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Leave no Child Behind

Trigger Warning: child trafficking, sexual exploitation, human trafficking

The article focuses on the issue of child trafficking, making connections to the World Day Against Trafficking in Persons. This year´s theme of the day is “Leave No Children Behind”, shedding light on this inhumane phenomenon.

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Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children states that “Trafficking in persons shall mean the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person, for the purpose of exploitation. Exploitation shall include, at a minimum, the exploitation of the prostitution of others or other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labour or services, slavery or practices similar to slavery, servitude or the removal of organs(..)” and additionally “The recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of a child for the purpose of exploitation shall be considered “trafficking in persons” even if this does not involve any of the means(…)” aforementioned.

The reasons underlying this situation are a complex mixture of socioeconomic structure on regional and transnational levels, political and military conflicts, gender, class, ethnic inequality, and many more. Child trafficking rates are especially high in some economically underdeveloped and regions with ongoing wars, such as West Africa and Asia’s Mekong region including Cambodia, parts of China, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam.

The motivations vary from forced labor to adoption, from sexual abuse to military use.

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Although it is against modern international law now (check: Optional Protocol on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict), children have been used in state military organizations. Intrinsically a horrible phenomenon, today, one major motivation for child trafficking remains children´s use in military purposes in non-state armed groups such as liberation or guerilla movements, terrorist organizations. In the Report of the UN Secretary-General, Colombia in South America; Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mali, Somalia, South Sudan, and Sudan in Africa; Lebanon and Palestine in the Middle East; Syria and Yemen in Western Asia; Afghanistan in Central Asia; and Myanmar in South East Asia were identified as countries where children are used in armed groups.

The “recruitment” process is provided through abduction, threats, coercion, or manipulation of children, and there are specific characteristics of children causing these violent groups to target them. Children are preferred due to their susceptibility to be more easily manipulated and controlled. Drugging the children to keep them aggressive, is an often preferred method, like in the cases of Sierra Leone and Liberia.  UNICEF states that “Between 2005 and 2022, more than 105,000 children were verified as recruited and used by parties to conflict, although the actual number of cases is believed to be much higher.”

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Sexual exploitation of children, according to ILO, includes child prostitution in the streets or brothels, trafficking children for sex trade, child sex tourism, child pornography, and use of children in sex shows. Sexual exploitation of children in the context of travel and tourism (SECTT) is a global problem; a typical image is a person from a wealthy country traveling to a poorer destination country where the child is being sexually abused. Poverty and inequality, alongside with the lack of access to education, healthcare, and healthy food can lead to “survival sex”, which means prostitution by people in extreme need. However, naturally, considering the lack of the capability of consent, these cases are also sexual abuse of the children.

One in every three victims of human trafficking is children, with a majority of girls. Although it exists globally, child prostitution is most severe in South America and Asia; statistics can be seen here. Leading to physical and psychological trauma, chronic illnesses, addiction to illegal drugs, and pregnancy, child prostitution is defined as the worst form of child labor by the International Labor Organization, alongside being a crime under international law.

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Quality of government and protective measures for children appear to be the main drivers of successful prevention. Economic development and community support programs and a more expansive budget for education have a significant influence on preventing the reasons leading people into child trafficking. Nongovernmental organizations support the community and especially the previous victims of human trafficking. Providing mental health services, working on community empowerment by courses and labor opportunities, informing the population about the issue, community-led organizations have a huge role in the prevention of child trafficking and potential traumas resulting by this.

I want to finish my blog article by pointing out one of such community-led organization, working in Bolivia called Fundación Enda el Alto. They “work to reduce the social and economic vulnerability of children and adolescents, promoting fair societies that defend children’s rights and gender equality.” They built a service that complements the psycho-socio-educational care provided at the support centers, with the aim of supporting the labor integration of adolescents and young people. Their objective is to facilitate processes of economic and social empowerment for adolescents who are victims of violence and/or in a situation of socio-economic vulnerability, for their inclusion in the labor market, within the framework of labor rights and skills, which contribute to improving their quality of life.

Finally, contributing to the works of community-led organizations is a simple way to create a positive influence in the world, whether by donating or actively taking part in the events.

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