Untitled - Terre des Hommes

children. There is also a new tourism law which contains a specific article on the prevention of the
sexual exploitation of children. UNICEF also runs information campaigns, encourages co-operation
among relevant ministries, fights re-victimization by improving the attention given to victims by
lawyers, social workers, psychologists and doctors and promotes the formation and operation of the
different Defensorías. 210
The laws concerning crimes of sexual abuse and exploitation were modified in 2004, making penalties
tougher and child sex tourism punishable by law. Many municipalities have also taken measures, for
example, to restrain minors’ access to pornographic websites in internet cafes. Yet the municipalities
known for sex tourism have neither taken measures to combat child sexual exploitation nor
implemented projects aimed at preventing it. (ILO-IPEC 2007)
Colibri is a special division of the National Police and is coordinated by the Ministry of Internal
Affairs. Colibri aims to both reorient current attitudes about child labour and eradicate the worst
forms of child labour while, at the same time, protecting children’s right to work from the age of
fourteen. Colibri is attacking the worst forms of child labour from three separate angles: prevention,
by workshops about children’s rights and the risks of work; protection, by increasing police presence
on the street and working closely with street children; and promotion, through participation in
relevant activities and organizations. 211
b. Education
Over the past few years, the number of children going to school, especially primary school has
substantially increased. Currently, about 95% of Peruvian children are enrolled in primary school.
This percentage however does not take drop outs into account, so the actual attendance rates are
likely to be somewhat lower. School enrolment rates are higher in urban areas. The enrolment rates
for secondary school are considerably lower, at around 70 - 80%, signifying twelve as a crucial age for
dropping out of school and entering the labour force full-time. 212 Nonetheless, 93% of working
children in Lima and 82% in Arequipa attend school, 213 raising doubts about the effectiveness of
education as the sole tool for reducing the incidence of child labour. These doubts are shared by those
who make use of schools, noting that they close or change hours without notice, teachers don’t turn
up and provide low quality education. Furthermore, education cannot solve the problem of family
migration. This is, according to Van den Berge, one of the major constraints for the effectiveness of
education (IREWOC, 2009: 54).
c. The NGOs
CESIP runs a programme that promotes and protects children’s rights throughout Peru. The Lomas
project, supported by TdH-NL, aims to protect children from hazardous labour by strengthening the
protective role and economic capacity of the family unit; stimulating community participation,
including that of the education services in the development of protection mechanisms for children;
and bolstering the personal skills, social skills and participation of children. 214
The National Movement of Organized Working Children and Adolescents (MANTHOC) is an
example of an intervention that takes an alternative position in the child labour debate and hence has
a different approach to supporting working children. MANTHOC is actually a network of working
210
Sophie Marechel (UNICEF)
211
Remigio Murillo (Colibri)
212
Isaac Ruiz (Centro De Estudios Sociales y Publicaciones (CESIP))
213
Alejandro Cussianovich Villaran (MANTHOC-IFEJANT)
214
Maria Angelica Chong (Centro De Estudios Sociales y Publicaciones (CESIP))
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