What Freedom Looks Like

"Using the readings, what is the definition of "free" that best applies to the issue your studying? What would "freedom" look like? What would be the best way of achieving a "free" outcome? The market or the polis?"

What does freedom look like? Freedom knows know no race. Freedom doesn't care whether you are young or old, rich or poor-- it is all the same to freedom. Freedom is good, and freedom is bad-- it gives you the opportunity to lead the life you want, but can also lead to the rebellion of a nation. All that matters is that freedom is had.

Is there even a clear definition? Yes and no. Freedom can be an ambiguous term in that it's definition is different in various places and for various people. Two definitions of freedom are that, in the market model, people must be free from restraint and harm and, in the polis model, people must have to ability to exercise their social rights. The market model believes that government should focus on civil liberties while the polis model believes that government should focus on civil rights; also, the market model believes that government is restraining while the polis model does not.

In regards to child labor, it is crucial that the polis model be applied. Government is the number one institution with the authority to remove children from child labor situations. Without government, organizations like the ILO would not be able to go in and inspect working conditions, etc. In fact, the ILO only finds the cases, then reports them to public officials who go in and remove the children. Being so young though, it is not safe for the children to be out on their own and they need the provided with material necessities, such as food, clothing, and a place to sleep, as well as an education and the opportunity to social with other children their own age so that they can be well-rounded and stable individuals.

These children deserve a multi-faceted type of freedom. They need to be able to enjoy what is left of their childhood, not have to fear returning to work for their "employer" (I still feel like it is too nice of a term-- these "employers" are essentially slave owners), get a proper education, make friends, socialize-- you name it! I want to see children playing outside, smiling and laughing, and the voice they dread to hear is their mother calling them to come home because it is getting dark out. I am sure you would love to see every child exemplifying this example, too-- really, who wouldn't? If that is the case, then why do we see young children working tirelessly, hour after hour, and praying that their owner doesn't find something wrong so he or she can verbally or physically abuse them? And why do we sit as there is a child on the other side of the world praying that his or her owner not bring him or her into the bedroom?

Hell, a lot of these children are trafficked into the United States through coercion; they are promised a job so they can help the family and are used as domestic help, but are also exploited. I remember reading a case like this once. A social worker had been called to a home in which domestic violence had taken place. A woman had started a fight with her husband because he had cheated on her; as the couple continued to talk, the social worker noticed a little girl hiding off to the side. However, when the social worker attempted to talk to the girl, she found out that she knew very little English and had been brought from a European country (I cannot recall which country, but I think it may have been a Scandinavian country) to work around the house. It occured to the social worker that the girl had suffered sexual abuse from the man, and when the wife saw, she called him a cheater and they got into a fight. Why must we wait for these scenarios to happen before we do something?

Nobody, and I mean nobody, deserves to be physically, verbally, or sexually abused-- this includes children AND adults. This is the number one criteria for the definition for these children's freedom. This in itself implies that these children must be free from physical harm, psychological and emotional harm, moral and spiritual harm, and phsyical as well as psychological restraints. These children should no longer have to suffer this torment or feel compelled to stay so they can help their family repay debt, keep a steady income if any going to their family or whatever else. In addition, these children need to be provided with the opportunity to excerise their social rights and protection of their civil rights.

As I mentioned in my last post, I believe that the best approach for helping these children is getting the government involved by removing the children and prosecuting the "employers" while the children are being rehabilitated. Freedom for these children is the promise of being in control of themselves and the chance to live a happy and healthy lifestyle.

Security

"Using the readings, what does a "secure" outcome look like for the policy issue you care about? What would be the best way of achieving "security" on the outcome? The market or the polis?"

By asking what a "secure" outcome looks like, we must first examine what needs must be met. What kind of needs? Biological? Social? Cultural? Self-esteem? Sense of belonging? Emotional? A great way to think of these needs is through Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs.

Think about it! As a person of modern society, what level do you need to be at-- physiological, safety and security, love and belonging, self-esteem OR self-actualization? Like most others, you'd probably want to be at the top of Maslow's pyramid. And-- HEY-- you probably want to see everyone else you care about up there, too! Really, think about it; do you want to see your best friend barely make ends-meet or see your sister struggle with her self-esteem after she was raped? No! Of course not! You would love to see your friend finding supplemental income by creating and selling beautiful jewelry, and you wish to see your sister accept that her misfortune was not her fault and find her inner potential so that she can move on! Ideally, everyone in society should have the opportunity to reach self-actualization. So, I have to ask: what happens after child laborers are freed from bondage? Are we going to provide them with the resources to live a long and prosperous life, or are we going to simply send them on their merry way? How much do they need? What kind of needs should be met?

