Human trafficking & child prostitution on the rise for 2010 FIFA Soccer World Cup

Molo Songololo a orginasation who looks out for childrens rights and welfare says that child trafficking has picked up for the Soccer World Cup especially in Cape Town. It has spread from the streets to shabeens even in homes.

The people from the Sex Worker Union has said that they have noticed a large increase of underage sex workers on the street. It has also been noticed that people are selling children to get hold of the drug Crystal Meth or locally known as Tik. This has become a problem in the Western Cape as the drug plays havoc on the communities. Users loose sight to what is right and wrong, there has been reports of drug dealers taking young girls as payment. The street children is also taken advantage of because predators knows that these children are defenseless. The biggest way of how this will increase at the 2010 is that most people need money and with the downturn in the economy these syndicates can just say they can give a person a job during the world cup and that person would just disappear into the human trafficking world.

The schools will also be out during the World Cup and experts have been warning people to keep a close eye on their children. They have also warned that children who want to make pocket money during the world cup should be careful about who approaches them. They should also be careful in going to places without family.

This is a modern form of slavery where they enslave or by force or they intimidate and abuse or the most commonly used drug abuse. A person on drugs would do anything for their supplier. They enslave these people not with chains but with the mind. That is why it is so misunderstood and people must be much more vigilant in guarding our loved ones.

What tourists and visitors need to be aware of:
-   Visitors need to be made aware that South Africa is a ‘hotspot’ for human trafficking.
-   Tourists and visitors need to be aware of the expectations of those who come from desperately poor circumstances,  viewing 2010  as an opportunity to improve their members' economic conditions. These people are vulnerable. As there will be a natural attraction to the Host Cities to be part of the celebrations vulnerable people are open to exploitation.
-  Tourists may also lack information regarding the trafficking  of children for purposes of child labour  and sexual exploitation.
-  Prostitution is illegal in South Africa. However, very often  traffickers  intermingle trafficked girls among  local prostitutes.
-   Street children are particularly vulnerable to abuse.

How you can help
-    Awareness raising
Many are not sensitized to the reality of human trafficking around the globe. Target possible visitors to SA finding  ways to circulate information about the reality of human trafficking in Southern Africa and how the poor and destitute in the SADC region are used and abused and deprived of their human dignity.
Sr Melanie O’ Connor Co-ordinator from CTIP (Counter Trafficking in Persons)