A growing number of children whose families have fled the Syrian war to Lebanon are being forced to work for little or no pay, many of them in dangerous conditions, anti-slavery experts said on Tuesday, Al Jazeera reported.
About one million Syrians have fled to Lebanon, where they make up a quarter of the country's population. Many have no legal right to work, and families are forced to find other ways to pay for food, shelter and healthcare.
Some Lebanese employers prefer to hire children, finding them cheaper and more obedient than adults, the Freedom Fund, an international initiative to fight slavery, said in a report.
Adults, too, are being used as forced labour and are vulnerable to sexual exploitation, according to the report, which was based on interviews with local officials, refugees, international agencies and local NGOs.
"Our findings indicate that (forced labour) is becoming increasingly common as refugees become more desperate. According to two interviewees, forced labour is now so widespread as to constitute 'the norm'," the report said.
One NGO interviewed for the report estimated that between 60 and 70 percent of refugee children work.