October 31st
Child-trafficking
(By Andrea
Saula)
Last December police at Belgrade airport discovered a 14-year-old Roma girl. Investigation showed that her mother sold her for 300$ to a mediator. A case from Albania showed that parents sold a three-year-old boy to a mediator for the price of a color TV. But how many kids have never been found and never will? And how many so-called mediators will get away exploiting the devastating poverty that pushes parents into parting with their children.
Hello and welcome to UNMIK on AIR
NGOs are sounding the alarm bell - child trafficking, they
say, has become the third most lucrative type of crime worldwide after the
illegal drugs trade and adult human trafficking. According to the latest
statistics released by UNICEF, the UN Children and Education Fund, 1,2 million
children are trafficked worldwide each year. The UNICEF report said there is an
alarming rise in the number of children being trafficked from the former
communist countries of Central and Eastern Europe - it is thought to be in the
tens of thousands each year.
Save the children UK is in the forefront of a new
regional campaign against child trafficking.
Jasminka Milovanovic of the organization’s Belgrade
branch says the campaign is long overdue.
Jasminka Milovanovic: Trafficking is a wide spectrum
of criminal activities increasing in this part of the world. One of the most
important reasons for that is the socio-economic situation in this region. We
can’t look at this problem in isolation; we have to see it as a wider regional
problem. But according to information from our branch offices in other regions,
it looks like that the problem exists everywhere.
This part of the
world is known to be a region of transit and destination, and it appears, also
of origin. In Kosovo, besides unemployment and poverty, says psychologist
Aliriza Arenliu, the cultural mindset often prevents people from speaking out.
Aliriza Arenliu: We have one of the youngest
populations in Europe. The rate of unemployment, level of education, lack of
prosperity and a vision of the future could be causes for the increase, but I
stress that there is no clear connection with socio-economical factors. It is
more related to family education and culture, as well with the family
tradition.
The Stability Pact for South Eastern Europe has published a
comprehensive report on human trafficking in the entire region. Children are
trafficked for many purposes, the report says - begging, stealing, for sexual
abuse and for the pornography market.
But the lack of awareness of this problem is extremely
worrying. Save the Children Belgrade decided to focus on children and minors
and organized several workshops and round tables in schools in the capital and
the south of the country, working with Serbian and Albanian speaking students.
Aliriza Arenliu: We were working on raising
awareness amongst children between 12-14 years as well as with 15-18 year olds.
Talking to the children and our activists on the field, Roma information center
from Kragujevac, Center for children rights and Astra from Belgrade, we found
that children are not informed. They’ve heard about babies being stolen but
they don’t have a clear picture and awareness that there is a potential risk.
The year long
campaign launched by Save the Children in Serbia and Monte Negro in conjunction
with a couple of local NGOs is aimed at addressing the lack of awareness as
well as to push for a more aggressive approach to stop this trade. Jasminka
Milovanovic says that the aim is to develop effective preventive approaches to
child trafficking through joint activities with anti-trafficking local NGOs and
other agencies.
Jasminka Milovanovic: We tried and hopefully we will
succeed to galvanise the whole population, especially the kids and people that
are in contact with children to think
about the problem, to see that it’s not an isolated problem happening somewhere
else, but to realize that the problem could affect their kids, their neighbor’s
kids, children they see everyday.
Most experts see
little hope for children who become victims of trafficking. They emphasize that
chances for recovery or re-integration are very small. Sevtie Ahmeti of the
Prishtina based Centre for the Protection of women and children.
Sevtie Ahmeti: they are completely
traumatized children. They go out of control. Their attitude is completely
changed and they are brainwashed. Actually what needs to be done is changing
the attitude of behavior, changing the attitude of mimicries, gestures,
changing the language which needs time and concentration to focus. And the
worst part of it is the lack of education, prevention from attending school.
Then we need separate classes for them or any safe environment where they can
go to school.
Another problem in Kosovo, says psychologist Aliriza
Arenliu, the problem is that exist no adequate institutions to deal with this
issue.
Aliriza Arenliu: The institutions that are
supposed to deal with these questions, those competent, they are preoccupied
with other problems and have other priorities in their work. The main reason
for having this kind of situation is the lack of adequate expertise. This is a
new phenomenon in Kosovo and for the moment, Kosovo is stuck in this situation.
But there is no room for complacency warns Sevtija Ahmeti – all sections of society have to be involved in the fight against this growing phenomenon.
Sevtija Ahmeti: First of all the family has to
receive them as their children, not to treat them as being guilty. Secondly, no
prejudices towards them, which is very hard to achieve. Then we have to have
the involvement of social centers, the education Ministry. Also to bring to
court those who are the perpetrators and the clients.
An ambitious
agenda perhaps – but there is no other alternative if one really wants to save
the children.
And with that we end this edition of UNMIK ON AIR. Thanks
for listening.