are used to mix the mud. Three or four oxen walk in a circle mixing the mud that will later be turned into bricks. In Nepal, India, Bolivia, Peru, and Nicaragua, children and adults stomp in the mud until it has reached the right texture. Mixing water is hauled in buckets. (more…)
Standing on Tip Toe to Support U.S. Ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child
July 8, 2010 | Jessica Lenz
In April of this past year when the terrible plane accident occurred in Poland killing so many members of government, including the president, I took pause too. I reflected on the country that unfortunately is not thought of so often in the daily lives of the average American, but its history and its people have offered the world a chance to envision a more holistic and protected world for children. (more…)
Child Labor through a Photographer’s Lens
| David Parker
Communities of the world have united around many health problems over the last 50 years – we have eliminated smallpox, and sit on the verge of eliminating polio. And yet greater unity has been inadequate to surmount other public health problems, like hunger, various forms of malnutrition, child labor, and environmental degradation. Landmines continue to be produced in large numbers, and maim or kill thousands of innocent civilians each year. Children continue to labor under intolerable conditions. (more…)
Soccer Fever
July 1, 2010 | Kilian Moote
We in the US are avid sports fans. Whether watching, playing, or cheering for our favorite sports teams, we make sports a central part of our lives. And after years of mild interest, it appears that US citizens have finally added soccer to their list of favorite sporting events. An estimated 19 million viewers tuned in to watch Saturday’s US v. Ghana game, the highest rated game in US history; and according to Neilson ratings, viewership is up by 68% from the previous World Cup. Local cafés, restaurants, and retailers are all cashing in on the “soccer fever” that has gripped the US consumer and the world.
Major soccer brands such as Puma and Adidas are reporting huge sales. Puma CEO Jochen Zeitz, in an interview with Reuters, stated, “Our football sales definitely will increase this year, and from that perspective the World Cup will be a success. Every time there is a World Cup, it has an impact on our soccer business, and we have seen that this year as well.” Likewise, Adidas is attributing its 26% increase in soccer-related sales for the first quarter of 2010 to the increased interest among consumers in the World Cup. These major brands are hoping to cash in, as they did in 2008 during the European Championship, which boosted annual sales to a record setting 1.3 billion euros ($1.92 billion). Unfortunately, some of the merchandise sold during this year’s World Cup may have been produced by child or exploited laborers.
Nearly 15 years after sporting goods companies signed the Atlanta Agreement to eliminate child labor in soccer ball production, the root causes that perpetuate labor rights abuses continue. The soccer ball industry remains reliant on temporary workers, which has led to poverty wages, barriers to workers organizing and forming independent unions, and gender-based discrimination. In some cases, child labor has been identified in soccer ball production, which signifies a need for companies to continue to develop and maintain clear policies and procedures concerning child and forced labor.
To help consumers who are eager to purchase the latest and greatest soccer ball, the Free2Work site has been updated with its own power rankings on how these products are being manufactured. Ten different soccer ball producers were rated on their corporate policies, their implementation of labor protocols, and their effectiveness in supply chain monitoring. Soccer enthusiasts can use Free2Work.org to educate 
themselves on how their favorite sports apparel is produced. Of those companies rated, Adidas was the overwhelming frontrunner with an A-, edging out Nike, which received a B. The majority of companies received grades ranging from C to D-, with Calle Primero and Tachikara receiving F ratings because of their lack of information on their code of conduct and their insufficient efforts to monitor their supply chains.
The US hopes of becoming 2010 champions might be dashed, but consumers still have a chance of 
winning. Before buying that new FIFA branded soccer ball, be sure to checkout Free2Work.org to discover your favorite company’s power ranking!
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Kilian Moote is the Director of Advocacy for the Not For Sale Campaign. He directs the Free2Work initiative as well as the campaigns advocacy efforts and annual Global Forum on Human Trafficking.
We Can End Child Labor Now
June 12, 2010 | Bama Athreya
June 12th is World Day Against Child Labor. Child labor continues to be an epidemic problem in the world today, with an estimated 215 million children worldwide compelled to work, and denied basic education and the enjoyment of their childhood. (more…)
Running out of patience with the 2016 child labor eradication target
June 10, 2010 | Armand Pereira
The ILO’s 2010 global report on child labor – launched and discussed at the Global Child Labor Conference held at the Hague in May 2010 – is little more than a reminder that child labor eradication efforts have slackened globally: It estimated a 3% reduction in child labor over 2004-08 compared with 11 % in the previous four year period. It warned that the target to end the worst forms of child labor by 2016 will be missed, unless eradication efforts are accelerated. (more…)
Step Up To The Plate
May 26, 2010 | Jamila Larson
“Dear Councilmember,” the child carefully wrote on yellow lined paper. “I am 10 ½ years old. I live with my family at the shelter. When I grow up, I want to be a singer. I think you need to find more money to help families find housing because people is in danger without a home. So please, please find more money. SO STEP UP TO THE PLATE AND FIND MORE MONEY. Thank you for listening.”
