The Children of the Machane Yehudah Market

B"H

Jerusalemites and tourists know the Machane Yehudah Market as a place, where one can buy cheap fresh fruit, vegetables etc. However, if you look very carefully, you do not only see food products but, above all, many children who work there. Palestinian teenagers, who actually should be still learning in school, slave away on the Machane Yehudah more than ten hours daily. I f they are being paid on time or whether they are paid fair wages, no one knows. The children are silent in order not to lose their jobs.

Who is guilty, a Jerusalemite weekly asked recently. The children, their parents sending them to work or the market dealers using the cheap labour ?
Social workers were sent into the market in order to bring the children back to school. Anyway, the market dealers were not too happy, as they saw their cheap labour in danger. The children were not too excited either, as they saw their jobs at stake. At home, we have nothing to eat and we really need to support our families, so the response of the children.
The result was that the social workers weren't too successful. Everybody kept quite and business is at usual at the Machane Yehudah market.

But not only in the Machane Yehudah we see 13 – 17 year old youngsters working. We can meet them at the groceries in the neighbourhood or see them selling small items in the streets such as cleaning rags or matches.
Who is guilty ? Poverty, the parents, the bosses or the children ?

Today, not only Palestinian teenagers face the problem but also Israeli youngsters. More and more underage school-age Israeli children want to earn money early. They need money for the cinema, for going out with friends, for clothes, etc., and if the parents sit unemployed at home, the children cannot keep up with society.
However, both teenager groups have different reasons to work. The Palestinians need money for their families and the Israelis rather need it to keep a certain status.

In about a month, summer vacation starts in Israel. The vacation is rather long; from the end of June until September 1. Then thousands of Israeli school kids are going to work and earn a few Shekels. They do not care too much about work conditions or whether the employers pay according to the tariff. For them it is more important to earn some cash.

Only in a few years time, we will see the whole tragedy. The children will be adults without graduation and without any chance on the tense labour market. Above all, in Palestinian society nothing will change if poverty cannot be removed. But education is not available in the Machane Yehudah Market.