The new ITUC report highlights the link between the abuse of human rights, including trade union rights, and the catastrophic situation of Burmese children
Crushing all forms of opposition the Burmese military junta spends at least 40% of the State budget on the army, even though the country is not facing any external military threat, and leaves only crumbs for such important sectors as education and health care. As a result, less than 55% of Burmese children complete primary school education, and every day hundreds of thousands work for long hours, sometimes in forced labour imposed by the authorities. The forced recruitment of child soldiers by different army groups is still frequent in Burma, despite repeated promises by the junta to put an end to it.
Plusieurs témoignages recueillis sur le terrain pour les besoins de ce rapport illustrent la détresse des enfants grandissant sous la dictature militaire. « Mon patron me donne deux repas par jour et je peux dormir dans un petit local, mais nous sommes très nombreux à nous entasser dans ce local surchauffé. Je suis constamment fatigué la journée car je ne dors pas assez. Il faut sans cesse servir les clients, nettoyer les tasses, le sol, … » explique un enfant de 11 ans actif dans un tea-shop de Rangoon.
Interviews carried out in the country for this report illustrate the distress of these children growing up under military dictatorship. “My boss gives me two meals a day and I can sleep in a small room, but there are a lot of us all squeezed into one very hot room. I am always tired during the day because I don’t sleep enough. We are constantly busy serving customers, cleaning the cups, the floor...” says a child of 11 working in a tea room in Rangoon.
The report sheds light on the very difficult situation faced by Burmese teachers, who have no trade union rights and no possibility therefore of negotiating their salaries. What they earn today is only a small percentage of what is needed to support a family. Many Burmese teachers encourage children to take private lessons with them, but not all parents can afford to pay for them, given all the other costs they already have to face for their child’s education (materials, forced donations to schools...). This system exists at every level of education, forcing tens of thousands of children out of school every year and into exploitation at work.