Looking at the recently freed child laborer, we see a (typically)emaciated little boy or girl with a frightened look onl his or her face. Look closely-- see the pain and loneliness in his or her eyes, catch a glimpse at the bruises and cuts from months or years of abuse, and above all, notice how easily this could have been your child. How would you react if you saw the face of your little boy or girl glaring right back at you? This is why we must act. We need to give these children food, shelter, water, an education, a supportive environment, and a future.

In regards to a secure outcome, we must simultaneously address the crimes of the "employer" (I personally think that we should not address this person as an employer-- that is not what he or she is doing. This person is taking on human capital, not hiring an employee!!! This person doesn't care about the children at all!!!!), rehabilitate the child, educate the child, ensure that the child not return to child labor, and that he or she is prepared for the future. Such a task is hard to accopmlish. The first thing we must do is gather as many people as possible to help. With so many child laborers in the world, we need to spread awareness, and recruit people to report activity which they suspect may be child labor-- the ILO works to investigate businesses worldwide, but they cannot sniff out child domestic labor being conducted within households-- and report it to the proper authorities. Don't be afraid to speak! Just make sure you have all the facts, and if you are uncomfortable, remain anonymous.

Once the child has been removed, rehabilitation and the legal process must begin immediately. As lawyers work to put the "employer" in jail, a rehabilitative team health professionals begin to assess the health of the child, looking at basic health standards and checking for illness. Next, the health professionals come up with a plan consisting of medical treatments (when necessary), dietary needs, and whatever else they deem necessary. This plan is passed onto the rehabilitative team working with the children on a daily basis to ensure the child's physiological needs are met. The child is also provided with clothing, a bed, and a warm meal at a rehabilitation center filled with other children of similar background. While the center is co-ed, each bedroom will be filled with a single gender; however the rooms would contain children of different ages to ensure that the older children could care for the younger children if wake up frightened from a nightmare. At first, I contemplated the idea of children staying in rooms with others of similar age and the same gender, but after thinking about how young the children could be, I wasn't comfortable with the idea of once abused five-year-olds frightened in a room alone.

At this center, the children are encouraged to play, interact, and develop relationships with one another. The children are provided with group and individual therapy so they can work through the terrible abuse they were forced to deal with. Likewise, the children in the center would be provided with a comprehensive education in which they learned reading, writing, mathematics, science, history, and art, etc. They would be able to achieve that which a child in the public education system could achieve. This center would also need to be able to allow the children the freedom they deserve-- they should be given options. A simple, but great example of this is giving the child a choice between class subjects to learn: the child could learn to sing and dance rather than draw and paint, or the child could learn about basic biology rather than basic geology. They are treated like every other child, bound by responsibilities and given options. The rehabilitation would act as a home, school, and everything else the child may need. However, to avoid institutionalization, the children will occasionally be taken out on trips in small groups.

While all this sounds great and fantastic, it is a very difficult outcome to achieve because it becomes so costly, involves so many people, and government officials do not take proactive measures to protect the children. As we progress toward the end of child labor, we need to establish more effective methods of enforcing legislation whether it be educating officials or ensuring ethical conduct by officials (i.e. officers getting sex or money for not reporting). Such a widespread issue, needing so much, requires an outcome grounded in the polis for it focuses on the better for everyone without anything in return.

You are not alone.... We want to help.

Efficiency

"Using the readings, what would an efficient outcome is the most efficient way to achieve a desired goal on the policy issues you care about? What would an efficient outcome look like? What would be the best way of achieving an efficient outcome? The market or the polis?"

While we are inclined to look for the most efficient solution to any problem, we must remember that Child Domestic Labor is a complex issue which requires a detailed action plan to end it. With this issue, there are many factors that must be addressed simultaneously, such as poverty, prosecution of the "employer", education of the child, and finding steady and fair employment for minors of working age-- just to name a few. This, in essence, requires a worldwide movement to improving living standards of the children of every country. First, let's look at the definition of efficiency:

"ef-fi-cien-cy:

–noun, plural -cies.
1.
the state or quality of being efficient; competency in performance.
2.
accomplishment of or ability to accomplish a job with a minimum expenditure of time and effort: The assembly line increased industry's efficiency.
3.
the ratio of the work done or energy developed by a machine, engine, etc., to the energy supplied to it, usually expressed as a percentage."

