Are existing legal protections sufficient to curb abuses?
Yes, but these legal provisions are not enforced, and the use of forced child labour is commonplace throughout Uzbekistan. Uzbekistan has adopted a number of laws, on Youth Policy, on Labour, and on Children’s Rights. These statutes set limits and restrictions on the use of child labour. Legally, children are only allowed to work after age of 15. Before this age they can be employed only in the context of school-related activity, and for no more than 15 days. In all cases, children are not allowed to work more than four hours per day. Uzbekistan has signed and ratified ILO conventions: No 29, (the 1930 Forced Labour Convention) and No. 105 (The 1957 Abolition of Forced Labour Convention). These documents were ratified in 1992 and 1997 respectively. However, neither aforementioned national laws, nor Uzbekistan’s ILO commitments, have curbed widespread use of forced child labour. Until 2008, two other important ILO conventions, No. 138 (Minimum Age Convention, 1973), and No.182 (Worst Fo
