Abstract

This project explores the relationship between the Labour Code and child abuse in Cameroon, using the Central Market in Douala as a case study. The Labour Code in Cameroon provides legal frameworks and regulations for labor practices, but child abuse and exploitation persist in various sectors, including the Central Market. The study aims to assess stakeholder perceptions and experiences regarding child labor and abuse in the Central Market. The research methodology combines qualitative and quantitative approaches, with a sample size of 150 participants. The findings will reveal a significant incidence of child labor and abuse in the Central Market, with a lack of awareness and enforcement of the Labour Code’s provisions contributing to its persistence.The study recommends collaborative efforts between government agencies, law enforcement, market associations, and child protection organizations to raise awareness, strengthen enforcement, and provide support services for victims. Comprehensive strategies targeting poverty, lack of education, and inadequate social support systems are crucial to prevent child abuse effectively.

Chapter One: General Introduction

For the past decade, child labour has been one of the biggest obstacles to social development. Children are often victims of bad treatment, negative social and cultural practices, sexual abuse and all forms of economic hazardous exploitations including commercial sexual exploitation. Child labour is a social challenge especially in developing countries and Cameroon in particular.  S. Garton Kamchedzera(1998) Recently, the International Labour Organization in 2013 estimated about 215 million children between the age of five to fourteen who works worldwide. These children are often maltreated as they work for prolong hours under unfavorable conditions. It is worth noting that these unfavorable conditions of work affect the physical, health and mental status of the children negatively. We shall exhaustively examine the ill of child labour in Cameroon in the subsequent paragraph of study;

Background to The Study

Of the estimated 168 million labourers worldwide, roughly half-85 million works in hazardous conditions (ILO, 2013). while in absolute terms, child labor as well as hazardous child labor has fallen between 2008 and 2020 due to socio economic conditions of inequality, population pressure and insufficient access to education, these practices persist especially in sub-sahara Africa (UN, 2006) worldwide. 10.6% of the children are engage in labor and 5.4% are subjected to hazardous work. In sub-sahara Africa, there are an estimated 59 million child laborers which is 21.4% of the 5-17 years population. The problem of child labour as a source of cheap labour has existed over centuries both in the developed countries and developing countries until the beginning of 20^th century (Cunning & Viazzo, 1996). Child labour is an issue of both developing and developed in the latter, it existed in the 18th and 19th century. In Great Britain incidences of cheap child labourers were first spotted in factories working under exploitative conditions (UNICEF, 2020). Whereas in the US during the pre-industrial period, children were engaged in productive labour such as domestic work, agricultural work under the supervision of the parents and the income was meant for family use consequently child labour was not considered a social problem (Pallas, 1993). Though child labour within the developed countries is said to have been eliminated by mid-20^th century, some scholars argue that the problem is still inexistence (Lavallette, 1994).

The problem is more prevalent in countries experiencing conflict and disaster. Some children in child labour work 43 hours weekly. Estimates for boys involved in child labour are higher than those for girls but those estimates do not include household chores. 70% of children in child labour work in agriculture mainly in subsistence and commercial farming and herding livestock. One-third of children in child labour are completely outside the educational systems and those that do attend perform poorly (NHDR, 2005).

The presence of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child 1989 and the AU’s African Charter on the Rights and Security of the Child in 1990 enhances children’s rights. In the meantime, a number of African states’ constitutions adopted after 1990 began to include children’s rights.

Since children are a vulnerable group of people, they have a special and privileged role in society. The African Charter of the Rights and Protection of the Child sets an age cap of under 18 years(the African charter on right and child welfare) Children in Africa need special attention and protection. All humans under the age of 18 are considered children in this sense, and as such are entitled to the freedoms of speech, association, peaceful assembly, thinking, faith, and conscience A Muthoga(1992)

Children are often exposed to deplorable care, adverse social and cultural norms, sexual violence, and various types of economically dangerous exploitation, including commercial sexual exploitation. S.CartonKamchezera (1998) Their guardians carry them to cities with the purpose of caring for them and maintaining their well-being. As a result, they are reduced to slaves and are forced to work beyond their capacities. Some of them work for no pay, resulting in child violence and inequality. They are subjected to dangerous working environments that threaten their health and well-being as children. For man’s selfish interests, others are abducted and trafficked. Others are forced to beg on the streets and participate in illicit drug use.  practices infringe on children’s rights and health, as well as their ambitions to become future African leaders

The Convention on the Rights of the Child (hereinafter referred to as CRC) was adopted by the United Nations in November 1989, and it entered into force less than a year later, in September 1990. The African Charter on the Rights and Protection of the Child (hereafter referred to as the African Children’s Charter), which was adopted in July 1990 and came into force in November 1999, was the result of African leaders’ decision to adopt their own version of the CRC. T.W Bennett (1995) There are two globally recognized treaties that secure children’s rights and health in Africa. There are others, such as the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and the Declaration on the Rights and Health of the Child.

