The Issue of Child Trafficking - Essay Example

English November 14, Child Trafficking    Experts say that child trafficking is the world’s third largest and profitable industry. They are also hold the view that around one million women and children are trafficked every year from across the globe. Trafficked children are treated as mere commodities and get used as cheap labor and/or for sexual exploitation. Despite of what the figures have to say, the general public is largely unaware of the issue. Most of the trafficked children have similar stories for their listeners. It begins with the impoverished and helpless children, meeting the agents who allure them into the business by offering money and/or educational benefits in return. These children, having suffered at the hands of fate get tempted by such offers, mainly because they want to make good money to serve their personal and family needs. Such children sometimes even step out of their houses with these agents, even without their parental consent. Actually neither the child nor the “adult is usually aware of the full implications of their actions” (What is Child Trafficking para. 2). Often, by the time these children are rescued, it is generally too late. The children who have been trafficked and sexually exploited have to bear various consequences varying from unwanted pregnancies to HIV/AIDS or other sexually transmitted diseases. The physical scars can still be dealt with but the psychological scars remain to haunt them for a lifetime! Unfortunately, though many children get rescued their sufferings continue. According to an NGO, Plan USA, “The causes of child trafficking are complex and often reinforce each other. Victims are often made vulnerable by factors including poverty, the attraction of perceived higher standards of living, lack of employment opportunities, organized crime, violence and discrimination against women and children, government corruption, political instability and armed conflict” (What is Child Trafficking para. 2). Children are especially vulnerable to trafficking because they are easy to manipulate and can be used as puppet. At the same time they prove useful as they are able to perform domestic labor of varying degrees and other kinds of work (factories and household). The statistics show that in the last 20 year's time, anti trafficking organizations have worked harder to accept, understand, research and resolve the issue. But, despite of these continuous efforts, the problem remains unresolved. Therefore, it is time to make cumulative effort globally to eradicate such heinous issues thriving around us. “Some shocking numbers: Approximately 80% of human trafficking victims are women and girls of which upto 50% are minors. – U.S. State Department The average age of entry for children, who have been victims of the sex trade industry is about 12 years. – U.S. Department of Justice The global market for child trafficking is over $12 billion a year, with more than 1.2 million child victims. – UNICEF Surveys indicate that 30 to 35 % of all sex workers in Mekong (sub-region of Southeast Asia) are between 12 and 17 years of age. – UNICEF The average cost of slavery today is $90, a historic low” (Bales). Apart from what the governments across the world are doing to end child trafficking, there are other non profit agencies which are aiming towards rescuing children from hunger, abuse and disease. Each day, more and more children are trafficked into prostitution, forced labor, child marriages and other kinds of slavery. “Each day, the challenges grow greater for those who seek to prevent child trafficking and provide care for children who have been trafficked” (Our Mission para. 2). We all wait for someone else to bring about that change ! A general tendency is not to bother about the problem - unless it befalls upon us. That is precisely the reason why problems which are occurring on global level seldom find a global and effective solution. Sometimes it is people’s fear that holds them back from raising a voice and sometimes it is their inconsiderate attitude. Today it is somebody else’s child who has to go through the horrible ordeal, so people do not pay any heed to it, but we never stop or dread to think that it could be ours some other time. As Nicolas Kristof, the human rights columnist at New York Times and his wife Sheryl WuDunn, Pulitzer Prize winners and author of the upcoming book Half The Sky try to give their answer say, “If you begin to think of your own child not in middle school, but being locked up in a brothel, then it suddenly becomes pretty real” (Nicholas & WuDunn para. 2). This is not all. There are other ‘varieties’ of child trafficking as well. The notion of