Table of Contents................................................................................................................ 1

List of maps, charts and tables........................................................................................... 2

1. Introduction..................................................................................................................... 3

1.1 Child labour in Cambodia............................................................................................... 3

1.2 The National Response.................................................................................................. 3

1.3 Background and aims of this study................................................................................. 4

1.4 Defining child labour...................................................................................................... 5

1.5 Structure of the report................................................................................................... 6

2. Methods of research....................................................................................................... 8

2.1 Methods and problems encountered................................................................................ 8

2.2 The researchers.......................................................................................................... 10

2.3 Validity and reliability of the findings............................................................................. 10

3. Organisation in the Chub Rubber Plantation ....................................................................12

3.1 General background of the plantation............................................................................ 12

3.2 Organization of the plantation: bases, centres and villages............................................... 13

3.3 Schooling and medical facilities..................................................................................... 16

3.4 Other organizations...................................................................................................... 18

4. Work at the plantation: conditions, activities, tools..................................................... 20

4.1 Conditions of employment............................................................................................ 20

4.2 Salary and allowances................................................................................................. 20

4.3 Work activities in the rubber plantation.......................................................................... 21

4.4 Material used.............................................................................................................. 22

4.5 Work hazards.............................................................................................................. 22

4.6 Organisation of work................................................................................................... 22

4.7 Trade Union................................................................................................................ 22

5. Magnitude of child labour in the rubber plantation...................................................... 24

5.1 Work in the rubber plantation....................................................................................... 24

5.2 Work times................................................................................................................. 25

5.3 Schooling.................................................................................................................... 27

5.4 Basic data per village................................................................................................... 29

6. Selected case study examination of child labour in the rubber plantation................... 31

6.1 Socio-economic background of the families interviewed................................................. 31

6.2 Decision making.......................................................................................................... 33

6.3 Child work and child labour at the plantation.................................................................. 34

6.4 Schooling.................................................................................................................... 37

6.5 Health Care................................................................................................................ 38

6.6 Perception of work and life at present and in the future.................................................. 38

6.7 Community life and involvement of other organisations................................................... 39

6.8 Needs......................................................................................................................... 39

7. Conclusion and recommendations................................................................................ 41

7.1 The magnitude of child labour in the rubber plantation.................................................... 41

7.2 The nature of child labour in the rubber plantation.......................................................... 41

7.3 The causes................................................................................................................. 42

7.4 Most urgent problems to be solved................................................................................ 43

7.5 Possible constraints: need for a careful approach........................................................... 45

Bibliography...................................................................................................................... 46

List of maps, charts and tables

Maps:

3.1: Map of the Chub Rubber Plantation ............................................................................. 15

3.2: Map of Schools and Movement of Students in the Chub Rubber Plantation ............... 17

Charts:

3.1: Organisation chart of the Chub Rubber Plantation ....................................................... 14

5.1: Percentage of Children at Different Ages Involved in Work Activities ....................... 25

5.2: Work Times of Children at the Rubber Plantation ........................................................ 26

5.3: Percentage of School Going Children in Age Group 6-17 Years Old ........................... 26

5.4: Reasons for Not School Going........................................................................................ 27

5.5: Percentage of School Going Children per Age Group ................................................... 28

5.6: Percentage of School Going Children per Age in Tboung Kmom District and the CRP 28

5.7: Percentage of School Going Children by Sex................................................................. 29

Tables:

5.1: Children Working at the Rubber Plantation by Base and Age Group............................. 25

5.2: Work Times of Children Working at the Rubber Plantation per Age Group ................. 26

5.3: Baseline Data on Schooling and Work per Village ........................................................ 29

6.1: Basic Data per Selected Village ...................................................................................... 30

1. Introduction

1.1 Child labour in Cambodia

Not much is known about child labour in Cambodia. Children are known to work in different occupations, such as begging, scavenging, garment manufacture, stone cutting, domestic service, construction work, street vendoring, salt field work, factory work, fish processing and plantation work. However, little information is presently available on the nature and magnitude of child labour in these areas.

The Cambodia Socio-Economic Survey (CSES), conducted in 1998, provides some basic data about child workers in Cambodia. It shows that most child workers are between 14 and 17 years old (42% of the children in this age group are listed as “working”). Of the children between 10 and 13 years old, 9-10% had a job, and this was 3% of the children aged 5 to 9. The CSES shows that most child workers were girls, with 50% of all girls of 14-17 years old working, compared with only 30% of all boys in the same age group.[1]

The CSES also provides some information about the average work times of child workers in general, which is 44.2 hours/week.[2] Unfortunately, no specific information is available for the different occupations. The CSES cannot help us further either on the specific activities that child workers are engaged in.