“Nobody’s going to read that letter,” an older boy laughed. “Those rich people don’t care about us.”
“We don’t know unless we try,” the little girl responded, as she carefully signed her name.
Which child is right? And how does a homeless American ten-year-old become a part of the protected class of constituents whose needs are prioritized? (more…)
Challenges towards Eliminating Worst Forms of Child Labour by 2016
| Wambui Njuguna
ANPPCAN has been involved in child labour in Africa for more than 15 years and I would like to share some views from her experience and that of some other NGOs.
The reality is that Africa, especially sub-Saharan Africa is still generating the biggest numbers of children into the worst forms of child labour (WFCL). This is the reality on the ground. It was a reality in 1999, when the Convention 182 was adopted, and it is the reality today. It is also true that the age at which children are entering into child labour, which may harm their growth and development, is getting lower on the continent and this is not really a pride. The reality is also that since Convention 182, which has been ratified by almost all countries in Africa, a lot of work has been going on, including setting the goal to eliminate the WFCL by 2016. (more…)
How to Become a Low-End Philanthropist
May 20, 2010 | Marsha Winsryg
Sister Immaculata Mulei and Sister Agnes Daka from the Mama Bakhita Home for Disabled Children, Marsha Winsryg (AACDP) and Foster Wachata, Mukuni Artisan at Victoria Falls, Zambia
The SAFI Project – Sanitation and Community
| Elsie Lewison
It’s my first week back in Central Kenya working with the SAFI Project, a community-based waste management organization. We are in Dol Dol today, a remote town of about 1000 people, primarily pastoralists, working with the municipal council to lead a community mobilization to clean the town center. There is a buzz of interest that any official activity raises in a small town. As we wait for the rain to die down, people crowd around the officials to get their pair of protective latex gloves. There are titters of laughter when the old mamas show up in their traditional kangas and beaded collars. They claim their gloves with an air of amused defiance. All age sets are involved, from the stooped elders with their staffs and robes to the smallest children, toddling around behind older siblings. (more…)
Babies: Too Cute for Words?
May 13, 2010 | Monique Marie DeJong
I must admit: I wasn’t readying the pram brigade to watch the screening of “Babies”. Don’t get me wrong… I love babies and spent much of my earlier years babysitting children and babies, but contrary to the hype of über-cuteness, my babysitting experience has awakened me to the realities of babydom. Aside from some enchanting moments in the film, there wasn’t much “gooing” or “gahing” from me.
Directed by Thomas Balmès, the film closely follows four infants from varying cultures worldwide for two years from graphic birth to crawling to the first few triumphant steps: Ponijao who lives near Opuwo, Namibia; Bayarjargal from Mongolia, near Bayanchandmani; Mari from Tokyo, Japan; and Hattie from San Francisco, United States. (more…)
Proposed ILO Convention Could Protect Migrant Domestic Workers’ Rights
May 6, 2010 | Monique Marie DeJong
“They tell us we don’t have rights and want us to beg at their feet. There are often day-to-day threats: ‘If you go out on the streets, they will kill you,’” said 
Antonia Pena, domestic worker and leader of Casa de Maryland, at a panel discussion last month at American University Washington College of Law. As defined by the International Labour Organization (ILO), a domestic worker is “a worker employed for housekeeping tasks by a private household.” Tens of millions of people are classified as migrant domestic workers, a sweeping majority of them women and girls aged 11 or 12, or even as young as seven, who migrate from their home country in search of domestic employment. Governments worldwide are gearing up for the ILO’s 99th Session of the International Labour Conference (ILC) in June, and one agenda item will cover standards needed to protect domestic migrant workers from abuse and exploitation. Will the U.S. champion the rights of minority migrant women and girls on a global scale, or will it pay polite lip-service to the efforts of rights advocates? (more…)
Question & Answer with Kate Orne
May 3, 2010 | Len Morris
Since 2005, Kate Orne’s focus has been on the victims of the little-known sex industry in Pakistan, who exist under a blanket of denial, modesty, pretense and cultural oppression. She is the first photographer allowed inside to document madams, prostitutes and trafficking victims living stigmatized under local oppressive laws and cultural beliefs. Len Morris asked her a few questions about her project, May You Never Be Uncovered.
1. Can you tell me why you started the project and how the subject caught your attention?
I was initially drawn to exploring the prevalence of prostitution under Islam in 2001 after encountering impoverished Afghan widows in the refugee camps of the North West Frontier Province in Pakistan. If these women who have no means to support their children were forced to sell their bodies, how would they find clients if they were not allowed to walk outside alone and without being covered in burkas? I was told repeatedly that prostitution did not exist in Islamic countries such as Pakistan.
What is Poverty? by Jemima Onganjo
April 22, 2010 | Len Morris
Jemima Onganjo, a Kenyan student, is working to complete her secondary school studies at a rural school in Kenya
This is an original composition by Jemima Onganjo, a young Kenyan girl we met at her rural school while filming a documentary on street children. She prepared this recitation for our arrival. Jemima stood and delivered this in the front of her classroom, at her school with no running water, electricity or clean water source, for us to understand her life. You can view her performance by clicking here.
