The beginning of the national competition of wrestling, horse riding and archery ignites protests for the use of children in racing: they weigh and cost less. An activist: "The rich must stop exploiting youngsters for their own entertainment." Over 300 accidents a year, and betting up to 60,000 dollars.

 

Baatar (AsiaNews/agencies) - There is growing protest in Mongolia for the participation of children in horse races. In at least 30,000 yearly competitions involve child riders aged 7 years and older. The human rights groups are asking the government to raise the minimum age and limit participation.

Thursday, July 11 Naadam began, a traditional Mongolian discipline that combines wrestling, horse racing and archery. Very often, for the 28 kilometres of riding foreseen by the competition, children are preferred to adults: they are lighter and do not tire the animal. However, over the past year, 326 kids at a young age have suffered serious injuries in official matches, but it is estimated that that figure is greater if one takes into account the accidents that occurred in the countryside and that are unreported.

The horse is at the heart of a Mongolian tradition and the discipline of Naadam gathers up a cultural heritage that from Genghis Khan comes down to the present day. In Mongolia it is said that, with their first steps, children also learn to ride on horseback, and on this principle traditionalists defend the practice. "Children fall from horses, it's the only way to learn horse riding - one trainer sustains - in this way the young child and the horse become a harmonious entity".

But the figures of accidents and premature deaths in the race are pushing human rights associations rights to fight for greater protection. Baljinnyam Javzankhuu, of the National Agency for children, claims that "over the past 20 years the competitions have become much more cruel".

With the accomplice of the fortuitous moment of economic expansion experienced by the country in recent years, the discipline of Naadam began attracting a substantial flow of betters. "The rich should stop making children victims of their fun", explains the Mongolian activist, Oyunchimeg Purev "the children and their families do not receive even a fee". Bets can arrive at 60,000 dollars for the race and the horses are also insured for a value of millions, while the salary for young jockeys rarely exceeds the 0 per race and the amount spent on insuring them is even lower. 

 

 

• mongolia
• naadam
• horse
• economy
• children