A Palestinian monitoring group confirmed that the years of the Syrian war have prolonged and with it increased the suffering of the population, and exacerbated their crises and problems that may require decades to be resolved and get rid of their consequences.
The Action Group for Palestinians of Syria, in a report issued this week, referred to the social diseases that invaded society, decimated its body, and pushed it to the brink of destruction.
"Such diseases become associated with torments, pains and difficulties that even adults cannot bear," according to the AGPS.
The London-based group said: "Today, the suffering of Palestinian and Syrian children is no longer limited to a lack of money, nutrition, games and entertainment. Rather, many of them were forced, in light of the Syrian war and the deterioration of the humanitarian and economic situation, to enter the labor market despite their young age to support themselves and their families, postponing dreams that are among the simplest rights, which has had negative effects on these children, making them vulnerable to exploitation and abuse, and depriving them of their right to education.”
AGPS added that given the reasons that prompted children to enter life early, we see that the most important reasons are: the absence of the breadwinner for the family due to death, enforced disappearance, or enrollment in compulsory service, and poverty and the high cost of living are the main reasons that prompted children to join the labor market are the school dropout, lack of oversight over schools, and the collapse of the education system lead to an increase in the number of working children.
The monitoring group emphasized that children face dangers that affect their lives, their future, and their physical and psychological health, as they enter adult society early, learn things that are not appropriate for their age, and are exposed during work to sexual exploitation especially since the environment in which they work is not subject to control, as children are subjected to cruel acts that are not appropriate for the weakness of their bodies. This puts them at risk of early infection with diseases of the back, vertebrae, joints and chest. In addition, work often takes long hours of more than 12 hours, without taking enough rest, which affects their mental and psychological health.
In the workshops, children are also exposed to physical and verbal violence and insults on an ongoing basis. The most dangerous thing a child faces is learning bad habits in the workplace, such as smoking and drug use, which are spread in the country without accountability or supervision.
"At a time when the world’s children enjoy schooling, thousands of Palestinian children in Syria stand for long hours at their workplaces to secure a living for their families. It is the duty of international organizations, especially UNRWA and UNICEF, to help society reduce this phenomenon out of compassion for them and to preserve the future of society," the AGPS concluded.
Syria’s uprising turned into a civil war that started in 2011 that killed hundreds of thousands and displaced half the country’s pre-war population of 23 million. More than 80% of Syrians now live in poverty, leaving much of the population dependent on humanitarian assistance.
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