2011 sugar cane and child labour : reality and perspectives. · sugar cane and child labour :...

SUGAR CANE AND CHILD LABOUR :REALITY AND PERSPECTIVES.

With the kind contributions of :

Anne Trebilcock, Academic Adviser, Centre de Droit International, Université de Paris 10, Nanterre-La Défense, FranceSonja Zweegers, Publications coordinator, IREWOC, BoliviaJennifer de Boer, Programme Officer, Impulsis, NetherlandsJoel Orlando Bevilaqua Marin, Doctor’s degree in Sociology, Professor, Federal University of Santa Maria, Brazil

Survey coordinators :

Olivier Geneviève - Ethical Sugar NGO founder, Professor in Business school INSEEC Group FranceThomas Skaghammar - Fair Trade, Responsible Entrepreneurship and project management expert, Archimède Agence Solidaire

2011

Sugar cane and child labour : Reality and perspectives

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About the contributors..............................................................p.4 About Ethical Sugar................................................................... p.5 Introduction............................................................................... p.6 I. Offending Countries........................................................................p.9 a. ChildLabourinBolivia’ssugarcanesector.............................................................p.9b. Philippines:SweetHazards....................................................................................... p.15c. Kenya:childrencuttingcane....................................................................................p.20 II. Example of a Civil society campaign............................................p.21 III. Better management Practices...................................................... p.24 a. Interventionstoeradicatechildlabour fromthesugarcanesectorinBolivia.....................................................................p.24b. EradicatingchildlabourinElSalvador,BSR.........................................................p.31c. TheCocaCola/SABMillervaluechain impactsinElSalvador..................................................................................................p.35d. Thesugarcanealcoholindustryefforts incombatingchildexploitationinBrazil..............................................................p.36 Conclusion.................................................................................p.40 Bibliography and references................................................... p.45 Appendixes............................................................................... p.46

With the kind contributions of:AnneTrebilcock,AcademicAdviser,CentredeDroitInternational,UniversitédeParis10,Nanterre-LaDéfense

SonjaZweegers,Publicationscoordinator,IREWOC,BoliviaJenniferdeBoer,ProgrammeOfficer,Impulsis,Netherlands

JoelOrlandoBevilaquaMarin,Doctor’sdegreeinSociology,Professor,federalUniversityofsantaMariaSurvey coordinators:

OlivierGeneviève-EthicalSugarNGOfounder,ProfessorinBusinessschoolGroupINSEECFranceThomas Skaghammar - Fair Trade, Responsible Entrepreneurship and project management expert, Archimède

AgenceSolidaire

Contents


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3Aboutthecontributors

Anne Trebilcock,americancitizen,islivinginPariswheresheisanacademicadvisorforthe“Cen-tredeDroitInternational–UniversitédeParisX,Nanterre-LaDéfense.ShewasDirectorfortheOf-ficeofLegalServiceswithinILO(InternationalLabourOffice–aUNSpecializedAgency)inGenevafrom2005to2008.

Sonja Zweegers,fromtheNetherlands,iseditoroftheInternationalInstituteforAsianStudies(IIAS)Newsletter.ShewasthePublicationsCoordinatorof IREWOC,theFoundationfor Interna-tionalResearchonWorkingChildrenwhenthestudy“ChildLabouronSugarCanePlantationsinBolivia,aworstformofchildlabour”waswrittenin2009.

Jennifer de Boer,fromtheNetherlands,ispresentlyworkingasaProgrammeOfficerforImpulsis(ajointprogramforDutchsmallscaledevelopmentprojects.)She was the Child Rights Policy Officer forTerre des Hommes Netherlands when she wrote, in2005,thestudy“SweetHazards–ChildLabouronsugarcaneplantationsinthePhilippines”.

Joel Orlando Bevilaqua Marin isProfessorofRuralSociologyattheFederalUniversityofSantaMaria,Brazil.Hehaswrittenseveralarticlesonchildhood,youth,childlaborandagribusiness.Heisalsotheauthorofthebooks‘ChildrenofWork’and‘Childlabor:necessity,valueandsocialexclu-sion’. Surveycoordinators:Olivier GENEVIEVEisateacherofinternationalTradeinaBusinessSchool-EcoledeCommerceeuropéennedeLyon,GroupeINSEECFranceandco-founderofEthical-Sugar.

Olivier GenevièveEthicalSugarNGOfounder,ProfessorinBusinessschoolGroupINSEECFranceOlivierGENEVIEVEisateacherofinternationalTradeinaBusinessSchool-EcoledeCommerceeuropéennedeLyon,GroupeINSEECFranceandco-founderofEthical-Sugar

Thomas Skaghammar –FairTradespecialist,hewastheNationalCoordinatorfortheFrenchFair-TradePlatformfrom2000to2004.HeispresentlyanexpertinResponsibleEntrepreneurshipandprojectmanagementthrewArchimèdeAgenceSolidaire.

Joel Orlando Bevilaqua MarinisProfessorofRuralSociologyattheFederalUniversityofSantaMaria,Brazil.Hehaswrittenseveralarticlesonchildhood,youth,childlaborandagribusiness.Heisalsotheauthorofthebooks‘ChildrenofWork’and‘Childlabor:necessity,valueandsocialexclu-sion’.


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AboutEthical-Sugar4

ThisresearchwasundertakenforEthicalSugar,anNGOthatseekstoenhancedialoguewithinthesugar-ethanolindustrywithaviewtoimprovingitssocialandenvironmentalsustainability.Tradeunions,companies,civilsocietyactivistsandacademicsareallbroughttogetheraspartofthisdialogue,whichallowsEthicalSugartoconstructamoreroundedvisionofthedifferentsituationsandpositionsthatpertainintheindustry.

In 2010 Ethical sugar received the maximum score for its transparency andgovernancefromthePrometheusFoundation.

Ethical Sugar is a member of the Bonsucro (Better Sugarcane Initia-tive),theRoundtableforSustainableBiofuelsandtheSustainableEarthAlliance.EthicalSugarismemberofBonsucro,since2005.Bonsucroisaglobalmulti-stakeholdernon-profitinitiativededicatedtoreducingthe

environmentalandsocialimpactsofsugarcaneproduction.ItaimstoachievethiswithaStan-dardthatmeasurestheseimpactsaccurately,andwiththedevelopmentofasystemtocertifythatsustainablepracticesarebeingadheredto.

EthicalSugarismemberofthechamber4onHumanrightsoftheRoundtableonSustainableBiofuels,since2008.TheRoundtableonSustainableBiofuels(RSB)isan international initiativecoordinatedbytheEnergyCenteratEPFL inLausannethat brings together farmers, companies, non-governmental organizations, ex-perts, governments, and inter-governmental agencies concerned with ensuring

thesustainabilityofbiofuelsproductionandprocessing.EthicalSugarisamemberoftheCham-ber4onSocialRights.

Ethical Sugar is member of the sustainable Earth Alliance since 2008.The Sus-tainableEarthallianceisanallianceofNGOs,farmers,fishermen,researchersandother social organizations designed to help the development of more socially,

economicallyandenvironmentallysustainablesocieties.Itaddressesthefutureoftheagriculturalpopulationandfishingcommunitiesintheworld;theplaceoffoodinourincreasinglyglobalizedsocieties;sustainablemanagementofournaturalresourcesandland;andtheharmoniousdevel-opmentofourterritoriesanditsinhabitants.


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Ethical Sugar – Introduction to Survey, The Sugar Cane Industry and Child LabourAnne Trebilcock, Academic Adviser, Centre de Droit international, Université de Paris 10, Nanterre-La Défense

Boththepastandthepresentofthesugarindustryareinexorablylinkedtotheexploitationoflabour,includingchildlabour.Today,toolstocombatchildlabourrangefrominternationaltrea-tiestonationalpolicesandlocalinitiatives.Debatessurroundingcorporatesocialresponsibilityhavealsohighlightedtheimportanceofabolishingchildlabourinthevariousstepsofsugarcaneproduction.Whataretheproblemstheseinitiativesstrivetoaddress?

Childreninfamiliesofagriculturalworkersmaytakepartintheplanting,cultivation,harvestingandprimaryprocessingofsugarcane.Sometimesolderchildrenwillbeinvolvedinthefurtherprocessingofsugarcaneinmoreindustrialsettings.Suchworkcanexposechildrentosignificanthazards.Theserangefrominsectorsnakebitesinthefieldstoskincutsfromtheplantitselfor,worsestill,long-termdamagetohealthfromcontactwithpesticidesorherbicides,frominjuriescausedbysharpmachetes,knivesormachinery,orsimplyfromlonghourslabouringinthesun.Toolsandequipmentbuilttoadultspecificationsmaypresentspecialriskstosmaller,youngerandlessinexperiencedworkers.Theresultmaybelossoffingersorlimbsorevendeath.Inaddition,theseveredependencyoffamiliesofpoorsugarcaneworkersonlandownersand/orcrewleadersmayleavechildren,especiallyadolescentgirls,opentosexualexploitation.Therearealsonutri-tionalrepercussionsforsugarcaneworkers,sincesuckingonthecaneoffersimmediatequellingofhungerpains,butleadstolongertermmalnutritionanddentaldecay.Thesenutritionaleffectsaremostdeleteriousforchildren,whosegrowthmaybestunted.

Involvingchildreninsugarcaneproductionoftenexactsyetanotherprice:theyarerobbedofthechancetobeadequatelyeducatedtopursueotheroptionsinlife.Thisperpetuatespovertyfromoneuneducatedgenerationtothenext.Aggressivelytacklingpoverty,eliminatingchildlabourandexpandingeducationalopportunitiesnecessarilygohandinhand.

Suchconcernshavepromptedtheinternation-al community to act. The almost universallyratifiedInternationalConventionontheRightsoftheChild(1989)protectschildrenfromeco-nomic exploitation and from performing anyworkthatislikelytobehazardousortointer-ferewiththechild’seducation,ortobeharm-ful to the child’s health or physical, mental,spiritual,moralorsocialdevelopment(Art.32).Statesaretosetaminimumageforentryintoemployment,haveappropriateregulationsofhours and conditions of employment and fixappropriatepenaltiesorothersanctions.

5Introduction


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Buildingonearliertreatiesthathadfixedaminimumageforengaginginemploymentinvarioussectors,theMinimumAgeConvention,1973(No.138),adoptedbytheInternationalLabourOrga-nization(ILO)1,callsforpursuitofanationalpolicydesignedtoensuretheeffectiveabolitionofchildlaborandtoraisetheminimumageforadmissiontoemploymenttoalevelconsistentwiththefullestphysicalandmentaldevelopmentofyoungpersons.Thismeanssettingtheminimumageforemploymentatanagethatisnolowerthantheageatwhichcompulsoryeducationends.Ingeneraltheminimumageisfixedatage15,althoughdevelopingcountriesmayoptforage14(andforlightwork,age13).Asof23August2010,155StateshadratifiedthisConvention.

In1999,theILOadoptedanotherinstrumentthathasprovedtobeaformidableweaponinthebattleagainstexploitativechildlabour:theWorstFormsofChildLabourConvention,1999(No.182).By23August2010,172Stateshadratifiedit.Manyhaveuseditasaplatformfordevelopingnationalactionplanstoeliminatethemostsevereformsofchildlabour.Incountrieswheresugaroperationsareimportant,theseplansshouldtargetthissector.

ConventionNo.182providesguidanceforeliminatingchildlabourinthesugarindustryinsev-eralways.Firstofall,ithighlightstheurgencyofprohibitingandeliminatingtheworstformsofchildlabour.Secondly,itdefinesachildinthesamewayastheInternationalConventionontheRightsoftheChild:anypersonundertheageof18.Thirdly,itcategorizestheworstformsofchildlabourinwaysspecificallyrelevanttothesugarsector.Anyformofslaveryorsimilarpracticeisbanned;thisincludesdebtbondage,apracticefoundinsomesugar-producingcountries,wherethelabourofchildrenmaybeofferedtorepayaparent’sdebt.Furthermore,theworstformsofchildlabourinclude“workwhich,byitsnatureorthecircumstancesinwhichitiscarriedout,islikelytoharmthehealth,safetyormoralsofchildren.”(ConventionNo.183,Art.3(d)).StatesthathaveratifiedtheConventionarerequiredtoidentifythetypesofworktheyconsidertofallunderthisprovision;thiswouldincludemosttasksinsugarcanecultivationandprocessingincountrieswheretheyoccur.

Butidentificationandprohibitionareonlythefirststep.Countriesarealsoto“designandimple-mentprogrammesofactiontoeliminateasaprioritytheworstformsofchildlabour”(ILOConven-tionNo.182,Art.6).Thisistobedoneinconsultationwithrelevantgovernmentinstitutionsandemployers’andworkers’organizations,takingintoaccounttheviewofotherconcernedgroups(includingchildren,ofcourse).Theprogrammesarealsototakeaccountoftheimportanceofed-ucationineliminatingchildlabour,suchasbypreventingtheengagementofchildrenintheworstformsofchildlabour,ensuringaccesstofreebasiceducation,andnotingthespecialsituationofgirls(ILOConventionNo.182,Art.7).Enhancedinternationalcooperation,includingsupportforpovertyeradicationprogrammesanduniversaleducation,isalsoforeseen(Art.8).ProjectsliketheFoundationforInternationalResearchonWorkingChildren(IREWOC)haveanalysedtheeffective-nessofinterventionsinthesugarsector.

ThesupervisorymechanismsthatmonitorcompliancewiththeInternationalConventionontheRightsoftheChildandofILOConventionsNo.138andNo.182providesomeadditionalinsights

6

1ILO:seeappendix


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intohowtostepupeffortstoeliminateexploitativechildlabourinthesugarcaneindustry.TheindependentexpertsservingontheUNCommitteeontheRightsoftheChildhavestressedthatchildren’srightsareasharedresponsibilitybetweendevelopedanddevelopingcountries.AndwhiletheConventionrecognizesthatmeasuresaretobetakenbycountries“tothemaximumex-tentoftheiravailableresources,”itimposesanimmediateobligationtoundertaketargetedmea-suresasamatterofprioritytosatisfythecoreminimumcontentofeconomicandsocialrights.TheCommitteehasalsoencouragedthedevelopmentofchild-specific indicators thatare tiedtotime-boundtargetstohelpmeasureprogress.Suchimprovementwouldinvolvenotjustre-movingchildren fromhazardouswork in thesugar industry,butaswellprovidingalternativesforfamiliestoearnsufficientincome,betterlabourprotectionforadults,andgreatereducationalopportunitiesforthechildren.

TheILOCommitteeofExpertsontheApplicationofConventionsandRecommendations,whichmonitorstheimplementationofConventions138and182alongwithotherILOinstruments,hassimilarly encouraged countries to develop indicators of this nature. It has asked countries forinformation on theprohibition, inspectionandprosecutionofcases involving theworst formsofchildlabourintheagriculturalsectorandonplantations,aswellasonthepenaltiesactuallyimposed.Bondedorforcedlabourinvolvingchildrenisaspecialconcern.TheILO’sInternationalProgrammefortheEliminationofChildLabour(ILO-IPEC)hasaidednumerousStatestodesignandimplementstakeholder-basedTime-BoundProgrammes,normallywithsupportfrombilat-eralormultilateralinternationaldevelopmentassistance.Thesemayencompasstheremovalofchildrenfromthesetypesofactivityalongwithrehabilitationandreintegrationeffortsinvolvingthecommunity.TheIPECTrainingResourcePackontheEliminationofHazardousChildLabourinAgricultureistargetedatsmallholdingfarmers.Theincorporationoflessonslearnedfromsuchinitiativesinnationalandruraldevelopmentplansandinpovertyreductionstrategiesisparticu-larlyimportant.Forthisreason,ILO-IPECseekstopositionchildlaboureliminationatthemacro-economiclevelinthecontextofpovertyeradication,emphasizingtheneedtoassessandmonitortheextentandnatureoftheproblemandtostrengtheninstitutionalcapacities.TheResolutionconcerningstatisticsofchildlabouradoptedbythe2008ConferenceofLabourStatisticiansandILORecommendationNo.190provideadditionalpracticalguidance.

