Acting justly in the face of child traffickers
"Blessed are those who act justly, who always do what is right." Psalm 106:3
Child trafficking is a huge injustice. It deprives a child of their childhood, their potential and their dignity. It is also extremely harmful to a child’s wellbeing.
Thanks to people like Henry, a Compassion project coordinator in Ghana, children are being protected and their caregivers educated about the danger of child traffickers.
“I find child trafficking a great injustice so I have a passion for protecting children,” Henry explains. In the New Ningo region where Henry works, recruiters work to take children out of their protective home environments, preying on their vulnerability for the purpose of exploitation. “Most times, the people who come to recruit children come with a lot of lies. They come pretending to show interest in the welfare of the family. They promise the caregiver a lot of good things such as enrolling the child in school, and [that they] will bring them back during every holiday and send money to the family every month. But all these are not true,” Henry explains. In reality, children are often taken far from their homes so they are unable to find their way back. “On many occasions, some of these children die without their parents even getting to know. I want to be instrumental in ending the practice of child trafficking,” says Henry.
Henry and his team run meetings to educate caregivers on the activities of the human traffickers, “We know parents so well and this means our caregivers are fully informed on such issues,” Henry explains. Education is also given to the children and young people who attend the project, “We talk to children and young people and expose them to all they need to know about their rights. The youth are trained to be each other’s keepers. They watch out and know to report any time they suspect a child to be trafficked or abused.” Henry’s dream is that one day the community of New Ningo will be free of child traffickers altogether.
Prayer:
Heavenly Father, thank you for Henry and his team. We pray for their work in the community of New Ningo. May they see an end to child traffickers. We pray that the government of Ghana will take strong action to prevent child trafficking and protect children and their families. Amen.
