Ankara-Sana
Turkish parliamentarian from the Republican People's Party, Turan Aydogan, criticized the Turkish regime's approach to children on the occasion of International Children's Day, noting that Turkey has no less than two million working children.
The Turkish newspaper, Zaman, quoted Aydogan as saying that "there are at least two million "working children" in Turkey, according to the data of the Turkish Statistical Institute," explaining that 30.8 percent of children work in agriculture, 23.7 percent in industry, and 45.5 percent in the service sector, according to data from 2018. 2021 issued by the Occupational Health and Safety Council as well.
Erdogan stressed that "hundreds of thousands of children work in the streets or in heavy and dangerous jobs," adding, "We suggested that this issue be investigated under the roof of Parliament and work to solve it, but unfortunately the government turned a blind eye to this problem that affects conscience."
Erdogan also indicated that according to the Ministry of Justice data for the current year, there are approximately 345 children in Turkish prisons, in addition to 780 children detained with their mothers.
Data from the Ministry of Family and Child indicate that there are 23,000 children working in Turkey in occupations that do not fit their age due to the difficult economic conditions of their families, but the statistics of the Turkish Occupational Health and Safety Council indicate that there are more than two million working children in Turkey.
Council statistics reveal the death of 319 children at work during the period between 2013 and 2019.