Furthermore, the International Partnership forCooperation on Child Labour in Agriculturebrings together several international organiza-tions and groups representing producers andworkerstoacttowardseffectivelyapplyingtheminimumageforworkinagriculture,prohibit-inghazardousworkforchildren,andprotectingchildrenwhohavereachedtheminimumlegalage to work by improving health and safetystandards in the sector. This group points outthat,“Akeytoreducingchildlabourinagricul-

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tureisbuildingstrongruralinstitutions,whichincludefarmers’organizationsandtradeunionstocollectivelybargaintoimproveadultincomes,wagesandlabourstandards.”Italsohighlightsprogrammes which transfer cash or food directly to households that send their children toschoolashelpingtoreducechildlabourandincreaseschoolenrolment.Dothesereachchil-dreninthisindustry?Intermsofcorporatesocialresponsibility,the2008ReportofUNSpecialRepresentativerecalledtheStatedutytoprotectagainsthumanrightsabusesbythirdparties,thecorporateresponsi-bilitytorespecthumanrightsandtheneedformoreeffectiveaccesstoremedies.Theabolitionofchildlabourisamongthehumanrightsprinciplesidentifiedinthereport,whichisbasedoninternationalinstrumentsandcasesdocumentedontheBusinessandHumanRightsResourceCentrewebsite.Todischargetheirresponsibility,companiesmusttakedue-diligencestepstobecomeawareof,preventandaddressadversehumanrightsimpacts,lookingtocoreILOCon-ventionsamongothersources.Thestepsincludeadoptingahumanrightspolicy,undertakingahumanrightsimpactassessmentthatisrelevanttotheindustry,integratinghumanrightspoli-ciesthroughoutthecompany,andmonitoringandauditingperformance.Amongtheinforma-tion-sharingtoolscompaniescanuse,thereportmentionstheGlobalCompactinitiatedbytheUnitedNations,theOECDGuidelinesonMultinationalEnterprisesandtheTripartiteDeclarationofPrinciplesconcerningMultinationalEnterprisesandSocialPolicy.TakingtheILO’scue,alloftheseinclude“theeffectiveabolitionofchildlabour”amongtheprinciplestowhichcompaniesalongthesupplychainaretoadhere.

Thesolidinternationalfoundationfortheeliminationofexploitativechildlabourinthesugarindustrycanserveasthebasis foracheck-listofpracticalmeasures forstakeholdersseekingimprovements.

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9

I- OffENDING COUNTrIES – BOLIVIA, BrAZIL, KENyA AND PhILIPPINE fOCUS

a. Child labour in Bolivia’s Sugar Cane Sector2.

ThispartdescribesthesituationofchildlabourintheSantaCruzandBermejosugarcaneregionsinBolivia,sixyearsaftertherapidevaluationconductedbyILO.IREWOCresearchwasconductedinthesameareasastheILO’srapidevaluation;itwillappearthat,despiteadiminishmentinthenumberofchildrenworkinginthesugarcaneharvest,theiractivitiescontinuetobeoneoftheworstformsofchildlabourbecauseoftheharmfulnessofthelabouractivitiesaswellasbecauseofthelivingconditionsandtheimplicationsoftheworkforhealthandeducation.

1. Children’s activities in the harvest

Duringthe ILOresearch in2002,theyoungestparticipants intheharvest inbothBermejoandSantaCruzwerenineyearsold.TheILOresearchestimatedthatinSantaCruznearly50%wasinthe9-13agecategory,whileinBermejosome60%wouldbelongtothisgroup.OfthefulltimeharvestersinSantaCruzabout10-20%areminors.InBermejothepercentageisslightlyhigher;atleastaquarteroftheharvestersareminors,becausetherearemorehelperswhoareusuallyunder18.TheILOreportmentionedtheparticipationoftwiceasmanyboysasgirls;thisremainsunchanged.

Insomecases,adolescentboysyoungerthan18workascontractedharvesters.Theworktheydoisthesameasthatofadultharvestersandconsistsofburning,cutting,de-topping,pilingandloadingthesugarcane.Ifcontractorsignoretheagesoftheharvestersduringthehiringprocess,thenminors are likely tobeemployedona fulltimebasis.Theseadolescents,working fulltimeascontractedharvesters,earnasalaryofbetween1.000and4.000Bolivianos(100-400Euro)amonth.

Girlsareneverhiredasfulltimecontractedharvestersbecausetheworkisconsideredtooheavyforwomen.Theyareexpectedtorunthehousehold,whichwouldn’tbepossibleifworkingasafulltimeharvester.

Childrenandadolescentsaged12-17,girlsaswellasboys,workashelpers(cuartas)ofthecon-tractedharvesters;theydosoonadailybasis,inSantaCruzaswellasinBermejo.Theharvesterforwhomtheadolescentworksisusuallyafamilymemberorapersonknownfromthehometown.Usuallychildrenandyouthsworkingascuartasearnasalarybetween300and800Bolivianos(30-80Euro)permonth,butsomeofthemdon’tknowhowmuchtheywilleventuallybegiven.Help-ingoutfamilymembersisperceivedasfamilyworkforwhichminorsdon’tneedtoberewardedindividually.Theirfamilymemberswillprovidethemwithfoodandclothes,butwon’tactuallypaythemasalary.

2SeeReferences2


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Youngerboysandgirls,between7and12yearsold,whoarestillinschool,helptheirparentsinthesugarcaneharvestafterschool,intheweekendsand/orduringholidays.Thesechildrenpar-ticipateinthedifferentharvestingactivitiesaccordingtotheirageandsex.School-goingchildrenof11and12yearsoldparticipateinthesameactivitiesasolderpermanenthelperslikecutting,de-topping and stacking sugar cane, after classes or on non-school days. In Bermejo, some ofthesechildren(onlyboys)alsoparticipateintheextremelyheavytaskofmanuallyloadingsugarcaneontotheflatbedtrucks.Besidestheselabouractivities,thecuartasorthosechildrenwhohelptheirparentsafterschooldovariousactivitiesintheharvestercamp.Theyalsohelptheirmothersindifferenthouseholdchores such as washing clothes, fetching water and wood, and cooking. Adolescent girls whowork as cuartas are usually responsible for cooking and washing clothes of others, while theirmalepeersarenot.Girlsandwomenoftenworkas“pensionistas”(cooks),sometimesinadditiontotheirharvestingworkascuartas.

Theyoungestworkingboysandgirls,between7and10yearsold,inSantaCruzaswellasinBer-mejo,helpcutting,de-toppingandpilingsugarcaneonnon-schooldays,butdon’tparticipateinloadingsugarcanebecausetheyaretooyoungandnotstrongenoughyet.TheyusuallyworkalongsidetheirmothersandworkfromearlyinthemorninguntilnoononSaturdaysandduringholidays.Parentstaketheirchildrenyoungerthan7tothefieldswhenthereisnootherplacetoleavethem,forexampleonSaturdaysandduringholidays(seephoto12).Thesechildrendon’tworkintheharvestbuthangaroundontheplantationsplayingandresting.Becauseoftheex-tremeheatandburningsun,theirparentswilloftenprovideshadeintheformofamakeshifttent.

2. reasons for children to work

Thereasonstoworkvaryaccordingtothedifferentgroupsofworkingchildren.Ado-lescent boys working as contracted har-vesters as well as youths working as cu-artas,mainlywork foreconomicreasons.They come from poor regions with fewjobopportunitiesandthesugarcanehar-vestprovidesamoreorlessstableincomefor4to6monthsayear.Like15-year-oldHéctor from the Campo Grande camp inBermejosaid: ”Icameherewithaneigh-bour from my community and I work ashiscuarta.Iearn600Bolivianos[60Euro]permonthbutusuallyIonlygetpaidwhat

Ineed;attheendoftheharvestIwillgettherestofmymoney.Iamtheyoungestof8brothersandsisters;theyarenothere.Theydon’tmaintainmesoIhavetoworktoearnmoney”.

Young sugar cane harv ester in Santa Cruz Bolivia


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Whenboysgrowupand,likeHéctor,areabout14-15yearsold,theyareconsideredoldenoughtoearntheirownmoneyandcontributetothefamilyincome.Atthisage,mostyouthsdon’tat-tendschoolanymore,astheyoftenperceiveprimaryschool(until8thgrade)tobeenoughbasiceducationandstarttofeeltheneedtoworkandearnanincome.Girlsaswellasboysfromthisagegroupstartworkingfulltimeinthesugarcaneharvestashelpers;girlsalsoworkascooks.San-dra,afourteen-year-oldgirlintheOkinawa1campinSantaCruzwhohadgivenbirthtoababy2monthsearlier,usedtoworkasherhusband’shelper,cuttingsugarcane,untilaboutamonthbeforethebabywasborn.Shealsocookedforsevenotherharvesterswhostayedinthecampwithouttheirwives.EversinceSandrastoppedcuttingsugarcane,becauseofherpregnancy,shehasonlybeenworkingasacook:”TherearesevenmenIhavetocookbreakfast,lunchanddin-nerfor.Theygiveme18Bolivianos[1.80Euro]perdayforthegroceries,whichisbarelyenoughaseverythinghasbecomemoreexpensivethisyear,sointheendIdon’tearnanything.Butwhereelseshouldtheyeat?”

Forchildrenwhogotoschool inthesugarcaneregionsandhelptheirparentsonnon-schooldays,theeconomicbenefitoftheircontributionisnotthemainreasonfortheirpresence.Theyac-companytheirparentsbecausetheyhavenoplaceelsetostayduringtheharvestandonlyworkonnon-schooldaystohelpincreasetheirparents’income,becausetherearenootheractivitiesforthemonoffer.Oftenparentsleavesomeoftheirchildrenathomewithfamilymemberssotheycancontinuegoingtoschool.LikedoñaCarlafromtheOkinawa1campinSantaCruzexplained:”Myoldestthreechildrenareathome.AfewdaysagoIwentto[myhometown]Gutierreztogetmyyoungestdaughter,she is fouryearsoldandattendsachilddaycarebutthatfinished lastweek.NowshestayswithmehereinthecampwhiletheotherthreearestillinschoolinGutierrez.[…]Theyarestayingwithmybrother”.

Whenpeopledon’thavesomeonetheycanleavetheirchildrenwith,theyhavetotakethemwiththem to the harvest.The different reasons for youths to be present in the sugar cane harvest,eitherworkingornot,explaintheneedfordifferentstrategiesfortheeradicationofchildlabourfromthesector.

3. risks of child labour in the sugar cane harvest

TheworkingandlivingconditionsinthesugarcaneregionsofSantaCruzandBermejoarepre-cariousandbringabouthealthrisksfortheyouthswhoparticipateinit.Especiallytheadolescentboyswhoworkfulltimeintheharvest,eitherascontractedharvestersorcuartas,areatriskforvarioushealthproblems.Accordingto20-year-oldValentina,oneoftheharvester’swivesintheChorobicampinSantaCruz,manyaccidentsandillnessesoccurbecauseoftheworkingandlivingconditions.Shethinkswomenhavefewerhealthproblems:”Wedon’treallyhavehealthproblemsbutthemendo;theycutthemselveswiththemachete,theyfaintbecauseoftheheatorfalloffthetruckwhentheyareloadingsugarcane.Onlyyesterday,oneoftheboyshadhiseyescratchedbyaleafofthesugarcane.Thatreallyhurts…ithappenedtomeoncetoo”.


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Becausecutting,de-topping,stackingandloadingsugarcaneareheavytasks,extremetirednessisthemostprevalentconsequenceofthework.Especiallyinthelastmonthsoftheharvest,theworkerscomplainabouttheirbodiesbecomingweakerandtheythemselvesfeelingmoretiredandwantingtoreturntotheirhomes.

Theextremelyhightemperaturesof35-40degreesCelsiuscausetheharvesterstosweatexces-sivelyandlosetoomuchsalt,resultinginseverecramps.Harvestersseemtoprefernottodrinkmuch(cold)waterbecausetheybelievethistocausethecramps.Accordingtohealthworkersintheregion,peopleshouldbedrinkingclearsouporwaterwithsaltandsugartocounteracttheeffectsofthesweating.Apartfromtirednessandcramps,theyoungharvestersexperiencedifferenttypesofpainintheirbodiebecauseofthework.

ManualloadinginBermejomakesone’sshoulderhurtbecauseoftheheavypileofsugarcaneonehastocarryononeside.Thecuartaswhohelploadingcommentedthatinthebeginningtheywouldfeelpainintheirshoulders,insidethejointaswellasarawfeelingontheirskin,butthatafterafewweekstheywouldgetusedtoitandwouldn’tfeelitsomuchanymore.Mechanicalloading(seephoto13)islessheavy,butcertainlynotwithoutitsrisks.Theharvestersandcuartasstandingontopofthewagon,arrangingthesugarcane,havetotakecarethattheloadingmachinedoesn’tinjurethemorthatthesugarcanedoesn’tfallontopofthem.

Themostcommonriskofinjury,whenwork-ingintheharvest,iscuttingoneselfwiththemachete.Almostallyouthswhohavebeenworkingintheharvestforawhilehavecutthemselves at least once. Usually they cutthemselves inafootorhand;their feetareespecially vulnerable because most of theyouths(andadults)wearopensandals,leav-ing their feet unprotected. Most childrenleavetheircutstohealbythemselves.Sometimes, more serious injuries occur.Onenineteen-year-oldgirlinthePorcelana

campinBermejocalledNina, forexample,hadcutoffhalfherthumbafewweeksbefore.Shementioned:“IwasworkingwithmycuartawhenjustlikethatIcutmythumb!Ihadevenslicedthebone!Mycuartahelpedmeabitalthoughhewasveryshockedtoo,itwasbleedingalot.Weputaclotharoundmythumbandwenttothehospital,buttheycouldn’tputtheslicedpartbackonsotheyhadtotaketherestofftoo.NowIhavetogotothehospitaleverytwodaystogetcleanbandages”.Ninawasveryannoyedaboutwhathadhappenedtoherbecauseshecouldn’tcontinuetohelpherhusbandintheharvestordoanythinginthehousehold.Herincomewaslostuntilherthumbhealedagain.


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4. Educational situation of the children

Inadditiontothehealthandsafetydangersofworkinginthesugarcaneharvest,childrenandadolescents become accustomed to earning money through work and run the risk of becom-ingschooldropouts.Thecurrenteducationalsituationhas,however,improvedsignificantlycom-paredtotheonedescribedbyILOin2002.AccordingtoILO,only8.3%ofthegirlsandnoneoftheboysparticipatinginthesugarcaneharvestinSantaCruzwereinschool.InBermejo,neitherboysnorgirlsfromthemigrantcampswereattendingclasses.Currently,mostchildrenunder12yearsoldareattendingprimaryschool.Still,attendancedependsverymuchonwhetherthereisaschoolclosetothecamp.InthecentralsugarcanezoneinBermejoalmostallchildrenunder12areinschool;inthemoreremotezonesofSantaCruz,whereschoolsarefaraway,youngchildrencontinuetobeoutofschool.Adolescents inthesugarcaneharvest,whoshouldbeattendingsecondaryschoolafterhavingfinished8thgrade,alsocontinuetobeoutofschool.

Like theworksituation, theeducational situationof thechildren in thesugarcaneharvestsofSantaCruzandBermejovariesperagegroup.Onegeneralremarkisthatworkinthesugarcaneharvest ismigratory work, implying thatchildrenwhoaccompany theirparents to theharvesthavetochangeschoolsfrequently.Theymustalwayshavetheirtranscriptswiththemtoprovethattheyareenrolledatschoolintheirhometowns.Onlywiththesepaperscantheyattendclass-esatthecampschools.Somefamiliesmovefromcamptocampduringtheharvest,andsotheirchildrenmovefromschooltoschool.Teachersthushavetocopewithvaryingnumbersofpupils;thisnumbervariesalmostperweekastheharvestingfamiliescomeandgoatdifferentmomentsandchildrenfromdifferentcampsattendthesameschools.OneteacheroftheschooloppositethePrimerodeMayocampinArrozales,Bermejomentioned:”Wearethreeteachersduringtheentireyearbutthenumberofchildrenattendingclassesvariesallthetime.Beforetheharvestthereare27pupilsfromthecommunity[ofArrozales]butwhentheharveststartsthereare80to90children”.