(courtesy of http://dictionary.reference.com/)

Examining the second definition of efficiency, which is considered the political definition of efficiency, we can conclude that the most efficient outcome would be that which accomplishes our goal in the least amount of time and effort. This is quite a difficult task to accomplish with such a complex issue, right? One group that aims to do this is The Global March Against Child Labour. The Global March works to develop high public awareness of the struggle of these children, and works with governments to dissolve child labor. The Global March regularly conducts activities educating the public, including events, advocacy, meetings and campaigns. Probably, one of the most effective ways Global March works against child labor is its alliance with organizations such as the ILO, Child Labor Coalition (CLC), Global Task Force on Child Labour and Education, etc. Generally, the most crucial part of human rights advocacy is the number of people involved-- the more people, the better. Take for example, the women's rights movement in the United States was most successful once it built up its resevoir of supporters. In this example, women had little to no say in anything; however, there voices accumulated into one voice that could not be ignored. Perhaps, voices coming together to send out on single message is a crucial part to solving any human rights issues; afterall, we see the same happen with black people during Martin Luther King, Jr.'s time. Plus, with all of its organizations involved, Global March has different groups working on different aspects of the issue. While it is difficult to come up with an eficient outcome, the best that we can do is spread the word and assign different groups and issues to specific parts of an issue. While a few years old, a great source on Global March's activities is Report of Activities and Outcomes (April 2006-September 2006) which can be found at: http://www.globalmarch.org/resourcecentre/PHotos/GMACLNarrative06.pdf.

Focusing on one aspect of this issue, we can efficiently educate people about child labor through email messages, ads in the newspapers and online, tell our friends and families, organize local events, and create websites, etc. There are so many ways we can spread the information, and it is most efficient if we use multiple sources to let others know. Plus, with the increased awareness, we could reach those who have the compassion and ability to make change; thus; it could lead to a quicker response! Using the polis, we can persuade the public to realize that we need everyone's help by suggesting what it would feel like if they knew that their own children were subject to such exploitation and questioning them about how they would react... And, when they mention how upset they would be and that they would do anything in their power to end it, we would challenge them by asking, "If you wouldn't let this happen to your child, why do you let it happen to someone else's child? What if you were the mother or father who couldn't do anything about it? Wouldn't you want someone to step in?" By challenging the public, we give the message that by not taking action they are, in fact, negatively affecting the welfare of the public as a whole. Also, in challenging the public, we fill them with the concern about the possibility of being in the shoes of the child's parents. Therefore, we must educate and trigger the emotions of the public to achieve an efficient outcome.

What is "Fair"?

'Using the readings from the last two class sessions, think about what an equitable outcome would look like for the issues you care about. What does a "fair" outcome look like for the issue you're working on. What would be the best way to achieve fairness? The market or the polis?'



A key component that sets child domestic labor apart from domestic labor done by children is exploitation. As a complicated issue, there is a fine line between what could be considered legal and illegal; that is to say, these two forms of labor share a majority of their characteristics. However, when it comes to child domestic labor, children are too easily exposed to a various forms of exploitation and abuse.



According to the ILO:



'From an international law perspective, children who have reached the minimum working age in their country but are below 18 and are “legitimately” involved in domestic service are entitled to the rights guaranteed both by labour laws and standards, and by the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. When they are working under exploitative conditions or are under the legal minimum working age they are recognised as child domestic workers, and in some cases they are considered to be in one of the worst forms of child labour, against which specific instruments and provisions have been adopted. As noted above, given its hidden nature and the characteristics of the employment relationship it is very difficult to draw the line between “legitimate domestic work” and its exploitative forms. In fact, evidence shows that in most countries children involved in domestic service are largely involved in what has been previously defined as “child domestic labour”.
Since the early 1930s, the ILO has been able to address the situation of child domestic labour in its most severe forms through its Forced Labour Convention (No.29) that addressed forced and compulsory labour for both children and adults.
With the adoption of the Minimum Age Convention (No.138) in 1973 and the Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention (No.182) in 1999, the Organisation has two fundamental international instruments to frame its policy and action response. The implementation of these Conventions is a key starting point to target child domestic labour and eradicate its worst forms. Under these Conventions governments are called on to commit to action and implement specific measures to eliminate child labour. Monitoring and follow up mechanisms are also in place to evaluate a country’s compliance to its international obligations as enumerated in the Conventions. Such mechanisms include periodic reports by Governments, reports to the Committee of Experts by workers and employer’s organisations, and the revision of individual cases by the annual International Labour Conference.
Convention No.138 requires the adoption of national policies for the effective abolition of child labour and a specific minimum age for the admission to employment. The enforcement of this Convention, particularly as far as domestic labour is concerned, is the main challenge since this sector is often excluded from the coverage of the Convention and from national labour laws.
Although it does not explicitly define child domestic labour as a worst form of child labour, Convention No.182, ratified by 163 countries as of 2006, includes a number of important provisions that are applicable to it. It calls on governments to implement effective time-bound measures to eliminate the worst forms of child labour, undertake action programmes to prevent it, promote and support reintegration of child workers into their communities and families, provide access to free education, identify children at special risk with a view to protecting them and, particularly relevant for child domestic labour, it gives special attention to the vulnerabilities of the girl-child.
Both Conventions encourage countries to compile a list of hazardous child labour and many countries have included domestic labour in the list.
The ILO, through its International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC), works in support of government efforts to fulfil international commitments under these Conventions. It encourages countries to adopt a set of strategies at the national level that aim at creating an enabling environment to eliminate child labour and at withdrawing and preventing children from being engaged in it. The Time-Bound Programme (TBP) approach is one means of implementing this. It comprises a set of integrated and coordinated policies and interventions with clear goals, specific targets and a defined time frame, aimed at preventing and eliminating a country’s worst forms of child labour.'

