SRI LANKA: WORST FORMS OF CHILD LABOR UPDATE -JANUARY 2009

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 COLOMBO 000063 SIPDIS STATE FOR SCA/INS AND DRL/IL FOR TU DANG DOL/ILAB FOR TINA MCCARTER E.O 12958: N/A TAGS: ELAB EIND ETRD PHUM SOCI CE SUBJECT: SRI LANKA: WORST FORMS OF CHILD LABOR UPDATE -JANUARY 2009 REF: A) 08 STATE 00127448 ¶1. As requested by Ref A, below is an update of the worst forms of child labor information for Sri Lanka. Child Labor Legislation -------------- ¶2. Sri Lanka ratified International Labor Organization (ILO) Convention 138 on Minimum Age for Employment on November 2, 2000, and ILO Convention 182 on Worst Forms of Child Labor on January 3, ¶2001. The conventions define a child as a person under 18 years old. Under the Employment of Women, Young Persons and Children Act of 1956, the minimum age for employment in Sri Lanka is 14 years. Under the Act, children may be employed in family-run agricultural enterprises or as part of technical training activities. Children, however, cannot work during school hours. The law limits the work hours of young people between 14 to 16 years to 9 hours per day, and the work hours of young people between 17 and 18 years to 10 hours per day. Penalties for violation of the law are a fine of Sri Lankan Rupees (Rs) 10,000 (approximately USD 90),or imprisonment of up to 12 months, or both; and payment of compensation as decided by courts. ¶3. Worst forms of child labor: Sri Lanka has ratified ILO Convention 182 on Worst Forms of Child Labor. The Penal Code contains provisions prohibiting several forms of abuse against children, including child pornography, prostitution and trafficking. The government amended the Penal Code in 2006 to strengthen the laws against child abuse and child labor in compliance with sections 3A, 3B and 3C of the ILO Convention 182 on Worst Forms of Child Labor. The amendment prohibits the use or recruitment of children (below 18 years) in armed conflict. It also prohibits forced labor, debt bondage, and slavery in Sri Lanka. The amendment aims to prevent sexual abuse of children via the internet as well as the soliciting of children for sexual abuse. In addition, it expands the definition of trafficking to conform to international standards. A jail term of up to 20 years and a fine is prescribed for these offenses covered by the Penal Code. If the victim is under 18 years, the jail term may be increased to 30 years. The Penal Code amendment gives effect to Sri Lanka's obligations to the following ILO/UN Conventions: The Slavery Convention; The Convention Concerning Forced or Compulsory Labor; The Supplementary Convention on the Abolition of Slavery; The Slave Trade and Institutions and Practices Similar to Slavery; and The Convention on the Elimination of Worst Forms of Child Labor. ¶4. In August 2006, the Parliament passed an amendment to the Employment of Women, Young Persons and Children Act of 1956, enabling the Minister of Labor Relations and Manpower to publish regulations that prohibit the employment of persons below the age of 18 years in hazardous occupations. Pursuant to section 3D and article 4 of ILO Convention 182 on the Worst Forms of Child Labor, the Government of Sri Lanka compiled a list of 49 occupations in Sri Lanka that are considered to be hazardous forms of child labor. Forty occupations are unconditional and are to be completely prohibited for children aged 14-18 years, while the remaining nine occupations will be conditionally prohibited upon the publication of the relevant regulation. To date the government has yet to publish regulations to prohibit the 49 occupations. Penalties, as drafted, for violating the law are a fine of Rs 10,000 (approximately USD 90),or imprisonment of up to 12 months, or both; and payment of compensation as decided by courts. Child Labor Law Enforcement -------------- ¶5. The Ministry of Child Development and Women's Empowerment was established in November 2005. Under this Ministry is The National Child Protection Authority (NCPA) -- the primary agency tasked with the protection of children from child labor, abuse and exploitation. The NCPA's actions to strengthen action against child labor and child abuse included the formation of village level vigilant committees and school child protection committees, in addition to 25 district child development committees (DCDC). DCDC's conduct training programs for government officers with the assistance of the NCPA. NCPA also conducts training programs for police officers. In 2007, NCPA trained 752 police officers and, in 2008, a further 842 officers. The police unit assigned to NCPA was expanded to 20 officers in 2008 from 15 in 2007. The Ministry of Child Development and Women's Empowerment established a new child helpline in January COLOMBO 00000063 002 OF 003 2008 to receive complaints on child abuse, including child labor. ¶6. The Ministry of Labor Relations and Manpower is responsible for enforcing child labor laws. It employs around 300 labor inspectors specifically tasked with enforcing child labor laws, in addition to other labor laws. (Note: The Ministry employs 682 labor officers overall.) The Women's and Children's Affairs division of the Ministry of Labor Relations and Manpower conducted eight training programs in 2008, to improve the enforcement capacity of those responsible for combating child labor. The program trained about 250 labor, police and probation officers. In addition, the Ministry conducted, primarily in villages, approximately 130 awareness programs for school children, parents, and social partners such as health workers, teachers and government and non-governmental organization officials. ¶7. Enforcement Statistics: The following table presents data on child labor complaints made to government agencies. Year Dept of Labor(a) NCPA(b) Police (c) Complaints Prosecutions Complaints Complaints 2000 194 7 184 - 2001 255 42 276 - 2002 161 26 386 - 2003 203 44 179 - 2004 147 48 409 - 2005 105 NA 315 - 2006 161 18 618 26 2007 97 17 NA NA 2008 164 08 501 NA Sources: Department of Labor, NCPA, Sri Lanka Police NA: not available (a) Employment of children below 14 years (b) National Child Protection Authority (NCPA) receives complaints on all forms of abuse against children below 18 years. Most of the complaints concern sexual abuse, including child prostitution. In 