Child labour in Eswatini

Child labour in Eswatini is a controversial issue that affects a large portion of the country's population. Child labour is often seen as a human rights concern because it is "work that deprives children of their childhood, their potential and their dignity, and that is harmful to physical and mental development," as defined by the International Labour Organization (ILO). Additionally, child labour is harmful in that it restricts a child's ability to attend school or receive an education. The ILO recognizes that not all forms of children working are harmful, but this article will focus on the type of child labour that is generally accepted as harmful to the child involved.
Origin.
During the colonial period between 1914 and 1947, child labour played an important role in the British government's control of Eswatini. Swazi labour history has previously failed to acknowledge the contributions children made to the labour industry during the colonial period, perhaps because children are often seen as extensions of their parents rather than as individuals. At the beginning, children usually performed unpaid labour, but beginning in the 1930s paid labour became more common. Like today, agriculture and farming was one of the largest sectors of child labour.
Demographics.
Many of the children in Eswatini subjected to harsh work conditions are victims of human trafficking. Despite the Eswatini government's attempts to reduce child labour, victims of human trafficking have historically worked in the most severe types of child labour jobs. AIDS orphans are also at a greater risk to be exploited for cheap labour. In 2006, half of all children engaged in Eswatini's sex trade were orphans.
Causes.
Poverty is one of the most common determinants of child labour, and 69% of Swazis were living in poverty as of 2006. Because child labour interferes with schooling, an individual's ability to escape poverty is significantly reduced. This can create child-labour traps, in which the next generation is also forced into child labour because their family is still in poverty. Specifically, the cost of transportation is a barrier that prevents poor children from attending school in many African countries. According to Hannie Dlamini, the chairman of the Eswatini Aids Support Organisation (EASO), "the extended family system is breaking down and there is no-one to look after orphans," meaning that "fifteen year olds are responsible for homes."
Eswatini is a lower middle-income country, and yet serious poverty exists because there is a very unequal distribution of wealth. The richest 10% control nearly half of the country's wealth, with the bottom 43% living in chronic poverty. In 1999, UNICEF found that many children initially went to work because their parents were unemployed, and the family needed a source of income.
Orphaned children are at increased risk, and many orphans have lost their parents to AIDS. Eswatini has the highest HIV prevalence rate in the world, with nearly a quarter of the total population infected.
Number of children in a household also affects child labour vulnerability. Because perceived quality of a child tends to decrease as the quantity of children in a family rise, parents and others are less concerned with protecting children that are from large families. In addition, large families have more people to share their income and resources between, consequently increasing their risk of poverty.
Controversy over morality.
Although child labour is often seen as inherently bad because it has been found to be linked with adolescent mortality, some also argue that it should not be banned. For example, should a child be permitted to work after voluntarily signing a labour contract? Eswatini's growing poverty causes a need for children to work, particularly in rural areas. Also, 66% of the country's population is unable to meet basic food needs so sometimes, child labour may be the only solution for a family.
The ILO also recognizes that some types of child labour may be permissible and makes the distinction between "child labour" and "hazardous work." In 2012, the organization reported that 168 million children aged 5–17 are subjected to child labour worldwide, with 85 million of these cases considered to be hazardous work.
Efforts to reduce child labour.
Globally, efforts to reduce child labour have been successful in recent years. The ILO reports that both child labour and hazardous work have decreased since 2000.
Continental efforts.
In 1963, the Organisation of African Unity (OAU) was formed, with Eswatini joining in 1968. Its purpose was to agree upon a list of human rights and enforce them continentally. The group produced the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights in 1981, which included an article on the protection of children. In 2002, the OAU was replaced by the African Union (AU), whose vision is that of "an integrated, prosperous and peaceful Africa, driven by its own citizens and representing a dynamic force in global arena."
1980 Employment Act.
The government of Eswatini has also made several independent efforts to reduce child labour. In 1980, the Employment Act was passed, mandating that children not be employed for any industrial work, unless the child was a direct family member of the employer, or the work was primarily educational. The Employment Act defines a child as a person under the age of 15. For non-industrial labour, the Act made it illegal to employ children during school hours, for night shifts, for more than 6 hours a day or 33 hours a week, or for more than four hours continuously without an hour-long break.
Additionally, the Employment Act outlines restrictions for hiring "young persons," defined as those over the age of 15 but under 18. Again, educational value is the main exception to the restrictions, as apprenticeship or vocational training may be approved by the Minister. Both children and young people are prohibited from work that is underground, involves selling alcohol, or is dangerous to their physical or emotional wellbeing.
RECLISA Project.
In 2004, the RECLISA (Reducing Exploitative Child Labour in Southern Africa) Project was launched in South Africa, Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia and Eswatini. Targeting both those already involved in exploitative labour and those at risk for it, the project supported 2,000 children in Eswatini. In addition to ensuring that children were enrolled in primary and secondary schools, the project worked to raise public awareness of exploitative child labour. For the first four years, the RECLISA Project was funded by Khulisa Management Services. Since, the Swazi government has taken over funding to continue to support children. In 2014, the Swazi government assisted orphans and other vulnerable children by paying their school fees and made plans to help pay for the final year of primary school for more children. However, because Eswatini does not have a compulsory education age, this was difficult to enforce and was only partially successful.
Ratifications and agreements.
Eswatini ratified both the ILO Minimum Age Convention (C138) and the ILO Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention (C182) in 2002. It also signed the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child in 1992, but has not yet ratified it.
Types of child labour.
Agriculture.
Globally, 58.6% of child labourers work in agriculture. In Eswatini, 84% of the country's poor population lives in rural areas, and nearly three-quarters of the total population relies on subsistence farming for survival. As a result, child labour in Eswatini is dominated by agricultural work. Specifically, the country's top three products are sugar cane, maize, and roots and tubers. Wood pulp, citrus and other fruit, cotton, and meat are also important to Eswatini's agricultural sector. Livestock herding, a type of agricultural work, is considered to be one of the most severe forms of child labour.
Industry.
Industry jobs are the third most common type of child labour worldwide, at 7.2%. Several international companies such as Coca-Cola and Cadbury have invested in Eswatini, building factories there. Coal and diamond mining have historically been major industries, but their importance has significantly declined since the 1960s. Eswatini also exports textiles, but thousands of textile workers lost their jobs in 2015 when the country was removed from the U.S. fair trade agreement, due to human rights concerns.
Sex work.
Commercial sexual exploitation is one of the most severe forms of child labour, with orphans being particularly vulnerable. The majority of children involved in sex work in Eswatini live away from their place of birth. Young girls are trafficked to South Africa, trading sex for food. High rates of prostitution and other forms of sex work spread infectious diseases, perpetuating the issue of HIV in Eswatini.
Tourism.
During the second half of the 20th century, Eswatini tourism industry benefited from the lack of war and relative peace within the country. In order to entertain tourists, however, children are sometimes employed and made to wear traditional attire. Along the scenic highway in Piggs Peak, for example, costumed children dance for tourists for a fee.


Penang and Province Wellesley Volunteer Corps

The Penang and Province Wellesley Volunteer Corps (Abbr.: P&PWVC), also known as Penang Volunteer Corps and Penang Volunteer Rifle was a militia unit in Malaya. It was established on 1 March 1861 and together with Singapore Volunteer Corps and Malacca Volunteer Corps, they were a part of the Crown Colony of the Straits Settlements Volunteer Force (SSVF). The Penang Volunteer Rifle was the 3rd Battalion SSVF while Singapore is 1st and 2nd Battalion SSVF and Malacca was the 4th Battalion SSVF. After the expulsion of Singapore from Malaysia in 1965, the Penang Volunteer Rifle became the oldest military unit established in Malaysia.
History.
The British were facing their biggest conflict of 19th and early 20th Century – the Crimean War. As a part of the Crown Colony, this led to enrolment of the Singapore Volunteer Rifle Corps in 1854 (Hong Kong Volunteer Corps was also established at the same time) thus forming the SSVF. The SSVF later expanded to other Straits Settlements territories including Penang, Malacca and Labuan, and on 1 March 1861, the Penang and the Province Wellesley Volunteer Rifle was formed. In 1879, the Penang and the Province Wellesley Volunteer Rifle was disbanded and later revived back as the Penang and Province Wellesley Volunteer Corps in 1899, thanks to the effort of three Penang residents, Dr Brown, M.L.C. and Mr P. Kennedy, then President of the Penang Municipal Commissioners. In the beginning, Penang Volunteer Rifle and other units in the SSVF is a fully European military unit. They did not accept other races into the unit until 1899 for Penang battalion and 1901 for Singapore battalions.
British once again facing another conflict which is the Boer War of 1899-1902. This further stimulated the volunteer movement with the formation of the volunteer rifles in Malay states (the Federated Malay States Volunteer Forces (FMSVF) and the Unfederated Malay States Volunteer Forces (UMSVF)). With the Malay States Volunteer Forces, Malayan Volunteer Forces were formed and the SSVF is one of the its military components.
The SSVF last battle is in the Battle of Singapore before being overrun and defeated by the Imperial Japanese Army on 15 February 1942.
Organisation.
The soldiers and officers of Penang and Province Wellesley Volunteer Corps (P&PWVC) were divided by ethnic. The strength of P&PWVC by the WWII is 916 men.


