Child Rights Activists: There Are Seven Million Child Laborers in Iran

Child rights activists in Iran report that unofficial statistics indicate the existence of seven million child laborers, three million and 200 thousand children who have dropped out of school, and a significant number of children involved in drug trafficking. ISNA news agency published this information on Tuesday, June 22, citing three child rights activists in Iran. Sara Rezaei, a member of the 'Imam Ali Society,' told ISNA that according to official statistics, there are two million child laborers in Iran, but unofficial figures suggest the number is seven million. She added that 50 percent of child laborers are 'migrant children from Afghanistan and Pakistan.' Ms. Rezaei stated that the average age of these children is between 10 to 15 years and added: 'There is evidence that shows children under five and even infants are also involved in forced labor.' This member of the 'Imam Ali Society' also described the living conditions of child laborers in some neighborhoods of major Iranian cities as 'tragic' and said that in Sistan and Baluchestan province, children 'sell psychoactive pills, tramadol, etc., on the streets, and this issue has become somewhat normalized.' Ms. Rezaei pointed to the existence of shops in this province where teenagers sell 'nas, pan, glass, and crack, which the children themselves have also become somewhat addicted to,' and added: 'These children are also used to transport drugs to other cities in Sistan and Baluchestan province.' According to her, children 'swallow the drugs and excrete them after crossing the border, and many of these children have lost their lives as a result of this issue.' The report did not mention the number of these children. Susan Maziarfar, another member of the 'Imam Ali Society,' also spoke about the situation of 'garbage-collecting' children in some provinces of Iran, stating that the average age of these children is 12 years. She added: 41 percent of these children are illiterate, and 37 percent have dropped out of school due to 'work.' According to this civil activist, over 50 percent of these children live in garbage collection centers, which is the source of many diseases among children. Ms. Maziarfar reported the existence of children whose faces and fingers have been bitten and injured by 'rats' in these centers. Soraya Azizpanah, a member of the Child Rights Support Association, also cited statistics from the Research Center of the Parliament, which, according to ISNA, indicates that three million and 200 thousand children have dropped out of school in Iran. She stated: The economic conditions of child laborers in Iran have not improved, and the 'livelihood problems' of their families remain unchanged. This civil activist criticized the indefinite status of the 'Child Rights Protection Bill' in the Parliament and called for attention to this issue. Child laborers are defined as children who are continuously and sustainably employed, which often deprives them of the opportunity to attend school and threatens their physical and mental health. According to various reports in Iran, the number of child laborers is increasing for various reasons, but there are no accurate statistics on them. Studies show that many children are employed within their families and take on various responsibilities from the age of 4 to 17, ranging from caring for younger siblings to working on agricultural land. Iran has established new regulations in recent years to eliminate child labor, prohibiting 23 types of jobs for individuals aged 15 to 18 who work with operations such as welding and working with high-vibration tools. According to this law, the use of children and adolescents in digging qanats, working in livestock farms, slaughterhouses, carpet weaving workshops, kilns, and bakeries is also prohibited. Abuse of this group of children in work environments is also among the issues that, according to some social experts, have received less attention due to the specific media and cultural conditions present.