January 20, 2012
FILIPINO children work in extremely hazardous fisheries.
The most notorious and extremely dangerous of deep sea jobs is in muro-ami which employs children as swimmers and divers using nets to fish in reefs.
Called reef hunters, they dive for fish or free snagged nets. The perception is that their smaller bodies are better for diving deeper and that their fingers are nimble to hook and unhook nets. Read the rest of this entry »
December 2, 2011
MALAYBALAY CITY (MindaNews/1 Dec) – The agriculture sector, specifically sugar and corn, are the top employers of child labor in the province, according to baseline survey commissioned for the International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labor (IPEC), a program funded by the International Labor Organization. Read the rest of this entry »
November 30, 2011
TUGUEGARAO CITY, Philippines – The Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) rescued at least six Aeta children and filed charges of human trafficking and violation of anti-child labor law against the owner of a junk shop who recruited and allegedly maltreated the children. Read the rest of this entry »
November 30, 2011
RESULTS of a 2010 survey showed that about 1.9 million Filipino children aged 5 to 17, or 6.3% of the population in this age range, were working.
More than a third of the working children belonged to the lowest per capita income bracket, according to the National Statistics Office report on the Annual Poverty Indicators Survey (APIS).
“The main factor that contributes to the number of working children is poverty. There are other factors that contribute to this issue such as lack of access to schools and educational facilities and poor health and nutrition. However, these other factors can still be traced back to poverty,” Jesus M. Macasil, Jr., director of the International Labour Organization-International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour Towards a Child Labour Free Philippines, told BusinessWorld.
Among the regions, Northern Mindanao had the highest incidence of child labor, with 13.2% of its population aged 5 to 17 found to be working. It was followed by Bicol region (10.7%), Zamboanga Peninsula (10.1%), Cordillera Administrative Region (9.9%), and Cagayan Valley (9.4%).
Metro Manila had the lowest incidence at 0.9%.
“The lack of income opportunities in rural areas is mainly responsible for the high percentage of working children especially in agriculturally dependent regions,” Mr. Macasil said.
Survey results also showed that nearly 7 in 10 working children were males. Mr. Macasil noted that boys do most of the farming work, while girls shoulder domestic chores.
More than half of the working children were unpaid family workers. Nine in 10 child laborers aged 5-11 were unpaid.
Meanwhile, 40.2% of children working in the Philippines were wage and salary workers employed in private households, establishments, family-operated businesses, and even government offices.
Mr. Macasil said surveys on working children should be conducted on a regular basis as a first step in decreasing the incidence of child labor.
“Second, the poverty issue needs to be addressed through government investment on social and economic projects that would benefit those who really need it,” he said.
More than 20,000 household heads were interviewed in August 2010 for the APIS. — Luis Nonito Q. Pasuelo, Businessworld
November 22, 2011
Charges for large scale illegal recruitment and child abuse is set to be filed by the Department of Labor and Employment and the Bacolod City Police before the city prosecutor’s office today against the three persons nabbed Friday at the Banago wharf. Read the rest of this entry »
November 21, 2011
The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) has branded the surrender of 80 New People’s Army (NPA) rebels, including 19 minors, in Bukidnon province to government authorities as military “psychological warfare” smacks of coercion and fakery. Read the rest of this entry »
November 19, 2011
Two commanders of the Abu Sayyaf Group have been resorting to force and intimidation to recruit “child warriors,” a military officer said. Read the rest of this entry »
November 19, 2011
Nineteen out of the 80 New People’s Army (NPA) rebels, who voluntarily surrendered last Monday to government authorities in Bukidnon province, were minors, bolstering the military’s claims that the communist group is recruiting child warriors. Read the rest of this entry »
November 19, 2011
COTABATO CITY – For “giving up arms,” at least 20 child-soldiers in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) got educational benefits under a regional government program with international funding agencies, an official said. Read the rest of this entry »
November 18, 2011
MANILA, Philippines – Months after an international human rights group slammed them for allegedly fabricating stories of child recruits in the New People’s Army rebel group, the Armed Forces of the Philippines claimed that they have proof disproving these accusations. Read the rest of this entry »
