Child trafficking cases on rise in Karnataka; court delay adds to trauma

Bengaluru: Karnataka has seen a steady increase in child trafficking cases between the years 2014 and 2016, but with a huge backlog of cases in courts justice is often delayed.

These and many other facts were thrown up at a workshop organised for journalists by two websites on Wednesday in the city to focus on the flesh trade involving children, which is not as yet widely reported in the media.

Addressing the workshop were trafficking and migration issues researcher , Roop Sen and trafficking and slavery correspondent of Thomson Reuters, Anuradha Nagaraj.

Pointing out that investigating organised crime syndicates involved in trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation of children (CESC) required considerable time and resources, Ms Sen said this was why journalists working under tight deadlines did not venture deeper into the issue.

It was also noted that the media in course of time had slipped into the mode of merely reporting raids and busts by various law agencies, giving the issue very little significance.

The workshop underlined the need for the media take a more serious approach to child trafficking and observed that the nexus between the police and politicians only aggravated the situation Also present was Mrs. Ramadevi, a survivor - turned social worker/ activist from the Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh who now actively takes part in sting operations to rescue those sold in the flesh market.

The scope of CESC is not limited to sexual abuse but also incorporates paid sexual services, sexual assault, sexual harassment and child pornography , a cognizable offence under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, (POCSO), 2012.