Manthoc-Mnnatsop Press Release on the "Tackling worst forms of Child labour in
agriculture" Seminar, that took place in Torino and was sponsored by the ILO, Torino
10 - 14 September
Lima, September 9, 2007
In reference to the Workshop on “Tackling worst forms of child labour in Agriculture“, organized by the ILO in Italy from the 10th to the 14th of September, 2007.
I.-General considerations:
1º.- This is a call for common action among all partners who, like us, work in favour of children. We should carry out common, constructive actions and try to participate in this workshop, in order to listen to their motives and try to defend the work of Nats organisations. In doing so, we should remember that “it is always good to listen”.
2º.- What we are experiencing here in Peru is that many officials, people involved in the policy-making (such as government representatives, mayors, ministers), often organize these kinds of mobilizations and events. For example, here in Peru a proposal has been presented to transform the Eradication of Child Labour Plan into law. This is happening because they do not know about our work as Children's Movements, and we therefore have to let them know that we are struggling for a dignified life and for better working conditions. We must let them know that we exist. The issue is not if a child should work or not, because this is a deceptive question. It does not leave us any alternatives: if we say we must work, the ILO will refuse it, but if we say we must not work: we will die of hunger today. We must show the people of the ILO that we are a Movement of Working Children, and that we are now organized. We must show them that we are above all human beings, that we have the same rights as everybody else, that we know our rights, and that we are fighting against all the kinds of discrimination we face because of our poverty. We are proud of the dignity and effort with which we face poverty in our everyday lives, and thanks to these efforts we can help our families and feel useful.
3º.- These are our observations: in Peru, there are 10 million children who, like us, live in poor conditions. This pushes us to work to maintain our families, to put bread into our mouths with dignity. If we do not work, how can we live with dignity? Who will cover our expenses? The Ministers? The reformers? The ILO? We think that nobody will really assume responsibility for the overall development of 62% of the overall child population in Peru: children like us, who face poverty with dignity. We therefore think it is irresponsible to speak so openly and intentionally about the eradication and abolition of our work, and of the persecution and detention of Nats that an increase in the minimum age for permission to work would result in. In the same way it is very irresponsible and undemocratic to make policies on childhood without first at least listening to working children (Nats).
4º.- In Latin America, a common problem is the lack of sufficient resources, so we wonder “How many years will it take to eradicate child labour that is dangerous or done in exploited conditions?”. There is no doubt at all that the forms of work that damage working children and adolescents, or expose them to inhuman treatment, should be eliminated.
5º.- The main protagonists of the debate on how to eradicate the dignified work of Nats, should not be the ministers, councillors or professionals, who only respond to a fixed political mandate, which they sometimes don't even know very well, or which sometimes contradicts their own life experiences (since in many cases even they were once working children). It is we, Nats, who should be the protagonists of this debate that we have been shut out of, and denied our right to express our opinion and to participate.
II.- Specific considerations
About work in Agriculture:
1º.- We want to take advantage of this opportunity provided by this debate to say what should be done. First, we want to say that for the Nats Movements, the true meaning of work is not limited to our economic contribution to our families. Our work makes us feel a part of society, and helps us become part of its current processes and pace. When we work in conditions that do not harm our integrity, this helps us gain individual experience and develop our capacities.
2º.- For us Nats (working children and adolescents) Movements, the work we do today is a part of our native peoples’ deeply-rooted culture and customs. The people of the Amazonian and Andean region have always considered work a heritage to be passed down from generation to generation. One of the most common forms of work in Latin America is naturally agriculture. It is one of the activities most closely linked to our traditions, and it is therefore normal for a child of the Amazonian and Andean regions to be involved in agriculture.
3º.- It is necessary to guarantee that these children have the same opportunities as all other children. If these are denied them, it is not because they are workers, but because there is no real policy of equality for all. Considering the lack of a good integration policy, one cannot say that a child that works does not study. There are many children who do not work and do not study. This is not a consequence of our work, but of poor policies implemented in our country and in the region.
4.- For many of us children who come from rural regions, the countryside is a place of learning. It is our first contact with nature, and our way of learning consists in helping our parents in their daily work. This is the part of our daily family life. When many of us who were working in the fields migrate to the city, we find ourselves in a harsher world of exploitation and abuse in the workplace. This must be combated.
6º.- If we eliminate agricultural work, we eliminate the customs, culture and traditional learning methods of many populations. By eliminating, things will not get better. We must remember that no form of education can ever reach its fundamental goals without first preparing a person for work, and without permitting or promoting creative and recreational skills useful for a working child in the outside world. Work education creates the essential conditions for human empowerment in all its dimensions. These must be free and liberating forms of work, not alienating work that serves the market alone and is an instrument of subjugation. (Salazar Bondy, 1976).
7.- This year the aim is to eliminate child labour in agriculture- considered by the ILO as one of the most dangerous work sectors, at par with work in mines and in the construction sector. But the comparison of agriculture to these sectors is another epistemological trap of the ILO. Agriculture is not well defined, and the result is a negative public opinion, with a distorted view of what the different forms of agricultural labour are really like. We again reject such opinions, because we believe it is a campaign against our culture, our way of life and the autonomy of Andean and Amazonian societies, and of our country. We should not forget that in the past and present reality of many rural areas of our country, child work is not only part of an economic strategy for survival, but a part of social dynamics, because children are integrated into society as social actors that are crucial to community development.
These are our comments, we hope these will be useful. Thank you.
Yim Rodríguez Sampértegui
MNNATSOP's National Delegate
COMMENT BY MANTHOC
Some Considerations on the work of Nats and the ILO
In the case of Peru, the majority of children and adolescents of rural areas work on their own farm, and very few work with other employers outside of their family. They also work in pastoral farming, and these activities are done by all children, youths, adults and old people of the community, without distinction, as part of their daily life and culture. It is a part of their learning and socialization process. The tasks they perform are assigned according to their age and physical capacities. Children start by selecting seeds, and as they grow, they shell corn, carry water, participate in harvesting, etc.
At the same time, this work is a form of mutual help for the family and the community, where the tasks are divided between the farm, the family and in other common spaces.
The majority of children and adolescents of rural areas attend schools that have only one teacher, or have to walk for many hours to reach an educational centre. For this reason it cannot be said that they leave school because they have to work in the fields or in other places. We should not hide the real problem, which in this case is bad quality education; that instead of attracting Nats to the educational system, pushes them to abandon it, because they do not see its usefulness.
MANTHOC recognizes the value of Andean working children and adolescents that work in forms of agricultural work that do not jeopardize their health, nor prevent them from going to school, nor prevent them from becoming responsible people and protagonists of individual and collective history.
Lima, September 10, 2007