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07.06.2006 General News

Miaso Moves To Stem Human Trafficking

07.06.2006 LISTEN
By Times

A committee to help check human trafficking has been inaugurated at Miaso in the Kwahu South District.

It was formed at the instance of the Ghana National Commission on Children (GNCC) following concerns raised about the increasing rate of human trafficking in the area,

Eastern Regional Minister, Yaw Barimah, in an address read on his behalf at a community sensitization programme on the human trafficking law, said that it was the government's desire to abolish human trafficking.

He said that 15 communities in the region had been identified by the regional secretariat of GNCC as being prone to child trafficking.

They are in the Asuogyaman, Manya Krobo, Fanteakwa, Kwaebibirem, New Juaben, New Abirem and Akuapem South districts. Children between ages seven and 17 in those areas, are traded to engage in cocoa farming, fishing, mining, or as herdsmen.

Mr. Yaw Barima said the passage of the Human Trafficking Act was to stem the widespread menace of child trafficking.

He therefore urged members of the communities to report all forms of human trafficking to the law enforcement agencies for appropriate action to be taken.

“The welfare of such children should be the prime concern of the people, rather than the punishment that would be meted out,” he stressed.

The Executive Secretary of GNCC, Peter Adufo, said poverty was not a licence for parents to give out their children for a work for a fee and jeopardize their future.

Anthony Dontoh, Regional Co-ordinator of GNCC, stressed the need for an effective collaboration among stakeholders, including NGOs, research institutions, opinion leaders, and other professionals to help eliminate this canker.

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