The CRC and the African Children’s Charter (hereinafter referred to as the ACRWC) were acknowledged, adopted and ratified in Cameroon, as part of its legislation ensuring the protection of children’s rights and welfare^. A. Akonumbo(2008) As per article 45 of the Constitution of Cameroon, ratified treaties and international agreements take precedence over national laws. Cameroon is seen as a monistic state in terms of the status of the foreign instruments properly ratified by the government. However, as far as the implementation of ratified treaties is concerned, Cameroon is dualistic, as such treaties only take effect by national legislation.

Cameroon also has a number of statutory acts and decrees to protect children’s rights and health, such as (Section 1) of Law No. 2005/015 of 29 December 2005. Children should not be the target of torture. That is why Law No. 97/009 of 10 January 1997 States that the practice of torture in Cameroon must be prevented at all costs and that sanctions must be enforced. Section 7 of Law No 98/004 of 14 April 1998 specifies that all individuals are entitled to education irrespective of sex, religion, age, political opinion and social origin. Orphans can be adopted and directed by foster parents, foster homes or orphanages with good intentions to take care of children in compliance with Law No. 84/04 of July 1983. However, in compliance with Decree No. 2004/320 of 8 December 2004, the Government established a number of ministerial departments responsible for children’s rights.

The law generally protects children from workplace abuse and stipulates punishments ranging from fines to imprisonment for violations; however, child labor, especially in the informal sector, continues to be an issue. By stressing the importance of a child’s education and cooperation with others in protecting a child, the ILO Convention No. 182 calls for the prohibition and abolition of the worst types of child labor as a matter of urgency. The ILO works with organizations in Cameroon, such as NkumuFed, to protect children’s rights, especially female children, from becoming victims of child labor. The Labour Code is an effort by the government to combat the worst forms of child labor. According to Law No. 017 of the Labour Code, children do not work in underground restaurants, bars, hotels, or any other job that exceeds their physical capability in the industrial zone.

A 2009 study conducted by the German Development Organization (GTZ) revealed that an estimated 432,000 girls have been raped in the past 20 years: 20 percent of those raped were committed by family members, and the average age of victims was 15 years. Rape has gradually raised, according to Flavien Ndoko, the head of GTZ’s HIV/AIDS network, and only about one in every 20 rapists has been arrested. A campaign led by GTZ in 2009 urged victims to talk openly about rape.

Approximately 2000 children live on the streets of Cameroon’s major cities. The Project to Combat the Phenomenon of Street Children, a government-led program in collaboration with non-governmental organizations, collected data on street children and provided healthcare, education, and psychological services, as well as increasing the intake capacity of specialized centers.

There is a gradual troubling practice of child labor in Cameroon. According to government data on child labor in Cameroon from 2008, the agriculture sector employed 85.2 percent of working children, either on family subsistence plots or on tea, banana, and palm oil plantations.

The types of tasks that children are assigned are causing concern. Children under the age of 14 are street vendors in Douala’s  numerous streets, where their parents or foster parents hire them to earn a living. Douala Central market, Ndokoti, and the streets in Douala are some of the most well-known places where they sell. Children are exposed to the hazards of the streets by practices such as hawking. Some children work as domestic helpers, while others engage in prostitution. Some are forced to work in harsh conditions on farms in order to cultivate food and sell it for their parents’ benefit.

These are carried out because those who violate children’s rights are unaware of the legislation that protects them. It has however been rightly pointed out that ‘any work done by a child below working and remuneration standards as defined by law should be regarded as economic abuse of the child.’ A.Akounmbo(2008)

Any work that is mentally, physically, socially or morally dangerous and harmful to children: work that deprives children of their childhood, their potential and their dignity, work that intercepts children’s education by limiting their school attendance, forcing them to leave school prematurely or obliging them to combine schooling with excessive and arduous work tasks is categorised under child labour (Ray & Lancaster, 2003). On the other hand, the ICI upholds the international convention that promote children’s rights and that outlaw this labour supporting national laws. Not all work done by children is classified as child labour. Typically, carrying out of light, non-hazardous tasks on the family farming under the supervision of elderly peers and without compromising their schooling is considered as acceptable child work. This type of work is often necessary for the welfare of many families in West African rural societies. It also contributes to children’s development providing them with skills and experience that help them prepare for their adult farming life (Kamoth,2007).

