A new law in Bolivia allows children as young as ten to work legally, and has led to sharp criticism from many international human rights groups, who note that it goes against a United Nation convention setting a minimum age of 14.
But supporters of the legislation say that the law guarantees legal protections and fair wages for children, who have been working regardless of laws against it.
A 2013 report from the U.S. Department of Labor reported that more than 20 percent of Bolivians between the ages of 7 and 14 worked, while a U.N. agency reported a figure nearly three times that high in 2008, according to the Associated Press. Both reports note that Bolivian children work in some of the country's most dangerous working conditions.
NPR reporter Sara Shahriari spoke with NPR's Renee Montagne about the complicated situation that led to this controversial law, and the reactions in Bolivia and around the world.