Young cartoonist asks others to join the fight against child labour

Colombia’s youngest cartoonist has asked others to sharpen their pencils for the fight against child labour.

CAPE TOWN, November 18 (ANA) – To commemorate World Children’s Day on November 20, cartoonist José Eugenio Rincón has invited all professional cartoonists and illustrators, teachers and students from all continents to sharpen their pencils for the fight against child labour.

Rincón is a 14-year-old cartoonist from Colombia who is taking part in the #365DaysAgainstChildLabor campaign, which was created by Cartoons For Change.

The global campaign demands concrete action from governments and multinationals to protect more than 300 million defenceless girls and boys who are victims of child labour.

Rincón said he was outraged to see how children are used to perform tasks that are almost equal to or worse than those that adults perform, and how the children are paid much less.

He said he believes children should be studying and playing freely.

Rincón said he and his colleagues use their cartoons to express discontent and to make society aware of the problems that children experience globally.

“The idea I have of cartoons is that through them the conscience of those who see them is reached and, in this way, when they know the problem, we can together achieve a positive change in society,” explained Rincón.

Guatemalan activist and journalist Fernando Morales-de la Cruz, the founder of Cartoons For Change, said it was urgent for the exploitation of children to be put to an end.

In addition, Cartoons For Change is developing a new project titled Teachers For Change, in which teachers and students can investigate, study and illustrate child labour in their own countries and in the products they consume.

Interested teachers are encouraged to follow Teachers for Change on Facebook www.Facebook.com/Teachers4changeNow.

The Cartoons For Change will be published by the media and shared on Twitter and Instagram: @Cartoons4Change and Facebook: @Cartoons4ChangeNow.

For more information about Cartoons For Change, contact them via email [email protected], or through the website www.cartoonsforchange.org.

Cartoons For Change unites artists, illustrators, cartoonists, film-makers, animators and creative professionals who are working to help end child labour, slavery and exploitation.

– African News Agency (ANA); Editing by Yaron Blecher