young girls of about 12years of age, getting married to Gods and Goddesses, who are then called Devadasinis or Joginis prevails in South Asia, Middle East, West Africa and Europe. This enables any male to ‘use’ them without subjecting to any kind of payment, in the name of God. Shockingly, it is with the consent of the parents and family members that the child is given away, oddly to please the Gods. According to author Maggie Black, as in many other parts of the world, the common notion of slavery among officials and citizens encountered during the research project is that conjured by the transatlantic slave trade: the outright sale, purchase and ownership of human beings (chattel slavery). While this does not apply, becoming a Devadasi is to be subjected to a form of slavery. The Slave Trade and the institutions and practices citizens encountered during the research project is that conjured by the transatlantic slave trade. As identified in the United Nations “Supplementary Convention on the Abolition of Slavery, the Slave Trade, and Institutions” (Slavery in Sudan para. 2) and practices Similar to Slavery, 1956. Article 1 (d) prohibits: “…any institution or practice whereby a child or a young person under the age of 18 is delivered by either or both of his parents or by his guardian to another person, whether for reward or not, with a view to the exploitation of the child or young person” (Black 3). The other kind of child trafficking is a boon for some but a bane for the biological parents. There are a lot of couples on this planet who crave for the warmth of a child but cannot have one. They are willing to pay huge amounts to fulfill their wish of parenthood. This is taken advantage of by agents who steal and sometimes purchase the child from his/her parents. The parents who are from a lower social and financial stature sell away their children, so as to feed themselves and also with the view of a safe future of their child. These children are then sold to wanna-be parents. Boys are more in demand, and their rates are higher than that of a girl child. Another angle to child trafficking is the thriving business of human organs that get smuggled mainly from the third world nations to their prosperous counterparts. It is as if to entail that the lives of unfortunate people is of less value than the flourished people. Sometimes, people willingly sell their organs to get money to run their impoverished household but at other times, young children are abducted and their organs are removed surgically. Many a times non-professionals are used for this which leaves the person to die of either infections or blood loss or both. These organs get sold at high bids by smugglers to needy and financially capable families who need these for their loved ones. So much so to let one person die to save another’s life! To this Susan Llewelyn Leach have to say that, “Ironically, there are more slaves now than there were even at the height of the transatlantic slave trade” (Leach). Lack of public awareness among the people of developed countries has not been of help in bringing about a solution to the problem. They are unaware that it is not a problem of just the third world countries. In fact, statistics inform that 25% of the foreigner child sex tourists are Americans. Child slavery is a tradition which is still getting maintained by many. Though people are well aware of the law, the amount of ease a slave brings to their lives compels them to stick to it. At the United Nations meet, Former President George W. Bush had said, “we must show new energy in fighting back an old evil. Nearly two centuries after the abolition of the transatlantic slave trade, and more than a century after slavery was officially ended in its last strongholds, the trade in human beings for any purpose must not be allowed to thrive in our time” (Bravo 208). It must be understood that human trafficking is different from child trafficking and should be handled as a separate problem. In the Asian Societies, it is the male child which is preferred, as after marriage, the wife moves with her husband’s family and is required to look after his parents and not her own parents. This has resulted to several cases of female infanticide. If not that, many healthy girl children can be found in orphanages who with time find themselves in the hands of child traffickers. A lot of articles discuss child trafficking and most are centered on girls who are trafficked. The statistics show that very few articles have information on male child abuse. “The uneven focus on sex trafficking and the sizable percentage of journal articles that offer no clear indication of the type of trafficking analyzed appears to be a constant