By Amity Hsieh, YAIC Weekly
March 11, 2013
a
puppet into a real boy.
And, truth be told, we all seem to be familiar with the
story line, realizing the blue fairy will eventually grant Pinocchio his
request.
A bit further down to Uganda, where children are suffering from a threat of a malicious rebel army, and the government soldiers.
To learn more about the issue, please visit
When
we were little and about the age of 5, some of us might already get sick of the
Disney movie “Pinocchio” - a movie once dramatically and drastically turned
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| rapgenius.com |
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cartoon-excellence.com
|
But the blue fairy is often busy
nowadays.
She forgets to listen to some of the
children’s wishes…even when they sing,
“When you wish upon a star Makes no difference who you are
Anything your heart desires Will come to you”
Anything your heart desires Will come to you”
far
away from the places we often see miracles.
Children in Meghalaya
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| en.wikipedia.org |
Children
in Meghalaya, India are little miners, digging coal in unbearable darkness
where hope is not easily ignited. They managed to feed their family by laboring
over $37 to $74 a week with tears and sweat.
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| www.thejakartaglobe.com |
The issue of child labor is heated
and widely discussed. “It’s our implementation that’s the problem.” said
Vandhana Kandhari, a child protection specialist at UNICEF. (Sources from the
NY times)
Corruption
often involves in cases like this, and exploitation of labor along with
trafficking is no longer rare among these children. Some of them are forced to
work, while others choose to do so in order to save their family.
A
Research Study in 2004 Conducted by Impulse reveals several facts based on the
issue of child labor in Shilong, Meghalaya. Major findings are collected as
below.
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| www.thejakartaglobe.com |
The
majority of child laborers are between 11 and 14 years of age. Seventy-one
percent of the children self-reported as being literate. Only 24 percent of
those interviewed reported coming from rural families. The majority (52.82 percent)
of children earn between Rs. 10-50 per day. Half of the children were satisfied
with their current position, but the other half were not.
Health
problems identified include cough, tuberculosis, skin diseases, anaemia,
physical growth retardation, and other deficiencies. A large majority (89
percent) have an addictive habit such as chewing betel nuts, smoking, dendrite
sniffing, and consuming alcohol.
The large
majority (94 percent) reported they had never been arrested.
United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF)
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www.ghananewsagency.org
|
United Nations Children’s Fund
(UNICEF) is guided under the Convention on the Rights of the Child and its’
mission is to advocate for the protection of children’s rights, to help meet
their basic needs and to expand their opportunities to reach their full
potential.
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| (UNICEF) |
Apparently, the child labor in Meghalaya violates the convention.Yet, the profit always keeps a business going. Laws can even find themselves lost in the intersection where money and human rights meet.
Children in Uganda
A bit further down to Uganda, where children are suffering from a threat of a malicious rebel army, and the government soldiers.
.svg.png) |
| en.wikipedia.org |
Children
were forced to separate from their beloved ones and left places where their
ancestors had settled and lived for generations when the rebel appeared. Many were
killed and the rest was awaiting help as well as salvation from their government.
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When
the government soldiers arrived, the sun seemed to be brighter again. However,
the sun disappointed the Ugandan at last and burned them to death.
It
still puzzles the Ugandan that the government soldiers would harm, rape, and
kill them for the sake of money, only because the soldier are not well-paid by
the government.
Children in Meghalaya lose their right to protection from harmful influences, abuse and exploitation. And children in Uganda sacrifice their right to survival.
Are we, or are we not, protecting these children?
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www.cbtrust.org.uk
|
UNICEF now in 2013 supports the right of every child by registering their birth
Registering a child’s birth is a focal
step towards safeguarding a child’s protection by establishing an official
identity, a recognized name and a nationality.
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| (IMDB) |
UNICEF is now working with
governments and partners worldwide to register children’s birth, with the
further aim of protecting children from child labor, forcible conscription,
child marriage, trafficking and facing trial as an adult.
Anthony Lake, the executive director
of UNICEF put,
“We must count every child because
every child counts.”
We are hoping the new policies and
resolutions within a nation or globally may gradually bear fruit.
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| www.thejakartaglobe.com |
And let the darkest hour be just before
the dawn
May the children’s hands are in ours,
“Little
puppet made of pine, awake. The gift of life is thine.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/26/world/asia/in-india-missing-school-to-work-in-the-mine.html
http://www.thejakartaglobe.com
http://www.unicef.org/crc/index_30160.html
http://www.unicef.org/protection/57929_58010.html
http://www.impulseasia.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=54
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