Number of child workers rising: Govt official

Number of child workers rising: Govt official

JAKARTA (JP): The number of child workers in Indonesia
continues to rise mainly because of traditional attitudes, a
senior government official said.

Suyono Yahya, an aide to the coordinating minister for
people's welfare, said that the government hopes to reduce the
number of child workers with the compulsory nine-year schooling
programs it launched last year, Antara reported.

Suyono said the number of child workers in Indonesia has
increased along with the growing population. A 1993 survey put
the number of Indonesian children working at 2.6 million, 2.31
million of which live in rural areas and 290,000 in urban areas.

Most children in rural areas work to help their parents
farming and many do not get paid, he said at a seminar on the
condition of child workers in Indonesia held in Surabaya, East
Java.

Tjuk Sukardi, a staff lecturer at Airlangga University in
Surabaya, cautioned people not to judge the system of child labor
by western standards, especially in the rural areas.

"They work not because they are forced to, but more out of
conscience and a desire to help the family," Tjuk said.

Consequently, he said, any attempt to cut down the number of
child workers in Indonesia must take this into account and not be
enforced through strict legislation as in the West.

Suyono said that the compulsory education program, which was
extended to nine years to cover children aged between six and 15
years, is expected to gradually reduce the number of child
workers.

He said that of the 2.6 million child workers surveyed in
1993, about 50,000 work under conditions that fail to meet the
criteria set by the International Labor Organization.

Long hours

Most violations, he added, occur in urban areas, where
children tend to work long hours, often even longer than adult
workers.

The average length of adult working hours is 37.2 hours, while
some children work up to 43 hours per week, he said.

Suyono agreed that the government must pay greater attention
to the condition and safety of children's working environments to
minimize physical and psychological damage.

He said children should not be employed in areas that could
affect their physical health such as in mining and deep-sea
activities, pencil factories, and farming chores that involve
pesticides.

Tjuk concurred with the view that compulsory schooling will
help keep children in school, and out of the work force, longer.

However, he added that the compulsory schooling idea must
first gain acceptance from parents who generally depend on their
children for agricultural help. (31)