By contrast, activities such as carrying heavy loads or using chemicals are considered as “unacceptable forms of child labour” because they are physically dangerous for children. Another form of extreme and criminal forms of child exploitation is child trafficking and other works undertaken by children in bonded labour (Khan, 2007).

One of the major problems associated with children involvement in child labor is that it leads to mental and physical health challenges of the children, most children involve in street hawking usually suffer from illnesses such as Lung infection, skin diseases resulting from the handling of dangerous product.

There is a good enforcement mechanism of children’s rights at the international and national level. This is evident in various international Conventions and Declarations such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child 1989 (CRC), and the African Charter of the Rights and Welfare of the Child 1990 (The African Children’s Charter). Cameroon to this effect has ratified the CRC and the African Children’s Charter. Cameroon has a good legal framework such as the Labour Code, Penal Code, and Criminal Procedure Code. This notwithstanding, there is the continuous practice of child labour. Children are taken from rural areas to urban areas by foster parents with promises of care and education, whereas, they are turned into labourers and victims of domestic violence. Some are converted into public vendors in streets aged 5 to 14 years.

This violation is also manifested in the various forms of child labour such as child trafficking and sexual exploitation especially child prostitution. The practice of child trafficking affects the protection of children’s rights in Cameroon. Children are trafficked from the rural areas to urban areas to be used as labourers, hawkers, prostitutes, thieves and street beggars.

It is worth noting that child labour has been prohibited in Cameroonian legal frameworks such as the Cameroon labour code of 14 August 1992, the penal code of the Republic of Cameroon of 12 July 2016 and most importantly, the constitution of Cameroon 2008 as amended.

Furthermore, Cameroon has ratified many international legal instruments prohibiting child labour such as the convention on the rights of a child 1989, and the African charter on the rights and welfare of a child 1990. Despite this effort on the part of Cameroon, the ill of child labour is still prevalent.

The most loathsome offences committed against children, are carried out by adults. One of the saddest of all is child labour, because it is so often inflicted by parents, people whom the child loves the most, and so much dependent upon for his own very life. At the very onset there are difficulties in determining what child labour is all about? This is true as the line between child labour and harsh parental discipline and training is difficult to determine. As C Nardinelli says “forms of punishment, discipline, and training considered appropriate and even nourishing in Elizabethan or Victorian days would be considered as child labour today. Therefore, the problem lies in distinguishing discipline which is Legitimate (lawful).

The problem presents itself in a variety of ways from the severely battered in fant to the runaway adolescent who cannot tolerate the abuse any longer. The end results are teenagers and young adults who are ill prepared to function with their peers. Despite all these efforts to control the level of child labour worldwide, there are still Cases of child labour all over the world. It is frustrating to know that these children became school dropout and get into other dreadful acts such as drug abuse, prostitution and this greatly affects their livelihood. There is an additional difficulty in attempting to determine the comparative seriousness of child labour as a social problem. This is true as it is difficult to evaluate the significance of child labour in terms of the numbers of children affected. The collection of data is somewhat misleading. This is because the people who carry out this vindictive activity always try all possible means to cover up their malicious acts.

The Cameroon National Commission for Human Rights and Freedoms which is one of the main enforcement mechanisms on the protection of children against child labour is impeded in its duty. This is because: firstly, the National Commission for Human rights and Freedoms is not independent from the government. This is obvious from the fact that the government appoints its key personnel and funds the commission. With this scenario, it becomes difficult for the commission to write ill about the government. This is due to the fact that all the members are gentlemen who have good table manners; that is they cannot talk while eating. Serious cases of child labour are therefore not reported. Secondly, decisions of the commission relating to human rights violation (child labour) are not binding on the Government”. As such, it does not deter violation of children rights (child labour).

The protection of children’s rights especially the right to health requires the provision of health facilities that can be only be achieved when there is adequate finance. Free vaccines are given to children but it is not sufficient to accord protection to them. Parents have difficulties affording hospital bills for their sick children. As a result, many suffer. Also, there are very few regional hospitals which cannot attend to all children or infants who are sick. This has led to a gradual increase in infant mortality rate.