Human Trafficking in [Ethiopia] [other countries]Street Children in [Ethiopia Child Prostitution in [Ethiopia] [other countries] |
Prevalence, Abuse & Exploitation of Street Children In the
early years of the 21st Century - 2000 to 2010 gvnet.com/streetchildren/Ethiopia.htm
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CAUTION: The following links and accompanying text have been culled
from the web to illuminate the situation in ***
FEATURED ARTICLE *** Steady increase in street children orphaned by AIDS Indrias Getachew,
BAHR DAR, www.unicef.org/infobycountry/ethiopia_30783.html [accessed 12 May 2011] “The street has been my home since I can
remember. It’s been more than one year since I moved here (Bahr Dar) and all
this time, I have not seen one good thing about living on the street.
Everything is horrible,” says 14-year-old Mandefro Kassa, who grew up as an orphan on the streets of Woreta, a provincial town in Ethiopia. ***
ARCHIVES *** UNICEF – www.unicef.org/infobycountry/ethiopia.html [accessed 12 May 2011] The Department of Labor’s 2004 Findings on the Worst Forms
of Child Labor www.dol.gov/ilab/media/reports/iclp/tda2004/ethiopia.htm [accessed 4 February 2011] INCIDENCE
AND NATURE OF CHILD LABOR - In urban areas, children work predominantly in the informal sector
in activities such as street peddling, messenger service, shoe shining, portering, assisting taxi drivers... Human Rights Reports » 2005
Country Reports on Human Rights Practices www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2005/61569.htm [accessed 4 February 2011] CHILDREN - The government estimated the
number of street children totaled 150 to 200 thousand, with approximately 50
to 60 thousand street children in Concluding Observations of the Committee on the Rights of
the Child (CRC)[DOC] UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1 November 2006 [accessed 4 February 2011] [69] The Committee is deeply concerned at the
increasing number of street children, especially in major urban centres, who are also victims of drug abuse, sexual
exploitation, harassment and victimization by members of the police
force. Furthermore, the Committee is
concerned at the stigmatization of street children and negative attitudes in
society towards them based upon their social condition. Concluding Observations of the Committee on the Rights of
the Child (CRC) UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, 26 January 2001 www1.umn.edu/humanrts/crc/ethiopia2001.html [accessed 4 February 2011] [74] The Committee is concerned at
the large numbers of children living or working on the streets of the main
cities in the State party, and at their lack of access to education, health
care, essential nutrition and housing. The Committee is also concerned at the
numbers of children involved in child labor. Sticking its red nose in where it matters Angela Robson, The Times, March 11, 2009 www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/africa/article5883542.ece [accessed 12 May 2011] Fourteen-year-old Tegan has been attending the school for the past year.
Every night he sleeps under a stairwell in the city centre, cuddling up with
a group of 20 other boys to keep warm. He came to Awasa
when his mother died and his father remarried. He gets up early to beg, rarely
eats breakfast before school and hides his class books under a pavement slab
so that they won't be stolen. Unlike the other children in the
school, he looks clean and washed, and his uniform is immaculate. “That's
because I wash it once a week in the river,” he says with pride. “I have to
keep clean as I can't afford to miss school.” Getachew
Zewdie says that Tegan is
a highly intelligent child who will flourish, providing he keeps attending
classes. “He has huge challenges as a
street child, but is a remarkable boy who seems to be able to rise above his
social situation. Many of the other children here have huge problems - they
regularly fall sick or turn up late. Tegan has some
kind of inner strength and inspires the others.” Tegan,
himself, says that his dream is “to become someone and support myself either
as a doctor or teacher”. But this is not all he wants. “My friends on the street pretend
to be strong but sometimes I see them crying at night. Life shouldn't have to
be like this. I'd like things to change for them.” Understanding Poverty's Impact on Children Sisay Abebe,
Inter Press Service News Agency IPS, www.ipsnews.net/africa/nota.asp?idnews=43836 [accessed 12 May 2011] When the school bell rings, Alemtsehay and her three younger sisters rush home to
change out of their school uniforms and into tattered clothes to go out
begging around For Alemtsehay,
begging is degrading but she has no other alternative to get money, feed the
family and keep herself in school. At night they are harassed by men who want
to use them for sex, thus exposing them to HIV. Genet's story: A life on the streets BBC News, 20 November 2007 news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/africa/7103290.stm [accessed 12 May 2011] Violence and sexual abuse within