Meermin (VOC ship)

Meermin () was an 18th-century Dutch cargo ship of the type, one of many built and owned by the Dutch East India Company. She was laid down in 1759 and fitted out as a slave ship before her maiden voyage in 1761, and her career was cut short by a mutiny of her cargo of Malagasy people. They had been sold to Dutch East India Company officials on Madagascar, to be used as company slaves in its Cape Colony in southern Africa. Half her crew and almost 30 Malagasy lost their lives in the mutiny; the mutineers deliberately allowed the ship to drift aground off Struisbaai, now in South Africa, in March 1766, and she broke up "in situ". As of 2013, archaeologists are searching for the "Meermin"s remains.
Construction and use.
"Meermin" was laid down in 1759 in a shipyard belonging to the Dutch East India Company ("Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie", abbreviated to "VOC") in the port of Amsterdam in the Netherlands. "Meermin" was a 480-ton Dutch , square rigged with three masts.
The originated in the 15th century as a type of fishing vessel with one or two masts in response to the growing Dutch trade in herring, and was known in English as a hoy. Equipped with guns, were employed as defensive escorts for fishing fleets, or "Buisconvoyers", in the Second Anglo-Dutch War of the 1660s. They came to be used more widely in trade with the Dutch East Indies via the Cape of Good Hope in southern Africa, as their rounded sterns proved to be more resistant to warping and springing than square sterns, which were prone to "catastrophic leaking when exposed to strong sun." Larger than most , the "Meermin" was unusual for her type in that she was built of oak and had a beakhead, a feature not normally present in smaller merchant vessels.
"Meermin" was built for use as a slave ship in the VOC's African trade; between 1658 and 1799 the VOC acquired and transported 63,000 slaves to its Cape Colony, now part of South Africa. The ship began her maiden voyage at Texel, an island off the coast of what is now the Netherlands, on 21 January 1761, with a crew of 62 under the command of Captain Hendrik Worms; she arrived at the Cape of Good Hope on 15 June. Although fitted out as a slave ship, vessels such as the "Meermin" routinely carried other goods when not transporting slaves.
Mutiny and destruction.
From December 1765, "Meermin" was working the coastline of Madagascar, collecting Malagasy men, women and children for use as slaves in the Cape Colony, under Captain Gerrit Muller and a crew of 56. Carrying about 140 Malagasy, she set sail from the north-western coast of Madagascar on .
Two days into the voyage a "large party of [Malagasy]" was allowed on deck, the men to assist the crew, and the women to provide entertainment by dancing and singing. This was to prevent death and disease among the Malagasy, so avoiding loss of profit.
On , the ship's supercargo ordered some assegais, or African spears, and some swords, to be brought on deck for the Malagasy to clean. When the weapons were clean and the Malagasy were ordered to return them, they attacked the ship's crew, and took control of the ship. A truce ensued, the terms of which were that if the Malagasy would spare the lives of the remaining crew the ship would be sailed back to Madagascar, but taking advantage of the Malagasy's lack of navigational skills, the crew instead set sail for the coast of southern Africa.
On sighting land, the crew persuaded the Malagasy that what they saw was a part of Madagascar the mutineers were unfamiliar with: after further subterfuge by the crew, the Malagasy set "Meermin" to drift towards the shore at Struisbaai. But the sea was rough, and one of the ship's masts was cut down to improve her balance. "Meermin" eventually grounded on a sandbank, by which time a militia consisting of local farmers and burghers had been formed onshore, who had observed that the ship was flying no flags, which they recognised as a distress signal. The militia killed or captured those of the Malagasy who ventured ashore, and then organised the removal into custody of all Malagasy remaining on the ship, under the command of a magistrate from Stellenbosch. "Meermin" was assessed as beyond recovery, and left to break up where she grounded.
Salvage and archaeology.
The VOC authorities salvaged as much as possible from "Meermin", recovering 286 muskets, 12 pistols, 5 bayonets, gunpowder, musket balls and compasses; cables, ropes and other items from the ship were auctioned on the shore. The ship's logbook has not survived.
In 2004, Iziko Museums started a maritime archaeology project to find and recover the wreck of "Meermin", with supporting historical and archaeological research funded by the South African National Lottery.
Jaco Boshoff of Iziko Museums, who is in charge of the research, retrieved "Meermin"s plans from the Netherlands, to help identify this wreck among the numerous ships reputed to have run aground in the Struisbaai area. The search for "Meermin" has employed an airborne magnetometer survey, as a marine magnetometer survey proved to be impractical owing to the shallowness of the waters. Magnetometer surveys can readily pick out wreck sites, as iron items from the ships can be detected by their recognisable signatures. Of 22 new, possible wrecks identified, 11 were identified as candidates for the wreck of "Meermin". Six are on what is now land, but have been ruled out as they are wrecks of pine-built ships, whereas "Meermin" was built of oak. In 2011, the Iziko Museums' travelling exhibition "Finding Meermin" included updates on the progress of Jaco Boshoff's work with the archaeological research team. In November 2013 it was reported that, while the ship had not yet been found, lack of funding was holding up completion of the search, with four target areas remaining to be examined.


Flavia Seia Isaurica

Flavia Seia Isaurica (floruit 141) was an Ancient Roman businesswoman.
She was the "domina" (owner) of six brick clay beds in Campania, of which she owned at least two alone, and employed at least ten foremen, "officinatores". She belonged to the more successful in the brick industry at the time and was active from 115 until at least 141. She is regarded as a significant example of a successful Roman businesswoman from her day and has been the subject of research.


Sanders of the River

Sanders of the River is a 1935 British film directed by the Hungarian-British director, Zoltán Korda, based on the stories of Edgar Wallace. It is set in Colonial Nigeria. The lead Nigerian characters were played by African-Americans Paul Robeson and Nina Mae McKinney. The film proved a significant commercial and critical success, giving Korda the first of his four nominations for Best Film at the Venice Film Festival.
Plot.
Sanders (Leslie Banks) is a colonial District Commissioner in the Colonial Nigeria. He tries to administer his province fairly, including the various tribes comprising the Peoples of the River. He is regarded with respect by some and with fear by others, among whom he is referred to as "Sandi" and "Lord Sandi". He has an ally in Bosambo, a literate and educated tribal chief (played by the African-American actor, Paul Robeson).
When Sanders goes on leave, another chief, King Mofolaba, spreads a rumour that "Sandi is dead." Inter-tribal war seems inevitable, and the situation is made worse by gun-runners and slavers. His relief, Ferguson (known to the Nigerians as Lord Ferguson), is unequal to the task; he is captured and killed by King Mofolaba. Sanders returns to restore peace. When Bosambo's wife Lilongo (Nina Mae McKinney) is kidnapped, the chief tracks down her kidnappers. Captured by them, he is saved by a relief force commanded by Sanders. Bosambo kills King Mofolaba and is subsequently named by Sanders as the King of the Peoples of the River.
Cast.
Colonial administrator Sir B. Bourdillon is credited as an adviser.
Paul Robeson's reaction to the film.
The African-American singer and actor Paul Robeson, a civil rights activist, accepted the role of Bosambo while living in London. At the time, he was studying the roots of pan-African culture through studies of language and music. Robeson felt that if he could portray the Nigerian leader, Bosambo, with cultural accuracy and dignity, he could help audiences—especially Black audiences—to understand and respect the roots of Black culture. He took the role on the condition that the film would portray Africans positively.
The filmmakers took an unusual step towards authenticity by sending a film crew on a four-month voyage into remote areas of Africa. They recorded traditional African dances and ceremonies, with the intention of using this footage integrated with scenes shot in the studio that included the future President and Prime Minister of Kenya Jomo Kenyatta as one of the extras.
After the filming, Robeson was asked back to the studio to film retakes of some scenes. He discovered that the film’s message had been changed during editing; it seemed to support the continuation of colonial rule in Africa, a message which Robeson disagreed with. The finished film was dedicated to "the handful of white men whose everyday work is an unsung saga of courage and efficiency".
Robeson also discovered that Bosambo had been changed during the editing process from a proud leader to a servile lackey of the colonial administration. Furious, he complained that:
The imperialist plot had been placed in the plot during the last days five days of shooting...I was roped into the picture because I wanted to portray the culture of the African people and I committed a "faux pas" which convinced me that I had failed to weigh the problems of 150,000,000 native Africans...I hate the picture.
In 1938, Robeson added disparagingly: "It is the only film of mine that can be shown in Italy or Germany, for it shows the negro as Fascist states desire him - savage and childish."
Robeson was so disillusioned by the picture that he attempted, but failed, to buy back all the prints to prevent it from being shown.
Reception.
It was the 11th most popular film at the British box office in 1935-36.
Other versions.
The film was parodied in Will Hay's 1938 film "Old Bones of the River". This comedy featured characters named Commissioner Sanders, Captain Hamilton and Bosambo.
In 1963 producer Harry Alan Towers made a German/British international co-production small scale version of the film, "Death Drums Along the River" set in the modern day only using some of the names of the characters. It spawned a sequel, "Coast of Skeletons" (1965).


