Resolution Paper UNICEF Essays - Law, Foreign Relations, Free Essays

Resolution Paper UNICEF Essays - Law, Foreign Relations, Free Essays Resolution Paper UNICEF Topic : Combating Child Labour in Developing Countries Sponsors: Pakistan , USA, Brazil Signatories: Democratic Republic of Congo, Zimbabwe, Portugal , Belgium, Afghanistan Committee: UNICEF Recalling the UN Declaration on Human Rights which states that all children should have the right to free compulsory education for at least the elementary level of education , Bearing in mind the continual worldwide atroci ty that child labour presents in today's economic society, Observing that despite the growing awareness of this scandalous form of exploitation of the most vulnerable within our society, child labour continues to exist in many forms, including bonded labour; Noting that an estimated 179 million children are exploited in such forms of labo u r as (1) child slavery in all forms, (2) child pornography , (3) child trafficking and (4) any labo u r that is detrimental to the well-being of the child, Admonishing this practice for its negative effects on the i nternational society of children, Noting, with pride , that as of today 132 nations have ratified the "Worst Forms of Labo u r Treaty" established in 1999, Endorsing the remarks of the Director General of the ILO: Childhood is a period of life which should be devoted not to work, but to education and training; Child labour compromises children's potential to become productive and useful adults in society; F inally, the use of child labour is not inevitable, and progress toward its elimination is possible wherever there is political will t o oppose it with determination; Noting that this exploitation of childhood is increasing in both industrialised and developing countries; Condemns employers who exploit children to increase profits and who thereby deny children their right to education and their right to childhood; Condemns the fact that governments in many countries turn a blind eye to the plight of abandoned children, street children, economically and sexually exploited children, child prostitution and the use of children as soldiers; Encourages all nations to continue ratifying the treaty established at the Worst Forms of Labo ur Convention in 1999, and withholding all responsibilities of the individual nation thereof; Urges individual nations to take it upon themselves to s elf-regulate the success of the standards applied within their nation, due to the aforementioned treaty; Recommends that the status of each nation be checked on a five-year basis, as to the progress each has incurred since the last period, to extend the time allotted for change; Upholds the pledge of the international pact to continue moving forward in the abolition of child labour and slavery Reminds the international community that a task such as the elimination of child labo u r will take an indefinable period of time to achieve, so that all nations committed to this task are able to do so, to the best of their ability and in the best interest for their own country. The Education International First World Congress meeting in Harare (Zimbabwe) from 19 to 23 July 1995: 5. Condemns the fact that governments in many countries turn a blind eye to the plight of abandoned children, street children, economically and sexually exploited children, child prostitution and the use of children as soldiers; 7. Denounces governments which fail to enforce legislation or to enact legislation on this issue ; 8. Welcomes the increasing action being taken on child labour by the ILO, UNICEF, UNESCO, the ICFTU and ITSs associated with the ICFTU ; 9. Supports the boycott on the importation of goods produced by child labour and further measures to eliminate the exploitation of child labour. The Congress determines that the Education International shall : 10. Continue to publish material itself and in conjunction with ICFTU and International Trade Secretariats in connection with the issue of child labour ; 11. Continu e to work with other appropriate organisations in developing appropriate strategies to develop the campaign ; 12. Work with EI affiliates in the countries where child labour is prevalent to seek advice and assistance and particularly highlighting the fact that provision for proper primary education together with the provision of free school meals is the most important component in any programme to tackle the problem of child labour. The Congress calls on member