Human Trafficking in [Afghanistan] [other countries]Street Children in [Afghanistan Child Prostitution in [Afghanistan] [other countries] |
Prevalence, Abuse & Exploitation of Street Children In
the early years of the 21st Century -
2000 to 2010 gvnet.com/streetchildren/Afghanistan.htm
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CAUTION: The following links and accompanying text have been culled
from the web to illuminate the situation in *** FEATURED
ARTICLES *** Children Try to Make a Living on Afghan Streets Soraya Sarhaddi
Nelson, National Public Radio NPR, January 30, 2008 www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=18525484 [accessed 27 March 2011] On any given day in the towns and
cities of In Kabul's trendy Shahre-Naw neighborhood, 10-year-old Jamal, a waif of a salesman
in faded pink boots, is hawking gum for about 20 cents. Determined to score a
sale, no matter what, he chases after pedestrians and darts in and out of
snarled traffic. "I'm a little
scared of the cars," he says. "One hit me coming the wrong way down
the street. But I wasn't hurt too bad." Deborah Orr, The Independent, 15 May 2008 [accessed 27 March 2011] Three-quarters of Afghans are
almost completely illiterate. Among widows, the proportion is much higher. In
the old days, it was incumbent on the families of the husbands to look after
the widows. Whatever one might think of the practice, in theory, at least, it
provided security for vulnerable people. But this is just one part of the
social fabric that has collapsed, with nothing to mitigate that loss or
replace it. There are too many widows now, too many fatherless children.
Widows cast out from the homes of their in-laws, and their children, have
nothing, not even a surname. The mother of these girls has
hands too stiff to work the threads and she leaves them at the loom while she
works as a laundress. A trader has supplied the girls with a loom, brought
them wool, tools and patterns, and shown them what to do. It takes the four
of them 10 days to complete a square metre, for
which they are paid 1,200 Afghanis per metre
(US$24/£12). For the horror of their labour,
and the misery of their stolen childhoods, the children count themselves
lucky. ***
ARCHIVES *** UNICEF - www.unicef.org/infobycountry/afghanistan.html [accessed 27 March 2011] The Department of Labor’s 2004 Findings on the Worst Forms
of Child Labor www.dol.gov/ilab/media/reports/iclp/tda2004/afghanistan.htm [accessed 18 January 2011] INCIDENCE
AND NATURE OF CHILD LABOR - Children are also found working in the urban informal sector
engaged in activities such as shining shoes, begging, or rummaging for scrap
metal in the streets. Human Rights Reports » 2006
Country Reports on Human Rights Practices www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2006/78868.htm [accessed 18 January 2011] SECTION 6
WORKER RIGHTS – [d]
The law recognizes the standard legal age for work as 15, but there are
provisions for 13 and 14-year-olds to work as apprentices, provided they only
work 35 hours per week. Children under 13 may not work under any
circumstances. There was, however, no evidence that authorities in any part
of the country enforced labor laws relating to the employment of children. In
2005 UNICEF reported there was an estimated one million child laborers under
the age of 14 in the country. UNICEF estimate, at least 20 percent of primary
school age children undertake some form of work. An AIHRC report released
this year estimated that most child laborers worked as street vendors (13
percent) or shop keepers (21 percent). Other common forms of labor were
workshop hands, blacksmiths, farming, auto repair and tailoring. In cities, a
larger proportion of child laborers were involved in collecting paper, scrap
metal, and firewood; shining shoes; and begging. Some of these practices
exposed children to the danger of landmines. Eighty-six percent of child
laborers were boys, and 14 percent were girls. While no statistics exist,
children under 18 have been arrested for drug trafficking related charges.
AIHRC reported that in Kabul there were about 60,000 child laborers, the
majority of whom migrated to the city from other provinces. Many of them
worked under unscrupulous employers who subjected the children to sexual
exploitation and forced labor. UNHCR reported that many children worked on
the streets of Kabul, Jalalabad, and Mazar-i-Sharif with numbers increasing. The child labor
force was predominantly boys aged 8-14 with a smaller number of girls 8-10
years old. Human Rights Reports » 2005
Country Reports on Human Rights Practices www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2005/61704.htm [accessed 18 January 2011] SOCIETAL ABUSES AND DISCRIMINATION
- Non-Muslims faced
discrimination in schools. The AIHRC received numerous reports that students
belonging to the Sikh and Hindu faiths stopped attending schools due to
harassment from both teachers and students, and the government had not
implemented measures to protect these children. CHILDREN – The law makes education up to
the intermediate level mandatory, and provides for free education up to the
college, or bachelor's degree level. Local authorities made some progress in
school attendance. A back-to-school campaign launched by the Ministry of
Education increased school enrollment from 4.2 million children in 2003 to
over 5.2 million during the year. Since 2002 the number of girls
attending school increased by over 30 percent; however, an estimated 1.5
million school-age girls were not enrolled in classes. Some provinces had no
schools for girls to attend, and in Vivian Tan in www.unhcr.org/cgi-bin/texis/vtx/news/opendoc.htm?tbl=NEWS&id=491af71b2 [accessed 27 March 2011] Every day, Afghan children ply the
streets of There are an estimated 50,000 to
60,000 street children in the Afghan capital alone. Among them are those who
could not afford an education as refugees in Iran or Pakistan, and are unable
to go to school as returnees in Afghanistan because they have to work from
dawn to dusk to support their families.