Franco-Tahitian War

The Franco-Tahitian War () or French–Tahitian War (1844–1847) was a conflict between the Kingdom of the French and the Kingdom of Tahiti and its allies in the South Pacific archipelago of the Society Islands in modern-day French Polynesia.
Tahiti was converted to Protestant Christianity by the London Missionary Society (LMS) in the early 19th century with the patronage of the Pōmare Dynasty. Influenced by British missionary George Pritchard, Queen Pōmare IV expelled French Catholic missionaries from her kingdom in 1836 and incurred the ire of France. Between 1838 and 1842, French naval commander Abel Aubert du Petit-Thouars responded to French complaints of mistreatment and forced the queen and the Tahitian chiefs to sign over Tahiti as a protectorate. Pritchard and Pōmare IV attempted to resist French rule and to convince the British to intervene in favor of the Tahitian. These efforts were unsuccessful and led to the imprisonment of Pritchard and the deposition and voluntary exile of Pōmare IV to her relatives in neighboring Raiatea.
From 1844 to 1847, the French fought Tahitian forces on the main island of Tahiti. The technologically inferior Tahitians were no match for the French marines in the field and so relied on their superior knowledge of the island's mountainous interior to wage guerilla warfare. The last native stronghold was captured in late 1846. On the second front, the French attempted to assert control over the three neighboring island kingdoms in the Leeward Islands. However, their efforts were thwarted by the defeat of the French against the forces of Queen Teriitaria II of Huahine in 1846. The British never intervened directly in the conflict but there was significant diplomatic pressure and tension between the two European powers. The war ended when Queen Pōmare agreed to return and rule under the French protectorate. France and Great Britain, signed the Jarnac Convention or the Anglo-French Convention of 1847, in which the two powers agreed to respect the independence of Queen Pōmare's allies in the Leeward Islands. These actions ultimately forestalled the end of Tahitian independence until the 1880s.
Prelude.
The Society Islands are subdivided into the Leeward Islands in the northwest and Windward Islands or Georgian Islands in the southeast. The Windward Islands include: Tahiti, Moorea, Mehetia, Tetiaroa and Maiao. Politically, the Kingdom of Tahiti comprised all the Windward Islands except Maiao. It also held nominal sovereignty over the more distant Tuamotus archipelago and a few of the Austral Islands. By the mid-19th century the Leeward Islands was made up of three kingdoms: the Kingdom of Huahine and its dependency of Maiao (geographically part of the Windward Islands); the Kingdom of Raiatea-Tahaa; and the Kingdom of Bora Bora with its dependencies of Maupiti, Tupai, Maupihaa, Motu One, and Manuae.
Tahiti was converted to Protestant Christianity by the London Missionary Society (LMS) in the early 19th century. The Pōmare Dynasty, patrons of the British Protestant missionaries, established their rule over Tahiti and Moorea as part of the Kingdom of Tahiti. Western concepts of kingdoms and nation states were foreign to the native Tahitians or Maohi people who were divided into loosely defined tribal units and districts before European contact. The first Christian king, Pōmare II, headed the "hau pahu rahi" ("government of the great drum") or "hau feti'i" (“family government"), a traditional alliance of the inter-related chiefly families of the Society Islands. Christianity spread to the remaining islands after his conversion. He held nominal suzerainty over the other Society Islands as a loose alliance. This was later misinterpreted by Europeans as sovereignty or subjugation of the other islands to Tahiti.
In the 1830s, tensions between French naval interests, the British settlers and pro-British native chieftains on Tahiti led to conflict. In 1836, the Protestant Queen Pōmare IV of Tahiti, under the influence of British consul and former LMS missionary George Pritchard, evicted two French Catholic missionaries from the islands to maintain the dominance of Protestantism in the island kingdom. Seeing this as an affront to the honor of France and the Catholic religion, Jacques-Antoine Moerenhout, the French consul in Tahiti, filed a formal complaint with the French. In 1838, the French naval commander Abel Aubert du Petit-Thouars responded to Moerenhout's complaints. The commander forced the native government to pay an indemnity and sign a treaty of friendship with France respecting the rights of French subjects in the islands including any future Catholic missionaries. Four years later, claiming the Tahitians had violated the treaty, Dupetit Thouars returned and forced the Tahitian chiefs and the queen to sign a request for French protection which he sent back to Europe for ratification.
War.
Pritchard had been away on a diplomatic mission to Great Britain during the incident with Dupetit Thouars and returned to find the islands under French control. Encouraged by Pritchard, Queen Pōmare resisted in vain against French intervention, writing to Queen Victoria, asking for British intervention, and to King Louis Philippe I of France. She refused to fly the flag of the protectorate with the French tricolour at its canton and continued to fly the Tahitian flag at her residence.
In November 1843, Dupetit Thouars deposed the queen for her continued resistance and formally annexed the islands, placing Armand Joseph Bruat in charge as colonial governor. Pōmare IV and her family took refuge in the British consulate and later fled into exile on the neighboring island of Raiatea aboard the British ship HMS "Basilisk". Pritchard was imprisoned and deported by the French, an action which nearly sparked conflict with the British had the French not formally apologized for the seizure of the British consul. The incident became known as the "Pritchard Affair".
In the absence of their queen, the Tahitian populace began an armed resistance on 13 March 1844. The loyalist forces were led initially by a chief named Fanaue, but he was later replaced by Utami (who switched sides after being allied initially to the French takeover) and his second-in-command Maiʻo along with other chiefs sympathetic to the rebel cause. They fought against the French forces, which also included a few pro-French Tahitian chiefs including Paraita, Tati and Hitoti. At the Battle of Mahaena, on 17 April 1844, a force of 441 French soldiers defeated an under-equipped native force twice its size. A total of fifteen French soldiers and 102 Tahitians died in this battle. Following the defeat of the native forces at Mahaena, the two sides engaged in guerrilla warfare in the fortified valleys of the Tahitian countryside.
On the second front, the French attempted to conquer and annex the three neighboring island kingdoms in the Leeward Islands. These were Raiatea under King Tamatoa IV (where Pōmare had sought refuge), Huahine under Queen Teriitaria II, and Bora Bora under King Tapoa II. These islands had traditionally owed formal allegiance to the Pōmare family which the French interpreted as actual jurisdiction. A naval blockade of Raiatea by French captain Louis Adolphe Bonard was lifted when the warriors of Huahine under Queen Teriitaria "massacred" the French forces at the Battle of Maeva where eighteen French marines were killed and forty-three were wounded.
Great Britain remained officially neutral and never intervened militarily. However, the presence of more than a dozen British naval warships in the waters of the Society Islands was a constant concern for the French. Many British officers were sympathetic to the Tahitian cause and were either openly hostile or stubbornly ambivalent to the French administration. Captain Andrew Snape Hamond, of HMS "Salamander", wrote that if the British had actively forestalled the French, "England might have been spared the pain of seeing the Pet Lamb she has fostered and brought snatched from her protection by unprincipled Frenchmen". In 1846, Admiral George Seymour, the British commander-in-chief of the Pacific Station, visited Raiatea and "declared all French enactments there null and void" and had a private audience with Queen Pomare. From 1846 to 1847, the British Navy officer Henry Byam Martin and commander of HMS "Grampus", was sent to the Society Islands to spy on the conflict. He was charged with investigating Queen Pōmare's suzerainty claims to the other islands. His account of the closing months of the conflict are recorded in "The Polynesian Journal of Captain Henry Byam Martin, R.N".
Defeat of Tahitian resistance.
The guerrilla conflict came to an end with the defeat of the Tahitians at the Battle of Punaruu in May 1846 and the capture of Fort Fautaua on 17 December 1846. In February 1847, Queen Pōmare IV returned from her exile and acquiesced to rule under the protectorate. Although victorious, the French were unable to annex the islands because of diplomatic pressure from Great Britain, so Tahiti and its dependency Moorea continued to be ruled under the French protectorate.
A clause to the war settlement, known as the Jarnac Convention or the Anglo-French Convention of 1847, was signed by France and Great Britain, in which the two powers agreed to respect the independence of Queen Pōmare's allies in Huahine, Raiatea, and Bora Bora. The French continued the guise of protection on Tahiti until the 1880s when they formally annexed Tahiti and the Leeward Islands (through the Leewards War which ended in 1897), forming French Polynesia.


Payless DIY

Payless DIY was a chain of DIY stores in the United Kingdom during the 1980s.
History.
The name was first used in 1983 to re-brand the Marley Homecare chain. The change was done under the chairmanship of Tom O'Sullivan, MD Ted Lansdowne and Merchandising Director Doug Spickernell to counter public perception of the Marley name as good, reliable but expensive. The transformation was inspired by the model adopted by Wickes in the US, i.e. larger stocks of trade-related goods, particularly timber and building lines, and a classic "pile it high, sell it cheap" approach. Not just a PR move, prices to the public were slashed across the board and attracted many jobbing builders who could buy at the same prices offered by builders' merchants. The strategy was a great success with average stores' turnover rising between 20% and 33% in the following year. By 1989, Payless was the UK's third largest DIY chain, with sales of £230m.
Marley Homecare was part of the Marley Group, which included the Marley Tile Company, Marley Extrusions, Marley Roofing and Marley Floors. Starting initially as Marley Retail Limited, the first High Street shop opened in Southampton in 1959. Marley was the first company to bring DIY to UK High Streets. The head office was situated in South Park, Sevenoaks, close to the manufacturing bases at Lenham and Riverhead. The chain of shops (300 across the UK at its peak), in the 1960s were solely outlets for Marley products; sheet and tile flooring, adhesives, wall ceramics, extruded roofing sheets, rainwater and plumbing goods and carpets from the Marley owned West Of England Carpets. Carpet and hard flooring installation was also provided.
The range diversified in 1970 to include third-party items, and in 1972 starting with Ramsgate, superstores were added with a much larger range of materials. The initial phase used premises such as converted car sales showrooms, mostly in High Street locations. As the formula became increasingly popular with the public and Britain enjoyed a DIY boom in the '80s, new-builds were commissioned on trading estates where much larger premises could be built and garden centres could be incorporated. The High Street shops were gradually closed.
In 1985, Marley decided to concentrate on their manufacturing businesses and sold Payless DIY to the Ward White Group. Ward White which also owned Halfords, injected extra funds for expansion and left the existing board in place. Ted Lansdowne M.D. who had started as a sales assistant in the Southampton shop in 1959 became CEO and the board consisted of Mike Nicholson managing director and directors Roger Napleton (IT), John Hood (Finance), Peter Ballard (Property), Doug Spickernell (Merchandising), Alan Harper (Marketing) and Steve Williams (Operations).
In 1987 Payless bought thirteen stores in the North and West of England and Wales from Paul Madeley (an ex-professional footballer). The Madeley staff and field management were retained and the stores were rebranded as Payless.
In 1991, Ward White was bought by the Boots Group. Boots negotiated a merger of Payless with W.H.Smith's Do It All chain. The Payless Sevenoaks head office (which had relocated from South Park to Suffolk Way) was closed and the Do It All premises in Falcon House, Dudley, West Midlands became the headquarters for the new chain. Payless and WH Smith references were dropped and the merged chain became simply "Do It All". The combined store portfolio had some overlaps and spare and unprofitable stores were offloaded, usually to competitors such as Focus DIY, Great Mills and B&Q.
Do It All was marketed to appeal mainly to female consumers and interior designers with slicker advertising and instore design. Payless core products at the heavy end, i.e. building and timber products, were no longer promoted. The jobbing builder market was lost to the new UK Wickes chain. Following poor trading, WH Smith extricated itself from the merger and then Boots sold Do It All to Focus DIY in 1998.
The Focus group retained some of the Payless own-brand ranges and successfully bought up Wickes - later selling them at a substantial profit to Travis Perkins.