http://www.ilo.org/ipec/areas/Childdomesticlabour/lang--en/index.htm

Some things that these children must face include:

• long, exhausting days
• exposure to harsh chemicals
• carrying heavy loads
• using dangerous objects, such as hot pans, knives, etc.
• insufficient amounts of food and accommodation
• cruel and humiliating behavior, including verbal, physical and sexual abuse

In regards to a fair outcome, the ultimate outcome would be the elimination of child domestic labor-- it is essentially a form of slavery. I am sure everyone would love to see these children out playing with other children their own age, except for the person forcing labor upon the child of course. How would you feel if you saw your child struggling to survive as he or she served someone who regularly degraded him or her and didn't provide adequate living conditions? Exactly, you most likely wouldn't allow this to happen-- so why do we let this happen to other children, here, in the United States as well as the rest of the world. But the real question is: how do we go about changing this? Well there are many things we can do. Now, I am not saying, in any way, that this problem can be changed overnight; actually, it could take as long as decades to change this-- that is how big of an issue this is. Essentially, we would use the Polis in diminishing child domestic labor.

The four major things that could be done are:

1. Education
2. Child Labor Monitoring (continually checking the places where young boys and girls work for exploitation and hazards)
3. Labor Inspections (checks for possible hazards and that workers are of the minimum legal working age as well as protected-- it also refers unacceptable settings, conditions, and treatment to the proper authorities)
4. Time-Bound Programs (called upon by the ILO Convention No. 182 to take immediate action in the worst child domestic labor cases)

"Countries ratifying this Convention must take immediate and effective measures to secure the prohibition and elimination of the worst forms of child labour as a matter of urgency, including time-bound measures to:

• prevent the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour;
• provide direct assistance for the removal of children from the worst forms of child labour and for their rehabilitation and social integration;
• ensure access to free basic education and appropriate vocational training for all children removed from the worst forms of child labour;
• identify and reach out to children at special risk; and
• take account of the special situation of girls."

http://www.ilo.org/ipec/Action/Time-BoundProgrammes/lang--en/index.htm

"Education is the Key to our Future...."

In an article on the ILO's website (http://www.ilo.org/), the author states,

"Experience shows that a combination of economic growth, respect for labour standards, universal education and social protection, together with a better understanding of the needs and rights of children, can bring about a significant reduction in child labour. Child labour is a stubborn problem that, even if overcome in certain places or sectors, will seek out opportunities to reappear in new and often unanticipated ways. The response to the problem must be as versatile and adaptable as child labour itself. There is no simple, quick fix for child labour, nor a universal blueprint for action."

The IPEC attempts to address the issue of child domestic labor through the use of "research and statistics, technical co-operation, a monitoring and evaluation unit, advisory services and advocacy, and an education unit." Thus far, the IPEC has proven successful in the prevention and rehabilitation of former child domestic laborers in a formal and informal setting.

Welcome

Welcome to my Blog! I am glad you are taking the time to read the information I will be presenting in the near future. Truthfully, the original intent for this blog was to present and respond to a contemporary issue for my POLS 207 class, but after discovering that I could discuss an important issue that I had already been researching, I realized that this would be a great resource to keep my research organized in a clear format. Having never created a blog before, I didn't consider the possibility of using a blog to share my concerns. I am hoping to use this blog for class as well as my own personal use. While there are many forms of dramatically unfair, I am using this blog to focus on one of the most hidden forms, child domestic labor. (I also research other forms of unfair labor, slavery, human trafficking, and things of that sort, but I believe that is too much to cover in one blog alone-- I would like to eventually create other blogs in which I address these other issues) When it comes to child domestic labor, the young laborers often go unnoticed as they work for little to no pay in, most often, unsuitable conditions. These children are placed in these situations through human trafficking, kidnapping, neglect, abandonment, and needing to support their families. Not only are they forced to work for unruly employers, but they are often victims of physical, psychological, and sexual abuse. Thanks again for visiting my blog! I will be conducting weekly updates.

--Sara

Would you allow this to happen to your own children or children that you know???