Traffickers prey on Aceh's orphans

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta/Medan

The catastrophic earthquake and tsunami have left some 35,000 children either orphaned or separated from their parents and other family members in Aceh, many of whom may have fallen victim to child trafficking, officials said on Monday.

The Medan-based Aceh Sepakat Foundation reported that at least 20 Acehnese children were thought to have been smuggled out of Aceh after the Dec. 26 calamity.

Foundation executive Masriza said the suspicions arose after he was informed that the 20 orphans were sent to Malaysia and Bandung, West Java, by a foundation located on Jl. Selam in Medan, North Sumatra.

He said many other Acehnese children, who survived the catastrophe, went missing after having been taken by "irresponsible people" from refugee camps.

"Usually, the targets are babies and children below the age of 15 years. The trafficking syndicate poses as a foundation. It's irresponsible and a violation of the law," Masriza added.

He expressed concern that trafficking cases may rise as thousands of infants were among the tsunami refugees who have been pouring into Medan to seek shelter.

The Jakarta Post observed that at least one foundation offered Acehnese orphans to potential foster parents via short messaging services (SMS).

To prevent child trafficking, the government issued a regulation on Monday banning the movement of Acehnese children below the age of 16 who were affected by the calamity from leaving Indonesia.

Minister of Justice and Human Rights Hamid Awaluddin said the ban would be followed up by increasing surveillance at the airports and seaports in North Sumatra and Aceh.

"We cannot prevent them from leaving the provinces, but we will not allow them to leave Indonesia, as part of our efforts to stop possible child trafficking," he said after discussing the regulation with Cabinet Secretary Sudi Silalahi.

Data from the Ministry of Social Affairs shows that more than 35,000 Acehnese infants, or nearly 50 percent of over 94,000 people who died, lost their parents after the devastating tsunami.

Minister of Social Affairs Bachtiar Chamsyah admitted he was informed of possible child trafficking in Aceh, suggesting that Acehnese residents should be given priority to adopt the orphans.

"This will preserve the emotional and cultural relations between them," he said on Sunday.

Separately, Ministry of Social Affairs director for child protection, Makmur Sanusi, said the government had placed many Acehnese children at separate orphanages in Medan and some other towns across Sumatra island.

Some other children were being taken care of by Acehnese families, he said.

These families were temporarily taking care of the children until they could be reunited with their families and relatives, Makmur added.

"We, however, do not allow the families to adopt the children, unless we have determined that their parents and other immediate relatives died in the tsunami," he said.

National Police chief Gen. Da'i Bachtiar issued an instruction on Monday for all provincial police headquarters to be on the alert for possible cases of trafficking of Acehnese children.

"The syndicates operate using three methods. First, they are posing as representatives of a foundation concerned with children. Second, they claim to be a family member who wishes to take care of them. Third, they claim to be foster parents," National Police chief of detectives Comr. Gen. Suyitno Landung said.