Francis Anthony Drexel

Francis Anthony Drexel (June 20, 1824 – February 15, 1885) was a Philadelphia banker and philanthropist. The eldest son of Philadelphia financier Francis Martin Drexel, after the death of his father, he became senior partner in the firm Drexel & Co.
Early life.
Drexel was born on Sixth Street in Philadelphia on June 20, 1824. He was the eldest son born to Francis Martin Drexel and Catherine (née Hookey) Drexel (1795–1870). Among his siblings was two younger brothers, Anthony Joseph Drexel and Joseph William Drexel.
Career.
His father worked as a portrait painter in Philadelphia before becoming an exchange broker in 1837. Elsa Loacker Jones suggested that through his frequent travels, Drexel may have acquired considerable experience speculating in foreign exchange.
Francis Anthony started with the firm at the age of thirteen, as a clerk and night watchman. He also made some money playing the organ at St. John's Church in Manayunk..
As the business progressed, his younger brothers, Anthony and Joseph, also joined the firm. They formed a partnership in 1847 under the name of Drexel & Co.. The company had offices in Philadelphia, New York, San Francisco, London, and Paris. The firm was involved in financing the Mexican–American War, the California Gold Rush, and the Union Army during the American Civil War, as well as the industrial revolution. After his father's death in 1863, Francis Drexel became the senior member of the firm but preferred that his younger brother Anthony take the directorship. Francis was of a retiring nature and supervised the office and counting-house.
Personal life.
In 1854, Drexel was married to Hannah Jane Langstroth (1826–1858). Hannah was the daughter of Piscator Langstroth and Elizabeth (née Lehman) Langstroth. Together, the parents of two children, Hannah died five weeks after the birth of their second daughter:
In 1860, he remarried to his second wife, Emma Mary Bouvier (1833–1883). Emma was the daughter of Louise (née Vernou) Bouvier and Michel Bouvier, a French cabinetmaker from Pont-Saint-Esprit in southern France who immigrated to Philadelphia in 1815 after having served in the Napoleonic Wars. Emma was an aunt of John Vernou Bouvier Jr., grandfather of Jacqueline (née Bouvier) Kennedy Onassis. They had one child:
Drexel purchased a country estate in Torresdale just outside Philadelphia. Although it was intended as a summer retreat, the family spent the better part of the year there from late spring to mid-autumn with Drexel taking the train to work. It was not far from the Motherhouse of the Sisters of the Sacred Heart, where the second Mrs. Drexel's sister, Mother Louis Bouvier, resided for a time. Mrs. Drexel and her daughters were frequent visitors.
His second wife also predeceased him, dying at their residence in Philadelphia in January 1883. He died at his home, 1503 Walnut Street in Philadelphia on February 15, 1885. After a funeral at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Philadelphia, he was buried in the Drexel family vault at the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament Cemetery. Of his estimated $15,000,000 fortune, he left ten percent to charity and the remainder in trust for his three daughters.
Philanthropy.
Francis Drexel supported and encouraged his wife, Emma's, charitable undertakings. Three days a week, Emma Drexel would distribute food, clothing, shoes, medicine, or rent money to any poor person who came to their door. She employed an assistant who would visit tenements, assess the need, and give them a ticket to present to Mrs. Drexel. The Drexels spent about $30,000 annually on the home-based charity, including paying the rent for 150 families. Many of the items distributed were made by the magdalens at the Convent of the Good Shepherd, thus assisting both the women who made the clothing and those who received it.
Among Drexel's interest was Eden Hall, the Torresdale convent of the Society of the Sacred Heart where his wife, Emma, had attended the academy. Mrs. Drexel was the first president of the alumnae association, "Les Enfants de Marie du Monde". Drexel periodically made contributions toward the improvement of the chapel. After Emma's death in 1883, he donated a Lady chapel and a crypt below. Drexel also donated the marble side altars for Sacred Heart Church in Wilmington, Delaware.
Francis and his brother Anthony funded the Francis M. Drexel Memorial Fountain, one of the oldest public sculptures in Chicago in Drexel Square in honor of their father.
Drexel left bequests to Saint Joseph's College, the House of the Good Shepherd, the German Hospital of Philadelphia (where his brother-in-law John D. Lankenau was a trustee), St. John's Orphan Asylum for Boys, St. Joseph's Female Orphan Asylum where he had served both as a board member, and La Salle College, which in 1886 relocated to the former mansion of Drexel's father-in-law, Michel Bouvier. Other distributees included the Society of Jesus, the Christian Brothers, and the Religious of the Sacred Heart. Old St. Joseph's Church was renovated.
Legacy.
The Francis A. Drexel Library at Saint Joseph's University is named in his honor. His daughters Elizabeth and Louise founded the St. Francis Industrial School at Eddington, Pennsylvania, as provided in their father's will. They also endowed the Francis A. Drexel Chair of Moral Theology at the Catholic University of America.


Sostratus of Aegina

Sostratos of Aegina (), son of Laodamus, is reported by Herodotus as a famous merchant in the sixth century BC Hellenic world - indeed to have gained "the biggest profit any Greek trader we have reliable information about has ever made from his cargo".
Veracity of Herodotus's Account.
The veracity of Herodotus has often been challenged, both in ancient and modern times, and the instance of his casual reference to Sostratus as a well known presence is something of a test case. A previously otherwise unknown and perhaps legendary figure, Sostratus has received increasing validation from modern archeology. A stone anchor dedicated to Apollo at Gravisca (the port of the Etruscan city of Tarquinii) is for example thought to have been dedicated by Sostratos: it can now be seen at the museum there. The names of Sostratus and Laodamus - perhaps his grandfather and father - have been found in Egypt, supporting the view of his coming from an important family of international Aegina traders. Moreover, clay storage jars are found throughout Etruscan archaeological sites of the period marked with the Aeginetan letters "SO", which may have stood for Sostratos, and are often presumed to be the packaging in which his goods were delivered. Not all scholars, however, accept that the marks on these jars refer to the Sostratos of Herodotus. and they (like the anchor) may again attest only to the kindred network, not the man. Nevertheless, the cumulative weight of confirmation for Herodotus as referring to a well-known figure in the Greek world is impressive.


Platt Music

The Platt Music Corporation, founded by Benjamin Platt in 1905, was a national retailer specializing in selling consumer electronics goods through leased operations in 135 department stores including Marshall Field's, Bloomingdale's, The May Department Stores Company and Emporium-Capwell.
Platt Music Corporation, where Herman Platt, (1909–2005), son of Benjamin Platt served as president and CEO from 1956 until 1984, was a private company that leased space in department stores such as The May Department Stores Company, otherwise known as Robinsons-May, and sold consumer electronic products. Platt Music Corporation was also the first company to carry Toshiba in the United States. In 1984, Michael Glazer became chairman and chairman executive of Platt Music. Tom Bagan, president and COO of Chicago retail giant Marshall Field's became president and COO of The Platt Music Corporation. The company started trading publicly on the Stock Exchange in 1984. National operations ended in 1988.
Members of the Platt Family have lived in Los Angeles since the 19th century. TV presenter Josh Flagg is the great-grandson of its founder.
The Platt Music Company Building, constructed in 1927 and designed by architects Walker + Eisen, was located at 834 S. Broadway in downtown Los Angeles.


North Hills Mall (North Richland Hills, Texas)

North Hills Mall was a shopping mall on SH 26 in North Richland Hills, Texas, a suburb of Fort Worth, Texas, United States. It held its grand opening on 12 September 1979. The property premiered with department stores, Stripling and Cox, Sanger Harris, and Mervyn's serving as anchor tenants. It would be successful for the first 20 years of its existence.
Demise.
In November 1999, the mall was acquired by a new group of real estate investors who planned to turn it into "entertainment" hub in order to differentiate it from North East Mall's fashion focus. Plans included a Cinemark Theatre, an Olympic-sized ice rink, a 200-foot fountain, a man-made 3-acre lake, and indoor mobile transportation. However, obstacles such as continued construction on Interstate 820/Airport Freeway, a slow start to construction, and an ever-increasingly popular mall across the street caused the renovation to never materialize.
By the completion of the North East Mall's renovation, the mall was beginning to empty out with Stripling and Cox shuttering its North Hills Store in 2000. By the next year Foley's was gone, with the store relocating to a brand new location at the North East Mall.
The mall closed in October 2004 at about 20% occupancy with the exception of Mervyn's (which closed in 2006 as it left the retail market in Texas) and sat vacant until it was demolished in early 2007.
North Richland Hills built their new city hall on the former site.


Earl Orser

Earl Herbert Orser, (July 5, 1928 – December 26, 2004) was a Canadian businessman.
Born in Toronto, Ontario, the son of Frank Herbert Orser and Ethel Majorie Cox, Orser attended Danforth Technical School. Support from the Leonard Foundation, a financial assistance program for students enrolled in an undergraduate degree program in a Canadian university, allowed him to attend the University of Toronto in 1946. Following graduation, he earned his C.A.. In 1973, he joined the T. Eaton Company Limited and became President and CEO from 1975 to 1977. While at Eaton's, Orser gained a reputation, perhaps unfairly, as the man who ended the iconic Eaton's mail order catalogue in 1976. The decision to end the catalogue was made by the members of the Eaton family who controlled the company, but Orser deftly handled the operational, labour, political and public relations difficulties that arose from the closing of such a long-standing institution.
After his stint with Eaton's, Orser moved to London and joined the London Life Insurance Company, becoming President and CEO in 1980, Chairman in 1989 and Honorary Chairman in 1994.
He was a director of SPAR Aerospace Ltd. commencing in 1978 and was Chairman for five years.
Orser was also a former chair of the Board of Governors at The University of Western Ontario.
He was named a Member of the Order of Canada in 1997. In 1991, he received an honorary Doctorate of Laws from the University of Western Ontario. He is a Fellow of the Ontario Institute of Chartered Accountants (FCA). In 1997, he was inducted into the London Business Hall of Fame.
He married Marion and had four daughters: Darlene Funnell, Barbara Orser, Beverley Orser and Nancy Hart.
Orser died of cancer.