The youngest children (0-6) usually spend their time close to their mothers although some ofthemattendthegovernmentalchildcarecenters(PAN)ifthereisoneclosetothecamp.

Mostchildrenof6yearsandolderinthecamps,gotoschool ifthereisoneavailablecloseby.InArrozales,PorcelanaandCampoGrandeinBermejothereareschoolsclosetothecampsandalmostallprimary-school-agedchildrenattendclasses.Thefactthattheyhelptheirparentsafterschoolandintheweekends,however,leavesthemlittletimetodotheirhomework;theyeitherhelptheirmotherswithhouseholdchoresinthecamporassistparentsinthefields.IntheOkina-wa1andChorobicampsinSantaCruz,ontheotherhand,thechildrenarenotinschoolbecausetheparentsconsidertheschoolstobetoofaraway.

Theolderchildrenandadolescentswhoparticipateinthesugarcaneharvestworkingascontract-edharvestersandcuartasarenotinschoolanymore.Theyworkfulltimeandhaveusuallyfinishedonlyprimaryschooluntil5thor8thgrade.Onlysomeofthemhavestartedsecondaryschoolbut


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droppedoutbeforefinishingandeven lessofthemareplanningtogobacktohighschooltograduateandmaybethencontinuetostudyatuniversity.Mostadolescentsdon’tperceivefurtherstudyasarealopportunitybecausetheycannotaffordtheenrolmentfeesorbookcosts.Zenon,ontheotherhand,asixteen-year-oldboyworkingasacontractedharvesterandstayingintheOkinawa1campinSantaCruz.Hehasonlyfinishedprimaryschooluntil6thgradeandcom-mented:”Iwouldliketoatleastfinishhighschoolandifpossiblegotouniversityaswell.Ireallydon’tliketoworkhere;theharvestisveryheavyandtiring.Idon’tknowwhatIwouldwanttostudyyet,whateverwouldbepossibleIguess,maybetobeateacheroralawyer”.

Sixteen-year-oldUriel,intheCampoGrandecampinBermejo,isagoodexampleofmanyboyswhodon’tdesiregoingbacktoschoolbecausetheyhavebecomeusedtoworkingandearningmoneyforthemselvesortheirfamilies.Urielexplained:“Istudieduntilfourthgrade:IleftwhenIwaseleven.Iamnotgoingtostudyanymorebecausethe[higherlevels]arefarawayandIdon’twanttogoanymore.Ijustwanttowork.InmyhometownIalsowork:Igrowvegetablesandtakecareofthesheep,thegoats,thepigsandthecows.[…]Intheharvesthere,Iworkwithmyfather.Hedoesn’treallypaymebutjustgivesmeclothesandstuff”.

Girlsexperiencethesamedifficultieswithcontinuedschooling.Theyoftenaccompanytheirrelativesorhusbandstoworkascuartasandgraduallyobtainmoreresponsibilitieswhenbecoming“pensionistas”:cookingfortheharvesters.Fifteen-year-oldLuisi-ana,however,fromtheCampoGrandecampinBermejo,wasverydecidedaboutherwishtocon-tinuestudyingthefollowingyear:“IhaveworkedafewyearsasacuartabutnextyearIreallywanttofinish8thgradeandthencontinuestudyinginhighschool”.Shereckonedthatifshewouldn’tgothroughwithitthefollowingyear,itwouldbetoolate.

Conclusion – Worst form of child labour

TakingintoaccounttheconditionsinwhichchildrenandadolescentsinthesugarcaneregionsinSantaCruzandBermejoarelivingandworking,theiractivitiescanindeedbecategorizedasworstformsofchildlabour.Althoughnumbersseemtohavegonedown,thesituationinwhichtheworktakesplacehaschangedonlymarginallycomparedtothesituationdescribedbyILOin2002;therearestillmanychildrenengagedinharmfulactivitiesinthesectorandfacingdifficul-tiesincombiningtheirworkwithschool.ILOConvention182explicitlyprohibitsanylabouractivityforminorsthatarelikelytoharmtheirhealth,safetyormorals.Youngstersrunalltypesofhealthrisksandareactuallyinjuredfromtimetotime.Inaddition,theirrighttoeducationisviolatedbecausetheschool-goingchildrenwhoparticipateintheharvestexperienceaninterruptionoftheirschoolyearwhiletheolderoneswhoworkfulltimehavenotimetoattendschool.Theydropoutofschool,startworkinganddecreasetheirpossibilitiesoflearningaprofession.AlthoughnotspecificallymentionedinILOConvention182,children’sworkinthesugarcanehar-vestalsonegativelyinfluenceschildren’sschoolattendance.


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Leavingtheharvestandthistypeofworkbecomesmoreandmoredifficultovertimeasotheralternativesbecomeincreasinglylesslikely.

b. Philippines

SWEET hAZArDS, child labor on sugarcane plantations in the Philippines 4

Followinginternationalpolicyframeworksonchildlabor,TerredesHommescontributestotheeliminationoftheworstformsoflaborperformedbychildrenthroughprograms,advocacyandcampaigning.Thisresearch,acasestudyonthesugarcaneplantationsinthePhilippines,takesacloserlookintotherealityofworkingchildren’slivesinordertomeasurethisrealityagainsttheinternationalpolicyframeworkonchildlabor.

AtatimewhenmuchattentiongoestothehorrorsofchildprostitutionandtraffickingofchildreninthePhilippines,thesectorwherebyfarmostchildrenwork,agriculture,isoftenforgotten.Itisestimatedthat2.3millionchildrenareeconomicallyactiveinthissector.Childrenworkingon largescaleplantationsare inmuchgreaterriskofexploitationduetotheprofit-orientedapproachofthecommercialundertakings.

Sugarcane plantationsSugarcane is traditionally an important commercial crop for the Philippines. The total production in the Phil-ippines came to 2.3 million tons of sugar in 2004. Most of it is used for the domestic market, but ten percent is exported to other markets like the United States, South Korea, Japan and China. In 1997 the sugar industry con-tributed 30 billion pesos to the national economy, which is about 2.5% of the GNP. The Sugar Regulatory Authority (SRA) of the Philippine government estimates that some 5 million Filipinos de-pend on the sugarcane production, among which children who work in the fields. The presence of children in the sugarcane labor force has been recorded since 1909.Source : National Statistics Office 2003

TheislandLeyte,partoftheVisayas,liesinthemiddleofthePhilippines.Manyfamiliesliveandworkontheisland’selevenbigsugarcaneplantations.Itisestimatedthatmorethan5,000childrenworktheretoo.Leyteprovidesanopportunitytounderstandthedy-namicsofchildworkintheFilipinosugarcaneplantations.That’swhythisstudytookplaceinthatparticulararea.

1. Living conditions of the sugarcane workers

Theworkersgetpaid60to80pesosperday,whichisfarbelowtheminimumof153pesosperdaythatisprescribedbythegovernment.Mostplantationownersoffertheirworkersahouseontheplantationitselfbuttherearenosanita-

4Seereferences4


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tionfacilitiesnearthehouses.Thepowerthatlandownershaveoverthehornalsisbig.“Ifyoulivehere,youareforcedtoworkintheplantation,”statesoneworker.Duetolowwagesandbigfamilies,povertyiswidespreadamongthesugarcaneworkers’families.Eventhoughthelandwherethefamiliesliveisfertile,theyareinmanyinstancesnotallowedtousesmallplotstogrowtheirownfood.Fromthisperspectivethepeopleonthehaciendasareworseoffthenotherruralfamilies,Butwhenitcomestopayingeducationcostsorbuyingnewclothesforthechildren,thechildrenneedtoworkforitthemselves.Thesituationhasworsenedduringtheyears.

2. Working children

Thereare60,000to200,000childrenworkinthesugarcaneplantations.Theyarebothpushedandpulledintothiswork.Many children themselves however say it is theabsolute need for additional family income thatpushesthemintothefields.

In his study on the causes and consequences ofchildlaborinLeyte,DeVriesstatesthatchildren’seducational aspirations strongly influence theirdecisiontowork,sincetheyneedmoneytopaytheirschoolfees.“Wekeep10or20pesosforourselves,tosavefor

schoolmaterials,”theyexplain.Therestgoestotheirmothers,who“needittobuyfood”.Thedilemmabetweenthechild’swishandthefamily’sneeddoesnotgounnoticedbyparentseither.Theytoocitefinancialhardshipsas thefirstand foremost reasonwhytheirchildrenareworking.

Inregardstowhatpullschildrentowork,thereisanoveralldemandforchildren’slabor.However,theoutdatedproductionmethodsinsugarcaneaskformanylaborerstodothemanualwork.Forinstance,keepingthefieldsweededischeaperifdonemanuallyratherthanbysprayingherbicides.Forthisrelativelysimplejobchildrenarehiredtoreplaceexpensiveproductionmeth-ods.What’smoreisthatchildrenaremoredocilethanadults.

3. What kind of work?

Therearebigdifferencesbetweenamountsofworkthatchildrendoontheplantations.Attheageofsevenoreightchildrenstarttohelpinthefieldsduringschoolholidaysandweekends.

Bythetimetheharvestseasonisatitspeak,alotofchildrenworkfourorfivedayseveryweek;

Bolivia - child sugar cane cutter


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mostofthemtrytocombineschoolandworkbyworkingparttime.Theyoungchildren(7to10yearsold)usuallystartwithweedingorplantingthecane.Childrencandothework,sinceitissimpleandnotasheavyassomeothertasks,likeharvesting.Thechil-drenclearthefieldsofgrassesandweedswithbigcuttingknivescalledbolos.Like11-yearoldJoy-Marie:“Iearn30pesosforclearingoneline,100meters.IstartworkingatsixinthemorningandIfinishatfiveintheafternoon.Ittakesmetwodaystoclearoneline.”Applyingfertilizerisanothertaskconsideredtobesuitableforchildren.

Harvesttimeisthetimewhenalllaborisneededtocutthecaneandcarryittothetrucksthatwillbringittothesugarmills.Duringharvestmostplantationownerspaypertonofcanethatiscut.“Harvestingandcarryingthecaneisheavy,veryheavy.BecauseIworkhardIcanearn700to800pesosaweek.Iworkfivedaysperweek–SaturdaysandSundaysIdonotwork:Ineedthetimetosleep”tellsRocky(16yearsold),whoisthebreadwinnerofhisfamily.

Aftertheharvest,thefieldsneedtobeclearedinordertobeabletoplantnewcane,workwhichisdonebychildrenaswell.

PeoplefromjobagenciesfromManilaorCebucometolookforchildrenwhoarewillingtotaketheirchancesinthebigcity.Oftenthesetripsdonotworkoutthewaythefamilieshadhoped:childrendisappearintoillegalformsofwork,areexploitedincityjobsanddonotreturnnoraretheyabletosendmoneybacktotheirfamilies.

4. hazards

Workingonthefamilyfarmdoesinfactexposechildrentoavarietyofrisks.Furthermore,thestorychangesbutincommercialagriculture.InthesugarcanefieldsofLeyte,thereisnodoubtthatthefirsthazardtothechildrenisthesun.Whiletheworkinitselfisalreadytiring,theheatmakesitalmostunbearable.Takingintoaccountthatthechildrenworkeightorninehourseveryday,theexposuretoheatisdangerous.

Theyusebigmachetestocuttheweedsandthecane.Thesebolosaremadeforadulthandling.Inchildren’shandstheybecomedangeroustoolsthatcauseseriouswounds.Apart frominjuriescausedbythemachetes, thesugarcane leavesthemselvesalsocausesmallcutsonthechildren’slegsandarms.Snakesandinsectslivingbetweenthesugarcanestalkssome-timescausedeadlyaccidentswiththeirpoisonousbites.

Afourthhazardiscarryingtheheavyloadsofcaneduringharvesttime.Carryingthecanefromthefieldtothetruckandloadingitonthetruckcanbedangeroustoadultsconsideringtheweightofthecane.Tochildrenitisevenmorestrenuous.

Onelast,butveryimportanthazardiscausedbytheuseofagrochemicalsintheproductionofsugarcane.Theexposureofthechildrentothesepesticidesisobvious.Sprayingpesticidesiscon-


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sideredtobeajobforadultsonly,butchildrenworkonfieldswherepesticideshavebeensprayed.Prolongedexposuremayresultinsevererespiratoryproblems,skinandeyeirritations,reproduc-tive problems and a general decline in healthstatus.Thishazardisparticularlygravesincetheplanta-tionsusepesticidesthataretoxicandarebannedinothercountriesfortheirpoisonouseffectsonfarmworkers.Thefactthatchildreninthesugarcaneindustryareatseriousriskofpesticidepoi-soningistoooftendenied.

Ingeneral,parentsareawareofthedangersthattheirchildrenareexposedto.But inspiteofallthehazardsthatchildrenencounter,childlaborinthesugarcaneplantationsisstillwidespread.

5. responses

Apartfromthediscussionifchildrenshouldbeworkingatall,childrenthemselvesindicatethatthehazardousworkingconditionsinthesugarcaneplantationsbotherthem.Improvingworkingconditionsseemstoprovideasolutiontothisproblem.Sincetheworstformsofchildlaboraretobebannedimmediately,childlaboronthesugarcaneplantations,wheretheyhavetofacemanyhazards,shouldbeabolishedimmediately.Theproblemisthatthehazardousclassificationonlyappliestosometasksorspecificconditionsatthesugarcaneplantation.Whenaskedwhoisresponsibleforprotectingthechildrenagainstthehazardsofworkingontheplantations,therearedifferentreactions.Firstofall,parentsfeelresponsible.“Theproblemisthattheparentsaretheoneswhosendtheirchildrentowork.Soitwillbeabattlebetweenthestateandtheparents,”saysMrs.SorianofromtheInstituteofLaborStudies(ILS).

Whenitcomestoendingchildlaborbynothiringchildrenanymore,landownersclaimthatitisnotintheirpowertodothiseventhoughtheyagreethatchildrenshouldnotwork.Anotherpersoninthelineofplantationsubcontractorsclaimsthatevenifhewouldnothirechil-dren,theparentswouldbeangrywithhim.Witheducationchildrenwillbeabletofindbetterjobs,isthegeneralfeeling.

6. Government responsibility

SincethelawinthePhilippinesisclearonwhatisallowableworkandwhatisnot,itisuptothegovernmenttoenforcetheselawsandprotectchildrenfromexploitationinlabor5.

8 years old boy working in the sugar cane fields

5Thesubdivisionwithinchildren’sworkisclearlyrecognizable,forinstanceintheSpecialProtectionofChildrenAgainstChildAbuse,ExploitationandDiscrimination.Act(RA9231),whichwasadoptedinDecember2003.TheActismeanttoalignnationalpoliciestothespiritofILOC182.20


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Mrs.Soriansaysthat“unfortunatelyourjusticesystemhasyettochange,theyarestillnotprose-cutinganyoneforhiringchildworkers.Thelawisverystrict,butthechallengenowistoenforceit.”

Oneofthelawenforcementagencies,theBureauofWorkingConditions,conductslaborinspec-tions.Theseincludeunderpayment,workingconditionsandminimumages.Theuseofchildlaborshouldbemonitoredandnotedbythisagency.However,theinspectionreportsof211sugarcaneplantationsinspectedbetweenJanuaryandJune2001donotindicateonesingleworkingchild.Thesefindingsareverycontradictorytotheobservationsinthisresearch.Thereappeartobetwoexplanationsforthisdiscrepancy.Consideringtheamountofestablishmentsthatthe250laborinspectorshavetomonitor,onecanimaginetheirattentiongoestoalookatthebooksandnottoonsiteinspections.Thesecondreasonfortheinefficiencyoflaborinspectionsinrelationtochildlaboristheopinionthatchildrenworkinginagricultureonlyworkonfamilyfarms.Inspectionaloneisnotenoughtoguaranteetheeliminationofchildlabor.Whenitcomestochemicalhazardsitisunclearwhoshouldprotectthechildrenwhiletheyareatwork.Sincetheyarenotsupposedtowork,existingguidelinesforsafeuseofagrochemicalsarenotadjustedtochildren’ssusceptibilitytopoisoning.Further restrictions on pesticides and other chemicals could limit the exposure to highly toxicsubstances.

