The issues of child labor are becoming a growing concern as developed countries recognize the inhumanities of child labor in lesser-developed countries. Proposed solutions, such as sanctioning countries with poor labor practices, create further problems, while issues like the Asian economic crisis are increasing the difficulty of such solutions. The main efforts to counter the problem are left in the hands of an international council that relies solely on public and social pressure to police the issue. Child labor problems are not limited to developing nations but represent a different problem.
             In the article, Child Labor Crises Worsening, the International Labor Organization (ILO), warns that the estimated number of child laborers in Africa could rise from 80 million currently, to more than 100 million by the year 2015. 1 Other statistics put out by the ILO state that approximately 41 percent of African children between the ages of five and fourteen are involved in economic activity, 21% in Asia and 17% in Latin America. Also, worldwide, 250 million children are working.2.
             The most important efforts to eliminate child labor abuse throughout the world come from the ILO, founded in 1919 and now a special agency of the United Nations.
             The ILO is responsible for introducing the many rules and regulations concerning child labor practices, however does not have the power to enforce these conventions and therefore depends upon voluntary compliance of member nations. 3
             Trade unions backed by US politicians, as explored in the World trade survey: Brothers up in arms, suggest imposing trade sanctions as a punishment for countries that ignore minimum standards of decency. This World Trade Organization (WTO), disagrees; "its rules do not ban imports made by either slave labor of child labor, only those produced by prison labor.4 The problem is, the WTO says labor standards are the domain of the ILO, while the ILO makes no link betwee...