Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2009, published 99th ILC session (2010)

Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182) - Iran (Islamic Republic of) (Ratification: 2002)

The Committee notes that the Government’s report has not been received. It hopes that a report will be supplied for examination by the Committee at its next session and that it will contain full information on the matters raised in its previous direct request, which read as follows:

Article 3 of the Convention. The worst forms of child labour. Clause (a). All forms of slavery and practices similar to slavery. 1. Sale and trafficking of children. The Committee had previously noted that section 3 of the Law on the Protection of Children and Adolescents, 2002, prohibits the trafficking, exploitation, buying and selling of children (defined as persons under the age of 18) for the purpose of trafficking. It had also noted that, according to the Government’s initial report to the Committee on the Rights of the Child, the Islamic Republic of Iran enforces the Law concerning Aggravation of Punishment for Traffickers of Persons Across Borders and Use of Children for Trafficking of Illicit Drugs (CRC/C/41/Add.5 of 23 July 1998, paragraph 82). The Committee once again asks the Government to provide a copy of the Law concerning Aggravation of Punishment for Traffickers of Persons Across Borders and Use of Children for Trafficking of Illicit Drugs and any other legislation that prohibits the sale and trafficking of children below the age of 18 for the purpose of sexual or labour exploitation, along with its next report.

2. Forced or compulsory recruitment of children for use in armed conflict. The Committee notes that, according to section 4 of the Public Conscription Act, persons are recruited for military service during the year they have reached the age of 19. The Committee once again asks the Government to provide a copy of the Public Conscription Act.

Clause (b). 1. Use, procuring or offering of a child for prostitution. The Committee had previously noted that there appear to be no provisions specifically prohibiting the use or offering of a child under the age of 18 for prostitution. The Committee notes the Government’s statement that, under section 1173 of the Civil Code, a court may intervene if a child’s psychological fitness or moral education is in danger as a result of the parents’ moral deterioration or involvement of the child in indecent work such as prostitution. The Committee observes that, while this section concerns the offering of children for prostitution by their parents, the use or offering of children for prostitution by any other person still does not appear to be prohibited. It requests the Government to take immediate measures to ensure that the use, procuring or offering of children under 18 years of age for prostitution by any person is prohibited, as a matter of urgency.

2. Use, procuring or offering of a child for the production of pornography or for pornographic performances. The Committee had previously noted that there appear to be no provisions prohibiting the use, procuring or offering of a child under the age of 18 for the production of pornography or for pornographic performances. The Committee had recalled that, by virtue of Article 3(b) of the Convention, such activities are considered to be one of the worst forms of child labour. Noting the absence of information on this point, the Committee requests the Government to take immediate measures to ensure that the use, procuring or offering of children below the age of 18 years for the production of pornography or for pornographic performances is prohibited, as a matter of urgency.

Clause (c). Use, procuring or offering of a child for illicit activities. In its previous comments, the Committee had noted the existence of the Law concerning Aggravation of Punishment for Traffickers of Persons Across Borders and Use of Children for Trafficking of Illicit Drugs. The Committee notes that, in its report, the Government refers to section 18(2) of the Anti-Narcotic Drug Law of 1988. It observes that, while section 18(2) of that law prohibits the causing of addiction to drugs, it does not prohibit the use, procuring or offering of a child for illicit activities, including the production and trafficking of drugs. The Committee once again requests the Government to indicate whether the Law concerning aggravation of punishment for trafficking of persons across borders and use of children for trafficking of illicit drugs prohibits the use, procuring or offering of a child under the age of 18 for illicit activities, in particular for the production and trafficking of drugs.

Clause (d). Hazardous work. Children working in the informal sector and self-employed children. In its previous comments, the Committee had noted that the Labour Code appears to exclude work performed outside the formal employment relationship, such as self-employment, from its scope of application. It had noted, too, that, under the terms of section 189 of the Code, a number of activities in the agricultural sector are exempted from the application of the Labour Code. The Committee had further noted that, according to section 188 of the Labour Code, workers in family enterprises are not subjected to the provisions of this Code. It had also noted that, under the terms of section 191, small-scale enterprises with fewer than ten workers may be temporarily excluded from some of the provisions of the Labour Code. Furthermore, the Committee had noted that, according to paragraph 1 of section 1 of the “Recueil de directives”, work of children in traditional family enterprises of carpet making, weaving and knitting, and work in the wood industry are excluded from the list of the hazardous types of work. The Committee had noted that the Committee on the Rights of the Child, in its concluding observations of 28 June 2000, expressed concern at the large number of children involved in child labour, especially in the informal sector, such as household enterprises and agriculture, many of whom were working in hazardous conditions (CRC/C/15/Add.123, paragraph 51). Moreover, according to the information provided by the Government in its report, the number of children involved in the worst forms of child labour is constantly increasing. The Committee requests the Government to take immediate measures to ensure that self-employed workers under 18 years of age and children under 18 working in the informal sector are protected against hazardous work. It also requests the Government to take immediate measures to ensure that children under 18 working in categories to which the Labour Code does not apply are protected against hazardous work as well.

