02-03-2010, 02:01 AM
[url="http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Child-traffickers-from-North-East-set-up-base-in-Tamil-Nadu/articleshow/5500852.cms"]Child traffickers from North-East set up base in Tamil Nadu[/url]
CHENNAI: Hundreds of children from the northeastern states are being trafficked by well-networked groups, who have found a safe haven in Tamil Nadu. The rescue of 76 malnourished children, from Manipur and Assam, from a home at Kuzhithurai in Kanyakumari district this week is only the tip of a vast network, which receives crores of rupees from churches and agencies abroad by showing a large number of children under their ââ¬Åcareââ¬Â.
Children from Manipur, especially those belonging to the Kuki tribe, are targeted by traffickers masquerading as evangelists and missionaries as people in the insurgency-hit areas are willing to send off their children if they are promised a good education.
ââ¬Â¦
The children aged six to 15 are kept in pathetic conditions and are often made to do jobs like carpentry, cooking and laundry. There have even been cases of children dying under suspicious circumstances and some being molested and abused.
Incidentally, a majority of homes charged with trafficking are run by missionaries or evangelical societies. ââ¬ÅThese institutions exploit religion to make money. With many of them not registered with the government, the homes escape scrutiny,ââ¬Â says Vidya Reddy of Tulir, Centre for Prevention and Healing of Child Sexual Abuse.
CHENNAI: Hundreds of children from the northeastern states are being trafficked by well-networked groups, who have found a safe haven in Tamil Nadu. The rescue of 76 malnourished children, from Manipur and Assam, from a home at Kuzhithurai in Kanyakumari district this week is only the tip of a vast network, which receives crores of rupees from churches and agencies abroad by showing a large number of children under their ââ¬Åcareââ¬Â.
Children from Manipur, especially those belonging to the Kuki tribe, are targeted by traffickers masquerading as evangelists and missionaries as people in the insurgency-hit areas are willing to send off their children if they are promised a good education.
ââ¬Â¦
The children aged six to 15 are kept in pathetic conditions and are often made to do jobs like carpentry, cooking and laundry. There have even been cases of children dying under suspicious circumstances and some being molested and abused.
Incidentally, a majority of homes charged with trafficking are run by missionaries or evangelical societies. ââ¬ÅThese institutions exploit religion to make money. With many of them not registered with the government, the homes escape scrutiny,ââ¬Â says Vidya Reddy of Tulir, Centre for Prevention and Healing of Child Sexual Abuse.