#ChildProtectionWeek: Department urges parents, caregivers to join fight against child trafficking

THE Department of Social Development has urged South African parents and caregivers to remain vigilant and report cases of child trafficking.

This follows the launch of Child Protection Week on Sunday under the theme, “Let us all Protect Children during Covid-19 and beyond”.

According to the national department spokesperson, Lumka Oliphant, many children in the country have been victims of different forms of abuse, including child trafficking, and government and South Africans have a collective responsibility to protect them. 

“According to the 2018 United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime report titled, Global Report on Trafficking in Persons, it was estimated that children comprise almost a third of all human trafficking victims worldwide, with women and girls comprising 71 per cent of human trafficking victim,” said Oliphant.

She said in its effort to protect children against child trafficking, the South African Government promulgated the Prevention and Combating of Trafficking in Persons Act, 2013.

ALSO READ: Child Protection Week: A call to end violence against children

“The Act defines perpetrators of trafficking in persons as any person who delivers, recruits, transports, transfers, harbours, sells, exchanges, leases or receives another person within or across the borders of the Republic, by means of among other things; a threat of harm, the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, abuse of vulnerability; abduction and kidnapping,”’ she said.

The Department of Social Development provides alternative care by placing children, who are victims of child trafficking, in Child and Youth Care Centres (CYCCs).

Oliphant added that to prevent child trafficking, parents and caregivers are encouraged to monitor children’s behaviour, especially, the usage of cell phones and other gadgets as traffickers also use technology to attract and groom their targets.

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