2008, there were 50 complaints against employment of children below 14 years as domestic workers. (c) Number of complaints on child domestic workers, below 14 years, received by the Children and Women Division of Sri Lanka Police. ¶8. The National Child Protection Agency's cyberwatch office is responsible for combating child pornography and pedophilia via the internet. From 2001 - 2006 the unit actively cracked down on foreign and domestic pedophiles operating in Sri Lanka. Since mid-2006, the cyber watch unit has not been operational due to insufficient funding and lack of trained staff. Social Programs to Prevent Child Labor -------------- ¶9. The Government of Sri Lanka continues to demonstrate a strong commitment to education, and strives to eliminate child labor through education. The government provides free education as well as free school textbooks, uniforms and subsidized transport. The government also offers free breakfasts to over 500,000 school children from low income families. Schooling is mandatory for all children aged 6 to 14 years. The government now faces the challenges of expanding equitable access to post-primary education and establishing a high quality education system. To respond to these challenges, the government developed an overarching Education Sector Development Framework and Program (ESDFP) in 2006. Although not explicitly stated, child labor is discouraged through a key component of the project which aims to promote school attendance and informal education by activating school attendance committees and expanding informal education centers, upgrading the school network in rural and estate regions (key areas/sources of child labor),and offering special education programs for children with special learning needs. The ESDFP is implemented on a rolling 5-year basis, with the latest program covering 2007-2011. All donor assistance for the education sector is channeled through the ESDFP. ADB and the World Bank provide significant assistance to the ESDFP. The government is also working with UNICEF to eliminate child labor by improving access to education and the quality of both formal and informal education. COLOMBO 00000063 003 OF 003 Vulnerable Sectors -------------- ¶10. Children of plantation workers are at a high risk of becoming victims of child labor due to poverty, ignorance and high school dropout rates. The Ministry of Education has a specific program to improve education for children of plantation workers. There are 819 schools in the plantation sector, whose primary medium of instruction is in Tamil. The government recruited over 3,100 teachers to plantation schools in 2007, filling most of the teacher vacancies in the primary and lower secondary sections. The Ministry reports difficulties in finding suitable candidates to teach English, science, and math in the upper secondary classes. ¶11. In January 2008, the ILO commenced a youth employment projects in Sabaragamuwa Province, an area with many tea and rubber plantations. The ILO is collaborating with district level government officials and various central government ministries charged with vocational training and youth affairs. The project aims to strengthen the employability of plantation youth over 14 years by providing training in plantation-related skills, life skills and entrepreneurship. Plantations Human Development Trust (PHDT),a semi-government company, is working with plantation management companies, provincial councils, Department of Child Care and Probation (under the Ministry of Child Development and Women's Empowerment) and donor agencies on various programs aimed at reducing child labor coming from plantation areas. ¶12. Child Soldiers: Forced conscription by the ethnic separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE, a U.S.-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization) and by the TMVP, a former LTTE faction that is now aligned with the Government, continues to be the gravest problem facing children in Sri Lanka. According to UNICEF data-bases, as of November 30, 2008, there are 1,424 outstanding cases of under age recruitment by the LTTE. Of these, 99 are currently under the age of 18, and 1,325 were recruited while under 18 but have now passed that age. ¶13. Also as of November 30, 2008 there are 127 outstanding cases of under age recruitment by the TMVP. Of these, 56 are currently under the age of 18, and 71 were recruited while under 18 but have now passed that age. In December 2008, the Government of Sri Lanka, TMVP and UNICEF signed an action plan to ensure that the recruitment and use of children by the TMVP comes to an end, and that all children with the TMVP are released and reintegrated to society. UNICEF estimates that its database reflects only a third of the actual number of children recruited. The international community, led by UNICEF and the UN Working Group on Children and Armed Conflict, has repeatedly condemned the recruitment of child combatants by the LTTE and TMVP. Sri Lanka has prohibited the use of children less than 18 years in armed conflict, thereby affirming that their recruitment is a punishable crime under the law. The government has drafted a policy and appointed a deputy commissioner for rehabilitation and re-integration of former child soldiers. The policy aims to provide interim protective care for child soldiers and enable reintegration with their families and communities. ¶14. Child Sex Tourism: A leading NGO working to combat child sex abuse reports that child sex tourism appears to have declined in ¶2008. Penal code amendments which aim to prevent sexual abuse of children via the internet, as well as the soliciting of children for sexual abuse and increased jail terms, have helped to mitigate the problem. However, a significant number of Sri Lankan children are drawn into prostitution every year, the majority of them boys. These children are now mainly exploited by Sri Lankan residents. ¶15. The last national survey on child labor was conducted in 1999. Child labor advocates have repeatedly stressed the need to update statistics, to take stock of the current child labor situation, and to design programs and policies to address problems identified by the survey. The U.S. Department of Labor, through the ILO, is funding a new national estimate of child labor in Sri Lanka to be completed by end 2009. BLAKE