Conclusion

EventhoughmanyNGOsandgovernmentswelcomethispriorityononeofthemostwidespreadviolationsofchildren’srights,inpracticethebordersbetweenchildlaborandworstformsarenotsoeasilyestablished:thereisroomforinterpretationonhowtodealwithit.

TheworkthatchildrenperformonthesugarcaneplantationsofLeyteisexemplaryofthisgrayareabetweenchildlaborandtheworstforms.Children’stasksvaryfromweedingandplantingtoapplyingfertilizersandharvesting.Eventhoughparentsandoverseerstrytoprotectchildrenfromthemosthazardousworkattheplantation–sprayingpesticides–childrenareexposedtoanumberofhazardswhileatwork.

Itisaresponsibilityofallpeopleandinstitutionsinvolved.Withanewchildlaborlawinplace,lawenforcementisneededandinspectionsshouldbecarriedoutinthefieldsonaregularbasis.Pe-nalizingparentsforchildlaborseemstobepunishingthemfortheirpoverty.“Theproblemisthattheparentsaretheoneswhosendtheirchildrentowork.Soitwillbeabattlebetweenthestateandtheparents,”saysMrs.SorianofromtheInstituteofLaborStudies(ILS).Therootcauseofchildlaborispoverty,butitalsodependsontheattitudeoftheparents.Forthisreasongovernmentprogramstrytoinitiateothersourcesofincomefortheparents,outsidetheplantation.


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c. Kenya : children cutting cane.

On 24 September, Jorge Chullen, the coordinator of the IUF global sugar program has visited the South Nyanza Sugar Company accompanied by a delegation of the Kenya Union of Sugar, Plantation and Allied Workers (KUS-PAW), as part of a 4-day program supported by the Social Justice Fund of the Canadian Auto Workers (SJF-CAW).The sugar company is located near the Kisii area, south of Kisumu, in the western region on the country; a two-and-a-half hour ride, dotted with about ten police check-points, and roads with limited capacity to handle all the transit that rides on them.

The union delegation was able to observe some agricultural operations in the cane fields of independent farm-ers who supply the mill. At a farm in Kelowe, four children, aged 10-12, have been seen cutting cane; and several others, even younger, hanging around in the fields.One main reason given by the workers for the children’s presence was that some of them have finished elemen-tary school and their families have no money to pay for high school; therefore they have no other option than to work in the cane fields. Some other said that they help their families, and one of them was an orphan of father and mother who looks after his younger siblings. One of the boys said he gives some of the money he earns (about USD 60 per month) to his parents.The cane-cutting operations have been outsourced by the South Nyanza Sugar Company, which by legislation is prevented from doing anything else than milling cane. The outsourcing practices have worsened working conditions considerably, and, even when the cutters cut cane green and the work is heavier than with burned cane, they receive nothing in terms of protective equipment or tools for the job. Workers talk about “before” and “now”. “Now,” with the outsourced operations, they get no clothing, no cane-knife, no boots, no hats… nothing. Not even drinking water is distributed to them, they said. They bring water from home, and when it’s gone… it’s gone.Workers complain that the agreement between the contractor and the sugar company gives the former a cer-tain amount of money to pay them, from which he takes a cut. When asked if first aid is, one cutter said: “there is nothing of that sort.” They even have to buy their own cane-knife. And, the one which they can afford is not the best tool for cutting cane!The delegation has visited also the living conditions of cane cutters in Owiro camp that showed to be extremely poor. A member of the company management staff, who guided the visit, explained that the company has no responsibility to ensure some decent living conditions as the cutting operations are outsourced. The camp has also a poor-equipped room which functions as a pre- elementary school for kids.


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II. ExAMPLE Of A CIVIL SOCIETy CAMPAIGN

In2004,theUSNGOHumanRightWatch6(HRW)madeacampaignregardingchildlaboursocialconditionsinElSalvadorandaccusingCoca-ColainexploringindirectlychildLabour.

AvaiableonHRW(HumanRightsWatch)website:

BusinessespurchasingsugarfromElSalvador,includingTheCoca-ColaCompany,areusingtheproductofchildlaborthatisbothhazardousandwidespread,HumanRightsWatchsaidinare-portreleasedtoday.Harvestingcanerequireschildrentousemachetesandothersharpknivestocutsugarcaneand

El Salvador: Child Labor on Sugar Plantations

Foreign Firms Use End Product of Children’s Hazardous Work Juin 9, 2004

RELATED MATERIALS: El Salvador: Girls Working as Domestics Face Abuses Child labor is rampant on El Salvador’s sugarcane plantations. Companies that buy or use Salvadoran sugar should realize that fact and take responsibility for doing something about it. Michael Bochenek, counsel to the Children's Rights Division of Human Rights Watch

6http://www.hrw.org/fr


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stripthe leavesoffthestalks,worktheyperformforuptoninehourseachday inthehotsun.NearlyeverychildinterviewedbyHumanRightsWatchforits139-pagereport,“TurningaBlindEye:HazardousChildLaborinElSalvador’sSugarcaneCultivation,”saidthatheorshehadsufferedmachetegashesonthehandsorlegswhilecuttingcane.Theserisksledoneformerlaborinspec-tortocharacterizesugarcaneasthemostdangerousofallformsofagriculturalwork.“ChildlaborisrampantonElSalvador’ssugarcaneplantations,”saidMichaelBochenek,counseltotheChildren’sRightsDivisionofHumanRightsWatch.“CompaniesthatbuyoruseSalvadoransugarshouldrealizethatfactandtakeresponsibilityfordoingsomethingaboutit.”Uptoone-thirdoftheworkersonElSalvador’ssugarcaneplantationsarechildrenundertheageof18,manyofwhombegantoworkinthefieldsbetweentheagesofeightand13.TheInterna-tionalLaborOrganizationestimatesthatatleast5,000andasmanyas30,000childrenunderage18workonSalvadoransugarplantations.ElSalvadorsetsaminimumworkingageof18fordan-gerousoccupationsand14formostotherformsofwork.

Medicalcareisoftennotavailableontheplantations,andchildrenmustfrequentlypayforthecostoftheirmedicaltreatment.TheyarenotreimbursedbytheiremployersdespiteaprovisionintheSalvadoranlaborcodethatmakesemployersresponsibleformedicalexpensesresultingfromon-the-jobinjuries.ElSalvador’ssugarmillsandthebusinessesthatpurchaseoruseSalvadoransugarknoworshouldknowthatthesugarisinparttheproductofchildlabor.Forexample,Coca-ColaCo.usesSalva-doransugarinitsbottledbeveragesfordomesticconsumptioninElSalvador.Thecompany’slo-calbottlerpurchasessugarrefinedatElSalvador’slargestmill,CentralIzalco.AtleastfouroftheplantationsthatsupplysugarcanetoCentralIzalcoregularlyusechildlabor,HumanRightsWatchfoundafterinterviewingworkers.WhenHumanRightsWatchbroughtthisinformationtotheattentionofCoca-ColaCo.,thesoft-drink manufacturer did not contradict these findings. Coca-Cola has a code of conduct for itssuppliers,knownasthe“GuidingPrinciplesforSupplierstoTheCoca-ColaCompany,”butitisnar-rowlydrawntocoveronlydirectsuppliers,whichincludessugarmillsbutexcludesplantations.Theguidingprinciplesprovide,forexample,thattheCoca-ColaCo.’sdirectsuppliers“willnotusechildlaborasdefinedbylocallaw,”buttheydonotaddresstheresponsibilityofdirectsupplierstoensurethattheirownsuppliersdonotusehazardouschildlabor.“IfCoca-Colaisseriousaboutavoidingcomplicityintheuseofhazardouschildlabor,thecompanyshouldrecognizethatitsresponsibilitytoensurethatrespectforhumanrightsextendsbeyonditsdirectsuppliers,”saidBochenek.In addition, children who work on sugarcane plantations often miss the first several weeks ormonthsof school.Forexample,a teacher ina ruralcommunitynorthof thecapitalSanSalva-dorestimatedthatabout20percentofherclassdidnotattendschoolduringtheharvest.Otherchildrendropoutofschoolaltogether.Somechildrenwhowanttoattendschoolaredrivenintohazardousworkbecauseitistheonlywaytheirfamiliescanaffordthecostoftheireducation.ElSalvadorisoneoffivecountriesinLatinAmericatoparticipateinanInternationalLaborOrga-nizationTime-BoundProgram,aninitiativetoaddresstheworstformsofchildlabor.ButofficialsintheSalvadoranMinistryofLabortoldHumanRightsWatchthatmostchildrenwhocutcaneare


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simplytheirparents’“helpers.”Human RightsWatch urged El Salvador’s sugar mills, Coca-Cola Co. and other businesses thatpurchase Salvadoran sugar to incorporate international standards in their contractual relation-shipswithsuppliersandrequiretheirsupplierstodothesamethroughoutthesupplychain.Theyshouldalsoadopteffectivemonitoringsystemstoverifythatlaborconditionsontheirsuppliers’sugarcaneplantationscomplywithinternationalstandards

AccordingtoofficialstatisticsfromtheMinistryofEducationinElSalvador,childlaborinthesug-arcaneindustrydroppedby70percentbetween2003and2008.Fiveyearsago,HumanRightsWatchinvestigatedtheuseofchildlaboronElSalvador’ssugarcaneplantationsandfoundthatthousandsofchildrenwereworkinginextremelyhazardousconditions.Nearly every child interviewed by Human RightsWatch had suffered machete gashes on theirarmsorlegswhilecuttingcane.OurreportexposedthattheCoca-Colacompanyandotherbusi-nesseswereknowinglypurchasingtheproductofchildlabor.TheInternationalLabourOrganizationestimatedthatbetween5,000and30,000childrenunderage18wereworkingontheplantations,makingupnearlyone-thirdofallsugarcaneworkers.Inaddition to enduring unsafe working conditions and working long hours, children engaged insugarcaneworkoftenmissedweeksormonthsofschoolduringthesugarcaneharvest,withoneoutofeveryfivechildrenworkinginsugarcaneoutofschool.InresponsetoHumanRightsWatch’sreport,theMinistryofLaborinElSalvadordirectedsugarplantations to remove child workers from the sugarcane harvest.While the 2008 numbers areencouraging,HumanRightsWatchhaspressedtheMinistryofLabortodomoretoensurethatchildrenarereintegratedintoschools.tesdetrabalho,taiscomo:dermatites,conjuntivites,desidratação,cãimbras,dispnéia,infecçõesrespiratórias,oscilaçõesdapressãoarterial,ferimentoseoutrosacidentes(inclusiveosdetrajeto).Acresce-seaestaperspectivaoenvelhecimentoprecoce,câncer–provocadopelafuligemprove-nientedasqueimadas,dasquaisderivam-seoshidrocarbonetospolicíclicosaromáticos,LesãoporEsforçoRepetitivo(LER)ebissinose(RUMIN;NAVARRO;PERIOTO,2008).

Child Labor in Sugarcane Plantations in El Salvador Drops by 70% Septembre 16, 2009

RELATED MATERIALS: Turning a Blind Eye

Our report exposed that the Coca-Cola company and other businesses were knowingly purchasing the product of child labor.


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III. BEST MANAGEMENT PrACTICES.

a. Interventions to Eradicate Child Labour from the Sugar Cane Sector in Bolivia7.

There are several governmental and non-governmental organisations working in the struggleagainstchildlabourinthesugarcaneharvest,includingHombresNuevos,thePrefecture,UNICEFandChildDefence,butduetotimelimitations,notallofthemcouldbetakenintoaccountdur-ingtheIREWOCresearch.ThispartdescribestheinterventionsofLABOR,OASI,CCIMCATandtheMinistryofLabourthatworktowardstheeradicationofchildlabourfromthesugarcaneharvestinSantaCruzandinBermejousingvaryingstrategies.Thecontentsandresultsofallinterventionswillbetreatedseparately,resultinginaconclusionontheeffectivenessofthestrategies.

1. Santa Cruz

• LABOR cooperating with Federation of Sugarcane HarvestersTheprojectcarriedoutbyLABORduringAugust2006toJuly2008wascalled“AwarenessraisingandpromotionfortheprogressiveeradicationofchildlabourfromthesugarcaneharvestintheObispoSantistevan8province”(departmentofSantaCruz)andaimedtocontributetotheeradi-cationofchildlabourfromtheharvest.Theprojectaimedtoraiseawarenessabouttheissueofchildlabourintheharvestamongharvestersandtheirfamilies,theFederationofHarvesters,sugarcanepro-ducers,civilsocietyandauthorities.Animportantaspectoftheprojectwasthetripartitedialoguebetween sugar cane harvesters, sugar cane producers and authorities on the improvement oflabourconditionsforadultharvestersinordertocreateanadequateenvironmenttodecreasethenumberofchildrenparticipatingintheharvest.Otheractivitiesoftheprojectincludedtheorganizationofworkshops in theharvestercamps,strengtheningtheFederationofHarvestersandawarenessraisingamongsugarcaneproducers,authoritiesandthegeneralpublic9.

LABORworkedoninformingtheFederationofHarvestersonthetopicofchild labourthroughworkshopsaboutILOConventions138and182andtheimportanceofbasiceducation.Thelead-ersoftheFederationarewellawareofthetopicandseemtoentirelyagreewiththeideaofelimi-natingchildlabourfromthesector.AlthoughtheFederationofHarvesterstriestovisitthecampsfromtimetotime,theharvestersandotheractorsdon’tvaluetheFederationveryhighly.AccordingtodoctorGalvimontefromtheOASIhealthbrigade,theleadersoftheFederationarenottrainedwellenoughfortheirresponsi-bilities.More importantly,manyharvestersspeaknegativelyabouttheFederationandshowvery littletrust intheir representingbody.DoñaAna’shusband(Chorobicamp)expressedhismistrust intheFederationofHarvesters,afterhavingbeenvice-presidentoftheFederationforafewyears.Hecomplained:“IwasvicepresidentfortheFederationfortwoorthreeyearsbutIleftbecauseitwassuchamess:alotofcorruptionandthemoneytheygetneverreallygoestotheharvesters.

7SeeReferences28InpracticetheprojecttookplaceinbothprovincesofSantistevanandWarnes.

923Source:SistematizacióndeResultadosdelProyecto:“SensibilizaciónparalaErradi-

caciónProgresivadelTrabajoInfantilenlazafradelacañade

azúcarenlaprovinciaObispoSantistevan”,LABOR,unpublished


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AndtheFederationhardlyevervisitstheharvestercamps,justafewofthemanycampsduringtheharvest.Ileftfightingwithsomeofthem…that’swhyIleft.”

Ontheotherhand,theradioprogrambroadcastedbytheFederationofHarvestersinMontero,calledLavozdelzafrero11,isquitepopularamongtheharvesters.Manyfamilieslistenregularlytotheprogramwhichisadailyhalf-hourbroadcast.AccordingtoFelipeTitirico,oneofthelead-ers,peopleusuallycommentpositivelyontheissuesdealtwithintheprogrambecauseofwhichtheprogramseemsaneffectivewaytoreachmanypeopleaboutissueslikechildlabour.Twenty-year-oldValentina(Chorobicamp)commentedthatshelikestolistentoit:“theytalkaboutthatweshouldhavegoodcamps,goodearningsandthatchildrenshouldn’tworkinthesugarcaneharvest”.Notallreactions,however,arepositive.DonFelipeoncehadadiscussionwithaharvester’swifeaboutthetopicofchildlabour:“shetoldmethatitiseasytosaythatchildrencan’tworkintheharvestbutthatshehadnooptionbecauseshehasnomoneytosendthemtoschool”.Thelead-ersoftheFederation,however,doagreeonhavingtodiscusstheissuewiththeharvesterfamilies.

