Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2018, published 108th ILC session (2019)

Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (No. 182) - Brazil (Ratification: 2000)

Article 3 of the Convention. Worst forms of child labour. Clause (a). Sale and trafficking of children. The Committee previously noted that the Second National Plan to Combat Trafficking in Persons (NAP 2013–16) was launched in 2013. The Committee also noted that in May 2013, the Ministry of Justice and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) launched the Blue Heart Campaign against trafficking in persons in Brazil, aimed at mobilizing society to denounce human trafficking via hotlines established in key regions.

The Committee notes the Government’s information in its report that Dial 100, a programme operating under the Ministry of Human Rights, provides a free phone number to receive reports on all forms of violations of children’s rights, including trafficking of children for purposes of labour and sexual exploitation. The Government indicates that the new National Plan to Combat Trafficking in Persons makes several major changes. For example, persons identified as victims of trafficking, including for sexual exploitation, are considered to be in conditions analogous to slavery under the Penal Code.

The Committee also notes that a public consultation for the evaluation of the NAP 2013–16 was held in May and June 2017. Moreover, the Ministry of Justice, with the support of the European Union and the UNODC, held the first International Seminar to Combat Trafficking in Persons and Smuggling in September 2017. One of its objectives was to raise funds for the elaboration of the third National Plan to Combat Trafficking in Persons, which has been approved and will be implemented between 2018 and 2021.

The Committee further notes the adoption of Law No. 13.344 in October 2016 regarding the prevention and suppression of human trafficking, as well as the protection of victims. The Law also adds a new section 149-A to the Penal Code, which criminalizes trafficking in persons for various purposes in general and provides for a punishment of 4–8 years’ imprisonment. Additionally, section 149-A provides for an increased penalty of up to 12 years’ imprisonment, if the crime is committed against a child or an adolescent. According to the Consolidated Report from the Survey and the Systematization of Data on Human Trafficking for the period of 2014–16 prepared by the Ministry of Justice, data from the Ministry of Health showed that 171 out of 408 victims identified are children and young persons under 19 years of age. Similarly, data from the Ministry of Human Rights showed that 232 out of 413 victims identified were children and young persons under 18 years of age (page 50). According to the Federal Police, from 2007 to 2016, there were 47 investigations and 77 indictments regarding cross-border trafficking of children and adolescents (page 56). Noting that the NAP 2013–16 has ended, the Committee requests the Government to provide information on its evaluation as well as the implementation of the third NAP for 2018–21. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the application of section 149-A of the Penal Code in practice with regard to the sale and trafficking of children, including the number of investigations, prosecutions and convictions, as well as the specific penalties applied. It finally requests the Government to provide information on the application of Law No. 13.344 in practice regarding its impact on the protection of child victims of trafficking.

Article 7(1). Penalties. The Committee previously noted that Decree No. 6481 of 12 June 2008, which approves a detailed list of the worst forms of child labour, including types of hazardous work, did not provide for penalties in the case of violations of the Decree. The Government indicated that, at the administrative level, the labour inspectorate has powers to punish offenders. From January 2010 to June 2014, 3,817 cases of violations of Decree No. 6481 were registered under the Federal System of Labour Inspection.

The Committee notes the Government’s information in its report that the labour inspectorate issues two types of violation notices in this regard. Since 2014, 1,949 notices of violations were issued regarding the engagement of persons under 18 years of age in types of work that the regulations classify as unhealthy or hazardous. Moreover, 161 notes of violations were issued regarding the engagement of persons under 18 years of age in works that are harmful to their physical, psychological, moral or social development. The Committee notes the absence of information on the specific penalties applied in case of violations. The Committee once again requests the Government to provide information on the specific penalties applied in the cases of violations of Decree No. 6481.

Article 7(2). Effective and time-bound measures. Clause (a). Preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour. Access to free basic education. The Committee previously noted the Government’s information that there had been a rise in the rates of school enrolment in basic, primary and secondary levels as a result of effective policies for improving access to, and quality of, education as well as income support programmes, such as Bolsa Família. According to the National Household Survey of 2012, the school attendance rate of children aged 6–14 years remained the same at 98.2 per cent as recorded in 2011, while the school attendance rate for children aged 15–17 years increased from 83.7 per cent in 2011 to 84.2 per cent in 2012.

The Committee notes the Government’s information that, according to the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) data in 2015, among students aged 4 years and above, the enrolment rate in primary schools within the public education system was 85.3 per cent, while 88.1 per cent in secondary schools. The Committee also notes that, according to the data from the UNESCO Institute for Statistics, the school attendance rate at both primary and secondary level remains constant for the period of 2013–15. The Committee further notes that, in its concluding observations of 2015, the Committee on the Rights of the Child (CRC) expresses its concern at the disparities in access to, and quality of, education between urban and rural or remote areas, with the latter having significantly lower enrolment rates, particularly at the secondary level, as well as lower completion and literary rate among Afro-Brazilian and indigenous children (CRC/C/BRA/CO/2-4, paragraph 73). Recalling the importance of education in preventing the engagement of children in the worst forms of child labour, the Committee encourages the Government to continue its efforts to ensure educational access to all children, particularly those living in rural or remote areas, by placing emphasis on increasing the school enrolment rates and decreasing the drop-out rates at the secondary level. It requests the Government to continue providing information on the measures taken in this regard and on the results achieved, including relevant statistical information.

Clause (d). Children at special risk. Orphans and other vulnerable children due to HIV/AIDS. In its previous comments, the Committee noted the Government’s indication that it had developed a national plan of action specifically for orphans and vulnerable children. The Committee also noted that according to the UNAIDS Gap Report of 2014, Brazil was the country with the largest number of people living with HIV in Latin America.

The Committee notes the Government’s information that the Ministry of Labour has no data on children living with HIV, due to the fact that the relevant law prohibits the unveiling of the international code of disease (ICD) related to workers’ illness. The Committee notes that, according to 2017 UNAIDS estimates, there were around 110,000 orphans aged 0 to 17 due to AIDS-related death of their parents, which remains unchanged since 2014. Moreover, the estimated number of annual AIDS-related deaths remains at 14,000 since 2010. Recalling that orphans and other vulnerable children affected by HIV/AIDS are at an increased risk of being engaged in the worst forms of child labour, the Committee once again requests the Government to provide information on the measures taken to protect these children from the worst forms of child labour and on the results achieved.