RIGHTS-MALI: Soccer Boosts Anti-child Labour Campaign

By Almahady Cissé Reprint | | Print |

Almahady Cisse

BAMAKO, Feb 20 2002 (IPS) - Women’s groups in Mali are using soccer tournaments — like this month’s Africa Cup of Nations in Bamako — to drum up support for anti-child labour campaign in the country.

The latest campaign, which was dubbed ‘Red Card Against Child Labour’, took place during the 23rd Africa Cup of Nations in Bamako from Jan 19 to Feb 10. To be “shown a red card” is a soccer expression, which means to be ejected from a game.

The campaign aims to raise public awareness about the consequences of child labour. During the Jan 10-Feb 10 tournament, it ran television publicity spots featuring top celebrities.

Child labour and exploitation are common practices in traditional African society.

Ibrahim Almeinoune, a psychologist at the “IR-FABA”, a non- governmental organisation, which helps migrant girls in rural Mali integrate into society, says most often work is considered a normal part of a child’s upbringing in Mali.

“Poverty and the concept that work enriches children are reasons why this practice continues to expand,” he says.

Mali’s per capita income is about 103,130 CFA francs (about 147 U.S. dollars) per annum, according to the 2001 Human Development Report, the latest published by the UN.

According to the report, 90 percent of Mali’s population lives, mostly in rural areas, on less than one U.S. dollar a day.

This is why rural children often leave their families to work in the big cities. Especially if they are boys, they work mostly in factories or fields. And usually, without any safeguards against the risks they face.

Moulaye Hassane Tall, of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) in Bamako, urged employers — when launching the campaign on Jan 26 — to stop exploiting children.

The Convention, adopted by the ILO in Geneva on June 17, 1999, demands immediate and effective measures to ban and eliminate the worst forms of child labour.

ILO’s Gabriel Djankou said the worst forms of child labour include slavery, forced labour, indentured servitude, and the use of children in such practices as flogging and child pornography.

The “red card campaign” also singled out the employment of young girls as domestics.

Domestics are commonly referred to as “maids” or “52s” in Mali’s popular slang. Aged from less than eight years to 15, these “helpers” are expected to do all house chores. Their wages range from 3,500 to 6,500 CFA francs (between approximately five and nine U.S. dollars) per month.

During a debate on Feb 8, which was part of the campaign, Idrissa Koita, of the department of works, made a speech pleading for the protection of young girls.

Koita brought a girl, Halima Togo who had been employed as a “maid” by a landlady. When she wanted to return home after three years of service, her boss refused to pay her and accused her of stealing.

The police officer in charge of the inquiry put the girl in touch with Koita, who at the time was a labour inspector. Koita helped the girl get her pay. The pair was invited by the ILO to recount their experiences.

Togo was asked two questions during the conference: “At what time were you able to go to sleep?” and “At what time did you get up?” She responded that she did not know the answer to the former, but that she was forced to wake up every day at 5:00 A.M. The audience was moved by her testimony.

Koita said the laws should be enforced. Children under the age of 15 cannot legally be employed as domestics, and those legitimately employed should be paid at least the minimum wage of 20,965 CFA (about 30 U.S. dollars) per month.

For Mariam Sangare Kansaye, a representative from the group “Women, Islam, and Development”, “The most important thing is not raising these young girls’ salaries but making sure that agreements are respected. If we can’t do that, we should at least sanction employers who fail to do so”.

Of the 250 million working children in the world, 80 million live in Africa, according to the ILO.

In Mali, 26,000 children are involved in labour. Sixty percent of them are young girls, who work within the country’s boundaries. Another 34,000 Malian children work on plantations in Cote D’Ivoire, according to a 2001 study by the National Directorate for Women and Children’s Advocacy and the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF).