harris campaign, clean up on aisle Electoral College

[Lite Beer]

'Significant' improvement in Thai child labour issue
The Sunday Nation

BANGKOK: -- The United States says Thailand's labour situation has improved since the government has been seriously tackling the child labour issue, the Thai Foreign Ministry website said yesterday. This improvement would help maintain the custom privilege of "Generalised System of Preferences" between Thailand and the US, thus benefiting Thai operators, creating jobs in Thailand and boosting Thai exports, the ministry said.

Citing the US Labour Ministry's report titled "Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labour", the website said the report stated that Thailand had made a "significant" advancement in efforts to eliminate the worst forms of child labour. The annual report - which rates different countries' work on eradicating child labour in four levels; "significant", "moderate", "minimal" and "no progress" - had rated Thailand as "moderate" previously.

The report said Thai agencies implemented measures to protect child domestic workers including setting the minimum age for domestic work at 15. The Thai government also updated the list of hazardous occupations and working conditions prohibited to children and increased the minimum age for work in sea vessels from 16 to 18.

-- The Nation 2013-10-06

[dcutman]

This would mean a lot more if "enforcement" and "convictions" was on this list of achievements.

[hmficc]

The USA would never take away Thailand's preferences. Not with China near by.

[LuckyLew]

Never read much about people being arrested and jailed in Thailand for child labour

Makes me think Thailand has learnt to hide it better

[jaltsc]

"The report said Thai agencies implemented measures to protect child domestic workers including setting the minimum age for domestic work at 15. The Thai government also updated the list of hazardous occupations and working conditions prohibited to children and increased the minimum age for work in sea vessels from 16 to 18"

The last I heard, murder, theft, rape and domestic abuse are also listed as being criminal offenses. Just because they are listed and there are statutes against these crimes, doesn't mean those acts are reduced. The last time I looked, all those crimes are still major problems....In The United States. There are two rules about this kind of endorsement...Rule #1: It's all about the money. Rule #2: If you don't think it's all about the money...Re-read Rule #1.

[slapout]

When I read a translation of a finding/poll by any government spokesman which references another country findings, local poll, etc I take it with a grain of salt as well as a reaction, "if it was so important it would be in the international news".

Give a source or copy the public in to the referenced document, we can read, for the most part, and can then make our own conclusions.

The Foreign Misnistery is not at the top of the list for being believable, much less for compentance nor not handing out a few 'get out of jail' free cards, via hook or crook, when family, people conected to cronies, and even themselves are involved.

[hellodolly]

Well I applaud the intentions.

I worry about what happens to the children when they can no longer work.

It is one thing to say you don't/can't work any more and another thing for them to find food that they used too purchase.

Where is the after care going to come from? Defiantly not the people who come riding in on their White Chargers in full armor and a lance and say you are free now you don't/can't work any more.

[zoroastra999]

"The Thai government ..... increased the minimum age for work in sea vessels from 16 to 18."

Admiral David Farragut - hero of the US Civil War - got his first command of a ship at age twelve (after fighting in the War of 1812 and participating in the capture of HMS Alert and then helping to establish America's first naval base and colony in the Pacific during the ill-fated Nuku Hiva Campaign).

What kind of wimps are we creating these days at the behest of Uncle Sam?

(See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Farragut)

[noitom]

It's not about what Thais say, it's about what NGOs and world organizations actually see.

Edited October 6, 2013 by noitom

[technology]

When I read a translation of a finding/poll by any government spokesman which references another country findings, local poll, etc I take it with a grain of salt as well as a reaction, "if it was so important it would be in the international news".

Give a source or copy the public in to the referenced document, we can read, for the most part, and can then make our own conclusions.

The Foreign Misnistery is not at the top of the list for being believable, much less for compentance nor not handing out a few 'get out of jail' free cards, via hook or crook, when family, people conected to cronies, and even themselves are involved.

Your healthy skepticism is well founded.

I also find it more accurate to read another country's actual report or what a foreign dignitary actually said rather than blindly follow what Thai ministry selectively preens from said report or confabulates comments that were never said.

The Foreign Ministry, as you point out, is particularly guilty of fabricating results when left alone to report on matters itself.

In this case, the Foreign Ministry somehow managed to overlook several points from the report in their interpretation of the results. The recommended actions for Thailand to take are extensive and expensive. Many of those listed for this latest report (which covers 2012) are repeats from years past.

Enforcement of child labor laws continues to be weak and the government lacks current nationwide data on child labor.

Children continue to be engaged in the worst forms of child labor, including in hazardous activities in agriculture, and shrimp and seafood processing.

Children in Thailand are found in commercial sexual exploitation, including pornography. Children from Burma, Cambodia, and Laos are trafficked to Thailand for commercial sexual exploitation. Children are also trafficked into Bangkok to sell items and beg.

Ethnic minority, stateless, and migrant children are the most at risk of engaging in the worst form of child labor.

