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Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182) - Fiji (RATIFICATION: 2002)

Articles 3(d) and 4(1)–(2) of the Convention. Determination and identification of hazardous work. The Committee previously noted that, pursuant to section 40(1) of the Employment Relations (Administration) Regulations 2008, a child under 18 years must not perform hazardous work. It also noted that section 95(2) of the Employment Relations Promulgation No. 36 of 2007 provides that the Minister of Labour may, after consulting the National Occupational Health and Safety Advisory Board (NOHSAB), and by order in the Gazette, declare any employment or workplace to be a prohibited or restricted employment on the grounds that it is injurious to health or is hazardous, dangerous, or unsuitable. The Government indicated that such an order, outlining the list of hazardous activities and occupations prohibited to persons below 18 years of age, would be developed, after consultations with both workers’ and employers’ organizations. The Committee expressed the hope that Paragraph 3 of the Worst Forms of Child Labour Recommendation, 1999 (No. 190), would be taken into consideration in the formulation of this list.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that it is in the process of finalizing the list of hazardous work through tripartite consultations with the NOHSAB and the Employment Relations Advisory Board and that this list will be subsequently vetted by the Office of the Solicitor General. The Government also indicates that the types of work enumerated in Paragraph 3 of Recommendation No. 190 are being taken into account during these consultations. The Government indicates that the Minister will be making the Declaration of the List of Hazardous Work when this process is complete.

The Committee notes the information in a report entitled “Child Labour in Fiji – A survey of working children in commercial sexual exploitation, on the streets, in rural agricultural communities, in informal and squatter settlements and in schools” (Child Labour in Fiji report), produced by the ILO Country Office for South Pacific Island Countries and ILO–IPEC in 2010, that over 300 children involved in hazardous work were interviewed for the report. These children were engaged in hazardous activities such as collecting scrap metals, handling chemicals, carrying heavy loads and scavenging and worked very long hours or were subjected to psychological abuse. The Child Labour in Fiji report also indicates that 75 per cent of the street children interviewed were working under conditions they considered hazardous, as were 55 per cent of children working in rural agriculture and 26 per cent of children working in informal and squatters settlements. The Committee, therefore, urges the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure the completion of the Declaration of the List of Hazardous Work, as a matter of urgency. It requests the Government to provide a copy of the Declaration of the List of Hazardous Work along with its next report.

Article 5. Monitoring mechanisms. Training for officials engaged in the monitoring of child labour. The Committee previously noted that, following a course on international labour standards, the Ministry of Labour had recommended establishing a child labour unit and appointing child labour inspectors. The Committee requested information on the developments in this regard.

The Committee notes with interest that a Child Labour Unit has been established, pursuant to an agreement between the ILO and the Government in December 2010. The Government indicates that the Child Labour Unit will be responsible for strengthening the Government’s institutional capacity to formulate and implement child labour strategies. This action programme will include the training of labour inspectors to identify and respond appropriately to child labour issues. The Committee welcomes these initiatives and requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved with regard to strengthening mechanisms to monitor the worst forms of child labour.

Article 7(2). Effective and time-bound measures. Clause (a). Prevent the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour. Access to free basic education. The Committee previously expressed concern at the large number of children in Fiji who do not attend school and who may be engaged in the worst forms of child labour. However, the Committee noted that the implementation of the ILO–IPEC Tackling Child Labour through Education project (TACKLE project), which aims to prevent vulnerable children from entering child labour by reducing poverty and providing access to basic education and skills training for disadvantaged children and youth. The Committee also noted that, according to the 2009 UNESCO report entitled “Education for All – Global Monitoring Report”, 19 per cent of children who begin primary school drop out before completion, and that the net primary enrolment rate fell from 99 per cent in 1999 to 91 per cent in 2006.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that it has recently introduced an Inclusive Education Policy and that it has implemented free education and free transportation to all primary school students. In 2010, all primary schools in Fiji received textbooks, and 54,000 deserving students received bus fair assistance. The Committee also notes the information in the Government’s report concerning the continuation of the ILO–IPEC TACKLE project, and notes that new action plans have been proposed in this context. These include an action programme “Elimination of child labour through the education system – Targeting children and their communities”, which would be implemented by the Fiji Trade Union Congress in collaboration with the Fiji Teachers Union and consist of appointing school-based monitors to identify child labourers and children at risk of dropping out of school.

