On cold winter mornings or rainy summer mornings, child “Qat harvesters” in many villages in Yemen, go to Qat farms to pick Qat branches and stack them in circular bundles or store them in plastic bags and to be ready for shipping to various Qat markets to be sold to millions of Yemenis who chew Qat plant every day.
The Qat plant is one of the narcotic plants grown in Yemen and East Africa. It's leaves contains Monoamine neurotransmitter called cathinone which is similar to a stimulant Amphetamine, and causes a lack of appetite and a state of hyperactivity.
Qat Addiction
The father of Arafat Hassan (13 years old) did not know that his child, who worked in harvesting Qat leaves on his farm located in Damt District in Al-Dhalae Governorate and other farms in the village, would become addicted to consuming Qat at such an early age. The child’s father told Khuyut: “At the time of Qat harvesting, my son would pick some Qat branches and chew them, and I would allow him to do this in order to increase his activity and harvest more quantities. However, I was surprised to find that he is chewing a large amount of Qat like adults do.”
The conflict that broke out in the country more than nine years ago exacerbated the poor living conditions and led to a state of stagnation among the labor who were working in harvesting Qat branches for the farm owners as the owners found themselves unable to pay the workers their wages; This prompted many of them to bring their children to work in this arduous profession in Qat farms to become “harvesters,” and thus the journey of suffering for these children has begun.
According to the specialist in respiratory and chest diseases, Dr. Mahmoud Al-Turki, many children working in Qat harvesting are at risk of developing asthma and allergies due to the effects of highly toxic pesticides and the permanently stuck dust in the Qat tree, in addition to the extreme cold on the winter mornings in which they work.
Toxic Pesticides
The Qat plant is sprayed with many highly toxic pesticides, some of which are even smuggled into the country and have expired. Despite this, children “khat harvesters” go every morning to pick Qat branches or leaves, which portends a health disaster that will befall them, as this disaster looms on the horizon of many, and there are some of them who have become infected with various diseases, most of which are related to the respiratory system.
The spread of the phenomenon of child “harvesters” is not limited to one Yemeni governorate where the Qat plant is grown, but it can be observed in every place where khat is grown. Many factors caused children to be engaged in this profession, the most prominent of which was the poor living conditions of families and the Qat farmers who prefer to hire children to work in Qat harvest for small wages comparing to adult workers.
In the beginning, he was working as a Qat “harvester” picking Qat branches, then he moved to a Qat market in the city of Rada'a in Al-Baidha Governorate, to work in buying and selling the Qat to consumers. This is not the only story of the child Osama Ahmed (14 years old). Rather, there are many similar cases of children working in harvesting Qat leaves on Qat farms, which causes them sever damage for being involved in dangerous practices that provide children with nothing but suffering and harms.
The profession of “Khat/Qat harvesting” carries a great danger to children, starting with their contracting several respiratory diseases, then depriving them of their education, play, and luxury, and ending with making them addicted to Qat chewing. Despite all this, we do not see parents or specialized bodies limiting or preventing the expansion of child labor in this dangerous profession that threatens the wasted childhood.
An anesthetic Substance
The World Health Organization classifies the Qat plant as a narcotic, and its use is prohibited in most countries of the world, while its consumption is widespread in Yemen. This is because it is the plant that occupies the largest space in the life of the Yemeni farmers, and brings them the most and fastest profit. However, Qat plantation has a serious impact on the cultivation of cash crops, fruits, vegetables and grains.
Due to the fact that Qat contains norpsidophenedrine and cathine, which are similar in effect to amphetamines, the World Health Organization included the Qat plant in 1973 on the list of narcotic substances, after six years of research. The organization also described the plant as a harmful drug that can cause mild or moderate addiction (less than alcohol and tobacco).
In spite of the lack of accurate statistics on the number of children working in harvesting Qat, the observer can see thousands of children working in the farms and valleys of the governorates where Qat cultivation is widespread, such as the governorates of Al-Dhalae’, Ibb, Al-Baidha, Ammran, Sana’a, and others. It is noted that most of these children, if not all of them, have dropped out of school, not only because the profession of Qat harvesting coincides with the times of their classes in the morning, but also because they have become addicted to chewing Qat, and many families depend on their children to earn money from this profession.
The profession of “Khat/Qat harvesting” carries a great danger to children, starting with their contracting several respiratory diseases, then depriving them of their education, playing, and well-being, and ending with making them addicted to Qat chewing. Despite all this, we do not see parents or specialized bodies limiting or preventing the expansion of child labor in this dangerous profession that threatens the wasted childhood.
