Quake orphans sold into sex trade
Daily Times Monitor
Girls and boys orphaned by the October 8 earthquake are being targeted by gangs intent on turning them into prostitutes or street beggars, says a report in The Sunday Times.
Dean Nelson of the British newspaper traces the story of six-year-old Aisha, whose parents died in the quake. He reports that the woman who now takes care of her is a prostitute named Kausar who bought her from relatives for Rs 50,000. The Pakistani government has placed armed guards at all hospitals and ordered that no child is released to anyone until proof of kinship has been verified.
A complete ban on adoption was announced after hospitals and emergency shelters were besieged by people offering to take Kashmiri orphans. Staff at the PIMS hospital in Islamabad say a number of people posing as relatives were caught trying to abduct children.
But according to Manan Rana, a child protection officer working for UNICEF in Muzaffarabad, local government in Kashmir has collapsed and officials are unable to provide protection. After her home in a village called Arja was wrecked, Aisha was taken to her grandmother’s house in the nearby city of Bagh. Kausar, who claims the little girl is a distant relative, heard about her plight from family members.
“Her grandmother was too old to look after the girl. I went to Bagh on October 12 and I got her very cheap. A pimp from Lahore might have paid Rs 100,000,” she said.
“I will provide a good education for her. I would not like her to be a cheap, third-class prostitute. I do care about the girl. I will take good care of her, and then reap the benefit. I’m providing for her protection and I don’t care what Allah thinks.”
Kausar said she was earning about Rs 20,000 a month from prostitution, but could earn thousands more from Aisha. She will sell the girl’s virginity to the highest bidder when she reaches puberty and expects to get up to Rs 200,000 for that alone. “She could start work as soon as she has her first period,” Kausar said.
If Aisha refuses to work as a prostitute, she will be sold to a pimp, Kausar said. She may sell Aisha sooner if she is offered Rs 100,000, but she would not pass her on to whites or non-Muslims, she said, and she would not consider any intervention by The Sunday Times.
“After being interviewed, Kausar vanished into Islamabad’s vice world, taking Aisha’s future with her,” says the writer. Other children are being sold for adoption by their parents in acts of desperation prompted by the destruction of homes and livelihoods, the paper reports. The family of Summaya, 7, managed to escape the destruction of their house in Muzaffarabad, but her parents now plan to sell her for adoption so that they can buy a new one.
Her mother, Rafia, 38, said they were hoping a good family would pay Rs 250,000 for her and would allow them to visit her.
“My husband is a daily wage labourer and he’s been selling blood for Rs 400 a pint,” said Rafia. “If our problems are resolved, we will not sell the girl. I love her. I know another family will never be able to give the love a real mother can, but we have to compromise.”
Mohammad Hassan Mangi, director of Pakistan’s National Commission for Child Welfare and Development, said the government had set aside funds to make sure every family affected could rebuild their home. He asked to be put in contact with Summaya’s family.
“The government is giving $10,000 (about Rs 56,500) compensation for each person killed in the quake. If this woman is affected, she will definitely get a home,” he said.
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2005%5C10%5C24%5Cstory_24-10-2005_pg7_9
Daily Times Monitor
Girls and boys orphaned by the October 8 earthquake are being targeted by gangs intent on turning them into prostitutes or street beggars, says a report in The Sunday Times.
Dean Nelson of the British newspaper traces the story of six-year-old Aisha, whose parents died in the quake. He reports that the woman who now takes care of her is a prostitute named Kausar who bought her from relatives for Rs 50,000. The Pakistani government has placed armed guards at all hospitals and ordered that no child is released to anyone until proof of kinship has been verified.
A complete ban on adoption was announced after hospitals and emergency shelters were besieged by people offering to take Kashmiri orphans. Staff at the PIMS hospital in Islamabad say a number of people posing as relatives were caught trying to abduct children.
But according to Manan Rana, a child protection officer working for UNICEF in Muzaffarabad, local government in Kashmir has collapsed and officials are unable to provide protection. After her home in a village called Arja was wrecked, Aisha was taken to her grandmother’s house in the nearby city of Bagh. Kausar, who claims the little girl is a distant relative, heard about her plight from family members.
“Her grandmother was too old to look after the girl. I went to Bagh on October 12 and I got her very cheap. A pimp from Lahore might have paid Rs 100,000,” she said.
“I will provide a good education for her. I would not like her to be a cheap, third-class prostitute. I do care about the girl. I will take good care of her, and then reap the benefit. I’m providing for her protection and I don’t care what Allah thinks.”
Kausar said she was earning about Rs 20,000 a month from prostitution, but could earn thousands more from Aisha. She will sell the girl’s virginity to the highest bidder when she reaches puberty and expects to get up to Rs 200,000 for that alone. “She could start work as soon as she has her first period,” Kausar said.
If Aisha refuses to work as a prostitute, she will be sold to a pimp, Kausar said. She may sell Aisha sooner if she is offered Rs 100,000, but she would not pass her on to whites or non-Muslims, she said, and she would not consider any intervention by The Sunday Times.
“After being interviewed, Kausar vanished into Islamabad’s vice world, taking Aisha’s future with her,” says the writer. Other children are being sold for adoption by their parents in acts of desperation prompted by the destruction of homes and livelihoods, the paper reports. The family of Summaya, 7, managed to escape the destruction of their house in Muzaffarabad, but her parents now plan to sell her for adoption so that they can buy a new one.
Her mother, Rafia, 38, said they were hoping a good family would pay Rs 250,000 for her and would allow them to visit her.
“My husband is a daily wage labourer and he’s been selling blood for Rs 400 a pint,” said Rafia. “If our problems are resolved, we will not sell the girl. I love her. I know another family will never be able to give the love a real mother can, but we have to compromise.”
Mohammad Hassan Mangi, director of Pakistan’s National Commission for Child Welfare and Development, said the government had set aside funds to make sure every family affected could rebuild their home. He asked to be put in contact with Summaya’s family.
“The government is giving $10,000 (about Rs 56,500) compensation for each person killed in the quake. If this woman is affected, she will definitely get a home,” he said.
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2005%5C10%5C24%5Cstory_24-10-2005_pg7_9
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