Enslaved Innocence

Book excerpt: Enslaved Innocence: Child Labour in South Asia explores the historical, economic, and social factors surrounding the issue of child labour. It is often argued that child labour is the result of under development, large families, or cultural practices. This volume attempts to highlight the structural factors in capitalist societies that have made such exploitation possible, and to place the issue of child labour in a theoretical framework relating to capitalist modes of production and the need for the generation of surplus for capital accumulation. Extremely exploitative labour processes bring out the supply and demand factors of child labour. The persistence of child labour in an era of high growth and high unemployment levels amongst adult men and women points to an economic system based heavily on exploitative labour relations. As we move further into the twenty-first century, the existence of child labour in the world is a reality which must be faced. It is within this context that the present volume takes into consideration the changing global economic conditions and focuses on issues and strategies for the eradication of child labour.