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05 January 2005

U.S. "Horrified" at Child Trafficking in Tsunami Aftermath

State Department will work with government, NGO partners to combat it

Reports of rape, kidnapping and trafficking of children already victimized by the Indian Ocean tsunami are considered credible by the U.S. State Department, according to department spokesman Adam Ereli, who addressed the subject in a briefing January 5.

The United States is “horrified that thousands of children orphaned by this disaster are vulnerable to exploitation by criminal elements who seek to profit from their misery,” said Ereli. International organizations and nongovernmental organizations have warned about the risk to unprotected children in the current chaotic environment of the tsunami-affected region. 

Ereli commended the governments that have responded to the warning by alerting their publics to the dangers and working with law enforcement to detect and deter attempts to victimize children.

He also said the United States is working to raise awareness about the trafficking risk at camps where displaced and homeless people are gathering throughout the region. U.S. representatives will distribute guidelines to officials and volunteers in the camps recommending enhanced security measures to help prevent abductions or abuse.

An excerpt from the transcript of the State Department January 5 briefing follows:

(begin excerpt)

[U.S. Department of State]

[Washington, D.C]

Daily Press Briefing

Wednesday, January 5, 2005

1:00 p.m. EST

Briefer:  Adam Ereli, Deputy Spokesman

QUESTION:  On the issue of trafficking in children, have you yet -- has the State Department yet found any evidence to support the reports that this is happening there?

MR. ERELI:  I have something on it, if I can just -- we have seen, as have you, reports of rape, sexual abuse, kidnapping and trafficking in persons in the countries devastated by the tsunami.  We are appalled by these reports and are horrified that thousands of children orphaned by this disaster are vulnerable to exploitation by criminal elements who seek to profit from their misery.

I would note and commend actions taken by governments in the tsunami-affected countries to alert the public about the danger of human trafficking and to work with police and community officials to detect and deter trafficking cases and to protect the victims.  In particular, we are thankful to the Government of Indonesia for moving swiftly to halt international adoptions in the face of potential abuse.

For our part, we are coordinating with U.S. Government-funded NGOs in the region to assist in the return and repatriation of children.  We are also engaging organizations with expertise in family reunification.  We have also sent out an alert to all of our NGO partners that are in South and Southeast Asia, warning of the potential for human trafficking and asking them to spread the word among relief workers in Asia.  And we are offering guidelines to officials and volunteers in the region designed to minimize the risk of human trafficking in and around camps where displaced and homeless are gathering.

Some of those guidelines include:  Registering people who come to camps and ensuring security during their stays; ensuring proper security for the residents of the camp, especially women and children; and increasing the general awareness of camp workers about the potential and dangers of human trafficking and making them aware that the conditions that we're in now make trafficking a particular concern.

QUESTION:  Are there -- I'm sorry.  Can I just follow up?  Are there actual confirmed cases of this happening now? 

MR. ERELI:  I don't have a specific number to share with you.  I think that there are enough sufficient, credible reports for us to conclude that this is a real danger and that decisive action must be taken now to prevent abuse.  And I would also note that -- well, I'll leave it at that.

QUESTION:  Adam, are you pursuing this more vigorously with certain governments versus others; for instance, Thailand?  It has in the past -- or there are reports that it has, in the past, looked the other way, on, you know, the profession of child prostitution and so on and on.  And part of a decisive action, shouldn't there be some sort of a conference, an emergency conference, to make sure that they do abide by certain regulations on this thing?  Are you suggesting anything like this?

MR. ERELI:  I'm suggesting that we see a danger and we believe that it is important to -- that everyone in a position to stop this, act quickly to take the necessary action. 

With regard to the situation of trafficking in persons in the countries affected before this disaster, as I said yesterday, this is a regular and important subject in our bilateral dialogue.  As you know, we, every year, prepare a Trafficking in Persons Report that reviews what the situation is in the country and what -- more importantly -- what steps the country is taking to address these horrors.  And I refer you to the individual country reports for our assessment of the specific countries you might be interested in.

Yes, Saul.

QUESTION:  Just on the issue of any more countries stopping the international adoptions, can you explain why you think that's a good idea?  Because, on the one hand, you might think this is the time to be speeding up international adoptions because there are going to be more people who -- more children who need that kind of help.

MR. ERELI:  Yes, I --

QUESTION:  Is it that you need to put something -- a system in place to stop the criminals coming --

MR. ERELI:  Well, the concern is that, at this particular moment, in the immediate aftermath of the disaster, when there is a lot of confusion that it is important to put in place measures that prevent potential abuse and potential exploitation of a confused and relatively unregulated situation.  I'm not speaking for, as a general policy or for further in the future, but right now it's -- we are concerned that circumstances lend themselves to abuse, and proper action should be taken to prevent that.

(end excerpt)

(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)