CNN: U.N.: Fewer children in factories, fields: Child labor on decline

[DeepModem Mom]

U.N.: Fewer children in factories, fields
Report: child labor on decline, especially in Latin America
Thursday, May 4, 2006

(CNN) -- Child labor is on the decline -- especially in Latin America -- and its most egregious forms could be eliminated within the next decade, said a U.N. agency Thursday in a report it called "cautiously optimistic."

The International Labor Organization report, titled "The End of Child Labor: Within Reach," states that between 2000 and 2004 the number of child workers worldwide fell from 246 million to 218 million.

The number of children aged 5-17 doing hazardous work saw an even steeper decline, from 171 million in 2000 to 126 million in 2004, the report states, adding that the decline was even more pronounced among children 14 and younger.

"Though the fight against child labor remains a daunting challenge, we are on the right track. We can end its worst forms in a decade, while not losing sight of the ultimate goal of ending all child labor," organization Director-General Juan Somavia said in a news release.

Several reasons are offered for the decline, including increased political will, awareness, poverty reduction and mass education....

http://www.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/americas/05/04/child.labor/index.html

[arikara]

1. Interesting that its Latin America

where they are electing socialist governments who are turfing out the IMF, World bank and all their thieving corporate cronies. Gee, I wonder if its a coincidence that standards of living are improving.

[Igel]

2. Reasonable hypothesis.

Don't know if it pans out.

"From 2000 to 2004, the number of child workers in Latin American and the Caribbean has dropped by about 66 percent. Only 5 percent of children in those countries are now engaged in work, the report states."

To nail it, you'd have to look at unemployment rates (think 'recession'), how plant modernization went, and probably other factors (my coffee's mostly undrunk this morning). And then actually look at when the left-leaning politicians were elected. I think Lula was elected in late 2004; Chavez was '98 or '99, but things worsened under him for a while; Haiti, Bolivia, and other countries disposed of right-leavning politicians in 2005 and '06, after the study's endpoint.

[arikara]

3. You're certainly right about looking at the larger picture...

and to be honest I didn't read the entire article. It was past my bedtime. But the 2004 coup in Haiti was "outside forces" (Canada, US et al)getting rid of Aristide who was going to raise the minimum wage and the corps didn't appreciate that. So now they have a puppet who will do their bidding; at least for the time being until the democratically elected Aristide is reinstated.