A UNHCR-funded project is working to bring change. Online - International News Network, www.onlinenews.com.pk/details.php?id=133724 [accessed 28 March 2011] The number of beggars in the
streets of While the women beggars sitting on
different squares of the city or at some busiest locations, the children
asking for money are running after the buyers in markets and streets as well
as seeking financial help from motorists at traffic jams. The most pathetic
side of the begging in Kabul is the teenaged boys who are running after
restaurant goers no sooner did they come out of the eating and meeting
places. They are asking for financial help presenting them as orphans,
homeless, hungry and so on. Those
teenaged boys are also running after locals, but their favourite
targets are foreigners visiting shopping centres
and hotels. They usually position themselves between the foreigners and the
doors of their cars. Pop star helping Bilal Sarwary,
BBC News, news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/7499407.stm [accessed 28 March 2011] BREAD-WINNERS - According to the United
Nations, there are 37,000 street children in Ajmal - a witty 13-year-old who
enthusiastically sells gum on the outskirts of Kabul - says his biggest wish
is that he could attend school.
"My family relies on my work," he says. "So I try to
sell as much as I can. I wish I could focus more on my school, but I can't
afford to." There are also many
who do not work and provide for their mothers and siblings by begging. Like Hussain, 14,
for whom begging is an accepted fact of life. He would attend school if he
could, but instead spends 10 hours a day begging on the streets of
Kabul. "I tried to work," he
says "so my family could live an honourable
life, but my boss at the shop paid me very little. I tried a few other jobs,
but finally I decided to beg. Deborah Orr, The Independent, 15 May 2008 [accessed 27 March 2011] Three-quarters of Afghans are
almost completely illiterate. Among widows, the proportion is much higher. In
the old days, it was incumbent on the families of the husbands to look after
the widows. Whatever one might think of the practice, in theory, at least, it
provided security for vulnerable people. But this is just one part of the social
fabric that has collapsed, with nothing to mitigate that loss or replace it.
There are too many widows now, too many fatherless children. Widows cast out
from the homes of their in-laws, and their children, have nothing, not even a
surname. The mother of these girls has
hands too stiff to work the threads and she leaves them at the loom while she
works as a laundress. A trader has supplied the girls with a loom, brought
them wool, tools and patterns, and shown them what to do. It takes the four
of them 10 days to complete a square metre, for
which they are paid 1,200 Afghanis per metre
(US$24/£12). For the horror of their labour,
and the misery of their stolen childhoods, the children count themselves
lucky. U.N. says half of Afghan children not in school Jonathon Burch, Reuters, uk.reuters.com/article/2008/04/21/uk-afghan-education-idUKISL19022420080421 [accessed 28 March 2011] "In Children Try to Make a Living on Afghan Streets Soraya Sarhaddi
Nelson, National Public Radio NPR, January 30, 2008 www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=18525484 [accessed 27 March 2011] On any given day in the towns and
cities of In Kabul's trendy Shahre-Naw neighborhood, 10-year-old Jamal, a waif of a
salesman in faded pink boots, is hawking gum for about 20 cents. Determined
to score a sale, no matter what, he chases after pedestrians and darts in and
out of snarled traffic. "I'm a
little scared of the cars," he says. "One hit me coming the wrong
way down the street. But I wasn't hurt too bad." Speaker opens window on life in Afghanistan Dave Benjamin, Tri-Town News, tritown.gmnews.com/news/2007-09-13/Front_Page/004.html [accessed 28 March 2011] The landscape and the people are
diverse, confusing, beautiful and controversial," Isaac said of Sardar Ahmad, Agence
France-Presse AFP, June 09, 2007 www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2007%5C06%5C09%5Cstory_9-6-2007_pg4_22 [accessed 28 March 2011] “I was selling eggs. I fell over.
