SE Asia must curb child trafficking: Unicef

SE Asia must curb child trafficking: Unicef

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) urged on Monday
Southeast Asian nations to enhance cooperation to curb child
trafficking for sexual purposes in the region.

Unicef's representative in Indonesia, Steven Allen, said on
Monday that the region needed to do more to enforce laws so that
child exploiters were systematically pursued and charged.

"Addressing the demand side also involves behavioral changes
in men and (changes) in the status of girls and women," he said.

Regional surveys showed that the trafficking of children was
"lucrative and well-organized, within and between countries, and
linked to criminal activity and corruption," he said.

Speaking at a two-day seminar -- which opened on Monday -- on
child trafficking for sexual purposes, in Medan, North Sumatra,
Steven conceded that a number of child traffickers and exploiters
had been charged in Indonesia under articles of the criminal code
and child protection law.

"But more still needs to be done to ensure that child
traffickers and exploiters are systematically pursued and
charged," he said in his speech, which was made available to the
Jakarta Post by Unicef.

According to Unicef, about 70 thousand children -- some as
young as nine-years old -- are the victims of sexual exploitation
in Indonesia at present.

In Asia, meanwhile, at least 400,000 children are being
trafficked for sexual exploitation purposes every year.

Steven said that an agreement against the trafficking of
children adopted last year by Thailand and Cambodia should serve
as a model for other countries in the region.

The seminar was organized by the Medan-based Center for Child
Protection and Study, the Office of the State Minister of Women's
Empowerment and the North Sumatra provincial government and
supported by Unicef, the Catholic Organization for Relief and
Development and others.

Some 300 representatives, including leading activists from
non-governmental organizations from Southeast Asian countries are
participating in the seminar.

Meanwhile, Unicef spokeswoman, Julie Lebegue said that
Indonesia was yet to seriously cooperate with neighboring
countries to overcome the long-standing child trafficking
problems.

She said that growing child trafficking was the result of a
consumptive lifestyle, poverty and the lack of parents' awareness
of the importance of giving their children education.

Child trafficking is a problem in a number of Indonesian
cities such as Batam, Riau province and Medan, she confirmed.

Ahmad Sofian, director of the Center for Child Protection and
Study shared Julie's opinion, saying regional cooperation was
imperative to fight the growing trade in children, especially for
sexual purposes.

"How can we fight effectively when states in the region are
mostly doing it on their own, while our enemies are
well-organized, cross-border syndicates?" said Ahmad.