Based on the reporting above, the following actions would advance the elimination of the worst forms of child labor in Thailand:

Area

Suggested Actions

Year(s) Action Recommended

Laws and Regulations

Clarify the maximum number of hours and the times of day that children age 13 to 15 may perform work in the agricultural sector.

2011, 2012

Revise the Ministerial Regulation on Labor and Welfare Protection for Domestic Workers to define the number of allowable working hours for child domestics.

2012

Coordination and Enforcement

Improve mechanisms for labor complaints that workers can easily access to report labor law violations, particularly in remote areas and in the informal sector, including in shrimp and seafood processing.

2012

Ensure, including through training, that labor inspectors speak migrant or ethnic minority languages useful for labor inspections.

2009, 2010, 2011, 2012

Provide disaggregated statistics on adult and child trafficking victims.

2012

Social Programs

Reduce children’s barriers to education by providing class instruction in the migrants’ native language; increasing educational opportunities to reduce long distances to school; addressing the cost of school lunches; and simplifying student registration requirements.

2012

Raise awareness of migrant children’s right to education among migrant families and local government officials.

2012

Initiate a national child labor survey.

2009, 2010, 2011, 2012

Ensure that national reporting and statistics on child labor include children working on the streets and migrant children.

2012

Edited October 6, 2013 by technology

[RuskiCat]

Did they stop allowing 7 year olds in Muay Thai rings?

[Baerboxer]

When I read a translation of a finding/poll by any government spokesman which references another country findings, local poll, etc I take it with a grain of salt as well as a reaction, "if it was so important it would be in the international news".

Give a source or copy the public in to the referenced document, we can read, for the most part, and can then make our own conclusions.

The Foreign Misnistery is not at the top of the list for being believable, much less for compentance nor not handing out a few 'get out of jail' free cards, via hook or crook, when family, people conected to cronies, and even themselves are involved.

Your healthy skepticism is well founded.

I also find it more accurate to read another country's actual report or what a foreign dignitary actually said rather than blindly follow what Thai ministry selectively preens from said report or confabulates comments that were never said.

The Foreign Ministry, as you point out, is particularly guilty of fabricating results when left alone to report on matters itself.

In this case, the Foreign Ministry somehow managed to overlook several points from the report in their interpretation of the results. The recommended actions for Thailand to take are extensive and expensive. Many of those listed for this latest report (which covers 2012) are repeats from years past.

Enforcement of child labor laws continues to be weak and the government lacks current nationwide data on child labor.

Children continue to be engaged in the worst forms of child labor, including in hazardous activities in agriculture, and shrimp and seafood processing.

Children in Thailand are found in commercial sexual exploitation, including pornography. Children from Burma, Cambodia, and Laos are trafficked to Thailand for commercial sexual exploitation. Children are also trafficked into Bangkok to sell items and beg.

Ethnic minority, stateless, and migrant children are the most at risk of engaging in the worst form of child labor.

Based on the reporting above, the following actions would advance the elimination of the worst forms of child labor in Thailand:

Area

Suggested Actions

Year(s) Action Recommended

Laws and Regulations

Clarify the maximum number of hours and the times of day that children age 13 to 15 may perform work in the agricultural sector.

2011, 2012

Revise the Ministerial Regulation on Labor and Welfare Protection for Domestic Workers to define the number of allowable working hours for child domestics.

2012

Coordination and Enforcement

Improve mechanisms for labor complaints that workers can easily access to report labor law violations, particularly in remote areas and in the informal sector, including in shrimp and seafood processing.

2012

Ensure, including through training, that labor inspectors speak migrant or ethnic minority languages useful for labor inspections.

2009, 2010, 2011, 2012

Provide disaggregated statistics on adult and child trafficking victims.

2012

Social Programs

Reduce children’s barriers to education by providing class instruction in the migrants’ native language; increasing educational opportunities to reduce long distances to school; addressing the cost of school lunches; and simplifying student registration requirements.

2012

Raise awareness of migrant children’s right to education among migrant families and local government officials.

2012

Initiate a national child labor survey.

2009, 2010, 2011, 2012

Ensure that national reporting and statistics on child labor include children working on the streets and migrant children.

2012

Thank you for your detailed post. With the comments its hard to see how they can be upgraded.

[technology]

Did they stop allowing 7 year olds in Muay Thai rings?

No, and the prevalence of paying children to fight Muay Thai without any protective gear was actually one of the issues addressed in the report.

[Thai at Heart]

"The report said Thai agencies implemented measures to protect child domestic workers including setting the minimum age for domestic work at 15. The Thai government also updated the list of hazardous occupations and working conditions prohibited to children and increased the minimum age for work in sea vessels from 16 to 18"

The last I heard, murder, theft, rape and domestic abuse are also listed as being criminal offenses. Just because they are listed and there are statutes against these crimes, doesn't mean those acts are reduced. The last time I looked, all those crimes are still major problems....In The United States. There are two rules about this kind of endorsement...Rule #1: It's all about the money. Rule #2: If you don't think it's all about the money...Re-read Rule #1.

This was already in the labour law.