My eggs smashed,” the five-year-old whimpers quietly. “I’ve lost 50 afghanis (one dollar), my mother will kill me.” Each day Shakir
invests the equivalent of a dollar to buy eggs that he drops on a dirty
footpath. He then sits miserably in front of them and tells his story in the
hope of attracting donations. Shakir’s trick reflects the competitive
world of child beggars in Kabul, a city clogged by a population of around
four million people that exploded after the 2001 fall of the Taliban regime
led exiles home and jobseekers to the capital. According to surveys by the UN
children’s organisation, UNICEF, there are 50,000
to 60,000 street children in Kabul, said the UN Afghanistan spokesman Aleem Siddique. Teaching David Foster, Al Jazeera, english.aljazeera.net/news/asia/2007/05/200852518557349231.html [accessed 28 March 2011] "Don't you recognise me," he asked? "I was one of your
students at Aschiana. Now I am finishing my
studies, learning computers and earning money. I am not a beggar any
more." The Aschiana
project in Kabul helps less than one in ten of the city's street children.
But it does offer those there something they can't
find anywhere else. When they finish
class they may go back to begging to support their families, but they do so
knowing that tomorrow will bring more knowledge and with it perhaps a way
out. Children work the streets to support families UN Integrated Regional Information Networks IRIN, www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=64363 [accessed 28 March 2011] Ahmad Wali,
9, is combing the rubbish dump for soda cans to sell as a way to support his
11-member family in the Afghan capital, "I have to work hard as my
father lost his job and it has become very difficult for us to get by and pay
the monthly rent for our house," he explained. The Associated Press AP, This article has been archived by World Street Children
News and may possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 20 September 2011] Fawad's mornings are spent selling apples
or red pomegranates, which can net him up to $8 (€6.22) a day. His afternoons are dedicated to his
future. That's when the teenager
studies carpentry at a vocational training center sponsored by the Social
Affairs Ministry. Fawad is one of 37,000 young
Afghans taking part in some kind of job education across the country, said
Mohammad Ghous Bashiri, a
deputy minister. Some working children say they
also cannot take time to go to the training centers. "My father is
dead," Ahmed Shafiq, 13, said while selling
plastic bags on a crowded street. "And I have my mother and three
sisters I have to support." Ron Synovitz, Radio Free
Europe/Radio www.rferl.org/content/article/1073313.html [accessed 28 March 2011] WORKING TO GET BY - The United Nations says that
more than 60,000 school-aged children now work on the streets of Nassrullah is a 7-year-old boy who burns
small bits of coal in a tin can at a Kabul park in the belief that the smoke
will protect people from curses and bring them good luck. In return, some
people give Nassrullah a small amount of money. But
others simply turn away, annoyed at the smell of the smoke. "I make 100 to 150 afghanis (around $2-$3) in a day," Nassrullah says. "Half of that I give to my father.
The rest I give to my mother. My father is unable to work, so I am obliged to
do this. I also buy bread for them. I leave home every day at 7:00 or 8:00 in
the morning to do this. Street Children on the Rise in Jeff Swicord, Voice of www.wwenglish.com/en/voa/stan/2006/11/2006111615168.htm [accessed 28 March 2011] Take a walk through the crowded
markets of Shahram Vahdany,
The American Chronicle, October 07, 2006 www.americanchronicle.com/articles/view/14436 [accessed 28 March 2011] SV - What's the situation for children? Are they able
to go to school or do they have to work? AB - You certainly see alot
of child labor. You see them on the streets of Kabul, in Herat. I was working
with this organization called 'Voice of Women Organization’ and they were
putting in a grant to try to get some projects for Herat street children and
the project wasn't totally to take them out of work because they needed to be
able to work to help their family to survive but it was to provide them with
education half time and try to provide some field training so that they could
get better jobs, safer jobs. It's true that the schools reopened, which is a
wonderful advancement over the Taliban, but if you actually look at the
numbers there may be 5 million children back to school but the numbers of
children in Afghanistan is more than 15 million. UN Integrated Regional Information Networks IRIN, www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?reportid=61710 [accessed 28 March 2011] ASIA IRIN-AS WEEKLY ROUND-UP 90 16
- 22 SEPTEMBER 2006 -
As Afghanistan struggles to consolidate its hard-won peace following nearly
three decades of brutal civil war and internal strife, young boys and girls
in the country's capital expressed hopes for a brighter future at a hilltop
ceremony on Thursday, with the children flying kites and balloons inscribed
with personal messages of peace. Over 50 children from Ashiana,
