Child Traffiking

What Should be done to Prevent Child Trafficking?

Child trafficking is one of the most depraved evil of our time. Very few people are actually aware of how large the problem is. Even if people are aware, they generally turn a blind eye towards the entire situation. For this reason, the level of awareness needs to be increased drastically. Hence the media should be sensitized to the problem of child trafficking through information and public relations work and called upon to commit themselves to this cause. Once the media and the other mediums are educated, they will, in turn, educate the entire population and thus turn apathy into empathy.

Child trafficking violates human rights and hence should be fundamentally recognized as a crime. The fight against child trafficking should be given the same weighting as, for instance, the fight against international white-collar crime. The law should be very clear and strict regarding the punishment to be carried out if an individual is caught doing this crime. In many countries corruption and bribery among the government officials, allows child trafficking to go unchecked. Victims of child trafficking who are forced into illegal activities should not be looked upon as criminals. They need legal security, protection from deportation and they should also be compensated for the injustice they have suffered. Many victims of child prostitution and trafficking seek help but their reports are ignored and covered up due to mistrust of children's testimonies. The result is that many children are victimized not only by the initial abuse, but also by the failure of authorities to take effective action. Furthermore, victims do not have an effective remedy against those who are abusing their rights. It is thus very necessary to have stricter laws in place and the criminals should be punished severely so as to discourage future offenders.

Up until now there has hardly been anything done to help the victims of child trafficking. There should be adequate rehabilitation centers for the victims of child prostitution. Involvement and cooperation among NGOs, national government, civil society, and community organizations is a must to empower the children and make them aware of their rights. Strengthening of families is also a crucial element of elimination of child prostitution and trafficking.

Prevention is better than cure. Therefore adequate steps should be taken to ensure that the problem of child trafficking doesn't get bigger than it already is. Primary goals of the national government of any country should be to ensure fair