Independence Day (Algeria)

Independence Day, observed annually on July 5 every year, is a National Holiday in Algeria commemorating Algeria's independence from France on July 5, 1962.
Algerian War of Independence (1954–1962).
The Algerian War of Independence began in November 1954 and ended in 1962. The war was very brutal and long, and was the most recent major turning point in Algeria's history. Although often fratricidal, it ultimately united Algerians and seared the value of independence and the philosophy of anticolonialism into the national consciousness. Abusive tactics of the French Army remains a controversial subject in France to this day.
In the early morning hours of 1 November 1954, the National Liberation Front (Front de Libération Nationale—FLN) launched attacks throughout Algeria in the opening salvo of a war of independence. An important watershed in this war was the massacre of civilians by the FLN near the town of Philippeville in August 1955. The government claimed it killed 1,273 guerrillas in retaliation; according to the FLN, 12,000 Muslims perished in an orgy of bloodletting by the armed forces and police, as well as colon gangs. After Philippeville, all-out war began in Algeria. The FLN fought largely using guerrilla and terrorist tactics whilst the French counter-insurgency tactics often included severe reprisals and repression.
Eventually, protracted negotiations led to a cease-fire signed by France and the FLN on March 18, 1962, at Evian, France. The Evian accords also provided for continuing economic, financial, technical, and cultural relations, along with interim administrative arrangements until a referendum on self-determination could be held. The Evian accords guaranteed the religious and property rights of French settlers, but the perception that they would not be respected led to the exodus of one million "pieds-noirs" and "harkis".
Between 350.000 and 1 million Algerians are estimated to have died during the war, and more than 2 million, out of a total Muslim population of 9 or 10 million, were made into refugees or forcibly relocated into government-controlled camps. Much of the countryside and agriculture was devastated, along with the modern economy, which had been dominated by urban European settlers (the "pied-noirs"). French sources estimated that at least 70,000 Muslim civilians were killed or abducted and presumed killed, by the FLN during the Algerian War. Nearly one million people of mostly French, Spanish and Italian descent were forced to flee Algeria at independence due to the unbridgeable rifts opened by the civil war and threats from units of the victorious FLN. Along with them fled most Algerians of Jewish descent and those Muslim Algerians who had supported a French Algeria ("harkis"). 30-150,000 pro-French Muslims were also killed in Algeria by FLN in post-war reprisals.
French President Charles De Gaulle pronounced Algeria an independent country on 3 July. The decision was published in the official journal the following day, and Algerian leaders declared 5 July, the anniversary of the French arrival in Algiers, to be Independence Day.


Ilo Ilo

Ilo Ilo (; literally: "Mom and Dad Are Not Home") is a 2013 Singaporean drama film. The debut feature of director Anthony Chen, the film features an international cast, including Singaporean actor Chen Tianwen, Malaysian actress Yeo Yann Yann, Filipino actress Angeli Bayani, and debut child actor Koh Jia Ler.
"Ilo Ilo" was premiered at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival as part of the Directors' Fortnight on 19 May 2013. At the festival, the film was awarded the Caméra d'Or award, thus becoming the first Singaporean feature film to win an award at the Cannes Film Festival. The film was selected as the Singaporean entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 86th Academy Awards, but was not nominated.
Plot.
The movie is set in Singapore during the 1997 Asian financial crisis and centred on the Lim family as they adjust to their newly hired Filipina domestic helper, Teresa, who like many other Filipinas, has come to Singapore in search of a better life. The father, Teck, works in sales for a glass company; the pregnant mother, Hwee Leng, works as a secretary in a shipping company that is downsizing; and the ten-year-old son, Jiale, is a troubled delinquent.
At first, Jiale and Teresa ("Terry") exhibit a troubled relationship. During a trip to the bookshop, Jiale places some unpaid merchandise in the maid's shopping bag, causing her to be accused of theft. After being scolded by Terry, tensions between them rise, resulting in Jiale climbing over the school fence at dismissal time just to avoid his maid, who comes every day to fetch him home from school. He runs home and locks her out.
When Teck loses his sales job, he conceals it from his wife and secretly smokes on the steps outside their apartment. After some time, unable to find a new job, he accepts a temporary job as a security guard monitoring an egg farm. As he continues to lose money in the stock market, in a moment of depression, he acknowledges their losses to his wife, who lambastes him over his failure. As the family's finances begin to descend deeper, familial tensions grow as Jiale continues to act out against his family and Terry. After the death of a neighbour, who had jumped from the roof of their apartment building, Jiale and Terry begin to kindle a relationship.
While Hwee Leng is desperate to stay employed as she continues to script termination letters at her job, Terry and Jiale become fast friends, sparking his mother's jealousy as their relationship develops. Feeling desperate at home and emotionally neglected by her son, Hwee Leng attends a motivational seminar, where she is moved by the optimistic words of the speaker and immediately purchases his full catalogue of motivational books and CDs. During a lunch break at work, she attempts to call the speaker but discovers the line has been disconnected and rerouted. Later that night, while watching television, she learns that the motivational speaker has been arrested for fraud, causing her to break down in the presence of her confused husband as more money is lost.
Although Jiale is a poor student and constantly in trouble, he shows high intellect and cunning in his obsessive calculation of past winning lottery numbers, which he catalogues in his schoolbook during class. One day, after being taunted by another boy that his maid only loves him because she is paid to, he pushes the boy into the bathroom wall, causing him to injure his head and bleed. Threatened with expulsion, and the school's administration unable to contact his parents, Terry arrives to plead for mercy on his behalf. After some resistance, the principal appears moved as Hwee Leng shows up, angrily dispatching Terry and berating Jiale. As Hwee Leng leaves the office with Jiale, she aggressively reminds Terry that she is Jiale's mother before snatching Jiale and walking away. As a punishment for injuring his classmate, Jiale is caned in front of the school assembly while Terry shows up, powerless to save him.
After the family car is sold for scrap, the Lim family acknowledges they can no longer afford to keep Terry employed as Teck has been recently fired from his job due to accidentally tripping over eggs while attempting to find a suspected intruder. Desperate to keep Terry, Jiale uses his savings to purchase lottery tickets but loses. He becomes tearfully despondent, cutting a lock of Terry's hair during a tense goodbye before she is sent home. Holding onto his cassette player, Jiale listens to music with his father on a bench in the hospital as Hwee Leng gives birth to a baby girl.
Production.
Partially funded by Ngee Ann Polytechnic and the Singapore Film Commission, the film's budget is estimated to be around S$700,000.
Reception.
"Ilo Ilo" received a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
"Ilo Ilo" received positive reviews at the Cannes Film Festival. The film was later awarded the Camera d'Or award, an award which recognizes the best debut feature film in the competition. It received six nominations at the Golden Horse Film Festival and Awards., and won 4, namely Best Film, Best New Director, Best Original Screenplay and Best Supporting Actress for Yeo Yann Yann.


Mercury Plaza Mall

Mercury Plaza Mall was a shopping mall located in Hampton, Virginia. The shopping mall opened in 1967 as Mercury Mall. The mall was the Virginia Peninsula's first indoor shopping complex. Montgomery Ward, Roses and Giant Open Air Supermarket served as the mall's primary anchors.
History.
Following the opening of Mercury Mall, Coliseum Mall opened in 1973, and in 1975, Newmarket North Mall opened. By the mid-1970s, the city of Hampton had three operating enclosed shopping malls, with Mercury Mall faced Peninsula's shopping challenges.
In the mid-1980s, the mall was renamed Mercury Plaza Mall, and Montgomery Ward moved its store to Coliseum Mall. Circuit City and HQ hardware store (replacing Montgomery Ward) became the mall's new tenants by 1986. In 1987, the remaining enclosed portion of the mall was razed, and was replaced with a Burlington Coat Factory store. Burlington Coat Factory opened in Mercury Plaza in November 1987, ending Mercury Plaza's status as an enclosed shopping mall. HQ left the complex by end of the 1980s. Roses and Giant (what later became Farm Fresh) left the shopping center in the early-1990s. Circuit City remained at Mercury Plaza until April 2002, and was the shopping center's only other retailer left except for Burlington Coat Factory.
Mall Properties, based in New York City, owned both Mercury Plaza and Coliseum Mall. The company decided to move Burlington Coat Factory to Coliseum Mall in July 2003. In September 2003, Mercury Plaza shopping center became vacant, and the original building structure was demolished.


David Morgan (department store)

David Morgan was an independent department store in Cardiff that ceased operating in January 2005 after 125 years of trading. It opened on 31 October 1879 and closed its doors for the final time on Saturday 30 January 2005.
History.
The David Morgan department store was founded by David Morgan who was born near Brecon in 1833. He traded in the South wales valley areas of Abertillery, Monmouthshire and Pontlottyn in the Rhymney Valley for 21 years, before opening a small drapers shop on The Hayes in 1879.
From this small shop the store steadily expanded along The Hayes, to become a six storey department store, rivalling nearby Howells. The David Morgan department store consisted of three buildings; the south building was built by James & Morgan in 1891/2 along with additions made in 1904, the middle building was designed by architect Edwin Seward in 1899 with the north building being built in 1912. In 1896, the company added the Morgan Arcade under the shop, to better connect the various buildings. The company also had a branch in Windsor Road, Penarth, with two shops a few doors apart from each other.
When the store closed in 2005, it was the largest independent department store in Wales. Throughout its time, it was owned and operated by the Morgan family, through the holding company Deymel Investments, and the Cardiff Arcade Company which owned and operated the Royal and Morgan arcades, which run underneath the store. David Morgan Limited, Deymel Investments Limited and the Cardiff Arcade Company Limited are now all in liquidation.
Redevelopment.
The site was sold in late 2004 to Helical Bar plc for £29 million. Between 2007 and 2008 the whole site was refurbished and 65 apartments were built on the floors. New stores include T.K. Maxx, Rossiters of Bath and clothing stores Moss and White Stuff. Borders opened in 2008 however ceased trading in December 2009 following Borders UK entering administration. Luxury apartments, called the David Morgan Apartments, have been built on the upper floors of the six storey store.
Since the opening of St Davids Shopping Centre there has been a greater demand for the stores which were once David Morgan, in particular the stores fronting onto the Hayes.