Article 5. Monitoring mechanisms. The Committee had previously noted that, according to section 96 of the Labour Code, a Labour Inspection Department had been established under the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs which, among other things, supervises the implementation of regulations governing working conditions. The Committee notes the information provided by the Government in its report that, in 2005, the Labour Inspection Department had assigned 25 additional labour inspectors and two statistical experts. The Committee once again requests the Government to provide further information on the activities of labour inspectors, including the number of workplaces investigated per year. It also once again asks the Government to provide information on the other mechanisms established to monitor the implementation of the penal provisions giving effect to the Convention.

Article 6. Programmes of action. The Committee notes the Government’s information that a plan of action for working children was formulated by the State Welfare Organization, which involves three strategic approaches: (a) providing technical and vocational training to children aged between 15 and 18 years involved in child labour and its worst forms; (b) encouraging working children to participate in general training classes to facilitate their acceptance in schools; and (c) providing the families of working children with job-creating facilities. The Committee requests the Government to continue to supply information on this plan of action and on any other programme of action for removing children from the worst forms of child labour and rehabilitating them.

Article 7, paragraph 2. Effective and time-bound measures. Clause (a). Preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour. 
1. Free basic education. The Committee notes the Government’s information that the Ministry of Education and the State Welfare Organization have adopted a plan to educate 1,100,000 illiterate children and young persons. The Government also indicates that the Technical and Vocational Education Organization has taken measures to ensure the education of children over 15 years of age and to provide educational services to children and their families who are identified by the State Welfare Organization. Furthermore, the Committee notes the Government’s information that the State Welfare Organization has performed activities which have permitted the education of 10,913 students at various levels of studies. It also notes that, according to the Report of the United Nations General Assembly on the situation of human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran of 1 October 2008, net enrolment in primary education steadily increased from 85 per cent in 1990 to 98 per cent in 2005. In the same period, primary school drop-out rates decreased from 13 per cent to 6.6 per cent (A/63/459, paragraph 17). However, the Committee notes that the Committee on the Rights of the Child expressed its concern, in its concluding observations of 31 March 2005 (CRC/C/15/Add.254, paragraph 59), that not all children are enrolled in or graduate from primary school. Considering that education contributes to preventing children from being engaged in the worst forms of child labour, the Committee requests the Government to provide more detailed information on these measures and, more specifically, on the results achieved by these measures to ensure that children attend and stay in school. The Committee also asks the Government to provide, in its next report, updated statistical information on the enrolment and drop-out rates in schools.

2. Trafficking. The Committee notes that, in its concluding observations of 31 March 2005, the Committee on the Rights of the Child expressed its concern about reports of trafficking and sale of young persons under 18 years of age, and particularly young girls from rural areas (CRC/C/15/Add.254, paragraph 70). The Committee on the Rights of the Child also expressed its concern at the reports of the trafficking of young persons for the purpose of exploitation, including for labour exploitation, from Afghanistan to the Islamic Republic of Iran. According to the information available at the Office, there appear to be no advance in trafficking prevention measures in the Islamic Republic of Iran. The Committee requests the Government to take effective and time-bound measures to ensure that children under 18 years of age, and particularly young girls, are prevented from being engaged in trafficking for both commercial sexual exploitation and labour exploitation. It requests the Government to provide information on the progress made in this regard.

3. Centres for socially abused girls and women. The Committee had previously noted that the “Executive Regulations of the Centre for Protection and Rehabilitation Regarding Girls and Women who are Endangered by Acute Social Abuse”, adopted in 1997, provide that the State Welfare Organization will protect girls and women and deliver services such as social and psychological assistance, training and creating employment opportunities. The Committee had also noted that a project for the establishment of rehabilitation centres for socially abused girls and women was established. It notes the Government’s statement that, in addition to the rehabilitation centres for vulnerable women and girls, the State Welfare Organization has also established “Centres for Interference in Crisis”, which provide services to girls who suffer social problems and attempt to return them to their families. Girls who are not returned to their families stay in these centres for a period of 21 days and are then sent to “Girls Health Houses” for rehabilitation and provision of food, clothes and educational services. The Government indicates that these measures have had a positive influence on preventing children, and mostly girls, from being engaged in the worst forms of child labour. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on such measures and on the number of children effectively prevented from being engaged in the worst forms of child labour as a result.