LABORheldworkshopsinatotalof21harvestercampsaboutlabourrightsandchildlabour,withover1.300participants12 .Accordingto the formerdirectorofLABOR,CarlosCamargo, there ismuchlesschildlabourinthesugarcaneharvest,becausepeoplearemoreawareofthedamagingeffectofchildren’swork,partlybecauseoftheawarenessraisingworkshopofLABOR.However,duringIREWOCresearchtherewerestillmanychildrenandadolescentstobefoundinthesugarcaneharvest.Furthermore,fewpeoplecouldbefoundinthecampswhocouldcommentontheworkshops.The nature of the workshops, in which people just have to sit and listen, does nothelppeopletorememberthemessage;moreinteractivemethods,suchasthoseappliedbytheCCIMCATproject(paragraph4.2.1),usuallyresultinmoreparticipantsbeingabletorememberthediscussion.

LABORandtheFederationofHarvestershavealsovisitedtheharvesters’placesoforigin,includ-ingtheprovinceofIsoso(departmentofSantaCruz);thisallowedtheorganisationstocoordinateactivitiesintheregiontoraiseawarenessabouttheissueofchildlabourandurgeparentstoleavetheirchildrenathomeinsteadoftakingthemtothecamps.Thevisitsalsoservedtoinformthepeopleaboutthesalariesinthesugarcaneharvestandthelivingandworkingconditions.ThetripartitedialogueimplementedbyLABORandinwhichtheharvesters,sugarcaneproduc-ersandauthoritiesliketheMinistryofLabourparticipatedhasleadtosomeagreements.Forex-ample,aharvesters’labourcontractwasdraftedthattakesintoaccountinternationalagreements;acollectiveagreementwassigned,whichincludesafixedsalaryfortheharvestersandthepro-hibitionofchild labour.Also, importantrelationswereestablishedthroughparticipationinthecommission that elaborates the Bolivian Norm for Child Labour Free Production (LTI) in whichinstitutionsliketheBolivianInstituteforExternalCommerce(IBCE),theDepartmentalChamberofExternalCommerce(CADEX),theBolivianInstituteforNormalizationandQuality(IBNORCA),thesugarcaneprocessingplantsGuabiráandUNAGRO,UNICEF,FoundationHombresNuevosandLABOR participate.These agreements between various actors provide the harvesters and their

11Thevoiceoftheharvester12Source:Notesofevaluationworkshopontheproject“Awarenessraisingandpromotionfortheprogressiveeradicationofchildlabourfromthesugarcaneharvest-LABOR


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Federationwithastrongbasetorefertoinfuturenegotiations.Fonte:(SILVAetal,1994apudALESSI;NAVARRO,2009)

• Organization for Social Assistance of the Church13 (OASI)TheSantaCruzdepartmentofOASIcarriesoutahealthprojectinthesugarcaneregion;amedi-calbrigadeconsistingofadoctorandtwonursestriestovisiteachofthemigrantcampsintheWarnesprovinceeverymonthduringtheharvestperiod.WarnesisoneoftheelevensugarcaneprovincesintheSantaCruzdepartment.TheOASIhealthbrigadecoordinateswiththeDepart-mentalHealthService14(SEDES);theysharemedicationandinformationaboutthehealthsitua-tioninthecommunitiesandintheharvestercamps.OASItriestovisitthemigrantcampsvarioustimesduringtheharvesttogivefollow-upcaretothepatients.Peopleareverysatisfiedwiththemedicalassistanceofthebrigade;indifferentcampspeoplementionthedoctorandnurses,andseemtofeelcomfortableaboutdiscussingtheirmedi-cal issueswiththem.DoñaAna(Chorobicamp)seemedtofeelveryinsecureandembarrassedaboutherpregnancyanddidn’twanttotalkaboutitwithanybody.ShedidspeakaboutitwithdoctorGalvimonteofOASI,whenthehealthbrigadevisitedthecampandhegaveheradviceaboutwhatsheshouldandshouldn’tdowhilebeingpregnant.AfterOASIhadleftshetoldme:“In the other camp, where we stayed for about four months, everything was worse than here; there was no electricity and no water: the contractor brought us water in tanks but we ran out of water all the time. The only good thing was that the health brigade did come to visit us there. I think they came about four times and they’ve come three times already since we’ve been here [in the new camp].”Accordingtothenurse,theyencounterpeoplewithmachetewoundsfromtimetotime,butmostcommonhealthproblemsareskininfectionscausedbytheheatandhumidity,andstomachandheadachescausedbycontaminatedwaterandtheheat.Accordingtothedoctor,childrenmostlysufferfromparasites,diarrhoeaandrespiratoryinfections.Thehealthbrigadetreatschildrenfor

their immediate problems and also administersvaccinations.

OASIstaysincontactwiththeFederationofHar-vesters in Montero by, for example, helping tomanage a pharmacy, which is run by the Feder-ation ina spacenext to theirbuilding.The OASIteam supplies the Federation with informationabout the medicine and coordinates the admin-istrative and organizational issues. According tothe health brigade, the Federation of Harvestersshouldstrengthen its internalorganizationsoastobebetterabletorepresenttheharvesters.

13OrganizacióndeAsistenciaSocialdelaIglesia14ServicioDepartamentaldeSalud


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2. Bermejo.

• CCIMCAT - BermejoILOfinancedtheCCIMCATpilotprojectinfourBermejocommunities15during2007.Theprojectwascalled‘strengtheningofparticipativecitizenshipof ruralwomen16 andaimedtoeradicatechild labour from the sugar cane harvest through strengthening women’s economic contribu-tions.AtthetimeoftheIREWOCresearchitwasstillunknowniftheILOwouldprolongtheirsup-portfortheproject.Themainobjectiveoftheprojectwastoeradicatechildlabourbystimulatingthemigrantwomenandotherpoorwomenfromthesugarcanecommunitiestogeneratetheirownincome.Thiswaytheymightfeellessneedtomaketheirchildrenworkandbecomeawareoftheimportanceforchildren’seducationinsteadoflabour.CCIMCATbelievesthatstrengthen-ingwomen’sactivitiesisthekeytodevelopmentofwholefamiliesorevencommunities.Usually,inthesugarcaneharvestwomenworkforandsupporttheirhusbands;theyhelpintheharvest,dohouseholdchoresandtakecareoftheirchildren,buttheyhaveverylittletimeandopportuni-tiestodevelopactivitiesoftheirown.DuringtheCCIMCATprojectthemigrantwomenandthewomenpermanentlylivinginthesugarcaneregionweremotivatedtoorganisethemselves,plantheproductionofmarmaladeandchancaca17,rearchickensandensurethesaleoftheproducts.Meetingswereusuallyheldintheschoolstoprovideaneutralplacetowork.CCIMCATcoordi-natedtheprojectwiththeMinistryofLabour,theFederationofSugarCaneProducers,andtheMinistryofEducation,amongothers.

AccordingtothedirectorofCCIMCAT,PedroMariscal18,theneedforthegroupsthatparticipatedintheprojecttostrengthenthemselves:“theyarenotabletoworkindependentlyyet”.Althoughthepilotprojecthasended,theCCIMCATemployeeshavecontinuedtovisitthecommunitiesandaccordingtotheCCIMCATdirector, insomeplacesthewomenwhoparticipatedintheprojectcontinuetoraisechickens,producechancacaormarmaladeandselltheproducts.Inotherplaces,thewomenhavestoppedworking,forexampleinPorcelana;theequipmentusedtomakemar-maladehasbeenstowed,andsothewomencan’tcontinueworking.

An important challenge for the project is reaching organizational sustainability. Because mostofthewomenaremigrantsit isdifficulttoformastablegroup.“Themoststablegroupcanbeformedwiththewomenwholiveinthecommunities”,mentionedthecoordinatoroftheproject,DaysiRivera.LikehercolleaguePedroMariscal,shealsostatedthat:“toreachorganizationalsta-bility,theprojectneedstorunfiveyears,ortwoperiodsofthreeyears”.Thiswaythegroupscouldbestable,sustainableandwellenoughtrainedtomanagefollow-upbythemselves.Theprojectwouldhavetoreachthislevelbeforeitwouldhaveasignificantimpactonchildlabour.

Besidestheproductiveactivitieswiththewomen,theprojectalsoworkedwiththechildrenoftheparticipatingwomen,byorganizingworkshopsaboutchildren’srights.Inordernottoborethechildrentheeducatorsusedgamestoexplainthechildrenabouttheirrightstoplay,tobasichealth,toeducation,etc.SomechildrenfromthePorcelanacamp,forexample,recalleddecorat-ingsponges,whichtheCCIMCATeducatorsusedtodemonstrateproperhygienebehaviour.

15ThefourcommunitiesparticipatingintheprojectwerePorcelana,CampoGrande,ColoniaLinaresandNaranjitos,allcommunitieslocatedinthecentralsugarcanezoneofBermejo.

16Proyectodefortalecimientodepartici-paciónciudadanademujeresrurales.

Chancacaisasweetsaucemadeofrawunrefinedcanesugar.

17Chancacaisasweetsaucemadeofrawunrefinedcanesugar.

18InterviewheldNovember72008.


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One12-year-oldboymentioned:“Theyexplainedhowweshouldwashourselvesandthenwedecoratedthesponges.ItwasfunnytomakethembutIdon’thavethespongeanymore.Theyalsotoldusaboutchild labourandthatchildrenshouldn’twork inthesugarcaneharvestandthatchildrenshouldgotoschool.IlikedtheworkshopsbutIalsodidn’tlikeitbecausetherewerealmostonlygirlsparticipating.”

ThewomenwereratherpositiveabouttheCCIMCATprojectandmentionedtheirwishtocon-tinueparticipating in it.Mostpositivewerethereactionsabout raisingchickens,asdoñaRuthremarked:“Ilikeditverymuchwhentheygaveuschickenstobreed,butitwasapitywhenmanyofthemdiedofpest.[CCIMCAT]didgivethechickenssomemedicine,butstillmanydied”.Accord-ingtothecoordinatorDaysiRivera,thefactthatthechickensdiedhadalsotodowiththefactthatthemigrantwomentooktheanimalswiththemtotheirhometownsandmanydidn’tsurvivethetripordiedbecauseofthechangeofclimate.

In Porcelana a group of some 20 women participated in the project.They all got twelve babychickens at the beginning of the project and a few more later on in the project.Together, thewomenlearnedhowtoproducemarmaladefromorangesandtriedtosellitinthetownofBer-mejo.Sellingmarmalade,however,turnedouttobedifficult;accordingtoDoñaMarianafromthePorcelanacamp,thewomenonlyearnedabout18Bolivianos(1.80Euro)eachbecausenotallthemarmaladecouldbesold.Despitethelowearningsoftheproject,DoñaMarianawouldstillliketheprojecttocontinue inorderto learnsomethingmore.AlsodoñaRuthmentionedthatshewouldliketheprojecttocontinuetokeeplearning,especiallyifitwouldbefocussedonthepro-ductionofchancaca“becauseitisabeautifulproduct,”asshementioned.

3. Ministry of Labour

FinancedbyUNICEF,theMinistryofLabourimplementedextralessons,calledaulasdeapoyo,forprimaryschoolpupilsinvariousmigrantcamps,duringtheharvestof2007.Foureducatorswerepaidatypeofscholarshipandreimbursementoftravelcoststoorganizetheclasses.Theeduca-torsorganizedclassesforthepupilsindifferentcampsinthecentralzoneofthesugarcaneregionofBermejo.Forexample,intheharvestercampofthesugarcaneprocessingplantinArrozalestherewereclassesthreeafternoonsperweekandeachSaturdaymorningforthreedifferentlev-elsofpupils.Inthisparticularcamptherewere25studentsdividedoverthethreelevels.SomechildreninthePrimerodeMayocamp,whohadbeeninthesamecamptheyearbeforeaswell,rememberedtheclasses.Theycommentedthatforafewmonthsoneortwowomenhadcometothecampandthattheyhadspentthedaywiththeminoneofthenon-occupiedcampbuildings,doingsubjectssuchasmathematicsanddrawing.

Conclusion – effectiveness of interventions

DifferentstrategieshavebeenimplementedinthevarioussugarcaneregionsofSantaCruzandBermejoaimingtoeradicatechildlabourfromthesector.Ingeneral,alltheseparateinterventions


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havetheirownspecificimpactontheproblemofchildlabour,buteradicationisalongwayoff.

Thereiscertainlynotonetypeofinterventionthatwouldworkbest;acombinationofcomple-mentarystrategiesisneeded.

IntheWarnesprovinceintheSantaCruzsugarcaneregion,forexample,LABORimplementedaprojectthatfocusedoncreatingawarenessaboutlabourrightsandimprovinglabourconditionsthroughatripartitedialogue.Importantagreementswerereachedbetweensugarcaneproduc-ers,harvestersandauthoritiesconcerningtheissuesofchildlabourandfixedincomesforadultharvesters.TogetherwiththeFederationofHarvesters,LABORreachedouttotheharvestersbyvisitingtheircampsandinformingthemontheirrightsandtheprohibitionofchildlabour.Be-causetheseworkshopshavearatherinactivecharacter,withpeoplejustsittingthereandlisten-ing,people tendtosoon forgetwhat theseworkshopswereabout.Still thestrategyof raisingawarenessaboutlabourrightsisanimportantoneinstimulatingharvesterstostrugglefortheirownrightsandunderstandtheimportanceofyouthsstudyinginsteadofworking.Itwasstatedrepeatedlythatprojectsshouldbefollowed-up;untilnowprojectshavetakenplaceforayearortwoatthemost,whichmeansthatprojectsneverreachtheobjectiveoferadicatingchildlabour.Interventionsshouldhaveadurationofatleastthreetosixyearstobeabletomeasuretheirim-pact.

ThepilotprojectimplementedbyCCIMCATinBermejowasamoreactiveparticipatorytypeofintervention.Migrantwomentogetherwithwomenfromthesugarcaneregionactivelypartici-patedintheproductionofchancaca,marmaladeandraisingchickensandtheyclaimedtoliketheaspectofhavinglearnedsomethingandhopeforitscontinuation.Thewomenandchildrenalsolearnedabouthygieneandtheprohibitionofchildlabourinthesugarcanesector.Itishardtomeasureandseewhethertheeradicationofchildlabourthroughstrengtheningwomen’sincomegeneratingcapacityactuallyworks,alsobecausetheprojecthaslastedforoneyearonly.Nofami-lieswerefoundwhohaddecidedtoleavetheirchildrenathomebecauseoftheawarenesscre-atedthroughtheCCIMCATproject.Mostoftheirchildren,however,dogotoschoolortoachildcarecentreinthesugarcaneregionitself.

The reasons for youths to participate in thesugar cane harvest vary among the differentage groups, and so interventions have to betailored to suit the needs of each group. Be-causeschool-goingchildrenworkduringnon-school days or periods, projects to eradicatechild labour among school going children inthesectorshouldfocusonfindingotherpas-timesforchildrenduringtheseperiods.AninterventionliketheaulasdeapoyooftheMinistryofLabourisagoodexampleofalter-Child labour in Philippine


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nativeactivitiesforschool-goingchildrenonnon-schooldays.Whilestrengtheningthechildren’sschoolperformancestheyarekeptoutofthefieldsandawayfromharmfulwork.Inordertomakesurethatallchildrenparticipateinsuchactivitiestheyhavetobeattractiveforthechildren;com-biningschoolactivitieswithsportsandgamesworkswell.

