Child labour is tarnishing the image of Pakistan and is leaving multiple negative impact not only on the child victims' health but also their future as Federal Bureau of Statistics report showed.
There were 3.3 million child labourers in the country, said National Project Manager, Saba Mohsin Raza, at a workshop jointly organised by International Labour Organisation (ILO) and the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting for capacity-building of the print media journalists here.
She expressed fear that the number of child labourers had grown alarmingly. She said that surgical instruments manufacturing, glass bangles, tanneries, coal mines, rag-pickers/scavengers, deep-sea fishing, child domestic workers, child trafficking, carpet weaving, street children, bonded labour and beggary are the areas where children are working in hazardous conditions in Pakistan. However, she said, partnership between ILO and the Government is going "very strong and the co-operation from the government was exemplary to help eradicate the child labour".
She expressed hoped that this co-operation and commitment would continue as "child labour is a challenge to Pakistan and ILO, Government and the media will jointly handle the challenge to ensuring a better future for children."
DIG, Prisons, Multan region, Farooq Nazir, Co-ordinator of Human Rights Commission of Pakistan Rashid Rehman, Chairman of WEBCOP Khawaja Muhammad Owais, President of Multan Press Club Shakeel Anjum and columnist Qasim Siyal also spoke. They said that Pakistanis were experiencing the worst form of child labour mainly because of weak implementation of relevant laws.
However, they said, the Government in collaboration with ILO and other agencies is taking various initiatives to control this menace. They were of the view that increasing public awareness about child labour can be most effective in combating this menace an the media in this regard has a potential to give a positive direction to the public approach.
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