A French Charity, Zoe's Ark (L'Arche de Zoé) is accused of child trafficking in Chad. Chadian President Idriss Deby has even gone as far to accused the charity of accusing trying to take 103 children, to sell into the sex trade, and even sell their organs on the black market (according to a BBC news report).
The children where reportedly to be taken to France to live with some 50 families, who where waiting for the children's arrival. The children, who were all claimed to be Sudanese, although some are now suspected to be Chadian, all though final verifications and investigations are yet to be completed.are now in protective custody in Chad and will be return All the children are to be returned to their families.
France has stated that the charity was acting illegally, neither Chad nor Sudan, have legalized international adoptions. Although charity representatives state that the children where only to be placed in temporary host family situations, and that the move out of the country was to save their lives. Some media reported that the children , aged one to nine according to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) , were orphaned and sick and being evacuated to receive health care. One humanitarian worker in Chad told IRIN some of the children had bandaged limbs. However in later reports the UNHCR claimed the children were in good health, while the Chadian Minister of the Interior and Public Safety, Ahmat Mahamat Bachir, said that not all of the children were actually orphans.
What fate the children would have faced if transported out of Chad is still unknown. However in a day and age when the selling of humans, especially children, is becoming the worlds biggest business, one does not want to take any chances. The truth in this case may never be known, but in many ways it is a relief to see a government taking hard action to prevent possible trafficking, as in most cases children are not so lucky.
The French NGO staff of 6, 3 French journalist and 7 Spanish flight crew where placed under immediate arrest, and have today been formally charged, all could face a sentence of hard labor in Chad (French charity workers face kidnapping charges in Chad). The French charity workers where all charged with kidnapping, while the French journalist and the Spanish flight staff, where all charged with complicity (Chad charges aid workers with kidnapping).
A committee of 21 NGOs working in eastern Chad, including Save the Children, Oxfam, and Action against Hunger, has signed a joint statement expressing "profound concern" over the incident, which the committee calls a "serious violation" of the children's rights.
"Since our arrival in Chad, we have worked very closely with the Chadian and Sudanese communities to assure that their basic needs are met," the statement says. "We have always respected the rights of children in the communities we serve, and we will continue to integrate these fundamental principles into our work"(NGOs work to clear their name after child "trafficking').
Incidents of some mild violence against NGO's in the region, and the sheer scale of detriment that the case could cause to the international aid community, has prompted the EU to make a statement. 'this is an isolated incident, the result of irresponsible conduct,’ a spokesman for the EU's executive, the Commission, said (EU condemns “irresponsible” NGO in Chad orphan drama).
The story looks to be one of great international debate and uproar, however one can only hope that other stories of child trafficking can receive such public interest and outcry.