a local school for orphans and street children in Kabul, participated in the
event organised by the United Nations Assistance
Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) to mark the International Day of Peace (21
September). Don Speich, Marin Independent
Journal, 08/20/2006 www.marinij.com/marin/ci_4210760 [accessed 28 March 2011] "Students wanted to do
homework, even the street children," she said, explaining that these
children are mostly of parents who cannot work because of injuries suffered
during the various conflicts that have crippled the country for so long. Spike in violence could herald imminent Afghan success Canwest News Service, MAY 11, 2006 www.canada.com/nationalpost/news/story.html?id=c6594164-b1d4-49e1-8876-941e4472238d&k=40999 [accessed 28 March 2011] The school is actually one of six
that carry the Aschiana name, meaning
"nest." Those schools serve a total of 3,000 students plucked off
the streets by outreach workers, said Sigrid de Jong,
the acting director at the school. "Our vocational training
takes in students up to 28 years old," said de Jong,
an Australian volunteer. "Students here study computers, welding,
plumbing, sewing, embroidery, hygiene, reading and writing, music, art and
even photography. We figure if we can give them a few skills we can get these
kids off the street." Focus on
UN Integrated Regional Information Networks IRIN, www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?reportid=18162 [accessed 28 March 2011] Unable to provide food for her six
young children, Ehsan's mother sent him and his
brother into the streets of The Brave Children Of Richard Miron in news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/from_our_own_correspondent/1769008.stm [accessed 28 March 2011] The street children are sheltering
from the chill - huddling in doorways. One boy I often see charging around
near the BBC office covers his head with his ragged and blackened jacket to
give himself some relief from the cold.
There are numerous children who wait outside the door of the office
hoping for some work. Most of them are shoeshine boys. They all have similar tales - a father dead
either from the war or illness, numerous brothers and sisters, and a family
dependent on their meager earnings for their daily bread. Poverty
forces children to quit school to work UN Integrated Regional Information Networks IRIN, www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?reportid=24406 [accessed 28 March 2011] While millions of Afghan children
have returned to school following the collapse of the Taliban regime in late
2001, tens of thousands of school-age youngsters, restricted by economic
hardship, must still work on the streets of the Afghan capital, Behind the Clouds: A Umberto Angelucci, Unification
News, April 2002 www.tparents.org/UNews/Unws0204/irff_afghan.htm [accessed 28 March 2011] The problem of street children in UN Envoy
Urges Major Investment in Children and Youth of Office of the Special Representative of the
Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, United Nations, www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=2846&flag=news [accessed 28 March 2011] ·
1 out of every 3 children (over 1 million children) have lost one or
both parents ·
20% of children die before their first birthday, mostly from
preventable diseases ·
50% of children suffer from chronic malnutrition ·
About half the 200,000 landmine victims are children ·
An estimated 2 million children were uprooted by war ·
50,000 street children in Afghanistan: a country rocked by turmoil, a people
devastated by drought care.ca/main/?en&FloraMacDonald&PHPSESSID=9ce77bb41c33d7599e46a79e49b5f00a [access date unavailable] STREET CHILDREN - In the streets of ASCHIANA - Aschiana,
a program supported by CARE Afghanistan and the Canada Fund, is designed to
assist these street children. In between work stints, these children come to
the Aschiana "campuses" (there are four
such "campuses" in Kabul) where, in addition to basic instruction
in literacy and numeracy, they are taught
revenue-producing skills in pottery, bicycle repair, car repair. Kabul street children to benefit from new partnership with
UNICEF United Nations Children's Fund UNICEF, www.reliefweb.int/rw/rwb.nsf/db900SID/KHII-6DF3GM?OpenDocument [accessed 28 March 2011] Nearly 1,000 street working
children in the Afghan capital of Real
lives - Junko Mitani, United Nations
Children's Fund UNICEF, Nangarhar, 16 August 2004 www.unicef.org/infobycountry/afghanistan_23051.html [accessed 28 March 2011] [Photo Caption] With UNICEF support, the NGO “Solidarité Afghanistan Belgium” (SAB) is running a
successful program for 500 former child soldiers and street children. These
boys are learning to become electrical technicians. All material used herein
reproduced under the fair use exception of 17 USC § 107 for noncommercial,
nonprofit, and educational use. PLEASE
RESPECT COPYRIGHTS OF COMPONENT ARTICLES.
Cite this webpage as: Patt, Prof. Martin, "Street Children - |
Human Trafficking in [Afghanistan] [other countries]Street Children in [Afghanistan Child Prostitution in [Afghanistan] [other countries]