Fine Fare

Fine Fare was a chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom. Their Yellow Pack budget own-label range, introduced in 1980, were the first own brand basic ranges to be introduced in the UK.
History.
The company began as one single supermarket in Welwyn Garden City in 1951, as an offshoot of the "Welwyn Department Store", owned by Howardsgate Holdings, the company of Ebenezer Howard, the founder of the garden city movement. It was one of a series of convenience store chains established in the 1950s, the others being Premier and Victor Value.
In January 1959, it won a court case against Brighton Corporation, which had insisted that its outlets closed on Wednesday afternoons under the Shops Act 1950. By 1962, it had over two hundred shops.
The company was acquired by Associated British Foods in 1963. ABF appointed James Gulliver to the post of chairman of Fine Fare in 1967; he continued to lead the business until 1972. Seven years after the takeover by Associated British Foods, the turnover had grown from £75 million to £200 million.
In 1974, Fine Fare bought the East Anglian based Downsway supermarket chain, which was owned by the Vestey family business, Union International Group. This added a further eighty stores to the group. Other chains purchased included Burton Supermarkets (Nottingham based), Elmos (East Anglian based) and Coopers (Scotland based in 1955).
The business was regularly listed as third in market share behind Sainsbury's and Tesco, and had stores nationwide. They also owned the Melias, and Shoppers Paradise chains of convenience and discount food stores, and moved into the burgeoning DIY industry with their Fix and Fit stores (sold to WHSmith Do It All in 1986). In 1983, Fine Fare became Britain's first supermarket to sell organic foods.
In June 1986, ABF sold the company to The Dee Corporation (subsequently known as Somerfield). Following this, all Dee Corporation's newly acquired stores were rebranded as Gateway or closed, and the Fine Fare name had disappeared by the end of the 1980s.
Fine Fare sponsored the Scottish Football League for three years from the season of 1985–86 (beginning August 1985) to the season of 1987–88 (which ended in May 1988, around the same time that the last Fine Fare stores closed). The business also advertised on television, the commercials were fronted by the actor Gordon Jackson for a time.
Operations.
Fine Fare's depots were at Welwyn Garden City (Hertfordshire), East Kilbride (Lanarkshire), Washington (Tyne & Wear), Cheadle Hulme (Stockport), Hucknall (Nottingham), Tuffley (Gloucester) and Aylesford (Kent). Shoppers Paradise only depots were at East Kilbride (Lanarkshire), Weedon (Northampton), Stevenage (Hertfordshire) and Alton (Hampshire). Washington also held stocks of non food items for national distribution.
In popular culture.
Fine Fare is mentioned in the song "Aisle of Plenty" from the album "Selling England by the Pound" by the progressive rock band, Genesis. It was also the subject of a song by the punk band Toy Dolls called "Nowt Can Compare to Sunderland Fine Fare" from their fourth album "Bare Faced Cheek".


Braus Stores

Braus Stores were retailers which sold women's apparel. The firm's offices were located at 285 Madison Avenue (Manhattan). The department stores were incorporated in January 1930. They were owned by B.A.
Hartstein and incorporated with 100,000 shares of common stock.
A casualty of the Great Depression, a bankruptcy schedule was filed against Braus Stores, then headquartered at 5 East 13th Street (Manhattan) on August 10, 1932. The business listed assets of $131,968 and liabilities of $66,899. The primary asset held by the company was $30,000 of stock. Primary creditors included the Eagle Dress
Company, $2,353, Fair Waist and Dress Company, $1,530, General Dress Company, $1,247, Gary Dress Company, $1,910, and Majesty Dress Company, $1228. The Irving Trust Company was designated as receiver in the insolvency.


Yorkdale Shopping Centre

Yorkdale Shopping Centre, or simply Yorkdale, is a major retail shopping mall in North York, Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Located at the intersection of Highway 401 and Allen Road, it opened in 1964 as the largest enclosed shopping mall in the world. Yorkdale is currently the third largest shopping mall in Canada by floor space and has the highest sales per unit area of any mall in Canada, with current merchandise sales levels at roughly /square foot. At 18 million annual visitors, it is one of the country's busiest malls. Many international retailers have opened their first Canadian locations at Yorkdale.
Yorkdale is currently owned by a joint venture between the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System through its subsidiary Oxford Properties Group and the Alberta Investment Management Corporation.
History.
Construction and design.
In the 1950s, the department store chain T. Eaton & Co. bought a site at Dufferin Street and Highway 401 for a new massive, suburban location. In 1958, rival department store chain Simpson's purchased a site to the east and the plan to build the complex was announced that year. Design of the mall was given to the Seattle firm of John Graham Consultants, except for the Simpson's store, designed by John Andrews of John B. Parkin Associates. Howard Lesser was the planning and development consultant. Using Lesser's market research, the developers determined how much floor space to give up to each category of retailer, and chose retailers who would appeal to a broad range of shoppers.
The mall opened on February 26, 1964, under the ownership of the Trizec Corporation. Its gross leasable area (GLA) was over , by far the biggest in Canada at the time. It was also one of the largest shopping centres in the world. When it opened, Yorkdale was the first Canadian mall to include two major department stores: Simpson's and Eaton's, under the same roof. Built at a cost of ($ in dollars), Yorkdale was the first major suburban mall constructed in Toronto. Located at the edge of the urbanized city, the new shopping centre was dependent on the construction of the Spadina Expressway, later renamed Allen Road, as the developers would not proceed until the freeway was approved for construction.
The mall was constructed with a novel system for its retailers to receive merchandise. While other Canadian shopping centres had their receiving doors located at the backside, Yorkdale was constructed with a one-way, two-lane road for trucks running beneath the centre that leads directly to retailers' basement storages. The design of the mall included a tall atrium, wide halls and tall ceilings. The corridors still retain this look and feel although renovations in 2006 replaced the ceilings, windows, floors and skylights.
Expansions and renovations.
In 1990, the Simpson's store was converted to a Hudson's Bay store after Hudson's Bay purchased the Simpson's chain. The "Universal Man" statue in the west parking lot was relocated from the base of the CN Tower to accommodate the construction of the Rogers Centre (then known as SkyDome) in 1987 and relocated to Yorkdale in 1994.
In 1999, Yorkdale completed a major overhaul, adding a Rainforest Café restaurant, a Famous Players SilverCity movie theatre (which has since been taken over by Cineplex Entertainment), and an Indigo Books and Music store on the north side of the mall, facing Highway 401.
In 2005, a million expansion on the former site of its Eaton's department store increased the size of Yorkdale to , and increased the number of stores from about 210 to 260. A highlight of this expansion was the construction of a high glass atrium running in length, which hangs from an exterior support structure. The expansion added Old Navy, Zara, H&M, and Home Outfitters as sub-anchors. This gave Yorkdale the title of the third-largest mall in Ontario after Square One Shopping Centre in Mississauga and Toronto Eaton Centre, ahead of Scarborough Town Centre in terms of retail floor space.
The renovation project continued into 2006 and 2007. This renovation matched the earlier sections of the mall to the style of the 2005 expansion. Key elements of this project included new public washrooms, the opening of a Moxie's Grill & Bar restaurant, and new sliding automatic doors at all entrances. An advertising campaign, branded as "Change It Up!" was launched in conjunction with the renovation and redevelopment, winning a MAXI Award from the International Council of Shopping Centers (ICSC) in 2007.
Expansion continued in the second half of the decade. In April 2008, Yorkdale opened a Michael Kors store. Later additions included Armani Exchange, Crate & Barrel, BOSS, and a Tiffany & Co.
In January 2011, Yorkdale announced another expansion, adding another , sufficient for 40 store fronts, and 800 underground parking spaces. This new wing took the space of the southwest parking lot. The expansion also relocated and doubled the number of seats at the food court, improved public access, and landscaped portions of the property. The expansion, costing $35 million, was opened in the summer of 2012, and completed in November 2012. The existing food court was relocated to a new location on the third level of the former Eaton's department store. The new food court, named "Dine on 3", covers over two floors and features 18 different eateries, including A&W, KFC, New York Fries, Subway, and the second Ontario location of Chick-fil-A (after the first at One Bloor in downtown Toronto). The area of the former food court was redeveloped into a new wing, which housed new stores including a Microsoft Store, DavidsTea, and a Tesla showroom, as well as a larger Apple Store. The new parking garage was built below the wing.
In April 2013, Yorkdale announced a million expansion, which would add an additional of retail, featuring a three-level Nordstrom store and a Uniqlo store. This project involved the closure of the Rainforest Café (at Yorkdale since 1999), as well as the demolition of the multi-level parking garage at the southeast of the complex bordering Yorkdale Road. The project began in January 2014 and the new wing opened for business in late 2016. Rainforest Café has since been replaced with an expansion of Sport Chek.
In June 2013, Sears Canada announced the closing of their store at Yorkdale. The former Sears space was renovated to house Sporting Life and RH, both of which opened on October 19, 2017. The wing also includes Uncle Tetsu's Cheesecake bakery.
The Milestones Grill and Bar restaurant, located near Hudson's Bay, was closed in 2016. It was then announced that the American restaurant chain The Cheesecake Factory would open its first Canadian location in the mall. The location was renovated and expanded to accommodate the new restaurant and it opened to the public in November 2017. As of 2019, the restaurant still experiences wait times up to three hours.
In 2017, Oxford Properties submitted an application to the City of Toronto for a block zoning plan to guide future development of the site. In the first phase, new buildings would be constructed along the Dufferin Avenue frontage, incorporating a boutique hotel, a cinema and new retail, with future phases being built on the north parking lot, to incorporate residential and office uses. In March 2019, the City launched a study on the re-development of the parking lots and other areas of the mall property to improve traffic as well as mixed-use for the site to include residential and retail use. If approved, the re-development would result in parking being moved underground. However, some residents in the neighbourhood are opposed to the development.
On June 26, 2020, the Microsoft Store closed as part of its parent's winding down of the chain. Since late 2020, Nissan Studio occupies the space that was formerly the Microsoft Store and serves as a showroom for the Japanese automaker's vehicles, not a dealership.
Incidents.
Two stabbings occurred at the mall in 2008. In the first half of 2013, two shootings occurred at the mall. The first one took place in the external surface lot late on a Saturday night in March 2013, leaving one man dead and one man injured. In May 2013, a man was injured by shots fired into the Joey restaurant at midnight on a Friday night. Yorkdale upgraded its security with a new $3.4 million video surveillance system that went into service in March 2014. The new system provides full 360-degree surveillance of the mall and the parking lots. It also includes licence plate recognition technology at parking entrances. In August 2018, Yorkdale Mall was shut down after a spate of gun violence erupted at its Starbucks location. Though nobody was seriously injured, it caused major delays on major TTC routes.
Retailers.
Department stores and restaurants.
The department stores at the mall are RH, Hudson's Bay, Nordstrom and Holt Renfrew. Junior anchors include Uniqlo, Muji, Sporting Life, and Indigo Books and Music.
Restaurants in Yorkdale outside the food court include The Cheesecake Factory, Michel's Bakery Cafe and Michel's Baguette, Moxie's Grill & Bar, Joey, Jamie's Italian and Pickle Barrel.
Retail mix.
When first opened, Yorkdale had a large number of clothing retailers along with large department stores in the mix of stores. Yorkdale was the first Canadian mall to include two major department stores: Simpson's and Eaton's, under the same roof. Eaton's went bankrupt in 1999 and its space was redeveloped into a new wing that opened in 2005.
Since the late 1990s onward, Yorkdale's management has focused on attracting luxury brand retailers, especially those selling clothing and accessories, as well as high-end electronics, a strategy also adopted by Sherway Gardens. These include Versace, Bulgari, Burberry, Cartier, Chanel, Gucci, Prada, Kate Spade, Tory Burch, Moncler, Jimmy Choo, Apple, and Bose. Yorkdale has also attracted American and international retailers seeking to expand to Canada. Yorkdale bought out the lease of Sears in 2014 to reallocate that space for higher-priced department stores.
Unlike other major malls in Toronto, such as Toronto Eaton Centre, Scarborough Town Centre, Sherway Gardens, and Fairview Mall, Yorkdale does not have grocery stores or discount store tenants. However, Yorkdale has a Shoppers Drug Mart. In the vicinity of Yorkdale, there are factory outlets and discount stores nearby on Orfus Road, while big box stores are located on Dufferin Street just north of Highway 401. Lawrence Allen Centre, formerly Lawrence Square Shopping Centre, to the south on Lawrence Avenue at Allen Road, serves the local community.
Yorkdale places a requirement on each tenant to renovate regularly. When each tenant renews its lease with the mall, they are required to renovate their store.
Canadian firsts.
Yorkdale has been the point of entry into the Canadian market for many widely known international commercial enterprises. Companies that have opened or plan on opening their first Canadian store at Yorkdale include:
According to the International Council of Shopping Centers, more than 30 American retailers contacted mall management, wanting to open their first Canadian stores in Yorkdale after Crate & Barrel revealed that their first store outside the United States would open in Yorkdale in 2008.
Yorkdale's Nordstrom was the fourth location in Canada, opening after the locations at the Toronto Eaton Centre, Calgary's Chinook Centre and Ottawa's Rideau Centre. Yorkdale's Uniqlo store was the second of its kind in Canada when it opened in late 2016, a month after the first Uniqlo opened at the Toronto Eaton Centre the previous September. Yorkdale's Lego Store is the second one in Canada after the first opened at Fairview Mall.


