Sir: Pakistan is one of the poorest countries in the world with many of its citizens living in poverty. Child labour is an important and serious global issue throughout the world but in countries like Pakistan it has grown to a maximum level. It is one of the basic rights of children to enjoy their childhood. They should not have to bear the responsibilities of adults while they are still so young. Poverty-stricken families often have several children because they believe that the more children they have, the more money they can accumulate. These children are put to work as soon as they turn five or six years of age. It is not lawful to deprive children of education and their childhood because of their poverty. The government deducts Zakat on a yearly basis through the banking system but never properly distributes it among the poor masses, due to which the people are deprived of their rights because of rampant corruption whereby the rich are getting richer and the poor are getting poorer. We, the educated masses, are also at fault because we do not hesitate in hiring children to run our household and other errands. On an individual level we can ameliorate this major flaw in our society by taking the responsibility of educating one child whereas, on a macro level, it is the duty of the government to provide basic needs to the poverty-stricken people. TAYYABA TAHIR Karachi