Child labour, caste based discrimination and poverty are closely related to each other in India. According to a United Nations report which highlights contemporary forms of slavery, including serious discrimination against Dalit women In South Asia due to which they are systematically denied choices and freedom in all walks of life.
Tomoya Obokata, Special Rapporteur of the Human Rights Council In its report on Contemporary Forms of Slavery, including its causes and consequences, stated that deep-rooted intersecting forms of discrimination, in combination with many other factors, are the main causes of contemporary forms of slavery affecting minorities.
They are often the result of historical legacies, such as slavery and colonialism, the system of inherited status, and formal and state-sponsored discrimination, he said.
Mr Obokata said in a UN General Assembly report on 17 August that child labor (between children aged 5 to 17), including its worst forms, exists in all regions of the world.
In Asia and the Pacific, the Middle East, the Americas and Europe, 4% to 6% of children are in child labor, and the percentage is much higher in Africa (21.6%), with the highest rate in sub-Saharan Africa (23.9%).
“In India, child labour, caste-based discrimination and poverty are closely linked. Child labor among minority and migrant children has also been reported in Angola, Costa Rica, Honduras and Kazakhstan in various regions,” the report said.
The report also noted that systematic discrimination has a profound impact on the ability of affected individuals and communities to live a life of dignity and enjoy human rights on an equal footing with others.
Marginalized communities are often overlooked in public policies and national budgetary allocations, and their access to justice and treatment is generally limited in cases of human rights violations, including contemporary forms of slavery.
It said the stigma of certain communities is perpetuated by negative stereotypes in the media, textbooks or on the Internet, which contributes to their disempowerment.
Discrimination against people on the basis of work and lineage is an example. They are bound by their inherited status and subject to dehumanizing discourses that refer to “pollution” or “untouchability”, with no respect for human dignity and equality.
“As a result, such people have limited freedom to leave inherited occupations or abusive or dangerous work and are often subject to debt bondage without adequate access to justice,” the report said.
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“Additional conflicting factors such as class, gender and religion are also influenced by the realities of caste. Dalit women in South Asia face severe discrimination, and as a result are systematically denied choices and freedom in all walks of life,” adding that their access to services and resources is very limited, Which increases the risk of being subjected to them. Contemporary forms of slavery.
The report further noted that bonded labor continues to be prevalent in South Asia among people who discriminate on the basis of work and race, such as Dalits.
Dalits in Bangladesh are forced to do certain types of labor as a result of their assigned caste status and are working almost exclusively in “unclean” jobs in urban areas, such as sweeping the streets and burying the dead.
“The practice of manual scavenging, mainly carried out by Dalit women, is widely considered a contemporary form of forced labor and slavery, characterized by harsh working conditions that have negative effects on mental and physical health. Is.”
Mr Obokata said in the report that rates of child marriage have increased in South-Eastern Europe, especially among marginalized communities, such as Roma girls.
Official data collected by the Forced Marriage Unit of the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland shows that the majority of forced marriages are related to Pakistan and to a lesser extent Afghanistan, Bangladesh, India and Somalia.
Forced marriage of women and girls is a concern in Asia, including Cambodia, India, Kazakhstan, Sri Lanka and Vietnam.
It noted that various states have taken legislative and other measures to address the inequality and discrimination experienced by minorities.
In the United States, federal contractors and subcontractors must take affirmative action to recruit and advance qualified minorities, and other initiatives, including vocational training and outreach, are facilitated together. Similar measures to increase employment among minorities have been promoted in Albania, Australia, Belgium, India, Iraq, New Zealand and the United Kingdom.
Trade unions also play an important role in advocating for the rights of minorities and migrant workers. It is “encouraging” that trade unions in Chile, Colombia, Ghana and India provide dedicated support and services for women workers.
It said that based on an independent assessment of the available information, including submissions by stakeholders, independent academic research and testimony from victims, the Special Rapporteur considers it appropriate to conclude that there is forced labor between Uighurs, Kazakhs and other ethnic minorities in areas such as agriculture. Labor and manufacturing is taking place in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China.