across disciplines. The vast majority of studies focus on women. Very little is known about trafficking of men and boys, either for sexual exploitation or bonded labor” (Gozdziak & Bump 7). Unless, the issue of trafficking is divided in to sub-issues, it would be difficult to handle it as one big problem. The issue can be divided into human trafficking and child trafficking and then further sub divided based on the causes of trafficking like sexual exploitation, child labor , domestic help etc. On the same ground, to combat the event which has already occurred, the identification of the victim of child trafficking comes foremost. Then, the relevant agencies should register a case of child trafficking. Often the problem that has come to notice is that there is no comprehensive definition of child trafficking. It seems to vary with the functioning of the agency. Like has the child gone away himself or has he been kidnapped? Such questions need to be answered first. For this, a definitive explanation of child trafficking needs to be formed. Intra-agency activity would be much appreciated in the present situation. “It is clear that child trafficking needs to be tackled within the context of the overall work being undertaken around trafficking of human beings. However, it is also equally recognized that trafficking is a distant area for which policy and strategy should be developed within a Child Safeguarding Context” (Kapoor 62). As Sylvain Dessy and Stephane Pallage put it, “the fight against child trafficking can only be won by effectively combining legislation with other policy measures, such as improvements in the quality of education, redistribution or appropriately targeted poverty alleviation programs. These accompanying policies are necessary to raise the opportunity cost of sending children to work” (Dessy & Pallage 5). Annotated Bibliography Bales, Kevin. Ending Slavery. World Concern. n.d. Web. 14 Nov. Kevin Bales, Author of Ending Slavery. The shocking facts noted above are taken from the website of an NGO World Concern. It is an excellent site with purpose of admonishing child trafficking. It is simple to use and up-to-date. Black, Maggie. Women in Ritual Slavery. Anti-Slavery International. 2007. Web. 14 Nov. Anti Slavery International (2007) Women in ritual slavery: Devdasi, Jogini and Mathamma in Karnataka and Andra Pradesh, Southern India. 46p. Authored by Maggie Black. It is a research report which gives an honest view on the lives of Devdasini and Joginis complete with interviews and pictures of actual people. It provides thorough information about the kind of afterlife these ladies have to live. More information can be gathered from the website. Dessy, Sylvain E. & Pallage, Stephane. The Economics of Child Trafficking. CIRPEE and Department d Economique, Universite Laval. 2003. Web. 14 Nov. < http://www.econ.yale.edu/conference/neudc03/papers/3a-dessy.pdf> Sylvain Dessy and Stephane Pallage, April 2003. “The Economics of Child Trafficking” Gahiers de recherche 0323, CIRPEE This paper discusses the economic effects of child trafficking. The most unusual thing about this paper is that it shows everything with almost mathematical equations! An strongly suggested website to understand the topic. Gozdziak, Elzbieta M. & Bump, Micah N. Data and Research on Human Trafficking: Bibliography of Research-Based Literature. Institute for the Study of International Migration. Walsh School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University. 2008. Web. 14 Nov. Elzbieta M. Gozdziak, Ph.D and Micah N. Bump, MA. October 2008. “Data and Research on Human Trafficking – Institute for the Study of International Migration, Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service. It is a research article which has a lot of statistical data to prove it’s work. It seems to be accurate, as the material is gathering from various reliable sources, though not very easy to comprehend because of the numeric data. Kapoor, Aarti. A Scoping Project on Child Trafficking in the UK: Making Every Child Matter…Every Where. CEOP. Home Office and the Border and Immigration Agency. 2007. Web. 14 Nov. < http://polis.osce.org/library/f/2973/1500/GOV-GBR-RPT-2973-EN-A%20Scoping%20Project%20on%20Child%20Trafficking%20in%20the%20UK.pdf> Jim Gamble, ACPO Lead, Child Trafficking and CEO, Child Explitation and Online Protection Centre. (Pg 64). The Scoping Project on Child Trafficking in the UK. June 2007. In this, the author has given extensive and elaborate information on child trafficking, specially, in terms of UK. It has graphs to accompany its research. The best part is that the website not only addressed the problem, but also suggests ways to handle the issue. Leach, Susan Llewelyn. Slavery is not Dead, Just Less recognizable. The Christian Science Monitor. 