The Asian American Free Labor Institute (AAFLI) and the Cambodia League for Defence of Human Rights (LICADHO) conducted a qualitative study on child labour in Cambodia in 1996, interviewing working children in many different occupations. The (unpublished) report provides a good overview of the different occupations and some of the main problems. More in-depth studies were undertaken by various organisations since, focussing on child labour in for example the sex business, scavenging for recyclables, rubber and salt production. [3]

1.2 The National Response

The International Labour Organisation (ILO) in 1992 started a new worldwide program: the International Program on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC). ILO-IPEC works in cooperation with the government, and is one of the most important sponsors of local NGOs focusing on child labour. Although ILO-IPEC's final aim is to eliminate all forms of child labour in the long term, it has decided first to focus on the elimination of the worst forms of child labour as defined in Convention No 182. In this Convention worst forms of child labour comprise:

- "All forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery, such as the sale and trafficking of children, debt bondage and serfdom and forced or compulsory labour, including forced or compulsory recruitment of children for use in armed conflict;

- The use, procuring or offering of a child for prostitution, for the production of pornography or for pornographic purposes;

- The use, procurement or offering of a child for illicit activities, in particular for the production and trafficking of drugs;

- work which, by its nature or the circumstances, in which it is carried out, is likely to harm the health, safety or morals of children."[4]

In 1997, ILO-IPEC opened an office in Cambodia. Its role is to improve knowledge on child labour and forms of commercial exploitation of children in Cambodia. It is also in charge of undertaking situational analyses and action research on these issues.

In 1992 the Cambodian Government signed the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. The Government has indicated a commitment to improve the situation regarding worst forms of child labour in the country, and is expected to sign the ILO Convention on the Worst Forms of Child Labour soon. The Ministry of Social Affairs, Labour, Vocational Training and Youth Rehabilitation (MoSALVY) is the lead government agency in enforcing labour-related legislation through a network of labour inspectors. However, the Department of Labour Inspection is severely understaffed and faces many logistical problems.[5]

Late 1997 a National Steering Committee was set up, with a National Subcommittee on Child Labour. It has a tripartite structure, with representatives from employers, trade unions and the government (Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour, Ministry of Education and Ministry of Interior). Several NGOs working on issues of child labour are also part of the subcommittee. The aim of the committee is to monitor the implementation of the national policy on child labour and ensure coordination between the different partners.

1.3 Background and aims of this study

In 1999 ILO-IPEC undertook a study on child labour in three rubber plantations in Kampong Cham, including Chub. Unfortunately, the external consultant carrying out the research died in a car accident before field work was completed. The Ministry of Planning, in cooperation with Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour, completed the report, but not all information was available. The (unpublished) report concluded that child labour at the rubber plantations in Cambodia was "not at the critical level". Children helped their parents in light and easy tasks, but the work activities were not considered harmful to the children. The report indicated poverty and heavy work load required of the parents as the main causes for child labour. Most working children were not attending school and gave as main reason that they had to work. Overall, the report concluded that the living conditions in the rubber plantations were generally better than in other rural areas in Cambodia.

In 2000 the Cambodian Labour Organisation (CLO) conducted another study in the Andoung and Boengket rubber plantations in Kampong Cham Province, with entirely different results. The unpublished report draws a bleak picture of the labour situation of the workers. It concludes that plantation workers in general, and children in particular, are used as cheap and easily exploitable workers.

The Provincial Department of Social Affairs and Labour in Kampong Cham has, with regard to solving child labour problems in the province, indicated the Chub rubber plantation as an area of high priority. The United States Department of Labor (USDOL) has committed funding for a child labour programme in the plantation. However, with the contrasting findings of the two reports, the nature and magnitude of the child labour problem in the Chub rubber plantation remains unclear. In order to be able to design appropriate programmes in the area, an in-depth understanding of the child labour situation in the rubber plantation, the magnitude of any problems and the needs of any target populations were needed.

The Center for Advanced Study (CAS) was asked to conduct a comprehensive baseline study in the Chub Rubber Plantation in order to provide the information and data needed for future program design purposes. Data were to be gathered about the nature of child labour, the children's working conditions, the problems and needs of the targeted population, the socio-economic background of the families and communities, and the availability of services and other development projects in the area. The aim of the research was to provide the baseline information needed to finalise the design of future projects in the Chub rubber plantation.

