Missing persons organisations report an alarming increase in parents trafficking their own children, as Western Cape authorities confirm 27 trafficked victims sought help in recent months.
Image: File
As the spotlight continues on human trafficking in the country amid the case of kidnapped Joshlin Smith, missing persons organisations said they saw an increase in parents exploiting and selling their children.
The Western Cape Department of Social Development confirmed 27 possible victims of human trafficking accessed their psychosocial services during April to November 2024.
"Twenty-seven possible victims of human trafficking accessed DSD psychosocial services during the period of April to November 2024. Thirteen of these clients received a Letter of Recognition.
"A trafficking victim is someone who has gone through assessments and based on whether they meet certain criteria, will then receive a Letter of Recognition from the Western Cape Department of Social Development.
"They will then have access to services such as trafficking in persons shelters.”
They said the DSD-funded shelter services provide a safe space for victims of human trafficking where basic needs are met, as well as providing practical support, counselling, and skills development.
“Social workers from the department can also provide psychosocial support services to victims, and can do referrals to shelters,” they said.
Bianca van Aswegen, national co-ordinator and criminologist of Missing Children SA said there has been an increase in cases where parents were involved.
“We have unfortunately seen the increasing number of Human Trafficking cases in South Africa.
"Covid-19 and lockdown has played a significant role in this due to various reasons, such as job loss, poverty, economical difficulty.
"But with this said there are many other factors that also contribute to the increase.
"We have parents that are exploiting their own children as well as selling them to these trafficking groups, unwanted pregnancies, lack of financial assistance etc,” she said.
“Financial motive has the biggest role when it comes to trafficking as this is a lucrative industry that is money driven. It is a low risk high reward crime.
“Many trafficking cases do not get reported due to the fact that families themselves are involved with the exploitation or selling of a child.”
She also called for communities to become more vigilant when children were seen begging at street corners.
“We have cases where children are being exploited by their families for financial gain, such as exploiting them as a prostitute for extra income, same goes for forced labour where young boys may be used on farms for cheap labour,” she added.
“This exploitation is where a child still has a family and still goes back home after the fact of what they needed to do, but they are being exploited by their own family for financial gain.”
Van Aswegen said education around the issue was vital.
“As we are currently seeing with Joshlin Smith where court proceedings are under way and the accused are charged with kidnapping and human trafficking, we should not lose focus on the fact that Joshlin is still missing and yet to be found. We need to make sure that the children that are still missing are not forgotten.”
Joshlin’s mother, Raquel "Kelly" Smith, Jacquen “Boeta” Appollis and Steveno van Rhyn are on trial in Saldanha Bay and face charges of kidnapping and human trafficking.
Cape Argus