2004. Web. 14 Nov. Susan Llewelyn Leach, Slavery is Not Dead, Just Less Recognizable, Staff Writer for The Christian Science Monitor Sept. 1, 2004, at 16. Susan Llewelym Leach is a staff writer of the Christian Science Monitor. In this paper she has written at length about how the slave trade has flourished over the years and has grown up to be more than what it was during the transatlantic slave trade. Nicholas & WuDunn, Sheryl. Half the Sky. The Oprah Winfrey Show. 2009. Web. 14 Nov. < http://www.oprah.com/world/Ending-Human-Sex-Trafficking/1> Ending Modern Day Slavery, the Oprah Winfrey Show, December 01, 2009. The Oprah Winfrey Show has won accolades time and again for its heart to heart talks. The show deals with people who have seen worse times and are now trying to build a life of their own. In this particular show husband Nicolas Kristof and wife Sheryl WuDunn, two Pulitzer Prize winners bring the issue of child slavery in the forefront. More about the topic can be learnt from their book Half the Sky. Our Mission. Childtrafficking.com. n.d. Web. 14 Nov. This website is a very source to have information on child trafficking. The Terre homes foundation, based at Switzerland has been doing on site research since 1999, working forth to fight child trafficking. The website provides detail of child trafficking complete with pictures and the work that its people are doing. Tiefenbrun, Susan W. & Edwards, Christie. GENDERCIDE AND THE CULTURAL CONTEXT OF SEX TRAFCKING IN CHINA. The Berkeley Electronic Press. 2008. Web. 14 Nov. Susan W. Tiefenbrun. & Christie, Edwards. 2008 “GENDERCIDE AND THE CULTURAL CONTEXT OF SEX TRAFCKING IN CHINA” ExpressO The abstract is taken from the unpublished paper of Susan W.Tiefenbrun and wherein they have discussed the historic, legal and cultural context that are resultant of the disparity that is prevalent in the Chinese society. We Can’t Wait on Congress: The Time to Act is Now. The White House. Web. 14 Nov. < http://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/> President George W. Bush, Speech Made Before the United Nations, General Assembly in New York (Sept. 23, 2003) This is a reliable and easy for reference website which holds the press releases and speeches of the President. As it is a government maintained website, it has accurate information. What is Child Trafficking. Hope Plan. n.d. Web. 14 Nov. Excerpt given here is from the website planusa.org. This website is of an America based NGO working towards the befit of children and families world over. Established since 1937, it has organized information on child trafficking and options of how other people can do their bit. Work Cited Bales, Kevin. Ending Slavery. World Concern. n.d. Web. 14 Nov. Black, Maggie. Women in Ritual Slavery. Anti-Slavery International. 2007. Web. 14 Nov. Bravo, Karen E. Exploring the Analogy between Modern Trafficking in Humans and the Transatlantic Slave Trade. Print. Causes of Child Trafficking. Hope Plan. n.d. Web. 14 Nov. http://www.planusa.org/contentmgr/showdetails.php/id/2159 Dessy, Sylvain E. & Pallage, Stephane. The Economics of Child Trafficking. CIRPEE and Department d Economique, Universite Laval. 2003. Web. 14 Nov. < http://www.econ.yale.edu/conference/neudc03/papers/3a-dessy.pdf> Gozdziak, Elzbieta M. & Bump, Micah N. Data and Research on Human Trafficking: Bibliography of Research-Based Literature. Institute for the Study of International Migration. Walsh School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University. 2008. Web. 14 Nov. http://isim.georgetown.edu/publications/20081001_NIJ_BIB.pdf Kapoor, Aarti. A Scoping Project on Child Trafficking in the UK: Making Every Child Matter…Every Where. CEOP. Home Office and the Border and Immigration Agency. 2007. Web. 14 Nov. < http://polis.osce.org/library/f/2973/1500/GOV-GBR-RPT-2973-EN-A%20Scoping%20Project%20on%20Child%20Trafficking%20in%20the%20UK.pdf> Leach, Susan Llewelyn. Slavery is not Dead, Just Less recognizable. The Christian Science Monitor. 2004. Web. 14 Nov. Nicholas & WuDunn, Sheryl. Half the Sky. The Oprah Winfrey Show. 2009. Web. 10 Nov. < http://www.oprah.com/world/Ending-Human-Sex-Trafficking/1> Our Mission. Childtrafficking.com. n.d. Web. 14 Nov. Slavery in Sudan. Wikipedia. 2011. Web. 14 Nov. Tiefenbrun, Susan W. & Edwards, Christie. GENDERCIDE AND THE CULTURAL CONTEXT OF SEX TRAFCKING IN CHINA. The Berkeley Electronic Press. 2008. Web. 14 Nov. We Can’t Wait on Congress: The Time to Act is Now. The White House. Web. 10 Nov. < http://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/> What is Child Trafficking. Hope Plan. n.d. Web. 14 Nov. Read More