Children not in school....ever!

Report from trafficking

The pictures on this site of the young women here in Cambodia show a… clear and present danger…that many of Cambodia’s most promising and desperate will be caught in the seduction of a life insuring wealth and freedom. What actually happens is much worse as they get “trapped” in the city to become the slaves of traffickers of children as young as ten and eleven.

 Children in this country are increasingly vulnerable and remain at risk of becoming victims of sexual predators. This is because of the weak court system and the ease with which predators can come and go throughout Cambodia with little chance of facing a Cambodian judge.

 Children between 11 and 14 have a 30 percent chance of becoming victims of assault according to the human rights NGO (Non-Governmental Organization) Adhoc. A contributing factor in this dilemma is the level of poverty in Cambodia. Many children are forced from the rural provinces to find work in Phnom Penh and when these young girls arrive in the city they are easily exploited. There are countless girls who are enticed to come to the city by friends in their own village. Once in the city the “friend” sells the girl and she becomes a taxi girl for prostitution. They truly become slaves as they get caught up in a chain of events filled with deception and despair.

 Sometimes the young girls travel to far away villages and work in the rice paddies in hopes of sending their money back to their families. But the promise of big money continues to bait them to the city life.

According to Adhoc, the NGO for human rights in Cambodia, research about 55 percent of the underage females in Cambodia are living away and separated from their families for one reason or another.

 Most of these girls and young women came from poverty and live in poverty. They have little or no education as well as no experience in dealing with these influences they encounter. They almost never complain because it is against Khmer custom that teaches women not to speak out about something bad. They don’t complain because they would become outcasts and would become discriminated against.

 Your financial contributions will help give these girls a share of the good life and an opportunity to get out of life’s dustbin. The women will be offered a fair salary as well as housing and their contribution to Cambodia will be twofold. They will have to volunteer in a hospital or an orphanage for 25/30 hours per week and they will have to develop skills by staying enrolled in school to improve their language in either Khmer or English.