Themostdifficultgrouptoreachdirectlyremainsthegroupofadolescentswhoworkascuartasorcontractedharvesters.Becausetheirmotivetowork intheharvest iseconomic,thealterna-tiverequiresincomegenerationaswell.Itwouldbeverydifficulttoconvincethemtoreturntoschoolinstead,anditwouldrequirepersonalconviction.Someprojectsintheplacesoforiginoftheyouthsseemtohaveadiminishingeffectontheyearlystreamofadolescentmigrantstowardsthesugarcaneareas.Also,accordingtosometestimonies,agrowingawarenessabouttheimpor-tanceofeducationcausesmoreyouthstostayathomeinsteadofmigratingtotheharvest.Still,thesearemostlyprimaryschoolyouths.

Inthemeanwhile,theOASIhealthbrigadeinSantaCruzcontributestotheimprovementofthehealthsituationofentireharvesterfamilies.Theinterventiondoesnotspecificallycontributetotheeradicationofchildlabour,butisverymuchappreciatedbytheharvesterfamilieslivinginthecampsandcontributestotheimprovementofhealthconditions,whichisaveryimportantaspectofchildhood.Peoplearecaredforwellandregularly,but,becausethehealthbrigadeconsistsofonlythreepeople,itisnotpossibletoattendtotheharvestersinallelevensugarcaneprovinces;onlythecampsintheWarnesprovincearecurrentlyattendedto.

b. Eradicating Child Labour in El Salvador, BSr19

DocumentingtheSalvadoranSugarIndustry’sEffortstoEradicateChildLaborinSugarCanePro-duction Kimberly Ascoli under the supervision of Professor of International Political EconomyRichardFeinberg,UniversityofCalifornia,SanDiegoApril2010

1. Executive Summary

TheAsociaciónAzucareradeElSalvador(AAES)20,whichrepresentsthenation’srefineries,part-neredwithBSR21andFUNDEMAS22tosystematizethesuccessfuleffortsoftheSalvadoransugarindustrytoreducetheuseofchildlaborinsugarcaneproduction.Theprojectculminatedwiththepublicationofamanualintendedtohelpothersugarproducersandagricultural industriesinCentralAmericalearnfromtheSalvadoranexperienceandreplicatepracticesthatmayproveusefulintheirnationalenvironments. In2004,ElSalvadorwaspubliclycriticizedforemployingchildrenonitssugarcaneharvestbythenonprofitorganizationHumanRightsWatch(HRW).However,thereporttitled“DeafEars”hadnotconsideredtheeffortsmadebythesugarindustrytoreducechildlaborinthesugarfields.InresponsetoHRW’saccusations,theAAEScoordinatedwithgovernmentagenciesandtheInternationalLabourOrganization(ILO)tointegrateandcom-plementpreviouseffortsanddevelopedastrategiclong-termplantoreduceandeventually

22AboutFUNDEMAS:FundaciónEmpresarialparalaAcciónSocial(FUNDEMAS)wasfoundedinMay2000byagroupoffarsightedSalvadoranbusinesspeopletocontributetoElSalvador’ssustainableeconomicandsocialdevelopmentbypromotingCSRculture,entrepreneurialbehavior,andbetter-qualityeducationcountrywide.Visitwww.fundemas.orgformoreinformation.

19Seereferences120AboutAAES-TheAsociaciónAzucareradeElSalvador(AAES)isthecountry’ssugarindustrytradeassociation.Itsgoalistopromoteandde-velopaworld-classsugarindustryinthecountry.AllsixoftheSalvadoranrefineriesaremembers.Visitwww.asociacionazucarera.comformoreinformation.21AboutBSR:Aleaderincorporateresponsibilitysince1992,BSRworkswithitsglobalnetworkofmorethan250membercompaniestodevelopsustainablebusinessstrategiesandsolutionsthroughconsulting,research,andcross-sectorcollaboration.WithsixofficesinAsia,Europe,andNorthAmerica,BSRusesitsexpertisetoguideglobalcompaniestowardcreatingajustandsustainableworld.Visitwww.bsr.orgformoreinfor-mation.


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eradicatechildlabor.AsaresultofthesecontinuouseffortsandtakingintoaccountthedatafromtheMinistryofEducation’sannualregistrationcensus,itwasobservedthat,by2008,thenumberofchildrenworkinginsugarcanefieldshaddecreasedby72percentvis-à-vis2003.Furthermore,thestrategicpartnershipbetweentheprivatesector, thegovernment,and internationalagen-ciesisworkingsuccessfullytoincreasepublicawarenessoftheeffectsofchildlabor,andhasalsohelpedunifythecountry’ssugarindustrytowardthisgoal.TheAsociaciónAzucareradeElSalva-dorhasdrafteditsownCodeofConductandalloftherefineriesenforcea“zerotoleranceforchildlaborclause”intheircontractswithproducersfromwhomtheybuysugarcane.Inthelong-term,ElSalvadorexpectstoeliminatechildlaborinthesugarcaneharvest,aswellasinstitutionalizerelevantprogramsandmakethemsustainable.Additionally,thereductionofchildlaborhasledtoanimprovedimageandreputationabroadforElSalvador’ssugarindustry.

The BSR and FUNDEMAS manual will include tips and recommendations for other agriculturalindustrieswishingtoreplicatetheexperience,includingthefollowingprinciples:

• SustainabilityofEfforts• CompliancewiththeLaw• DevelopingPartnerships• InternationalAcknowledgment• Industry-widesupport• Communication• Awareness-raising. 2. Opportunity

AgricultureremainsanimportantsourceofrevenueforElSalavadorwithsugarcanecultivationandsugarproductionjointlyrepresenting2.3percentofGDP.Six largerefineries inElSalvadorproducerefinedsugarandothersugar-derivedproducts.

Thesugarindustryemploysmorethan48,000people,includingfull-timeandseasonalworkers.ElSalvadorhasrepeatedlybeensignaledoutasusingchildlaborinthesugarcanefields,bothintheplantingandcuttingstages.Theseverityoftheproblemwasconfirmedin2004withtheinclu-sionofalaborchildmoduleintheRegistrationCensusadministeredbytheMinistryofEducationthatfoundthatmorethan12,000childrenundertheageof18workeddirectlyorindirectlyinthesugarcaneharvestwhileattendingschool.Despitethreateningthesugarindustry’srelationshipswith international buyers, these statistics warned on the need to design a broader strategy tosolvetheproblem.AlthoughsomebuyersopenlystatedtheirdecisiontostopbuyingSalvadoransugar,othersshowedaninterestinjoiningtheefforttoreducethisproblemandtheircommit-menttoconductingauditstomonitorcountryandsugarindustryprogress,asdidTheCocaColaCompany.Inresponse,theAAESincreaseditscommitmenttopreventanderadicatechildlaboranddevelopednumerousinternalandexternalcommunicationchannelstopublicizeprogressinfightingthispracticetogetherwiththeILOandtheSalvadorangovernment(specificallytheMin-istriesofLabor,Education,andHealth.).


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Ontheotherhand, thedecentralizationofsugarcaneproducers inElSalvador (approximately7,000countingindependentproducersandcooperatives)mayhampermonitoringofchildlabor,unlessindustryeffortsandresourcesareintegratedwiththecorrespondinggovernmentinstitu-tions,suchastheMinistryofLaborandSocialProtection(MTPS)throughcoordinatedandorga-nizedwork.Thiswillensurecompliancewiththelaborlaw,internationalagreements,thepolicyofzerotoleranceforchildlabor,andthesustainabilityofefforts.Basedonthisexperience,theBSRandFUNDEMASprojecthascreatedagoodpracticeguideforotherbusinessesandcountriestobeawareofanduseintheireffortstoeradicatechildlaborintheagriculturalbusiness.

3. Strategy

ThedocumentationoftheSalvadoransugarindustryeffortsdemonstratesthateffectiveelimina-tionofchildlaborrequiresalong-termstrategythatcapitalizesontheknowledgeandexpertiseof responsibleagenciesand institutions.Thedescriptiononthe leftoffersanoverviewofhowtheAAES,togetherwiththeMinistriesofLaborandEducationandtheILO,developedandimple-mentedthecountry’sfirstcomprehensivestrategyforeliminatingchildlaborinthesugarcaneharvest.The AAES communicated its commitment against child labor to all its buyers, both local andabroad,andprovideddetailsoftheeffortsitwasmaking.Asaresult,companiesthathadstatedtheirpurposetostoppurchasingSalvadoransugarreversedtheirdecisionanddecidedtomain-tain their business relationship with the country, under the condition that the country and itssugarindustrywouldcontinuealongtheexpectedpath.Tothisend,in2006theAAESadoptedaCodeofConductthatallthecountry’srefineriesendorsed.Thecodeappliestoallaspectsoftheirwork,includinglaborhiring,respectfortheenvironment,andrespectforethicalprinciplesandregulations.In2007alltherefineriesagreedtorequireandenforce“zerotoleranceforchildlabor”clausesintheircontractswithsugarcaneproducers.Theseclausesclearlystatethatmillswillnotpurchasesugarcanefromproducersthatemploychildrenundertheageof18.

4. Implementation

ThejointnationalstrategywascoordinatedbytheNationalCommitteeagainstChildLabor,whichencouragedthedraftingandimplementationofthe“NationalPlantoEradicateChildLaborinElSalvadorfor2006–2009”.ThePlandealswiththe issueofchild labor inseveralareas, includingsugarcaneproduction,fishing,andgarbagecollection,andidentifiessevenstrategicactionareas:

1Strengtheningofthelegalframework2Strengtheningoftheinstitutionalframework3Education4Health5Recreation,culture,andsports6Incomeincrease7Communicationandawareness-raising


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Thestrengthofthisplananditsimplementationwasthatitaddressedboththesocial,cultural,andeconomicrootcausesthatleadtochildren’sworkinthesugarcanefields.Also,itapproachedtheproblemwithlong-termandholisticsolutionsundertheresponsibilityofeachofthenationalinstitutions,thusbuildingapartnershiptosolvetheissue.

5. results

• SHORT-TERM RESULTSAllinvolvedsectorsinterviewedforthiscaseagreedthatthepartnershipamongAAES,theSalvadorangovernment,andtheILOhasbeenextremelysuccessful.Theoutputscanbegroupedintofourbroadcategories:

1.Reducedchildlabor.

“According to official statistics from the Ministry of Education in El Salvador, child labor in the sugar cane industry dropped by 70 percent between 2003 and 2008.” - Human Rights Watch website, Sep-tember 2009

2.Increasedpublicawareness,bothwiththepopulationatlargeandthefamiliesinruralareasthatengageinthispractice.

3.Successfulcross-sectorpartnership : jointcoordinationhasenhancedmutualunderstandingandtangiblecollaborationamongsectorsaswellasamonggovernmentagencies.

Child worker chops sugar cane in El Salvador


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4.Increasedunityofthesugarindustryinimplementingzerochild-labourtolerancepolicies.

• ANTICIPATED LONG-TERM OUTCOMESThelong-termoutcomeswilldependonhowwelltheNationalPlantoEradicateChildLaborcon-tinuestobeimplemented,onthecommitmentofnationalinstitutionsandagencies,andonthecollaborationofinternationalagencies.Workcontinuesregardingsixoutcomes:

1.Continuedreductioninchildlaboruntileradicationisattained:thisisfeasibleina10-yearpe-riod.

2.Increasedinstitutionalizationoftheissuewithingovernmentministries.Involvement from different players to eradicate child labor has resulted in significant achieve-mentsinthecountry.Activeinvolvementfromgovernmentagenciesiskey.

3.ThecommitmentofthesugarindustryandthegovernmentofElSalvadortranslatesintoverysuccessfulresults.

4.Governmentministriesresponsiblefordealingwiththisissuemustbereinforced,bothregard-ingtheprovisionofbasicsocialservicestothepopulationandtheoversightandcontrolofcom-pliancewiththelawsagainstchildlabor.Todoso,theymusthaveabudgetspecifictosupporttheiractions.

5.Likewise,theministriesshouldestablishmultidisciplinarytechnicalteams.

6.Increasedcompetitivenessofthecountry’ssugar.Inordertoimprovedtheimageandreputa-tionabroadfortheSalvadoransugarindustry.

• LESSONS LEARNED AND USEFUL TIPSTheBSRandFUNDEMASmanualwillsharetheSalvadoransugarindustryexperiencewithotheragriculturalindustriesoftheregionthatseektoeradicatechildlabor.Specifically,themanualwilldetaillessonslearnedandwillprovideusefulguidelinesforreplicatingtheexperienceinothercontexts.Themainrecommendationsaresummarizedbelow.

1. Persistenceandcontinuityarekey:Addressingchildlaborisalongterm commitment.2. Multisectorpartnerships.3. Adaptabilityandflexibilityareessential.4. Itiscrucialtoeducateandraisetheawarenessofthepublicandtheresponsiblesectors abouttheissue5. Themovementmustobtainsupportfromallmembersoftheindustry.


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6. Theindustryshouldcommunicateitseffortsandthechallengesfaced.7. Gainthesupportofinternationalcompanies.

c. Exploring the links between international business and poverty reduction

TheCoca-Cola/SABMillervaluechainimpactsinElSalvador23

ByOxfamAmerica,TheCoca-ColaCompanyandSABMiller

ThisstudywasconductedbyOxfamAmericatogetherwithCoca-ColaandSABMiller.OnesectionisconcerningchildlabourandisaresponsetothereportHumanRightsWatchreleasedin2004.Inthatreport, itwasrevealedthatBusinessespurchasingsugarfromElSalvador, includingTheCoca-ColaCompany,areusingtheproductofchildlaborthatisbothhazardousandwidespread.

The Coca-Cola Company is the world’s largest nonalcoholic ready-to-drink beverage company with the world’s most recognized brand. Its products are available in more than 200 countries, and nearly 1.7 billion servings of its products are consumed each day. In all markets, with few exceptions, Coca-Cola products are produced by a local company and efforts are made on an ongoing basis to seek out local suppliers, even for goods currently being imported from abroad.

OxfamAmericaisaninternationalreliefanddevelopmentorganizationthatcreateslastingsolu-tionstopoverty,hungerandinjustice.Togetherwithindividualsandlocalgroupsinmorethan90countries,Oxfamsaveslives,helpspeopleovercomepovertyandfightsforsocialjustice.OxfamAmericaisoneofthe14affiliatesintheinternationalconfederation,OxfamInternational.OxfamAmericaaimstoraiseawarenessaroundcorporateimpacts,empowercommunitiestoen-gagecompanieseffectively,andstrengthengovernmentoversight.

