End Child Slavery

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The Issue

Did you know that there are 8.4 million child slaves in the world today?
These children are without freedom and are denied the educational opportunities they need to break the cycle of poverty and exploitation.

The End Child Slavery campaign is made up of thousands of young Australians who are speaking out against the injustice of child slave labour. An advocacy campaign of The Oaktree Foundation, End Child Slavery works towards our mission of Education For All by calling on both Governments and Corporations to ensure that all children are in school, not in slavery.

What is Education For All?
As Nelson Mandela once said,
“Education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world.”

Education For All is the Oaktree Foundation’s advocacy mission: to overcome the barriers that stand in the way of achieving quality education for all the world’s poor by 2015. The issue of child slavery presents a major barrier to achieving Education For All, with 8.4 million children out of school because they are forced to work in slavery.

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Akilesh’s Story
At age 13, Akilesh was one of the eldest children working in bricklanes (a brick factory) in India. He dug mud, poured water on it and turned it into brick by putting it in the fire. He had been told that he would be working 4-5 hours a day in a Marble Tile Factory. He was also told that he would be provided with four meals a day when actually he was given insufficient amounts of rice and vegetables to eat twice a day on breaks, when the work was done at midday and midnight. Often he and the boys he worked with were far too tired to eat. Sometimes the boys were given 5 rupees a week, but this was not a regular occurrence. They lived in clay huts, sometimes sharing small rooms with up to 4 other people. At night they were given thin cloths to lie under. During winter they froze. If they got sick, a cheap doctor or even a witch doctor would attend to them, often failing to cure them.

Thankfully, Akilesh has escaped and now plans to study. However, his story is not unique. There are still 10,000 children working in 400 bricklanes.

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The Ads

Life of a T-Shirt from nicebike on Vimeo .

The Factory from nicebike on Vimeo .

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