Pedro Blanco (slave trader)

Pedro Blanco (1795–1854) was a notorious Spanish slave trader based in Gallinas on the coast of Sierra Leone between 1822 and 1838. Before entering the slave trade, Blanco ran a sugar mill in Cuba.
Blanco sailed to Africa on the "Conquistador", one of his ships, and learned of the age-old African institution of slavery. Buying from local chiefs who raided neighbouring tribes, he began trading in African slaves in 1822, and by 1839 he controlled a network that fed Cuba, the United States and Brazil with slaves for plantations. Blanco expanded his operation by establishing a working relationship with the largest local slaver, the African Chief Siaka.
He eventually had agents stationed at Cape Mount, Shebar, Digby, Nuevo Sestos and elsewhere. Blanco entered a partnership with one Lino Carballo, with a center of operations in Havana and other branches in Puerto Rico, Trinidad, and the Republic of Texas. His mercantile standing was so high that his credit bills were enthusiastically accepted in New York City, London and many other well-known financial centers.
In Gallinas, Blanco built himself a private kingdom with storehouses on an island, his office on another island, and houses for his African wives on yet a third island. Slaves awaiting shipment were housed on the islands of Taro and Kamasun. In 1838, Blanco left Africa for Cuba and went to Barcelona, all the time trading in slaves. He left Gallinas just before most of the "La Amistad" Africans reached his stockades, but he left behind a network of employees to continue his business. It is likely that some of them handled the "Amistad" Africans. At any rate, he played a vital part in the development of the slave trade in this region. Blanco's business finally collapsed in 1848, and in 1854 he died in Genoa.


The Mall at Westlake

The Mall at Westlake, almost always referred to as Westlake Mall is a vacant and closed community mall in Bessemer, Alabama.
History.
Westlake Mall was built on a former lake bed, along US Highway 11. The mall opened in 1969 with three anchors, Sears, Grant's, and Loveman's.
In 1970, former Governor George Wallace held a campaign event for re-election at the mall that was estimated to be attended by 10,000 people, one of the biggest turnouts during his last gubernatorial race.
In the late 1970s and 1980s, the mall saw decline. In November 1983, an 18 year old female was raped after being kidnapped near the mall by masked abductors. All three original anchors closed by 1989, making it a dead mall or deserted mall. Continuing urban sprawl southwestward toward the Tuscaloosa County line and increased crime and poverty in the city of Bessemer all contributed to the mall's demise.
During the mid 1980s, there was an effort to turn the mall into a factory outlet center, though many regular stores were still open.
In 1994, Bruno's Supermarkets opened a flagship store in the former Sears anchor location. It was the company's largest store. The mall continued to operate with a small assortment of stores, including a Goody's Family Clothing store in the former Loveman's anchor location.
The Goody's store relocated elsewhere in the late 2000s, and Bruno's filed bankruptcy in 2009, closing its store at the mall.
The center was sold to Bessemer used-car dealership owner Anthony Underwood, who wants to revive the center once again as an outlet mall. , the mall sits vacant and sealed, with several of its entrances blocked.