ChildlaborhashistoricallybeencommonplaceinSalvadoransugarharvests.In1998,thesugarindustryestablishedFundAzúcar,whichhasbeenleadingtheefforttoeradicatechildlaborinthesectorwhileimprovingaccesstoeducation,healthandnutrition,andchildren’srights.Between2004and2008, the ILOmademultimilliondollar investments inprogramstocombatchildlaborinsugarcaneharvesting.IncoordinationwiththeILO,theSalvadoranSugarAssocia-tionfundedfarmlabormonitorsandsocialadvocatesforfarmfamilies,andTheCoca-ColaCom-pany funded a pilot program to identify safe, alternative income-generation opportunities forteenslivingonfarms

SocialinitiativeslinkedtopublicpolicySABMiIIer’sbottlingplant,ILC,andTheCoca-ColaCompanyregularlymakesocialinvestmentsinElSalvador.Between2008and2010,TheCoca-ColaCompanyinvestedmorethan$1.3millioninsocialprogramsinlocalcommunities,includingprogramsinlocalschoolstofundenvironmentaleducationandtheinstallmentofwasteandsanitationfacilities.In2009,TheCoca-ColaCompany

23Seereferences3


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spent$210,000onenvironmentalprotectionand improved livelihoodprojects for400familieslivingaroundtheSanAntonioRiver.TheCoca-ColaCompanyalsofunds“ApuntateaJugar,”apro-gramtopromoteactive,healthylivinginschoolsthatbenefitedover3,000Salvadoranchildrenbetween2008and2010.

d. The sugarcane alcohol industry efforts in combating child exploitation in BrazilJoel Orlando Bevilaqua Marin

InBrazil, thesugarcanealcoholsectorused tobesociallyperceivedasamajor responsible forchildlaborexploitation.Thisnegativeimagebegantochangewhensomesugarcaneagroindus-triesembracedtheprinciplesofcorporatesocialresponsibilityandengagedthefighttoeradicatechildlabor.Bydoingso,thesecompaniesjoinedtheeffortsofpublicauthoritiesandsocietytoprotectchildrenandadolescentsandensuretheirrightsaccordingtotheBrazilianlegislation.Themobilizationofentrepeneurs,governmentandsocietytoeliminatechildlaboristhedirectresultofadvancesintheinstitutionalizationoflawsforbiddingtheemploymentofchildrenandvaluingschoolasthecoreinstitutiontotheeducationandsocializationoftheyounggenerations.Thelawsdefendingtherightsofchildrenweredevelopedundertheinspirationofdoctrinesvin-dicatedbyinternationalorganizations,speciallytheInternationalLabourOrganization(ILO),theUnitedNationsChildren’sFund(UNICEF)andtheUnitedNations(UN).Therefore,theselegislationsstatethatchildrenandadolescentsareataspecialstageofdevelopment,subjecttospecificrightsandduties,withensuredaccesstoadequatetrainingandcomprehensiveanddifferentiatedpro-tectiontobeprovidedbyfamily,societyandthestate.Accordingtotheselegalprovisions,childlaborwasseenasasocialproblemthatshouldbeeradicateddueto itsharmfuleffectsonthephysical,culturalandemotionaldevelopmentofchildrenandadolescents(MARIN,MARIN,2008).Agribusinesslinkedtothesugarcanealcoholsectoralsoengagedinfightagainstchildlaborandbegantodevelopsocialactionsonbehalfofyoungpeople.Thisinitiativewastriggeredbythein-troductionoftheProgramaEmpresaAmigadaCriança(ChildFriendlyCompanyProgram),creat-edbyAbrinqFoundationforChildren’sRights24in1996.Themainobjectivesofthisprogramare:first,tostimulatethecommitmentofcompaniestopreventchildrenfromworking,andsecond,toencouragechildren’seducationandvocational trainings foradolescents.AbrinqFoundationsoughttodeveloprulesofcorporateethicalconductinordertostimulatecompaniestoperformwithsocialresponsibilityinacompetitiveandglobalizedmarket.Withthepurposeofachievingtheabovestatedobjectives,threebasicstrategieswereestablishedbytheFoundation:1)creationoftheChildFriendlyCompanylabel,2)conductingacampaignfortheinclusionofsocialclausesinpublicandprivate contractswhichdealwith thepurchaseandsaleofgoodsor services, topreventthecirculationofitemsandservicesthatmadeuseofchildlabor,3)socialmobilizationtostrengthenthesupervisoryandregulatorycapacityofstateinstitutionsandcivilsociety(ABRINQFOUNDATION,2009).

By2010,theAbrinqFoundationhadgrantedtheChildFriendlyCompanylabelto885companieslocatedinBrazil.In2007,about76sugar-canealcoholindustrieswereawardedwithit,nearly10%

24AbrinqFoundationforChildren’sandAdoles-cent’sRightsisaprivatelyfunded,notforprofitorganizationestablishedin1990.Itsobjectiveistomobilizesocietyandthebusinesssectoronissuesrelatedtotherightsofchildrenandado-lescents,throughactions,programsandprojectsthatencourageandstrengthenpublicpoliciesinordertoguaranteethecorrectdevelopmentofyoungpeopleinBrazil.


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ofthetotalnumberofcompaniesfromallsectorsthatpossessthelabel.Thataloneindicatestheinterestofentrepreneursfromtheagro-alcoholsectorindevelopingsocialinitiativestobenefitchildrenandadolescentsinthecountry.However,thenumberofagro-alcoholcompaniessociallyengagedwiththecauseofyoungpeopleisstillsmallconsideringthetotalamountof432sugar-caneagribusinessregisteredintheDepartmentofSugarcaneandAgroenergy,withintheMinistryofAgriculture,LivestockandFoodSupply(BRASIL,2010).

TheChildFriendlyCompany label isanawardgranted tocom-paniesthatdonotemploy,norarecustomersofinstitutionsex-ploitingchild.Thereareseveraldifferentwaysinwhichthelabelcanbeusedbythecompany,includingonthepackageoftheirproducts, on promotional materials or in advertisements. Toobtainthediplomaandthesocial label, thecompanyneedstocommit itself (formally and publicly) not to use child labor, ac-cording to the legal legislation of the country; make this com-mitmentknowntotheirchainofsuppliersandclients;developandsupportanysocialprogramforchildren’sdevelopmentorfor

thetrainingofadolescents.Thelabelisvalidforoneyear,butthecompanycanrenewthelicensefortheusethroughthereaffirmationoftheircommitmentsandafterbeingsubjectedtospecificinvestigations.Thisway,theAbrinqFoundationseestheChildFriendlyCompanylabelas“somesortofISO9000”,inallusiontothesetofISOstandards,aninternationalorganizationresponsibleforestablishingaSystemofQualityAssurance(ABRINQFOUNDATION,2009).IncompliancewiththeproposalsoftheAbrinqFoundation,companiesofthesugarcanesectoralsobegantoinsertsocialclausesintradeagreementsforgoodsorservices,signedbyseveralbusinesssectors.Inessence,thesocialclausesnowpresentinbothtradeandworkagreementsarecommitmentsacceptedbythesugarcanecompany, inorder tocombat theexploitationofchildlaborintheproductionchain,makinguseoftherightofnotpurchasinggoodsorservicesfromothercompaniesthatmighthaveexploitedchildrenoradolescents.Theinclusionofsocialclausesintradeagreementsimplicatesthelegalpossibilityofdisengagementinthepurchaseofproductsandservices,incaseanylinkinthechainhasmadeuseofchildlabor.AnotherstrategytomobilizesugarcanealcoholindustrieswasthesigningofPactsfortheEradi-cationofChildLabor.Since1996,whentheAbrinqFoundationlauncheditscorporateawarenesscampaign,sevenpactsrelatedtothesugarcaneindustry(inthestatesofSãoPaulo,Goiás,MatoGrossodoSul,MinasGerais,Paraná,PernambucoandAlagoas)weresigned.Generallyspeaking,the pacts made in the sector include commitments of agribusinesses in combating the use ofchildrenasworkforce,throughengagingsuppliersofinputsandrawmaterials;supportingpublicschools;investinginmunicipalfundsfortherightsofchildrenandadolescents;andcreatingpart-nershipswithpublicandprivateorganizationsforeducationalandvocationalprograms(MARIN,2005).ThesetofinitiativesproposedbyAbrinqmobilizedsomesugarcaneagribusinesstodevelopsocialresponsibility.Fromthebusinessperspective,theprimaryreasonforobtainingtheChildFriendlyCompanylabelisthesocialrecognition,whichallowsnotonlyahighervisibilitybutalsoagreater


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disseminationofprogramsdevelopedonbehalfoftheyounger.Therefore,thelabelactsasasortofprize,while,atthesametime,italsolegitimatesanddisseminatestheactionstakenunderthecompany’ssocialresponsibility.Thesecondreasonisrelatedtothepurposeofimprovingthecom-pany’simage,especiallyinthoseproductiveactivitiesthatweresociallyassociatedwithworkforceandenvironmentalproblems,suchasthesugarcaneindustryinBrazil.Thisway,thelabelbecomesasocialmarketingstrategy,givingpublicitytoactionsofcorporatesocialresponsibility.Thethirdreasonhastodowithfulfillingconsumers’demands.Businessmenhavenotedthat,internation-ally,consumerstendtovaluegoodsproducedwithsocialandenvironmentalresponsibility,refus-ingthoserelatedtochildexploitationorenvironmentaldegradation(MARIN,2010).Bythreateningorholdingboycottsagainstproductsassociatedwiththeuseofchildlabororex-tremeexploitationofworkers,consumershavecontributedtosubstantialchangesinthebehaviorofsomesugarcanecompaniesinBrazil.Througheducationalcampaigns,consumersindevelopedcountrieswerewarnedtheycouldbeconsuminggoodsmanufacturedbyunscrupulousemploy-eeswhosubjecttheirworkforcetodemeaningconditionsorwhoarecarelessaboutdegradingtheenvironment.Consequently,anofficialcertificationofproductsbecameindispensable,sothatconsumerswouldbeguaranteedfullrespectforworkers’rightsandenvironmentalpreservation.Notethatconsumersusedtheirpowertoenforceethicalprinciplesintraderelationstopreventthemovementofgoodsthathadsomehowmadeuseofchildlabor.Refutingthetheoretical ideasthatassociateconsumptiontoneedlessorthoughtlessdisburse-ment,Canclini(2006,p.59-63)statesthat“consumptionisforthinking”,asthereisastrongrela-tionshipbetweenconsumptionandcitizenshipgrounds.Themarketplaceisnotsimplyaplaceforgoodstobetraded.Itis,infact,anareawherecomplexsocioculturalinteractionstakeplace.Whenitcomestoconsumption,citizensusuallythinkabouttheirroleinsociety,reflectonthepracticesoftheproducers,aswellasconsiderboththebenefitsandharmsthatproductsandservicesmaycausetothemselves,societyandtheenvironment.Thisintricatescenarioprovidedbyconsump-tionisperfectforreflectionandfortheconstructionofcitizenship.Thisway,onecanunderstandthegrowinginvolvementofconsumerswhodemandethicsincommoditiesproductionandtheircirculation, environmental conservation, respect for internationally recognized rights and, veryimportantly,consumerswhorefusetoconsumeproductsthathaveexploredtheworkofchildrenduringtheirmanufacturing.Itisalsonoteworthythatinternationaltradeagreementsincludesocialclausesinordertoguaran-teehumanandlaborrights,aswellasrestricttheexploitationofchildlabor.Socialclausesininter-nationaltraderelationshaveforcedexporterstoincludetheissueofchildlaborintheiragendasforeconomicdevelopment.Thesechangeshavebeeninterpretedeitherasaprotectivemeasureforthemarketsofdevelopedcountriestoensurecontrolofsignificantpartsofthemarket,orasanimportantsteptowardsensuringtherightsofworkersandchildren(MARIN,MARIN,2009).Regardlessof thereal intentions, thesocialclauses inducedentrepreneurs fromthesugarcanealcoholsectortoadapttotheruleslaiddownbyinternationaltradeagreements.Inthefaceoftradesanctionsimposedbycountriesthatmakeupthemajoreconomicblocs,businesssectorsbegantoadhere to thecausesofchildhoodandtodevelopofa senseof social responsibility.Sugarcaneagribusinesssoughttotransformtheirimageinsociety,byembracinghumanitariandevelopmentandjoiningthefightfortheeradicationofchildlaborintheirsupplychains.Entre-


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preneurshavesetupactionsofsocialresponsibilityowingtothegrowthofinternationalpressure,expressedinconstantthreatsofboycottsagainstgoodsproducedthroughchildrenandadoles-cents labor exploitation. Such initiatives give companies legitimacy in global markets, besidesconstitutingvaluable investments insocialmarketing.Thepracticalresultofthisprocess istheincreaseinawarenessandthespreadofactionsandprogramsaimingtheprotectionandthefulldevelopmentofchildren.Summingup,inBrazil,theissueofchildlaborbegantointegratetheagendasofnearlyonehun-dredsugarcanealcoholagribusiness,injointeffortstointernalizetheideathatsustainabledevel-opmentandtransgenerationalsocialresponsibilitynecessarilyassumethattherightsofchildrentoeducation,health,joy,andfunarepreserved.Aswellasthat,itbecamestrongertheideaofanexpansionofpovertyeradicationprogramsandtheneedforabetterincomedistribution,sothatallchildrenhaveaccesstocomprehensivephysical,intellectualandemotionaldevelopment.Inthelasttwodecades,Brazilhasaccumulatedsuccessfulexperiencesinensuringtherightsofpooryoungpeopleandimprovingtheirlivingconditions.However,thereisstillalongwaybeforeachievingthecompleteeradicationofchildlaborinBrazil,sinceofficialdatafrom2009provedtheexistenceof4.3millionchildrenandadolescents,agedbetween5and17years,thatarestillusedasworkforce.Thegovernment,privateenterprisesandsocietymustremaintogether,joiningeffortstoaccomplishtheobjectiveofeliminatingthisproblem.Therefore,thesugarcanealcoholsector, given its importance in Brazilian economy, plays an instrumental role in the mission oferadicatingchildlaborinthecountry.

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“Theyareeverywherebutinvisible,(…)hiddenfromviewinplantations.”Unicef.Thissimpleone-linerillustratesthecomplexityofthechildlabourproblem.AccordingtoUNICEF,thereareanestimated158millionchildrenaged5-14engagedinchildla-bouraroundtheworld-oneinsixchildren.Millionsofthemareengagedinhazardoussituationsandbadworkingconditions,likewithchemicalsandpesticidesinagriculture.Infact,however,nobodyknowstheexactnumberofworkingchildrenasmanyofthemareemployed,ormoreprecisely,exploitedbyamemberoftheirownfamily.Unfortunately,child labour inagriculture isoftenforgotteneven if thenumber ismuchhigherthaninothersectorssuchaschildprostitutionortraffickingofchildren.Themainreasonisthatagricultureisassimilatedtofamilysizebusinesswherenoriskexists.Inreality,though,manychil-drenareworkingonlarge-scaleplantationswheretheyareinmuchgreaterriskofexploitationbecauseofprofit-orientedfarmsandbusinesses.Inmanyproductionareas,thesugarcanesectoristhemainregional,orsometimes,countryem-ployer.Thelogicalconsequenceofthissituationisariseinchildlabour.Childlabourispartofahugeproblemwhichcannotbetreatedalone.Itisnecessarytocreateanadequateenvironmentsothatchildrendonotneedtoparticipateintheharvest.Itiscausedbyvariousfactors:povertyandlackofeducationoftheparents,lackofconcernoffarmersandindus-trialsforthesituation,lackofpoliticalwillfromthegovernmentsandauthorities,NGO’swhichdonothavetheresourcesandcapacitytohandlelong-termongoingprojects.

A situation which remains worrying

Inmostsugarproducingcountries,thesituationremainsworryingdespitetheeffortsinitiatedbythesocialsociety,publicauthoritiesorcompaniesofthesector.InBolivia,forexample,ILO’sinterventionhasledtoareductioninthenumberofchildrenpartici-patingindifferentwaysinthesugarcanesector.InthePhilippines,though,forexample,thepres-entsituationinsomeofthesugarcaneareasshowsthattheactionsoftheorganizationsinvolved–throughprograms,advocacyandcampaigning–arenotefficientenough.Differentreasonscanbeunderlined:• parentswhochoosetokeeptheirchildreninthesugarcanefieldsinsteadofsendingthemtoschoolforeconomicreasons,• extrememobilityoftheharvester’sfamiliesfromoneareatoanother,whichmakeslong-termprojectsdifficult,• lackofhumanandfinancialresourcestoimplementstrategiestoeradicatechildlabour,• authoritieswithoutrealpoliticalwilltosolvetheproblembyimplementinglaws,• insufficientenforcementofthelegalframework,Thatiswhyitisnecessarytokeepaveryclosewatchonthesituation.Actionsandcampaigns,likethatrunbyHRWin2004tomovebackchildlabourinElSalvador,arenecessary.

No concern for bad working conditions

Child labour in the sugar cane sector is still one of the worst forms of child labour because of

Conclusion25

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numerous hazards, harmful work conditions,lackofprotection,andpoor livingconditions.Indeed,itstillhasverynegativeimplicationsfortheir health and education. It is essential thatfarmers agree to improve living and workingconditionsinsugarcanefieldsandharvesters’camps.

Poverty and extreme poverty: a key to un-derstanding the problem of child labour

Therootcauseofchildlabourispovertyorextremepoverty.Manyyoungpeoplehavechosentoworkinsteadofgoingtoschoolforeconomicreasons.Onesolutiontotheproblem,wouldbetosupportprojectswhichcouldgiveotherfinancialre-sourcestoharvestersandtheirfamily-forexamplemicroprojectsforwomen,orevenwholecom-munities.Therearelong-termsolutions.Thesugarcanesector(sugarcaneandbio-fuel)shouldredistributeprofitstoworkersandcom-munitiesmorefairly,especiallywhenthesugarmarketpriceisrising.

