Children Cost Less Than Cattle In India

It takes only Rs 500-2000 to buy a child and put him/her to work. Even a cow or a buffalo have a higher bid of Rs 20,000 on their lives. It is not only ironical that children 'cost' lesser than animals, it is a shame that they are traded like animals.

New Delhi, 22 March 2007: The South Asian March Against Child Trafficking with more than 120 core marchers including, 12-year-old Devli from Rajasthan, 13-year-old Rakesh from Bihar, 11-year-old Abdul from Nepal, 17-year-old Nagma from Bangladesh has reached Delhi covering more than 4,000 km through West Bengal, Bihar, Nepal, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand. Apart from being core marchers in the largest peoples' action against trafficking in the world, they have a common past. All were traded like animals and were forced to work in the worst inhuman conditions possible. It takes only Rs 500-2000 to buy a child and put him/her to work. Even a cow or a buffalo have a higher bid of Rs 20,000 on their lives. It is not only ironical that children 'cost' lesser than animals, it is a shame that they are traded like animals.

Today, the marchers joined by 5,000 supporters marched from Jantar Mantar to Parliament Street to submit their demands to the Parliamentarians. Leading the March was Devli, core marcher and former child labourer rescued by Bachpan Bachao Andolan, said, "My grandparents were trafficked to work in the stone quarries. My parents were born in the stone quarries, my brothers and I were born there. I did not know life beyond the stone quarry where we used to work and get beaten up. When I was rescued, I was given a banana. I had never seen a banana in my life before and thought it was a kind of potato. I now know the difference between a banana and a potato, but there are millions of children like me who are trafficked and enslaved. This March is for all those children like me. We want to end trafficking and slavery, join us to end these."

The South Asian March Against Child Trafficking organised by the Bachpan Bachao Andolan, supported by Global March Against Child Labour, UN agencies and local NGOs challenges the crime of human trafficking- the third largest illicit trade with revenues up to 32 billion USD every year.

"Until and unless human trafficking is demystified and brought out of the heavy development jargon and project paradigm, and made an issue of common man's understanding and ownership, this fast growing evil cannot be stopped," says Kailash Satyarthi, founder Bachpan Bachao Andolan and Chairperson, Global March Against Child Labour. He further urges, "The children themselves (victims of slavery and trafficking) have taken the first steps against trafficking. Now adults have to prove their genuine intentions now. We call upon you to put an end to this heinous crime against humanity, collectively."

Ad Melkert, Associate Administrator, UNDP's message read, "As we speak, an estimated 1.2 million children are victims of child trafficking ands slavery every year. Most of them are girls, unable to defend themselves. This is un-acceptable!"

Present at the culmination ceremony were Mr. Oscar Fernandes, Minister of Labour and Employment, Ms. Leyla Tegmo-Reddy, Director ILO SRO bringing a message the Director-General ILO, Juan Somavia, Mr. Geoffery Pyatt, Deputy Chief US Embassy, New Delhi, Members of Parliament, Ravi Prakash Verma, Ashok Argal, G V Harsha Kumar, Dr. Ram Lakhan Singh, Ramswaroop Koli, Prof. Jabir Husain, representatives of the UN agencies, NGOs, children and adults.

At the culmination ceremony, addressing the audience Mr. Oscar Fernandes said- "Trafficking for forced labour is a hidden issue but is rampant in the country. The ministry will take up this issue." He promised to support BBA and put forth the suggestions of the marchers when the amendment in Immoral Traffic Prevention Act, 1956 comes for discussion in the Parliament.  

Geoffrey Pyatt, the Deputy Chief, US Embassy, New Delhi said- "I had hosted the Global march in Pakistan in 1998 and now I have the opportunity to participate in the culmination ceremony of this March. I am with this cause that BBA has taken up and will put forth the issue of trafficking for forced labour."

Traffickers lure the parents with false promises of better future, education and chance to earn some extra money. They gain the parents' trust through a small payment. Once the child is out of sight of the parents, the children are taken to work. It is believed that trafficking occurs mainly for commercial sexual exploitation, but that is only a small proportion of 20% of entire trafficking. The rest of the 80% of trafficking is for forced labour- agricultural work, domestic work, in hotels and restaurants, factories, workshops, stone quarries, brick kilns, carpet making, etc.  

More than 10 lakh children, women and men have been touched by the South Asian March Against Child Trafficking making it the largest peoples' campaign. Hundreds of thousands of people on the streets have not only pledged support to the South Asian March Against Child Trafficking, but have also pledged to end trafficking of children and provide education to all children. The March Against Child Trafficking has successfully rescued scores of children from being trafficked along the route of the March and have helped police arrest the traffickers.