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NEWS FROM THE CHILDREN’S WORLD CONGRESS ON CHILD LABOUR
The preparatory process of the Children’s World Congress on Child Labour is developing at a good pace around the world. The National Coordinators with partners of the Global March are mobilising all the key stakeholders in every country to involve them in the national preparatory activities of this important event, which gives the children, once again, the chance to raise their voices and bring the issue of child labour and education to the forefront.
Global March, after compiling the decisions of its last International Council meeting hosted in Delhi in May, and taking into consideration the suggestions made by partners, has rescheduled the Children’s World Congress on Child Labour from 10-12th May 2004 and it will be followed by a march through Florence, Italy, on 13th May. The 500 children who will meet in the Congress will be mainly former child labourers and child advocates between 13 and 17 years old.
Through the Children’s World Congress the children could voice their opinion in the global political agenda. Not only they will share the experiences but also their good initiatives or successes. They will ask questions to world leaders, will take up leadership, and discuss the global agenda for future. The children will be participating together to bring this forward.
The international media launch of the Children’s World Congress on 7th October 2003 in Florence with simultaneous press conference and activities in all the regions will give the face to this event around the world.
The National Coordinators of the Global March are showing to the world that the Congress is not just an event but also a process through which children at all levels - local, national as well as regional - participate and express their views on child labour and discuss remedies to the malice of child labour. Through the yearlong national activities prior to the congress, thousands of children will have an opportunity to speak out to the world and to emerge as leaders of their communities to fight against child labour. The national process will also serve as a selection process for the main event.
The chairperson of the Global March, Kailash Satyarthi, has witnessed high levels of involvement and commitment of the National Coordinators in the preparations for the Children’s World Congress during his visit to different countries of Latin America. He has so far attended the South American Regional Meeting in Chile, and the South Asia regional meeting hosted in Kathmandu, among others.
South America
In the South American Regional meeting celebrated in July was assumed that the Children’s World Congress is a process to empower children and strength the child participation in the region.
In the meeting was formed a World Congress Committee coordinated by the Peruvian National Coordinator, Isaac Ruiz, and comprised also by the Chile National Coordinator Iván Zamora and the Colombian National Coordinator, Miriam Gómez. The main objective of this Committee is to elaborate a preparatory propose of participation for all the countries in the region and ensure that the process represents the voice of the children.
Peru
In South America, the Peruvian National Coordinators, Ana Vazquez and Isaac Ruiz, have taken the lead of the just formed Children’s World Congress Committee. National Consultations with Global March partners have been hosted to plan the different national activities. Children are involved in all the preparations.
Colombia
The National Coordinator of Colombia has been participating in meeting with different organisations involved in child rights issues and other human rights concerns on the importance of Children’s World Congress on child labour, and on ways to push for the ratification of Convention 182 in Columbia. They propose to have 5 regional meetings to establish signed accords on the issue of child labour and Children’s World Congress until October 2003 and by November begin the selection of 5 Colombian children for the Congress.
Brazil
The Minister of Education, Cristóvam Buarque, has offered his personal support to the Children’s World Congress on Child Labour and has the commitment to work together with the Global March partners to eliminate child labour.
Central America
Costa Rica
After the visit of Kailash to Costa Rica, the key stakeholders have also shown the support to the Children’s World Congress with the joint agreement of the Global March Regional Coordinator –DNI Costa Rica-, ILO/IPEC, Unicef, Casa Alianza and Save the Children to work closely with the Global March partners to highlight the problem of the child labour in the region and ensure child participation.
Nicaragua
The National Commission for the progressive eradication of Child Labour (Comisión Nacional para la Erradicación Progresiva del Trabajo Infantil –CNEPTI), in close relation with the Nicaraguan National Coordinator and other partners, is leading all the national activities.
El Salvador
The Network for the Childhood (La Red para la Infancia de El Salvador), a coalition of 65 NGO’s and GO that work on child issues, has formed a Group on Child Labour to develop a plan of activities prior to the Congress and to follow it up. They have published a popular version of the Convention 182 and a methodology guide for children and different social sectors.
North America
USA
The Child Labour Coalition (CLC) is working with a member of Congress to introduce a comprehensive domestic child labour bill during the second week of October, when the worldwide announcement of the Children’s World Congress will be made. They are pursuing the possibility of a Congressional hearing on Capitol Hill.
The Child Labour Coalition plans to hold a Youth Leadership Conference on Child Labor in Washington, DC in February. The CLC is inviting the Canadian Labour Congress to work together in broadening the conference to a regional event to prepare North American youth for the Congress and develop regional action plan.
Africa Francophone
Togo
During the World Day Against Child labour a glorious procession of children was organised through the main streets of Lome. This activity drew its success from an efficient planning of the event and the previous sensitisation of children who almost initiated the parade. Singing and uttering slogans the children marched gaily through different corners of the town as a sign of understanding for their rights. Through this activity the Global March Regional Coordination, WAO-Afrique, identified prominent child advocates among whom were former child labourers who actually expressed their views and experiences and pledged to take part in the selection process of the Children’s World Congress.
Congo- Kinshasa
The National Coordinator of Congo-Kinshasa Action, Femmes Pour Enfants Negliges et Abusehas, initiated the contact with the GM partners and other stakeholders to involve them in the preparation of the Children’s World Congress. Also they have begun the media mobilisation to promote this event and they are organising workshops for trade unions and journalists on the worst forms of child labour.