However, the Committee notes the information in the 2011 UNESCO “Education for All – Global Monitoring Report” that, as of 2008, there were approximately 11,000 out-of-school children of primary school age, compared to only 1,400 in 1999. The Committee further notes the indication in a submission to the Universal Periodic Review by UNICEF (included in the compilation of information of 13 November 2009, A/HRC/WG.6/7/FJI/2), that while school is free, schools levy other fees and essential expenses, and that the principal reason for children dropping out is the inability to afford school costs. Considering that education contributes to preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour, the Committee strongly encourages the Government to pursue its efforts to improve the functioning of the educational system and to ensure access to free basic education to all children in Fiji. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the impact of measures taken in this respect, particularly with regard to increasing school enrolment rates and reducing drop-out rates.

Clauses (d) and (e). Identifying and reaching out to children at special risk and taking account of the special situation of girls. Child victims of commercial sexual exploitation. In its previous comments, the Committee noted that the use of children in prostitution, mainly in sex tourism, appears to be a serious problem in the country. The Committee noted the information in the report entitled “Situational Analysis of Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children (CSEC) and Child Sexual Abuse in Fiji” (CSEC report) commissioned by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific in 2006, that there has been a rise in child sex tourism in Fiji, and that much of the child commercial sexual exploitation occurs in areas frequently inhabited by tourists. The Committee further noted the statement in the CSEC report that children found to be engaged in prostitution are often treated like offenders, and not like victims, and that there is a lack of counselling or rehabilitation available in the sentencing processes of these children.

The Committee notes the Government’s indication that an action programme entitled “Preventing and removing children from commercial sexual exploitation in Fiji” (CSEC Action Programme) has been endorsed by the tripartite Project Advisory Committee and will be implemented in 2011. This CSEC Action Programme which aims to withdraw 50 children from commercial sexual exploitation and directly prevent 100 children from being engaged in commercial sexual exploitation. The CSEC Action Programme further seeks to reach 6,000 children through a school-based prevention approach in 12 schools and awareness material on commercial sexual exploitation will be produced.

However, the Committee notes that the UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), in its concluding observations of 16 September 2010, expressed concern about the exploitation of under-age girls in commercial sex work (CEDAW/C/FJI/CO/4). In this regard, the Committee notes the information from a survey on commercial sexual exploitation in Fiji, in the Child Labour in Fiji report, that the majority of child victims of prostitution (78 per cent of those surveyed) were girls. The Committee requests the Government to pursue its efforts to combat commercial sexual exploitation, taking into account the special situation of girls, and requests it to provide information on the results achieved through the implementation of the CSEC Action Programme. The Government also requests the Government to take the necessary steps to ensure that child victims of prostitution are treated as victims rather than offenders, and to ensure that mechanisms for their rehabilitation and social integration are available.

Part V of the report form. Application of the Convention in practice. Following its previous comments, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that five research studies were conducted through the ILO–IPEC TACKLE project, which were included in the Child Labour in Fiji report. The Government indicates that the surveys demonstrate that there is an increasing number of children involved in child labour and its worst forms in Fiji, particularly in hazardous work and commercial sexual exploitation, as well as engagement in illicit activities (such as drug trafficking and begging).

However, the Committee notes that the Government is developing a national action plan to eliminate child labour. In addition, the Government indicates that an action programme has been submitted through the ongoing ILO–IPEC TACKLE project, which would target children in squatter communities and informal settlements in Fiji, which would aim to withdraw 200 of the most vulnerable children from these communities, and to establish community-based child labour monitoring systems. The Committee takes due note of these measures. Noting however, that the occurrence of the worst forms of child labour appears to be increasing in the country, the Committee encourages the Government to strengthen its efforts to combat these worst forms, within the framework of the ongoing TACKLE project and through the forthcoming national action plan to eliminate child labour. It requests the Government to provide information on concrete measures taken in this respect, and on the results achieved with regard to reducing the number of persons under 18 engaged in the worst forms of child labour.