Floods that started in India and Pakistan Sept. 3 killed at least 450 people and left 700,000 homeless; now aid agencies are warning that millions of children are at risk of trafficking in the aftermath of the flooding.
Christian Today reports that human traffickers will be looking to take children from parents that have lost their jobs as a result of the floods.
Sudarshan Sathianathan, of Tearfund said, "We know from previous disasters, such as the Bihar floods in 2008, that opportunistic traffickers will take advantage of vulnerable families in the wake of disasters, by offering to temporarily take their child to cities to find work and send back money.”
"Out of desperation, families accept the offer, without realising that their child – some as young as six years old – will be sold into the sex industry or into child labour. In some extremely sad cases, they never see their child again."
Human trafficking for forced labor or sexual exploitation is the fastest growing criminal industry in the world, according to Christian Today. Officials estimate up to 27 million people are currently living as slaves, and rates of trafficking statistically increase after natural disasters or conflict.
Publication date: September 25, 2014
