WITH his brown hair showing signs of malnutrition, barefoot, 10-year-old Gul Panja is hastily selecting items from a yellow garbage bin, placed by the Capital Development Authority building in F-10 Markaz. He puts each item in a large jute bag lying next to him. Papers, glass bottles, soda cans, even a slipper or a shoe, a quick glance at the chosen item and there it goes in his huge sack. Roaming around the streets of F-10 Markaz, Gul Panja spends the entire day collecting rubbish. He can make 40 to 50 rupees a day from selling his day’s collection to a junk dealer. Once he is done for the day, he goes home to his widow mother and younger sister with his day’s earning, he tells me in his Pushto-Urdu mix.
Scavengers collecting rubbish for recycling near garbage dumps and bins is a common sight in the capital city. These children are seen walking on the streets from early in the morning until late evening, collecting things which they sell to junk dealers.
Being self-employed, they do not have any set working hours, and it is up to them to decide when to start work, when to rest or to take a break. Completely ignorant, these children do not realize the health hazards involved in this dangerous work. Barefoot, they walk long distances on rough roads and rummage in dumpsters containing all kinds of sharp and dangerous materials.
Although there is no exact data on the extent and magnitude of child labour in the country, unofficial sources place the number closer to eight million. The government estimates it to be 3.3 million, which exclude children under the age of 10 and those who are working in family business or small business, which are not registered.
According to the State of Pakistan’s Children 2003 report, published by SPARC, a non-governmental organization working for rights of the child, “More than half of the children aged between five and 14 are employed in the agriculture sector, while the rest work in manufacturing industries, street enterprises, hotels, restaurants, and others in the informal sector consisting of small establishments not covered by labour laws. Majority are found in decentralized units of carpet weaving, shoe making, carpentry, restaurants, auto workshops, beggars and rag pickers.
There are numerous kinds of work done by these young workers. Many occupations normally associated with adult work attract children. Sometimes children work in an identical capacity as adults and perform similar tasks, whereas in other professions working children may be performing different, but equally laborious, duties. Abject poverty forces these children to come out on the streets or work at a very young age. Those who try to justify children’s work fail to realize that no country has successfully eradicated poverty through child labour.
TWO STEPS BACKWARD: A step forward to peace, a public meeting with a delegation of Indian parliamentarians and peace activists, discussed similar problems of poverty, illiteracy, hunger and diseases faced by India and Pakistan. The sad fact is that no one attempts to solve the issue sincerely.
Nirmila Deshpande, member Rajya Sabha and a disciple of Mahatma Gandhi, led the delegation that comprised General (retd) Moti Dhar, ex-vice chief of army staff, deputy leader of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), Mohammad Saleem and Karvinathan, MP from Tamil Nadu, representing the Congress. On arrival in Islamabad they were welcomed by Kishwer Naheed on behalf of the Pak India Forum along with many civil society organizations working for peace. The delegation also stopped over in Kasur to pay respect to the great Sufi poet Baba Bulleh Shah.
“Pakistan and India should stop fighting like monkeys,” General (retd) Moti Dhar remarked bluntly. “The perception inherited from the British that domination is determined by military might is wrong. The West gave up this thinking after the Second World War, but the generals in India and Pakistan still insist on this philosophy,” he concluded. “Although various pledges are made at Saarc meetings and various summits at all levels, but unfortunately they are not translated into action. Governments of both the countries need to demonstrate a clear political will to improve ties. There is a need for a determined effort,” insisted Mohammad Saleem.
Role of the media in highlighting negative developments, sensationalizing and exaggerating issues rather than working to improve them also came under scrutiny by members of both sides. Delegates observed that visits of different delegations to both sides of the border have transformed the people and cleared all the misconceptions from their minds whether they are youth groups, media persons, writers, poets or parliamentarians. “If friendship can be developed at the individual and group level, why not at government level?” was the unanswered question.
WITH his brown hair showing signs of malnutrition, barefoot, 10-year-old Gul Panja is hastily selecting items from a yellow garbage bin, placed by the Capital Development Authority building in F-10 Markaz. He puts each item in a large jute bag lying next to him. Papers, glass bottles, soda cans, even a slipper or a shoe, a quick glance at the chosen item and there it goes in his huge sack. Roaming around the streets of F-10 Markaz, Gul Panja spends the entire day collecting rubbish. He can make 40 to 50 rupees a day from selling his day’s collection to a junk dealer. Once he is done for the day, he goes home to his widow mother and younger sister with his day’s earning, he tells me in his Pushto-Urdu mix.
