Child labour, education and indigenous and tribal peoples

Modalities of indigenous children being involved in child labour.

Research on indigenous peoples and forced labour in Latin America

Testing indigenous community driven education approaches against child labour in the Philippines

In Bolivia, a different study has also documented the existence of forced labour against indigenous people.

Specifically why do we find children from specific indigenous groups in certain sectors of child labour?

(n)bis. Recognizing the rights of indigenous peoples and workers consistent with relevant International Labour Office Conventions.

ILO Convention on Indigenous and Tribal Peoples, 1989 (No. 169) A Manual (Geneva, International Labour Office, 2003)

There is an expressed need to link child labour to broader structural challenges facing indigenous and tribal peoples, such as forced labour, land rights, development planning and local governance.

The Committee welcomes the State party's ratification in 2002 of International Labour Organization Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention, 1989 (No. 169) concerning indigenous and tribal peoples in independent countries.

Recalling the Convention concerning Indigenous and Tribal Peoples in Independent Countries, 1989 (No. 169), of the International Labour Organization,

Within this framework, the International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour is implementing a number of initiatives to combat child labour through education, specifically aimed at indigenous children and youth.

The importance of a rights based approach to combating child labour in indigenous communities, taking into account indigenous rights enshrined in international law, in particular relevant articles of ILO Convention No. 169.

1. Indigenous individuals and peoples have the right to enjoy fully all rights established under applicable international and domestic labour law.

In many rural indigenous communities, the use of child labour in agricultural work and related activities is essential for families' survival.

Child labour and education should be integrated into a broader indigenous child rights agenda to guarantee sustainability of the ongoing efforts.

3. Indigenous individuals have the right not to be subjected to any discriminatory conditions of labour and, inter alia, employment or salary.

The continuing practice of child labour by indigenous children, especially girls, as a response to poverty is a matter of considerable gravity.

In 2001, 44.6 per cent of indigenous women were participating in the labour force, an increase of 42.6 per cent in 1996.

The experiences of projects aimed at the elimination of child labour through education in indigenous communities highlight a number of issues pertaining to indigenous education that are worth highlighting for further consideration by the Forum

More particularly, in the centres of illegal gold prospecting, there is evidence that indigenous children and adolescents are subjected to labour exploitation and the worst forms of child labour, including servitude and slavery, child prostitution, trafficking and sale.

However, the main focus on indigenous and tribal peoples falls within the second element of ILO work working towards the elimination of child labour.

The Special Rapporteur is troubled by frequent complaints about evictions and forced displacements of indigenous communities, despite international legal provisions such as International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention No. 169 concerning indigenous and tribal peoples in independent countries, which clearly establish the rights of indigenous peoples in such circumstances.

Incorporating indigenous concerns into national decent work country programmes aims to sensitize and raise awareness of indigenous issues among the public and draw attention to the problems faced by indigenous men and women in the world of work particularly discrimination, which results in unemployment, underemployment, child and bonded labour.

INDISCO has also been continuing its work in the Philippines in cooperation with the International Programme to Eliminate Child Labour to prevent and eliminate child labour among indigenous communities through community driven and culturally appropriate education and livelihoods support.

Results usually show that child labour rates are higher among indigenous children and that, in turn, their school attendance rates are lower, especially among girls.

The Forum on Indigenous Issues is deeply concerned that particular problems and discrimination are faced by indigenous children and youth, including in the areas of education, health, culture, extreme poverty, mortality, sexual exploitation, militarization, displacement, incarceration, labour and others.

Given that indigenous and tribal children are at special risk for the worst forms of child labour, it is essential that the development of programmes to combat child labour take into account the social and economic marginalization of these peoples.

A joint working paper issued in June 2003 by two ILO programmes the International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour and INDISCO entitled Indigenous and Tribal Children Assessing child labour and education challenges , found, inter alia, that the neglect of indigenous and tribal rights and concerns in national education programmes is a key factor in social exclusion and marginalization.

The Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues is deeply concerned that particular problems and discrimination are faced by indigenous children and youth, including in the areas of education, health, culture, extreme poverty, mortality, sexual exploitation, militarization, displacement, incarceration, labour and others.

Another effort that has been made towards a better understanding of the reality of child labour in indigenous communities was the conduct of two specific studies.

Some examples are the studies on child domestic labour in Guatemala and Peru, where a high proportion of indigenous girls was identified working under unacceptable conditions.

Making education more suitable for indigenous peoples is a means to build the capacity to take primary responsibility for the prevention and elimination of child labour.

The objective should be protection from the negative effects of child labour so that indigenous children and youth can receive education and develop their potential without discrimination.

Moreover, the Ministry of Social Welfare and the Ministry of Labour were working constantly to promote the human rights of indigenous peoples, who were internationally protected by specific agreements such as Convention No. 169 of the International Labour Organization (ILO), which Ecuador had ratified.

The major goal of each of these studies was to understand the protection and risk factors associated with child labour in indigenous communities from an intercultural and gender perspective.

A number of Andean countries are now putting into place stronger policies to eradicate debt bondage and other forms of forced labour to which indigenous people are too often subjected.

The speakers further urged States that have not yet done so to ratify the International Labour Organization (ILO) Convention No. 169 (1989) concerning indigenous and tribal peoples in independent countries.

In a number of other countries (such as India, the Sudan, the Great Lakes region of Africa and the Andean countries) ILO has conducted studies on forms of child labour among indigenous children and their implications for the education, health and well being of indigenous peoples.

Pursuant to ILO Convention No. 169, which contains articles dealing with indigenous educational and cultural issues, ILO is carrying out various activities relating in particular to the elimination of child labour.

Further information on the activities of the International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour of relevance to indigenous and tribal peoples can be found in paragraphs 53 to 72 below.

It was recommended that the Government ratify International Labour Organization Convention No. 169 and provide greater recognition of indigenous languages, teaching them in schools and removing the language barrier for Government posts.

In the case of persons belonging to indigenous peoples, States parties should give preference to alternatives to imprisonment and to other forms of punishment that are better adapted to their legal system, bearing in mind in particular International Labour Organization Convention No. 169 concerning Indigenous and Tribal Peoples in Independent Countries.

In this context, all activities related to the abolition of child labour should pay close attention to indigenous girls and should take into account all the social and economic factors behind this phenomenon.

In this regard, the provision of quality and culturally appropriate education becomes a crucial step in the prevention and elimination of child labour among indigenous and tribal peoples in line with ILO Convention No. 169.