Child Trafficking
What is child trafficking? Child trafficking is a crime involving the movement of children for the purpose of their exploitation. It is considered child trafficking if the victim is under the age of 18, otherwise it is called human trafficking, which is also illegal.
The purpose of child trafficking is for exploitation, which includes exploiting the prostitution of others, sexual exploitation, forced labor, slavery or similar practices and the removal of organs. Children are also used in drug trades in all regions of the world. Children are often trafficked into exploitation as either drug couriers or drug dealers, and then they were paid in drugs, so that they become addicted and further entrapped. Due to the nature of drug trafficking, children who are apprehended are often treated as criminals, when in reality they are often the ones in need of legal assistance.
There are many reasons why the victims dont run away. They dont run away because their traffickers control them. For example through debt bondage, a victim is told that he or she owes the trafficker money used for transportation, food and accommodation. The debt never decreases and the victim remains trapped by the trafficker. Other forms of control include taking and keeping a victims identity or travel documents, use as threats to harm the victims family, locking up the victim, and forced drug use. The victims are completely controlled and often too afraid to try to escape.
Child trafficking has many effects. Usually the victims dont even have basic control over their daily decisions such as when to sleep, eat, or rest. Their lives are controlled by their traffickers who constantly abuse, torture, rape, forced drug use, forced abortions, and physiological manipulation, The experience is traumatic and damages the physical, mental, and social well being of a person. The traffickers usually aim for vulnerable people, even though anyone can be trafficked. Factors that cause vulnerability include lack of economic opportunities, poverty, unemployment, and domestic violence.
There are a few facts about child trafficking.
An enslaved child may be raped between five and ten times per night.
The transaction may be for as little as $5 each night. However, the first time a child is sold, the price may rise as high as $200.
On average, two children are sold every minute.
Approximately 75-80% of child trafficking is for sex.
The Indonesian government has done several efforts to stop this issue, but it seems like it didnt work well. The government did not demonstrate vigorous efforts to investigate and criminally punish law enforcement officials involved in human trafficking.
We can help prevent child trafficking by distributing information to children and their parents about the abuse on children who are trafficked and the risk that children who migrate or are sent away from home to work or earn money for others will be trafficked. Other ways is that we can volunteer to do victim outreach or offer services to a local anti-trafficking organization.
