Children who go missing in India are exploited and abused for various purposes - exported as camel jockeys in the Gulf countries or victims of body organ trade and even grotesque cannibalism as reported at Nithari village in Noida. There are large numbers of children running away from homes after dropping out of school or facing difficulties at home. They run to the glamorous big cities where they are exploited and employed in tea stalls, brothels, begging, etc. These children come from poorer families who do not have access to police services or whose reports are not taken seriously. When a child goes missing in India no offence is seen to be committed. Police generate awareness through the media and the police headquarters of each state has a missing person bureau, but nevertheless trafficking is the fastest growing means by which people are enslaved. Stop the Traffic reports it as the fastest growing international crime. See also: 

An illegal market in children has developed in China. Babies are being openly sold online. Police say many of the victims are from the estimated 20,000 children abducted each year - a crime with a devastating impact on separated children and parents. Thousands of Chinese parents have their children abducted every year. The Chinese government provides no figures but the US State Department estimates 20,000 children are abducted annually, that is 400 a week. Chinese state media suggested the true figure could be 200,000 per year. A baby boy can sell for £10,500, that’s double the price for a girl because there is a traditional preference for boys in Chinese culture. Boys carry on the family name and provide financial support for elderly parents. Once abducted the children are most often sold for adoption but some are forced to work as beggars for criminal gangs. The vast majority of those abducted are simply lost forever. To read the disturbing story of one father searching for his lost son click the more button.

A majority of countries have adopted legislation to prohibit or place restrictions on the employment of children, much of it guided by standards adopted by the International Labour Organization (ILO). In spite of these efforts child labour continues to exist on a massive scale, in appalling conditions, particularly in the developing world. Progress has been slow,or even apparently non-existent because child labour is an immensely complex issue. In December an ILO project was approved to combat child labour in Vietnam, based on donations from the United States Department of Labour and the Government of Vietnam. The project will be implemented over five years in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, An Giang and other locations. It aims, among other things to, improve the monitoring and enforcement of laws and to raise awareness of child labour in Vietnam.

Children are especially vulnerable to malnutrition and diseases related to poor sanitation. With the breakdown of health systems there have been outbreaks of highly contagious diseases like measles and even polio. The lack of immunizations only adds to the dangers children face in a country at war. They are also extremely vulnerable to sexual exploitation. Many of the children have had no schooling for more than three years. The schools that do exist lack teachers. Many schools have been bombed and shut down. The horrific things children have witnessed and experienced have traumatized them with emotional scarring to last a lifetime. They are faced daily with nightmares and isolating behaviours that continue the cycle of damage.