Cooperation and multi actions on the long term are needed

It isamulti-partiesproblemwhichconcernGovernments, localauthorities, industries, farmers,parents,children,Unions,NGO’s,etc.Dialogueisthefirststep.Educationisveryimportanttoo,inordertoraiseawarenessaboutmainissuesandhazardsinthesugarcanesector.Cooperationbetweendifferentpartieshastobeim-plemented,likeTradeUnionswhichworkwiththeFederationofSugarcaneHarvestersinBolivia.Itcanalsobeseenthatworkshops,likethoseruninBoliviabydifferentorganizations,donothavesufficientresultspartlybecauseofthemobilityoftheharvestersandtheirfamilies.Thesamere-markcanbemadeaboutsectorinitiativessuchas“Bonsucro”orthe“RoundTableonSustainableBiofuel”

Parents have to take responsibility

Itisparentsthataresendingtheirchildrentothefields.“So,itwillbeabattlebetweenthestateandtheparents”,statesMrsSorianofromtheInstituteofLabourStudies(ILS)inthePhilippines.Thecurrentchildlaboursituationinthesugarcanesectordependsontheparents’attitude.Often,theyprefertosendtheirchildrentoworkinthefieldsorstayintheharvestareastohelpthemiftheyareyounger,insteadofsendingthemtoschool.

Education: a key for eradicating child labour

Labourofteninterfereswithchildren’seducation.Ensuringthatallchildrengotoschoolandthat


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theireducationisgoodenougharekeystopreventingchildlabour.Itisobviousthatchildrenmostlyworkforeconomicreasons,or,fortheyoungest,becausetheyhavetostaywiththeirparentsas,sometimes,schoolistoofarawayfromtheharvestarea.Toovercomethisproblem,theharvestersandtheirfamiliesneedtochangetheirattitudetowardsschoolandeducation.Theyalsoneedothersourcesofincome.Thereisahugeneedformoreschoolsandhealthcentres(formedicationandinformation)closertotheharvesters’camps.Thereisaneednotforonesinglesolutionbutforacombinationofdifferentsolutionsandstrate-giesonalong-termbasis.

Insufficient legal framework and implementation of laws

Morepoliticalconcernisneededinordertostimulatemoreresources,forexamplemoreworkinginspectorswhovisitthesugarcanefields,millsandrefineries.InBrazil, thesituationbegantochangewhensugarcaneagro industriesstartedtoagreewiththeprinciplesofCSR(CorporateSocialresponsibility)andcommittedtofighttoeradicatechildlabour.ThemobilizationoftheGovernment,entrepreneursandsocietytoeliminatechildlabouristheresultofadvancesintheinstitutionalisationoflawsforbiddingtheemploymentofchildren.Thatiswhythereisanincreaseinsocialactionsonbehalfofyoungpeople,withanewlabel(ChildFriendlyCompany)awardedtonearly100sugarcanealcoholcompanies(outof432)Obviously,socialclausesininternationaltraderelationsarepositiveforthesituation.Economicsanctionsareveryharshasitleadstoconsequencessuchasboycottsorterminationofcontracts.

Pro-action and not “re-action”

InElSalvador,wehaveanexampleofastudywhichseemstobeabittoooptimistic.Thedifferentpartners(AsociacionAzuceradeElSalvadorreprensentingtherefineries,BSR-CorporateRespon-sibility-andFundemas-FundacionEmpresarialporlaAccionSocial)explainhowtheyproducedamanual,theculminatingpointoftheactionstheyhaveundertakeninordertoreducechildlabourinsugarcaneproduction.Shouldthisnotbeastartingpoint,especiallywhenyouknowthatthisdocumentwaswritteninreactiontostrongcriticismoftheexploitationofchildreninthesugarcanefieldsbytheHRW?

The informal agricultural sector is difficult to apprehend

Effortswererapidlymadeinthemillsandrefineriestowardsazerotoleranceofchildlabour,whichismoreeasythanintheinformalsectorofagriculture.Atthesametime,theSalvadorianNationalPlantoeradicateChildLabourneedsnotonlymoreresourcesbutalsopersistence.Thesamelimi-tationcanbepointedoutconcerningtheactionofCocaColaandbottlerSABMiller:theiractionsandsubsidiesareastartingpoint.


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Growing international pressure for eradication of child labour

Theseactionsarepartlyamarketingresponsetotheinternationalpressureoftheconsumersinaworldsizemarketcontext.Isthisconsumerdemandenoughtoeradicatechildlabour?InBrazil,thesugarindustrymarketishuge.That’swhyconsumersplayanimportantroleinchang-ingthesituationinthishugecountry.Thequestioniswhetherthepositionandroleofthecon-sumershasthecapacitytochangeinamarketplacewheregoodsarejusttradedwithoutsocialconsiderations.

Questions for governments in countries involved in the sugar industry26:

Has the country identified the types of work that are likely to harm the health, safety or morals of chil-dren? Do they cover hazardous work in the sugar industry for p ersons under age 18? If not, what is the timetable to do so, in consultation with relevant stakeholders?How has the government measured the extent of child labour in the sugar industry? Has the country adopted a time-bound action programme to eliminate child labour, with goals, targets, indicators and regular monitoring of progress towards the goals? If not, what is the timetable to do so? Does it include the sugar industry? How is this linked to broader development plans and strategies?Has the government consulted organizations of employers and of workers, child advocacy groups and children to seek their ideas and involvement? If not yet, what are the specific plans to do so, by when?Has the country explored options for international cooperation to eliminate child labour in the sugar industry? If there are barriers to this (such as donor country concerns over corruption or non-consul-tation of stakeholders), what measures are being taken to overcome them? What is the country doing to try to change the terms of trade that would offer better economic perspectives for domestic sugar producers and sugar workers? How is it pursuing policy coherence across various sectors? What steps is the country taking to ensure free basic education for all girls and boys? What are the nu-merical results of these efforts so far in relation to children of parents in the sugar industry?Has the country established a minimum wage in agriculture at a level that would permit parents to earn enough so that they would not feel a need to have their children work in the sugar industry? If not, how is this goal being pursued in other ways, such as through collective bargaining?Questions for firms in the sugar industry (some adjustment would be needed along the supply chain):How is the firm carrying out its due diligence with regard to corporate social responsibility? What steps is the firm taking to ensure that no workers under the age of 18 are engaged to work in any capacity that is likely to harm their health, safety or morals? How is this verified internally and externally?Is the firm paying the adult workers a wage that is sufficient for them to support their families without resort to child labour? If not, what are the steps planned to remedy this situation?If a non-fee school is not located near the area of sugar cane cultivation/production, does the firm pro-vide free on-site education to the children of sugar cane workers who are of compulsory school age? If not, does the firm provide transport free of charge for such children to attend public schools?What measures does the firm take to avoid the sexual exploitation of children in its operations? How are persons found to have engaged in sexual exploitation of children treated?

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What is done for the victim?Posing questions like these could lead to greater awareness of the extent and dangers of child labour in the sugar industry and the urgency of eliminating them. This in turn could spur greater resolve to take the steps necessary for these practices to be relegated to the bin of history. The result could be a brighter future for children in the sugar industry whose current perspectives look rather bleak.

Thomas SKAZGGAMAR and Olivier GENEVIEVE, 07/15/2011


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1. BSr Eradicating Child Labour–anotherworldisPossible,DocumentingtheSalvadorianSugarIndustry’seffortstoeradicatechildlaborinSugarCaneProduction-KimberlyAscoliunderthesupervisionofProfessorofInternationalPoliticalEconomyRichardFeinberg,UniversityofCali-fornia,SanDiego–April2010

2. Child Labour in Sugar Cane Plantations in Bolivia – a worst form of Child Labour -LAURABAAS-January2009-Astudyfromthe IREWOCProject“RuralChildLabour inAndeanCountries”www.irewoc.nl

3. Exploring the links between international business and poverty reductionThe Coca Cola SAB/Miller value chain impacts in Zambia and El Salvador.-OxfamAmerica,theCocaColaCompanyandSAB/Miller–200?

4. SWEET hAZArDS,Child laboronsugarcaneplantations inthePhilippines-JenniferdeBoer-TerredesHommesNetherlands–2005www.terredeshommes.nl

5. http://www.productsofslavery.org/version-12.1.swfAlistofplaceswherechildrenareworkinginsugarcaneareas.

Bibliographyandreferences


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1- International Labour Organization – ILO

TheILOistheinternationalorganizationresponsiblefordrawingupandoverseeinginternationallabourstandards. It istheonly‘tripartite’UnitedNationsagencythatbringstogetherrepresen-tativesofgovernments,employersandworkersto jointlyshapepoliciesandprogrammespro-motingDecentWorkforall.ThisuniquearrangementgivestheILOanedgeinincorporating‘realworld’knowledgeaboutemploymentandwork.

International Labour Office

TheInternationalLabourOfficeisthepermanentsecretariatoftheInternationalLabourOrganiza-tion,itsoperationalheadquarters.Administrationandmanagementaredecentralizedinregional,area,andbranchofficesinmorethan40countriesundertheleadershipofaDirector-General.

ies,BSR-CorporateResponsibility-andFundemas-FundacionEmpresarialpor laAccionSocial)explainhowtheyproducedamanual,theculminatingpointoftheactionstheyhaveundertakeninordertoreducechildlabourinsugarcaneproduction.Shouldthisnotbeastartingpoint,espe-ciallywhenyouknowthatthisdocumentwaswritteninreactiontostrongcriticismoftheexploi-tationofchildreninthesugarcanefieldsbytheHRW?

Child LabourToday, throughout the world, around 215 million children work, many full-time. They do not go to school and have little or no time to play. Many do not receive proper nutrition or care. They are denied the chance to be children. More than half of them are exposed to the worst forms of child labour such as work in hazardous environments, slavery, or other forms of forced labour, illicit activities including drug trafficking and prostitution, as well as involvement in armed conflict. Guided by the principles enshrined in the ILO’s Minimum Age Convention No. 138 and Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention No. 182, The ILO InFocus Programme on Child Labour (IPEC) works to achieve the effective abolition of child labour.

The International partnership for cooperation on child labour in agriculture

Since2007,theInternationalpartnershipforcooperationonchildlabourinagriculturebringsto-gethertheILO,theFoodandAgricultureOrganization(FAO),theInternationalFundforAgricultur-alDevelopment(IFAD),theInternationalFoodPolicyResearchInstitute(IFPRI)oftheConsultativeGrouponInternationalAgriculturalResearch(CGIAR),(formerly)theInternationalFederationofAgriculturalProducers(IFAP),andtheInternationalUnionofFood,Agricultural,Hotel,Restaurant,Catering,TobaccoandAlliedWorkers’Associations(IUF).ThePartnershipsupportscollaborationbetweenlabourandagriculturestakeholderstobetterad-dresschildlabourinagriculture.Knowledgeexchangeandpolicycollaborationbetweenlabour

Appendixes


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andagricultureorganizationarekeytogroundpolicyandlegislationonchildlabourtotheruraleconomy.Collaboratingwithministriesoflabour,ministriesofagriculture,departmentsoffisher-iesandforestry,agriculturalextensionservices,farmers’organizationsandcooperatives,agricul-turalproducerorganizationsandagriculturalresearchbodies,agriculturalworkersunions,bringtogetherverydifferentareasoftechnicalexpertiseandunderstandingofchild labour issues.Amultidisciplinaryperspectiveprovidesinnovativesolutionstopromotechildlaboureliminationanddecentworkforadultsaspartofsustainableagriculture.

ThePartnershipaimsto:• promotecooperationandprogrammeandpolicycoherenceonchildlabouramongthe Partners,especiallyatnationallevel• mainstreamchildlabourintoexistingactivitiesofagriculturalorganizationsandhelpr aisingawarenessonhowchildlaboureliminationcontributestoachievingorganizational mandatesofagriculturalorganizations;• promoteactionandcooperationtoimproverurallivelihoodsandalternativeincome-gen eratingactivities,andtoensurethatchildrendonotcarryouthazardousworkinagricul ture;• promoteopportunitiesfordecentyouthemploymentinagricultureandinruralareas. Furtherinformationisavailableat:http://www.fao-ilo.org/fao-ilo-child.

future harvests without child labour

Thevastmajorityoftheworld’sworkingchildrenarenottoilinginfactoriesandsweatshopsorworkingasdomesticsorstreetvendorsinurbanareas.Theyareworkingonfarmsandplantations,oftenfromsun-uptosundown,plantingandharvestingcrops,sprayingpesticidesandtendinglivestock.More…http://www.ilo.org/wow/Articles/lang--en/WCMS_091389/index.htm

Lifelong learning in the Philippines

LifelonglearningisdefinedbytheILOas“alllearningactivitiesundertakenthroughoutlifeforthedevelopment of competencies and qualifications” where“competencies” cover the knowledge,skills,andknow-howappliedandmasteredinaspecificcontext,and“qualifications”meanafor-malexpressionofthevocationalorprofessionalabilitiesofaworkerwhichisrecognizedatinter-national,nationalorsectorallevels.More…http://www.ilo.org/manila/whatwedo/publications/lang--en/docName--WCMS_126138/index.htm

Definition of Child Labour

UNICEFdefineschildlabourasworkthatexceedsaminimumnumberofhours,dependingontheageofachildandonthetypeofwork.Suchworkisconsideredharmfultothechildandshould


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thereforebeeliminated.• Ages5-11:Atleastonehourofeconomicworkor28hoursofdomestic workperweek.• Ages12-14:Atleast14hoursofeconomicworkor28hoursofdomestic workperweek.• Ages15-17:Atleast43hoursofeconomicordomesticworkperweek.

Child Labour

• ConventionontheRightsoftheChild(1989)Articles32and33.• ILOConvention182onWorstFormsofChildLabour(1999)• ILOConvention138onMinimumAgeforWorkers(1973) http://www.ilo.org/global/about-the-ilo/lang--en/index.htm

Accelerating action against child labour - ILO Global report on child labour 2010ISBN 978922-121873-9 Date 5/2010 Type de support RapportLangue(s) Anglais Français Espagnol ReportoftheDirector-General,InternationalLabourConference,99thsession,2010

Joining forces against child labour - Inter-agency report for The Hague Global Chiidl Labour Confer-ence 2010ISBN 9789221234586 Date 5/2010 Type de support Rapport interagencesLangue(s) Anglais Espagnol Français AninteragencyreportbytheUnderstandingChildrensWorkprogramme(ILO,theWorldBankandUNICEF)callsforchildlabourtobeplacedattheforefrontofnationaldevelopmentagendasandpresentsarangeofevidenceindicatingthatchildlabourconstitutesanimportantimpedimenttonationaldevelopment.

SupportingthetimeboundprogrammeinElSalvadorandcombatingchildlabourthroughedu-cationMore…http://www.ilo.org/eval/Evaluationreports/lang--en/docName--WCMS_149838/index.htm

Childreninhazardouswork–Whatweknow–Whatweneedtodo.More…http://www.ilo.org/public/spanish/region/eurpro/madrid/download/informeninos2011ingles.pdf


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2- Abstracts on Bonsucro certification regarding child labour


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3- Roundtable on Sustainable Biofuels Principle and criteria Version 2

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3- rountable on sustainable Biofuels principle and criteria version 2


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For a sugar which respects human beings and its environment

www.sucre-ethique.org-

www.acucar-etico.org-

www.ethical-sugar.org

SucreEthiqueFrance-6,alléedelaMalletière69600Oullins.Lyon,France

EthicalSugarSwitzerland-Ruedesterreaux8,1003.Lausanne,Switzerland

EthicalSugarUK-2WigleyCottages-TheHollowRavensthorpeNN68EN.Northampton,GreatBritain

2011 sugar cane and child labour : reality and perspectives. · sugar cane and child labour :...

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