the home are among the main reasons children run away to live on the streets,
according to a report, the State of the World's Street Children, published by
a coalition of charities. In Ethiopia, an estimated 150,000
children live on the streets. The story of Genet, now living in a safehouse in Addis Ababa, is similar to those of many
such children, especially girls. A glimmer of hope in Ethiopia Ronan Scully, www.goalusa.org/newsroom/galwayindependent0307.shtml [accessed 23 September 2011] There are twice as many Ethiopians
hungry today as there were during the 1984 famine when one million people
starved. This uneasy truth means that,
every year, up to eight million people, twice the population of Ethiopia receives the most relief
aid but the least development aid in the world. More than 80,000 children die from malaria
each year. Untreated mosquito nets cost just €2 and treated mosquito nets
cost only €5. Average life expectancy
is 44 years, infant mortality is at 20 per cent and unemployment rests around
80 per cent. Most of the 75 million
people who live in Ethiopia survive on less than 50 cents a day. There are over seven million
orphans and close to half a million street children. Dancing to a better future in Ethiopia Elana Ringler,
Reuters, uk.reuters.com/article/2007/03/28/us-ethiopia-dancing-idUKL2658612120070328 [accessed 12 May 2011] At the age of 12, Jemal was one of 18 street children picked by the troupe
to receive dance instruction in one of the world's poorest countries. After five years of intensive training, Jemal became a world renowned professional contemporary
dancer, receiving the prestigious Rolex Mentor and Protege
Arts Initiative award for his choreography. Committee on Rights of Child examines report of Ethiopia UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, Press Release,
12 Sep 2006 At one time this article had been archived and may
possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 12 May 2011] There were some issues related to
detention of street children and in connection with some arrests that had
taken place in recent times, the delegation said. The law was clear that if the
police were to detain a person, they had to be taken before the courts in 48
hours. There was also a policy of habeas corpus on which the law was very
clear. With regards to the detention of children in various incidents of
recent civil unrest, there had been supervision by the courts and the
prosecution, with the result that some of these schoolboys had had their
prosecution dropped and the suspects had been released. There were a lot of
street-children in Addis Ababa, and they were not detained merely because
they were street-children. Woman sells possessions to build a children's home in
Ethiopia Rosanne Zammit, Oromia Times, December 29, 2006 oromiatimes.blogspot.com/2006/12/woman-sells-possessions-to-build.html [accessed 12 May 2011] Work on a home for sick street
children in The primary objective of the
Angels Children's Home is to provide care and support for about 25 sick
street children by creating a nurturing environment where the children can
live together as a family. Child Prostitution in www.childexploitation.org/prostitution3.html [Last access date unavailable] "I've been working on the
street for 3 years because I had a conflict with my parents. My stepfather
used to get drunk and beat us. Also, he used to favour
my sister who is his real daughter. I met some girls on the street and I
began to get close with them. I became friends with them, and we're still
friends. Two of the older girls used to work and give us the money to live.
All I used to think about was my family, but these people were good to me so
I followed them. I was really hurt by my family experience and these people
were nice to me. Goal activities - Sep 2006 GOAL, 20 Sep 2006 At one time this article had been archived and may
possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 12 May 2011] In pictures: Underground children BBC News, Jun 12, 2006 news.bbc.co.uk/2/shared/spl/hi/picture_gallery/06/africa_underground_children/html/1.stm [accessed 13 May 2011] IN HIDING - Blink and you will miss the
underground children in Child Protection: Street Children Angel Tabe, Voice of ovcs.blogspot.com/2006/06/in-pictures-underground-children.html [accessed 13 May 2011] Assefa Bequele
is the executive director of the African Policy Forum, an advocacy center in Babies are booming export in the land of 5m orphans Jonathan Clayton in www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/africa/article1083164.ece [accessed 4 February 2011] There are estimated to be 50,000
street children in the centre of Arrive. Make a Scene. Take A Photo. Leave May 20, 2006 – Source: noyau.com/%7Erwalsh/wordpress/?p=77 This article has been archived by World Street Children
News and may possibly also be accessible [here] [accessed 23 September 2011] The main reason I did not want to
attract attention is because the Federal Police are notorious for treating
street kids inhumanely, and I did not want them to find these kids’ shelter.