This is a remarkable essay. If you don’t understand how poverty affects young people on the other side of the world, this should help.
The Beat of a Child’s Heart- South Africa 2010
| Marti Wilson-Taylor
From a very early age, my life has been focused on children, wanting to nurture their growth and development, observe their interactions with the world and be a part of the change they bring. As a teenager, I remember being asked what I wanted to do and my answer came spontaneously – work for social change and racial justice. Reflecting on that conversation, it is no surprise that these twin interests bring the work I’ve done and continue to do full circle. (more…)
Out of the Shelter, Into the White House
April 13, 2010 | Jamila Larson
Candace was all dressed up, waiting for me alongside fifteen other teens in the former Washington hospital turned homeless shelter. The Playtime Project where I work provides the only services for children there, which includes a field trip program for teens. It was dawn on Saturday morning, and the proud parents assembled in the dirty corridor to take pictures before sending us off to the most famous house in the nation. (more…)
Let’s Create Real Change for Africa
| Stephen Shames
I have been involved in children’s issues for over 40 years as a photojournalist and later as an advocate. Always at the top of my mind is: What do poor children need? How do you help those who are most at risk – the former child soldiers, AIDS orphans, child heads of households, working children, girls? (more…)
Public Meeting Offers Advice to Group dedicated to Eliminating Child Labor
April 8, 2010 | Monique Marie DeJong
Last week on May 29, 2010, a public meeting of the Consultative Group to Eliminate the Use of Child Labor and Forced Labor in Imported Agricultural Products was held at the U.S. Department of Agriculture 
to solicit advice from the public regarding recommendations and ways to reduce the importation of agricultural products and other commodities produced with child or forced labor. (more…)
The Lingering Taste of Bitter Cocoa
April 1, 2010 | Tim Newman
The new documentary film by Miki Mistrati and U. Roberto Romano, The Dark Side of Chocolate, reveals how nine years after major chocolate companies committed to eliminating abusive child labor, forced labor and trafficking in their cocoa supply chains, these egregious abuses continue in West Africa.
It is a tragedy and an outrage that, as the response by the chocolate industry to the film states, “For nearly ten years now, the 
Government of Cote d’Ivoire, Industry, Non-governmental Organisations and a host of other international organizations including the International Cocoa Initiative (ICI) and ILO, have committed vast resources in an unprecedented effort to eliminate the worst forms of child labour from the production of cocoa” and yet, the filmmakers were able to clearly demonstrate the continued exploitation of children. In fact,a recent study conducted by Tulane University under a contract by the US Department of Labor found that only 2.4% of thousands of children interviewed in Cote d’Ivoire reported to have benefited from one of these programs. (more…)
The Dark Side of Chocolate
March 29, 2010 | U. Roberto Romano
While we enjoy the sweet taste of chocolate, the reality is strikingly different for African children.
In 2001, consumers around the world were outraged to discover that child labor and slavery, trafficking, and other abuses existed on cocoa farms in the Ivory Coast, a country that produces nearly half the world’s cocoa. An avalanche of negative publicity and consumer demands for answers and solutions soon followed.
Two members of US Congress, Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa and Representative Eliot Engel of New York, tackled the issue by adding a rider to an agricultural bill proposing a federal system to certify and label chocolate products as “slave free”.
The measure passed the House of Representatives and created a potential disaster for Cargill, Archer Daniels Midland Mars, Hershey’s, Nestlé, Barry Callebaut, Saf-Cacao and other chocolate manufacturers. To avoid legislation that would have forced chocolate companies to label their products with ”no child labor” labels (for which many major chocolate manufacturers wouldn’t qualify), the industry fought back and finally agreed to a voluntary protocol to end abusive and forced child labor on cocoa farms by 2005.
In 2005 the cocoa industry failed to comply with the protocol’s terms, and a new deadline for 2008 was established.
In 2008 the terms of the protocol were still not met, and yet another deadline for 2010 was set.
And in 2010?
Almost a decade after the chocolate companies, concerned governments and especially foundations spent millions of dollars in an effort to eradicate child labor and trafficking in the international cocoa trade, has anything changed?
Miki Mistrati and I launched a behind-the-scenes investigation to verify if these allegations of child labor in the chocolate industry are present today.
See also our website the dark side of chocolate
Nestlé spokesperson Susanne Würtz issued a statement in response to the Danish broadcast of “The Dark Side of Chocolate” on March 16th 2010, and Caobisco also issued a press release in response to the film.
‘Resource-cursed’ Liberia Struggles in Firestone’s Stronghold
March 23, 2010 | Monique Marie DeJong
Earlier this month Liberian environmental justice lawyer Alfred Lahai Brownell led a briefing on Bridgestone/Firestone’s continued violations of child rights and environmental destruction. (more…)
