BANGKOK (ILO news) – Thai celebrities took to social media this week to support the International Labour Organization (ILO) campaign against child labour, using their fame to draw greater attention to the issue.

To mark the 2016 World Day Against Child Labour (12 June), the ILO has held more than 30 events around the world to campaign against child labour, including a social media campaign in Thailand.

Ratchanok Inthanon, former world Badminton champion, the well-known rapper, Nattuwut Srimhok, the famous writer and founder of the magazine ‘a day’, Wongthanong Chainarongsing, Thai TV stars; Jittapa Jampathom, Teeradetch Methavarayuth, actors of Master One Video Production Co. Ltd., and the Executive Producer, Nitipat Uahwatanasakul, posted on Instagram and tweeted their support.

Ratchanok, whose parents were factory workers, posted: “I’ve done well because I’ve never been a child labourer. Join me on World Day against Child Labour (12 June) #NoChildLabour.”

Nattawut tweeted in Thai: “1 in 10 children in Asia Pacific are child labourers, the highest in the world #NoChildLabour.”

This year the focus for World Day Against Child Labour, is on child labour in supply chains. With 168 million children still in work, all supply chains, from agriculture to manufacturing, services to construction, run the risk that child labour may be present.

“Eating/Using things made by children? Just by questioning it, you’re already helping. #NoChildlabour It’s World Day against Child Labour, 12 June”, Wongthanong tweeted. The magazine founder’s message was retweeted 699 times and liked almost 200 times within hours of posting the tweet.

Ahead of the World Day, the International Labour Organization (ILO), in collaboration with the Delegation of the European Union to Thailand and NIST International School, held a live talk on 9 June calling on young people to be aware of child labour in global supply chains.

The talk on: “Ending child labour and unacceptable forms of work in global supply chains” was live-streamed to online audiences. Young people were called upon to raise awareness of the issue and to share ideas for combatting child labour by joining the ILO’s vox pop campaign - #youthrespond.

Teeradetch, aka Alex Teeradetch, posted on his Instagram: “I’d like children to learn, and be child labourers no more. #NoChildLabour ”.

Jittapa, aka Ja Jittapa, posted on her Instagram: “Please join the campaign. So Thai and children worldwide are free from child labour. #NoChildLabour.”

According to the ILO’s latest figures for child labour, the ILO Global Estimates on Child Labour 2000-2012, Asia and the Pacific remains the region with the largest number of child labourers – about 78 million, which is just under 10 per cent of the child population aged 5-17 years, or nearly 1 in 10 children. Child labour is often found in the informal economy and many children work as unpaid family labour. As such, they perform low or unskilled work at the expense of an education, and under harmful conditions.


The ILO is calling on young people to join the vox pop campaign and be featured on the ILO project website.

For further information please contact:

Jiraporn Wongpaithoon  
Communications Officer 
ILO Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific, Bangkok 
Tel.: 02288 1664 
Email

Simrin Singh
Senior Specialist on Child Labour
ILO Decent Work Technical Support Team
Tel.: 02288 1774, Email