They would no doubt run them off, and the boys would be in an even worse
position. Steady increase in street children orphaned by AIDS Indrias Getachew,
BAHR DAR, www.unicef.org/infobycountry/ethiopia_30783.html [accessed 12 May 2011] “The street has been my home since
I can remember. It’s been more than one year since I moved here (Bahr Dar)
and all this time, I have not seen one good thing about living on the street.
Everything is horrible,” says 14-year-old Mandefro Kassa, who grew up as an orphan on the streets of Woreta, a provincial town in Ethiopia. Poverty hits hard on Panafrican News Agency PANA, www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-9754199_ITM [accessed 13 May 2011] Their personal accounts of survival
in poverty are emotionally gripping and profoundly disgusting, yet Background
Report On Street Children In Hilletework Mathias, Voice of www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/news/2000/01/000107-ethiopia1.htm [accessed 13 May 2011] UNICEF estimates that there are
more than 150-thousand street children in the country and economic problems
have made many of them assume responsibilities normally reserved for
adults. Their ages range mostly
between eight and 20. They include
orphaned, disabled, neglected, and abandoned children all over the
country. They can be seen on any day,
wearing torn clothes, roaming barefoot, and begging motorists and pedestrians
in Circus
In Henriëtte Emaar,
The Power of Culture, Current Affairs, May 2004 www.powerofculture.nl/uk/current/2004/may/circus.html [accessed 13 May 2011] The circus is more than performing
feats. Street children and AIDS orphans there are trained as performers, and
their songs deal with topics including AIDS and children's rights. Focus on
the Plight of Street Children UN Integrated Regional Information Networks IRIN, www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?reportid=29736 [accessed 13 May 2011] Surviving on scraps from garbage
she soon became sick, her stomach infested with worms and her skin and hair
riddled with lice. But Frehiwot is lucky. She is
described as a success story – plucked from the streets of UN Integrated Regional Information Networks IRIN, www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?reportid=48799 [accessed 13 May 2011] MORE THAN HALF A MILLION STREET
CHILDREN - Aid
agencies estimate nearly 600,000 street children country-wide and over
100,000 in Information about Street Children - This report is taken from “A Civil Society Forum for East
and Southern Africa on Promoting and Protecting the Rights of Street
Children”, 11- 13 February 2002, At one time this article had been archived and may
possibly still be accessible [here] [accessed 23 September 2011] CONSTRAINTS AND CHALLENGES - Extreme level of poverty cannot
be easily tackled with piecemeal program activities; rural/urban disparities
and the prevalence of traditional practices and customs in rural areas;
Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs does not have adequate resources and
capacity to address the ever-increasing problems of children. Cruel and Inhumane Actions Against Street Children in Children's Rights Programme,
World Organisation Against Torture OMCT Case ETH 080501.CC, Child Concern,
8/5/2001 www.omct.org/rights-of-the-child/urgent-interventions/ethiopia/2001/05/d15284/ [accessed 13 May 2011] Brief description of the situation
The International Secretariat of
OMCT has been informed by the Ethiopian Human Rights Council (EHRCO), a
member of the OMCT network, that the government is engaged in cruel and
inhumane actions against street children in Addis Ababa. Due to the recent conflict between
Eritrea and Ethiopia, children who do not have parents or economically strong
relatives to support them are forced to discontinue their education. The
streets, churches, mosques, bus and taxi stations of cities in According to the information
received, as of February 2001, the government tried to solve this problem by
rounding them up, taking them to and abandoning them to hyenas and other wild
animals in forests outside the city. A number of the children that EHRCO has
been able to interview reported that some of their friends, especially the
very young and weak, which had been taken with them to these forests, have so
far not returned. 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 [Ethiopia] [other countries]Street Children in [Ethiopia Child Prostitution in [Ethiopia] [other countries]