Clause (d). Identifying and reaching out to children at special risk. Street children. The Committee had previously noted the issue of street children, and other children who work in the streets. It had noted that the prospect of forced early marriages are reportedly one of the underlying causes of a relatively recent phenomenon, that of runaway girls. The Committee had also noted that the problem of runaway girls had reached such proportions that, in 1999, Tehran and other cities established a network of shelters. Furthermore, it had noted that a project concerning street children was established in 1998 by the Office of Social Affairs and that, since 2001, there has been a plan for gathering the street children in order to create employment opportunities for them or return them to their families.

The Committee notes that, in its concluding observations of 31 March 2005 (CRC/C/15/Add.254, paragraph 64), the Committee on the Rights of the Child once again expressed its continued concern about the large number of children living or working in the streets, particularly in urban centres such as Tehran, Isfahan, Mashhad and Shiraz. The Committee on the Rights of the Child also expressed its regret that the State party could not present studies on the extent and nature of the problem and its concern that the centres known as “Khaneh Sabz”, “Khaneh Shoush” and “Khaneh Reyhane” homes have been closed down. The Committee notes the Government’s information that the State Welfare Organization has implemented a plan for the identification and placement of street children in 16 provinces. In the context of this plan, many activities have been undertaken:
(a) preventing street children from being abused; (b) preparing facilities which offer street children shelter, food, health services and recreation; and (c) the adoption of the bye-law of 17 July 2006 aimed at legalizing the topic of the protection of street children with the participation of all the concerned bodies, including the Ministry of Justice, the municipality, the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Education. The Government indicates that, in 2004, 34 centres for street children received 14,269 children and provided them with 100,516 services and that, in 2005, these centres received 4,403 children and provided them with 30,821 services. The Government also indicates that, as of 2006, there were 42 centres for street children. Furthermore, the Committee notes the Government’s information that, in 2004, the nine shelters established in the context of the Health Hotel Project, implemented in 2002 for the purpose of providing protection to working and street children and increasing their educational and professional skills, received 1,384 children and provided them with 6,995 services. In 2005, the shelters received 784 children and provided them with 5,488 services. The Committee points out that street children are particularly exposed to the worst forms of child labour and strongly encourages the Government to pursue its efforts to protect them from such worst forms. It also requests the Government to continue to provide information on these and other measures to protect street children, including runaway girls, from the worst forms of child labour and on the results attained.

Clause (e). Taking into account the special situation of girls. The Committee notes that the Committee on the Rights of the Child expressed its concern, in its concluding observations of 31 March 2005 (CRC/C/15/Add.254, paragraph 60), at the disparity that exists between boys and girls with regard to education, the high drop-out rates of girls in rural schools upon reaching puberty, and the long distances between homes and schools, which often keep girls at home. The Committee requests the Government to take effective and time-bound measures to ensure that the special situation of girls with regard to their education is taken into account, so as to protect them from the worst forms of child labour.

Part V of the report form. Application of the Convention in practice. The Committee takes note of the statistical data provided by the Government in its report. According to this data, the number of children involved in the worst forms of child labour increased by 35 per cent from 2004 to 2005. However, the Committee notes that the Committee on the Rights of the Child, in its concluding observations of 31 March 2005, expressed its concern at the lack of an adequate data-collection mechanism in the Islamic Republic of Iran, which would allow for the systematic and comprehensive collection of disaggregated quantitative and qualitative data in relation to children (CRC/C/15/Add.254, paragraph 16). The Committee urges the Government to take measures to ensure that sufficient and detailed data on the worst forms of child labour is available, such as on the nature, extent and trends of those forms of child labour, the number of children covered by the measures giving effect to the Convention, the number and nature of infringements reported, investigations, prosecutions, convictions and penal sanctions applied. The Committee requests the Government to provide such information, as well as copies or extracts from official documents including inspection reports, studies and inquiries and the number and nature of infringements reported, investigations, prosecutions, convictions and penal sanctions applied. To the extent possible, all information should be disaggregated by sex.