Child Trafficking

The words of a child trafficking victim urge us to use our voices to fight to ensure that children do not continue to suffer in silence.

Child trafficking is about taking children out of their protective environment and preying on their vulnerability for the purpose of exploitation. Child trafficking is to seek a child for exploitation. Thousands of children are trafficked every year from rural as well as urban areas in India. Child trafficking is lucrative and often linked with criminal activity and corruption, it is hard to estimate how many children suffer, but trafficking and exploitation is an increasing risk to children around the world. Victims are bought and sold like commodities.

Children and youth account for a significant proportion of trafficking. Both boys and girls are trafficked. Some are exploited sexually while others are exploited for different forms of labour, including begging and street selling. The various forms of child trafficking include child labour, early marriages, sexual assault, begging and organ trade etc. The vital causes of child trafficking in India are lack of education, poor functioning of law, unemployment and poverty.

TheInternational Labour Organization(ILO) says child trafficking is among “Forms of slavery or practices similar to slavery” and should be eradicated as soon as possible.

ILO estimates that 21 million people are trapped in forced labour or slavery. Of those, it says one in four are under the age of 18.

The estimated number of children trafficked around the world is 5.5 million.

Conclusion - Government needs to work with the help of NGO’s to develop, evaluate and implement laws and provisions to stop the crime. Creating awareness and educating people is important.

Forming different strategies and executing them to eliminate child trafficking groups and criminals should be a constant effort made by government with the help of society.