Child Trafficking – Black market of Vulnerable Children in Asia
Illegal use of children for labor and sexual exploitation has been rampant around the world since decades despite the significant prevention efforts taken by the countries. Trafficking of children is a crime as it exploits the vulnerability of children and a violation of the child rights as it denies the children of their basic rights of living. Child Trafficking exploits the children vulnerable due to their individual, family-related or socioeconomic factors.
The rise of children being bought and sold across as well as within national borders with organized networks has become an issue of global concern. International and national government and non-government bodies are taking measures and efforts to eradicate this anti-social evil. They have seen little success and complete eradication is still a distant dream.
Asia is considered as an origin, transit as well as destination of human trafficking. The high levels of intraregional migration, economic disparities and lack of uniformity in employment and educational opportunities, extensive land borders, regional characteristics are the causes of the extensive trafficking in Asia. With an increase in volume of demand for young brides, adoption, and cheap labor, child traffickers are finding ways and means of luring children into exploitative industries. Promising ‘reputed’ work by ‘professionals’, introduction to work by an acquaintance, false recruitments, betrayal by relative/acquaintance, taking away by force, abduction, kidnapping, taking parents’ consent by offering money and rewards are some of the ways used to gather a flock of children. Young girls who are illegally migrated are vulnerable to activities like sexual exploitation, selling off to brothels, forced marriages, child labor, and violence while the boys are prone to slavery, forced/bonded labor, military recruitments, begging etc.
Some of the known pathways of human trafficking within Asian region which have been researched on include–
• Children from Cambodia bought to Thailand for begging.
• Girls from Myanmar/Vietnam bought to Thailand/Cambodia for sexual exploitation.
• Girls from Laos to Thailand bought in for domestic/factory work.
• Boys from Myanmar bought to Thailand for fishing industry.
• Girls from North Korea, Vietnam and Myanmar bought to China for forced marriage.
• Boys from Vietnam bought to China for illegal adoption.
• Children from Bangladesh bought to Pakistan for sexual exploitation.
Child trafficking is not limited to intra Asia; UNICEF in 2008 and 2009 researched on some of the inter country trafficking pathways from Asia. It includes–
• Pakistan and Bangladesh to United Arab Emirates.
• Thailand to South Africa, Switzerland and Germany.
• Indonesia to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Austria, Germany, Australia and the Netherlands.
• Philippines to United States, Costa Rica, Northern Mariana Islands and New Zealand.
Most countries in South Asia lack standard measures and framework for collecting and analyzing data related to child trafficking and hence there are very few reliable sources of information available. Most statistics are related to cross border trafficking of girls for purposes of sexual exploitation but information related to trafficking for other purposes is scarce. Bangladesh, Nepal and India keep a record of compiled data while there is a lack of data for Maldives and Bhutan. This makes measuring the extent of child trafficking, exploitation and abuse across the continent difficult and questionable.
Before developing measures and policies to curb child trafficking, it is important to research on the root causes of child trafficking in Asia. There is no information on the dynamics and interdependent effects of the little known causes like gender based and other forms of discrimination, violence/ abuse in community and home, lack of livelihood opportunities, structural factors and social norms etc. In some parts of the society girl child is still considered as a burden and her mobility is restricted and basic needs are neglected. Social and economic conditions make girls more prone to trafficking and sexual exploitation. So, while framing policies for child protection in Asia, it is important to analyze the linkage between discrimination and child protection.
Trafficking with other forms of child abuse is gaining attention in the South Asian region and hence policies and laws against it are being developed. India, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, five out of eight countries in this region, have adopted laws that criminalize child trafficking practices. Only Sri Lanka and Bangladesh have specific national legislations that define child trafficking. Maldives and Afghanistan do not have any specific laws related to child or human trafficking. Few countries like Nepal and Bangladesh have transformed their judicial processes to be child-friendly, for example, in Nepal children are allowed to testify irrespective of their age. Pakistan, Nepal, India, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka have National Plans of Action (NPAs) to ensure they follow a comprehensive approach to prevent trafficking of humans and also protect victims of human trafficking.
But child trafficking is a grave issue and should not be seen just as a sub part of human trafficking. There are an estimated 27 million slaves in the world and around half of them are children.
Child Trafficking is an infringement of a child’s mental and physical integrity. This is also an infringement of the child’s dignity and a threat to his life. This global business for some people, who are making profit out of it, is destroying the lives of countless children. Child trafficking is the third largest criminal enterprise in the world after drugs and arms dealing.
Children are the nation’s future and if a country lacks to protect the rights of its children, it is putting its own future and security at stake.