CAS conducted field research in the months April and May 2001, for duration of 3.5 weeks, following the Terms of Reference (see Annex A). The data were processed partly during the field research and partly in the second half of June/first half of July. Analysis and write up of the report took place in July 2001.

1.4 Defining child labour

Child labour in itself is a rather vague, ill-defined concept, which needs clarification in order to reduce confusion. The concept consists of two words: labour and child. The question is: who is “a child”, and what exactly is “child labour”?

Internationally, everyone under the age of 18 is considered a child. In Cambodia the age limit is 15 years, but Cambodian law allows children between 12 and 15 years to be involved in “light work”. However, there is no clear definition as to what constitutes “light work”. In this study, all children of school age between 6 and 17 years old are taken into account. A distinction is made between three age groups: younger than 13 years old, 13 and 14 years old, and 15 to 17 years old (inclusive). According to the ILO Convention 182, a child below 13 years old is totally prohibited to be engaged in any wage employment if the minimum age for employment in a country is set at 15 years old, as is the case in Cambodia. Children of 13 and 14 years old can be hired to do light work, provided that the work is not hazardous to their health or mental and physical development and that the work will not affect their regular school attendance. Children from 15 to 17 years old are allowed wage employment if the health, safety and morals of the child are fully protected and they have received adequate instruction or vocational training.

Vague definitions of child labour contribute to a lack of clarity about the issue and can give rise to a different understanding by different people, organisations and stakeholders. For example, some may define child labour as any work performed for pay, profit or family gain by children under the age of 18 years. This broad definition entails that all child work qualifies for the somewhat negative connotation of "child labour”. However, not all forms of child labour are necessarily bad. In rural areas, most children are involved in family-based activities that are essential for the family's survival. This work often constitutes an important learning component. Transfer of knowledge and skills from parent to child is a natural process that ensures the family’s and child’s survival in the future. As long as this work is not physically too demanding, does not take up too much of the child's time, does not interfere with school going, and is not harmful for the physical health or mental well being of the child, it should be called child work rather than labour.

As stated by ILO-IPEC: debates on child labour can become emotional, with some downplaying the magnitude and nature of the problem, and others exaggerating it.[6] A clear definition that is shared by all stakeholders involved (children, families, employers, government and others), is essential for combating the problems associated with child labour.

The concept of child labour is often linked to two underlying ideas: the idea of human development and the notion of human rights. Human development refers to the children's possibility to enlarge the choices available to them, so that they can improve their lives and future. The notion of human rights refers to the specific right of children to realize and develop their full human potential. Any work activity that prevents children from attending school and realizing their full potential can be seen as a violation of their human rights. Labour can prevent them from going to school, and that in turn prevents them from rising out of poverty. Besides, children have the right to enjoy their childhood without having to worry about earning a living. Child workers also have the right - like any other worker - to decent work (that does not harm their health) without exploitation. Children are particularly likely to be powerless in their relation with the adult employer and are prone to exploitation.[7]

However, children are not always powerless, passive victims. Myers and Boyden stress the importance of also taking into account the point of view of the children and their families, as they too have a significant perspective on the issue. It is important not only to “assess” the potential harmfulness of child work or labour from an outsider’s (and often Western) point of view, but also to look at the meaning of the work for the child within a cultural context, including its disadvantages and advantages. It is important to link any assessment of child labour to an assessment of the situation of the child and the family as a whole. Outsiders, coming from a different cultural and social background, brought up in a different political and economic context, are not always neutral and objective in their assessment. Myers and Boyden point out the active side of children: “children are not always passive victims of poverty, forced purely out of necessity”.[8] They state that many children work because they want to. They can earn money, gain experience, find excitement, or they may find pleasure and esteem in helping their families.

It is therefore important to mention here also another child’s right. As stated in article 3 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), “In all actions concerning children, whether undertaken by public or private social welfare institutions, courts of law, administrative authorities or legislative bodies, the best interests of the child shall be a primary consideration.”

Steve Gourley, child rights advisor at the human rights organisation LICADHO, has attempted to combine article 3 of the CRC with the right of children to protection from work that threatens the child's health, education and development. He has developed a scheme that is meant to help clarify the nature of child work and/or labour and identify the major areas of risk or hazards children are exposed to. This Child Labour Matrix makes a distinction between harmless household chores at home, more substantial but still harmless - light - child work, minor forms of child labour, more serious forms of child labour, and worst forms of child labour. To facilitate an assessment, different criteria are used according to indicators such as the purpose of work, the education status, work times and work days, tasks performed, exposure to hazards, work environment, nature and frequency of injuries, sanitation, overtime, etc. Also included are the child’s and parents’ perceptions of the work.