(IRIN) – Hundreds of religious leaders running Koranic schools in Senegal are keeping their students in “slave-like” conditions, forcing them into exploitative labour through begging on the streets and depriving them of food or medicines, says US-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) in a new report.
The governments of Senegal and Guinea-Bissau, Islamic leaders and parents are failing to stop the practice and protect children from such exploitation and abuse, it says.
“As the forced begging is done with a view towards exploitation, it is a practice akin to slavery,” says HRW. “For at least 50,000 children in Senegal, economic exploitation is masquerading as religious education, as children are forced to beg for long hours to benefit the teacher, and are subjected to severe physical abuse for failing to meet his quota,” Matthew Wells, report author, told IRIN.
These children, who live with a `marabout’ (religious leader) and attend his school or `daara’ are known as ‘talibés’ in Senegal. Over half of them are under age 10 and some as young as four. They spend over seven hours each day pacing the streets to reach their quota – on average 87 US cents – and the “overwhelming majority” HRW spoke to, are regularly beaten if they do not bring back the full amount.
Some 99 percent of the `talibés’ HRW spoke to must beg for their own food and medicines.
“When I could not bring the quota, the `marabout’ beat me – even if I lacked five CFA [francs], he beat me. It was always the `marabout’ himself,” a 13-year-old former `talibé’ told HRW. “He took out the electric cable and… I stood there and… he hit me over and over, generally on the back but at times he missed and hit my head.”
Read more – http://www.irinnews.org/Report.aspx?ReportId=88828