Child labour in Botswana

See also: Child Labour
Child Labour in Botswana is defined as the exploitation of children through any form of work which is harmful to their physical, mental, social and moral development. Child Labour in Botswana is characterised by the type of forced work at an associated age, as a result of reasons such as poverty and household-resource allocations.
The United States Department of Labour states that due to the gaps in the national frameworks, scarce economy, and lack of initiatives, “children in Botswana engage in the worst forms of child labour”. The International Labour Organization is a body of the United Nations which engages to develop labour policies and promote social justice issues. The International Labour Organization (ILO) in convention 138 states the minimum required age for employment to act as the method for "effective abolition of child labour" through establishing minimum age requirements and policies for countries when ratified. Botswana ratified the Minimum Age Convention in 1995, establishing a national policy allowing children at least fourteen-years old to work in specified conditions. Botswana further ratified the ILO's Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, convention 182, in 2000.
The ILO’s International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labour (IPEC) funded the country in regard to the "Towards the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labour" programme (TECL) in Botswana"." In 2004 the "Programme Advisory Committee on Child Labour" (PACC) was founded to overlook the "Towards the Elimination of the Worst Forms of Child Labour" (TECL) in Botswana . Some studies have argumentative stances upon the dealing of child labour in Botswana. As stated by Eva Procek in her "2006" "Discussion document on Child Labour in Botswana" "explicit time-bound strategies to address child labour and worst forms of child labour specifically have not been developed".
Current Findings of Child Labour in Botswana.
The United States of Labour has carried out a study into the issue of child labour in Botswana and has reported findings. The United States Department of Labour in their "2018 Child Labour and Forced Labour Reports, for Botswana", has stated that “Botswana has made minimal advancement towards eliminating child labour in 2018”. The United States Department of Labour further states that "Botswana engages in the worst forms of child labor, including in commercial sexual exploitation, forced labor in cattle herding, and forced domestic work, each sometimes as a result of human trafficking". Gaps in the legal system alongside poorly directed social initiatives, as stated by The United States Department of Labour have resulted in contemporary accounts of Child Labour in Botswana.
Causes.
The International Labour Organization accounts that Children "work for survival" and for other reasons which have repressed their ability to act freely. Underlying factors such as geographic location, demographics and poverty are some causes of child labour in Botswana.
Geographic.
Further information: Child Labour in Africa
Botswana is a 'landlocked' country situated in the south-west division of Africa. Sonia Bhalotra in her "OECD SOCIAL, EMPLOYMENT AND MIGRATION WORKING PAPERS" study states that due to "stagnated economic growth, HIV/AIDS, conflict, famine and poor hygiene has escalated the issue of child labour in Sub-Saharan Africa". The "2016" "Global Estimates of Child Labour" ILO report states that "one in five African Children face Child Labour". The report states that in the continent 72.1 million children work as labourers and 31.5 million work in hazardous conditions, with this being more than-twice the amount in comparison to other regions. Findings from the "2016" "Global Estimates of Child Labour" ILO report show that the agriculture sector across the continent accounts for 85% of child labourers, of many working in family enterprises and farms, primarily engaging in commercial farming or livestock herding. Further, traditional approaches in African communities have seen children leaving schooling to enter the workforce. This is seen in an African context to promote the development of life and physical skills contrary to western methodologies . An example of this can be seen through the rural Pare people of Tanzania, Sub-Saharan Africa, involving 5 year old’s to tend crops.
Transmission to Botswana.
A transmission of the child labour issues from an overall African context can be seen in Botswana. The United States Department of Labour states in their "2010" "Worst Forms of Child Labour Report" that a poor economic outlook for families and resource allocations influences the integration of Children in the labour force in many instances such where "parents from rural areas send their children to the city to live with wealthier families and to work as domestic servants". The report further establishes that many children are heavily engaged in hazardous forms of agriculture, where children "manage herds of livestock in isolated areas for days without proper food and shelter". Botswana is a key source and destination for commercial sexual exploitation of children. Impoverished children are forced as workers and trafficked to clientele through high-ways and truck drivers.
Communities.
Botswana is home to many ethnic groups such to the San people and the Okavango Delta people. "Matyas Baan" in his article "Realising Children’s Rights in Botswana" states that these communities are "disadvantaged and vulnerable due to being displaced remotely or considered as outcasts". The San community is a minority ethnic group, which is remotely located, distant from main-land services, which has led to social-protection issues in regards to children. Children of these communities have reduced access to services such as education and are open to take upon roles primarily in family enterprises and farms or to be exploited into sexual exploitation and trafficking.
Changing Demographics.
Changes in demographics reflect changing social behaviours and actions of people to satisfy specific circumstances. Changes in demographics through intra-household resource allocation, parental investment and household requirements in Botswana has seen children work for individual and household needs, being excluded from schooling and uptaking “small scale entrepreneurship”. The Caldwell theory of wealth (1982), reflects how countries with upward net flow wealth, such through peasant farmers, are inclined for higher rates of reproduction to satisfy for old age care and political status. Higher reproduction rates greatly influence the investment of parents towards their children and their activities such as schooling. The limited distribution for household resources and wealth towards children gives rise to child labour. The impact of intra-household resource allocation can be investigated in the Okavango Delta People of Botswana. A 1992 study into five ethnic groups of the community reflect that out of 122 children 20 attended school, of which 15 had to travel 30km or further, resulting in trade-offs to the local economies of herding, milking and graining. A study by John Bock in his "Evolutionary demography and intra-household time allocation," has resulted in findings for the correlation of time and resource allocation in relation to Children education and participation in labour. The study shows how changing parental investment, marital status, availability of alternative productivity tasks, birth order and sex of children "have implications to understand child labour and time allocations and consequent welfare".
Poverty.
Poverty is the condition where a community or individuals lack the access to basic necessities and financial resources to sustain a minimum standard of living. Botswana accounts for 36.7% of families living under the poverty datum line, which has seen the youth to be vulnerable. In 2012 the Minister of Labour and Home Affairs, Peter Siele, visited and talked to a 12 year old out-of-school worker about not attending school. The response recorded was “lehuma ke lone le le ntireleng gore ke tlogele sekolo, ke bolawa ke tlala” (poverty forced me out of school, I suffer from hunger). Negative macroeconomic indicators have influenced the inefficiencies of budget allocations towards children-based initiatives. Eva Procek in her "2006" "Discussion document on child labour in Botswana" investigates that children in rural and remote area's are vulnerable. Procek states that children of rural groups such as from the San community experience high levels of poverty due to high illiteracy rates, being prone to join the labour force early to support their households as they are "caught between conflicting cultural expectations". Issues of debt and financial constrains also result in children to uptake roles in the labour force.
Extent and Scope.
The United States Department of State in their "2017 Botswana Human Rights report" states that the widespread scale of the issue sees "children within the country engaging in the worst forms of labour" including: commercial sexual exploitation, agriculture and forced domestic work. The Ministry of Labour and Health accounts for 25000 Children under the age of 15 working on farms. A further 1500 are accounted for domestic work in wealthy households. Botswana further engages to be a source and destination for commercial trafficking of children, specifically through truck and highway clientele.
2005/2006 Labour Force Survey.
The 2005/2006 labour force survey from the "Central Statistics Office" is an early study analysing the trends of the labour force in relation to children employment status in Botswana. The survey of 415,751 children saw that 72.4 percent were engaged in full time schooling, 21.2 percent were involved in the labour force alongside schooling and 2.6 percent were primarily working. A gender based analysis in the study shows that only 69.2% of males at the time were participating in schooling in comparison to the 75.1% of females. 39,170 children explicitly stated the reason for their employment with the two most prevalent reasons accounting for family assistance (62.8%), and personal financial needs (12.8%).
Source: Authors’ calculations based on CSO Labour Force Survey (2005/06)
Impacts.
The impacts of child labour can be seen interlinked in affecting the welfare of many involved children . Impacts are seen through education and the consequents of poverty.
Education.
In Botswana child labour "shares a negative correlation with education", as established by the "Determinants of Child Labour and Schooling in Botswana report" through the analysis of the labour force survey findings in 2005/2006. Further, "2016 UNICEF" findings account for 9% of the child population of Botswana to be engaged in child labour, further showing that 16% of primary school aged kids are not attending school. Demographic impacts such as parental investment and location of residence further impact the ability to engage in schooling of children. School attendance is affected as secondary education rates are declining due to the tuition costs. For example, this is seen through a 35.7% net attendance out of 56.7% enrolled males.
Consequents of Poverty.
The transmission of intergenerational poverty through the degraded economic outlook of Botswana, see’s 2 out of 3 children missing secondary school. Emmanuel Bothale in his "The Case for Children's Budgeting in Botswana" uses "The Poverty Map (Moseki, 2009)" and "UNDP Human development Reports (2009,2010) to" account for a high cumulative poverty index of 22.9% in Botswana. Sexual exploitation and hygiene issues are a consequent of long-term poverty, as seen in the 2010 findings from the "Botswana Press Agency". The agency carried out a ‘sex-study’ which established that girls resort to prostitution out of economic need and “to put food on the table. Further, communal poverty, has resulted in poor hygiene and health; for example, under 5 youth mortality, has increased by 0.5% (1990-2012). The prevalence of the poor hygiene has further seen the spread of diseases such as HIV/AIDS. Poor preventative measures sees a 15.7% prevalence rate of HIV in 0-18 year old orphans.
Dynamics.
There are government body and frameworks alongside social initiatives in place to address the issue.
Government Outlook.
Between 2006 and 2008 the country had been in the process of formulating the "National Action Programme towards the Elimination of Child Labour in Botswana", which was nationally endorsed in February 2008. This was drafted with the assistance of the International Labour Organization's (ILO) programme, Towards the Elimination of the worst forms of Child Labour. A Programme Advisory Committee on Child Labour (PACC), representing government departments, organised labour and business, and civil society, guides the development and implementation of the programme. The national government has developed policies in order to coordinate their response to the issue. The "National Action Programme towards the Elimination of Child Labour in Botswana" outline the governments approach to create legislation and policies around the issue to create awareness. The Ministry of Labor and Home Affairs sustainability plan is another policy which see's volunteers and government affiliates work as labour inspectors to report accounts of child labour to social workers and school teachers to better understand school attendance trends and employment status.
The government has established mechanisms to coordinate their response to the issue. The "Human Trafficking Committee" "was established by the 2014 Anti-trafficking bill" and is led by the Ministry of Defence, Justice, and Security (MDJS) to act as a reporting and referral mechanism. The "Advisory Committee on Child Labour" is another mechanism involving NGO volunteers and government officials to report issues to the government. The United States Department of State in their "2017 Botswana Human Rights report presents an argument" that the mechanisms "have lacked efficacy due to scarce resources and inability to target rural areas".
Legal Framework.
Botswana ratified the ILO Minimum Age Convention in 1995 (C138) and the ILO Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention (C182) in 2000. In addition, the country also ratified both the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child in 1995. Botswana’s Employment Act is the principal law governing employment-related matters in Botswana. It aims to protect children against exploitation and hazardous employment, defined as any work that is dangerous to the child’s health, development and morals. The United States Department of Labour in the "2018 Child Labour and Forced Labour Reports, for Botswana," states that "gaps exist in Botswana’s legal framework to adequately protect children from child labor" as there is no compulsory age of education legislation, inconsistent to the standards set by the ILO.
Enforcement.
The government has a framework to assist for the enforcement of law in through criminal and labour laws. The Ministry of Employment, Labour Productivity and Skills Development enforces child labour law's and policies and is further authorised by the "Employment Act" to conduct labour inspections. Findings from the United States Department of Labour account for 2335 labour investigations in Botswana for 2017, which had reduced from 4999 accounts in 2016. The "Ministry of Defence, Justice, and Security" facilitates the enforcement of criminal law in approach to child labour. In 2017 the Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP) accounted for 7 convictions in the ill-treatment of children but did not explicitly link causation to child labour.
Social Initiatives.
Government funds social initiatives to address the issue of child labour are part of the framework aimed at the issue. In conjunction with resources from non-governmental organization's, these programs cater to create awareness for the issue and provide resources available to the community. The government funded "Orphan Care Program" subsidises school fees and provides meals to children to promote educational participation. Another program is the "Needy Children and Needy Students program" facilitated by the "Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development" in aim to provide essential resources and meals to poor families.
Recommendations.
Recommendations from government agencies and other bodies convey possible solutions to address the issue. The United States Department of Labour in their 2018 "Worst Forms of Child Labour" report states that amendment to the Employment Act will "reduce the gap between bodies and enforcement agencies to cater towards eliminating the issue alongside a minimum-age requirement for schooling. Eva Procek in her "2006" "Discussion Document on Child Labour in Botswana" states possible strategies to alleviate causes, such as poverty, through National Youth Policy grants and reviews in the literacy programmes "to prevent children falling into detrimental work". Emmanuel Bothale in his "The Case for Children's Budgeting in Botswana" states that budget allocations towards children and socially based initiatives are a "critical argument to improve upon the negative macroeconomic indicators". Further, more studies are required to enable full engagement to understand the true scope and extent of the issue.