‘Only 10,000 children removed from hazardous jobs in 10 years’

They were speaking at a press conference in Dhaka last week, organised by South Asia Initiative to End Violence against Children (SAIEVAC), on behalf of Ministry of Women and Children Affairs and in collaboration with International Labor Organization. Joint Secretary of MoWCA and National Coordinator of SAIEVAC Dr Md Aminul Islam, Director General of SAIEVAC Dr Rinchen Chophel, Executive Director of INCIDIN Bangladesh AK Masud and Professor of Development Studies at the University of Dhaka Dr Kazi Maruful Islam were present. Dr Md Aminul Islam said a new comprehensive law has been formulated to ban all forms of violence and punishment against children and to remove children from hazardous jobs. He said under the National Plan of Action the ministry was working to promote adoption, implementation and monitoring of integrated strategy with adequate budgets and resource allocation. The government provided parents with financial supports to remove their children from hazardous jobs and send them to school, he said. But according to a study conducted by Prof Dr Kazi Maruful Islam, an increasing number of children are becoming engaged with leather sector because payments are higher there than other alternative jobs. He said at the Hazaribagh tanneries around 4,000 children have been engaged and almost 35% of their family income come from there. “So it is very difficult to shift them from this risky job.” Dr Aminul Islam said jointly MoWCA and SAIEVAC are trying to create alternative jobs for the children engaged in hazardous jobs. In his speech report, Director General SAIEVAC Dr Rinchen Chophel said: “SAIEVAC is working with MoWCA to protec children from major five explorations like early marriage, child labour, child abuse, child trafficking and corporate punishment.”