During August the National Committee and GM partners have organised an activity for former and current child labourers and child activists. The Global March National Coordination of Congo is producing a TV ad about the worst forms of child labour in Congo. In September 2003, they are planning to conduct awareness campaigns in 10 schools of Kinshasa on the Conventions 138 and 182. They will continue in October with workshops and seminars for children and the selection of children who will participate in the National Forum in Kinshasa. In November they will organise a march against the worst forms of child labour with the teacher unions around the country. And in the pipeline is the production of a documentary about the worst forms of child labour in Congo for the Children’s World Congress.
Africa Anglophone
Nigeria
ANPPCAN Nigeria is hosting the 4th African Regional Conference on Child Abuse and Neglect to be held in March 23rd-27th 2004, whose theme is “Child Trafficking: A Challenge to Child Protection in Africa.” The conference will also act as a pre-congress forum for children going to Italy from Africa.
South Asia
The South Asia Regional held in Kathmandu, Nepal, in July highlight the need of a real participation of children to address the issue of child labour. The main national activities will involve the NGOs and trade unions in the process to ensure the child participation.
India
A National Consultation with NGOs and trade unions will take place in the beginning of September to elaborate the national plan.
South East Asia
In preparation for the Children’s World Congress, a Southeast Asia Child Participation Meeting was held in Jakarta in July where delegates discussed how to move forward with this event.
Indonesia
From June until December 2003, different NGOs cared children in Indonesia are planning to establish different activities one of them is Indonesian child labour congress that would be started with activity of child labour forum in 15 provinces. This activity is done by involved the full participation of child labourers
Western Europe
France
Marche Mondiale organized a press conference on the 24 of June, in which they introduced their local projects and began to speak about the World Congress. From September they will carry on with the school campaigns to raise awareness among children, students and adults about the issue of child labour and the Congress till the day of the actual Congress. They have a public event programme on 23 november at which an important sport occasion should take place, and which should have a great impact on the public.
Belgium
The Global National Coordination, Solidarité Mondiale, took advantage of the press conference on child trafficking that they organized on the 12th of June, in collaboration with Ecpat and Unicef to announce the Children’s World Congress and the relevant preparatory activities. They will also organise a national hearing in September, to officially launch the Congress preparatory campaign among schools, NGOs, trade unions, etc.
Portugal
CNASTI, the Global March National Coordination in Portugal, will organise a national hearing on 12th and 13th of September in which about 40 persons are expected to participate
Sweden
Bonded Labour Liberation Front Global, the National Coordination in Sweden, is planning to have a national hearing on 25th and 26th of September. It should convene NGO representatives from Finland, Norway, Denmark, Sweden and UK.
Spain
The Global National Coordination in Spain, IDEAS, organised a press conference, with the presence of Kailash Sathyarthi, to introduce the Children’s World Congress on 16th July. It got a big media attention, with 15 journalist .
A national hearing is planning planned for 12/13 September to launch the World Congress which will attract participation from social movements, NGOs, trade unions, etc.
Greece
A press conference was organised by MFHR, a Global March National Coordinator in Greece, together with General Confederation of Workers of Greece (GSEE) on 12th June about the World Day Against Child Labour and the Children’s World Congress. About 20 journalists attended it and a Press Release was published in almost all the daily newspapers of Athens and other Provinces. 25 collaborating organisations from Athens and other big cities of Greece were also represented at the Press Conference.
Albania, CRCA
CRCA has taken the child participation as a main issue on all its activities. On 12th June they organised a Children's Protest "Stop Child Labour in Albania" which took place in one of the most populated areas of Tirana, where child labour phenomenon engages at least 60 percent of school-age children. Children's Exhibition in CRCA premises attended by the participants of the
National Hearing with works of children attending Children's Clubs Against
Child Labour.
They are planning for a wide conference in September / October on the issue
of child labour and child trafficking in Albania and the announcement of the Children’s World Congress with the participation of senior Governmental officials and NGO senior representatives
Eastern Europe
The Global March Regional Coordinator will host in Romania a Regional Meeting in September with the Children’s World Congress as a main point of the agenda. Each country will present a draft strategy on the activities for selection of children and fundraising, the involvement of other partners at the national level and the available and needed resources. They will also discuss the follow up of the Children’s World Congress, how to promote and disseminate its recommendations, main actors to lobby and media role.
Romania
Salvati Coopi organised a national hearing in mid July with 20 children (former child labourers and children from risk groups) that form the Children’s Reference Group in Romania. They participated in a working session on the issue of child labour in Romania, elaborating a list of recommendation and idea for the CWCCL.
Russia
New Perspectives Foundation, the National Coordinator for Russia, plans to inform country-wide audiences about the Children’s World Congress from September through November 2003. The activities will be towards mobilising former child labourers and child activists, working with schools and organising press conferences and events involving former child labourers and child activists. A national hearing, with 30 organisation representatives, will take place in Moscow in September. The children’s selection process will be underway by December 2003.
Macedonia
The first steps the Macedonian National Coordination, First Children’s Embassy in the World, has taken for the preparation of the Children’s World Congress is to develop a Network with NGOs, teachers’ unions, youth groups, student organisations, and contacts with former core marchers, child activists and school-going children active in the child labour issue to participate in the preparation and selection process . They are working also in involving activists and volunteers from different sectors who had been or are active in GCE and the child labour issue.
This is only a summary of what is going on in different corners of the planet. More detailed information is available at the Children’s World Congress website, the newest addition to the Global March website. Check it out at http://www.globalmarch.org/worldcongress
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